Dear Friends of Sarnelli House!
Thank you for the all the prayers and donations for the children of Sarnelli House! The kids just finished their first semester of school, save for the college kids, who will study until New Year, and then have their semester break. One of the college students is our own Brother Keng, who is taking an advanced course in Education. Fr. Ole will be going on to further study in a few years as well. As for me, I am still studying the possibilities of the Green Bay Packers returning to the Super Bowl!
We had a really bad accident here nearly three weeks ago. The farm workers and boys were butchering a pig. They were pulling the dead pig to the butchering area, when the pig’s leg got wedged behind a pipe pillar. One of our boys, Teep, lost his grip and slipped on the muddy floor, and fell backwards into a big cauldron of boiling water. His arms, back and buttocks were badly scalded. He is now in the burn unit at the University Hospital in KhonKaen. For a while, he had some signs of heart failure and fluid in his lungs. We paid for special I.V., and are also paying for special packing, since he is showing signs of an infection. It will be touch and go for a while. Everyone feels so bad, since Teep is a big, good natured kid, who although a tad slow, is a good worker. Teep also has AIDS, which compounds his problems. Please pray for the boy.
A 13 year old girl came to us from Laos. She had been in a bad car accident a few years back, and something penetrated her bladder (and womb), and she could not hold her urine. Miss “Bee” is a lovely, brave little creature, and we took her to the University Hospital and doctors there operated on her. She now uses a Cather, but in a week or so will find out if she can hold her urine. That would be a pretty big deal for a girl going to school and being normal. We pray the surgery will work. She is looking forward to going back to school (eighth grade in America).
Despite the crazy weather patterns, we are getting enough rain for our rice. We got rid of our “Big grain” rice, which takes nearly 6 months to harvest, and bought a new strain of rice, which matures in 90 days or so. It is not miracle rice, but a strain that gives a big kernel. We thank God for our fertilizer maker, which turns cow manure into compact pieces the size of a .22 long rifle. Our fish ponds are full of water, and we have to clear out some vegetation that is growing in the water, and then re-plant fish. Our cattle are doing well and have plenty of grass, and our mama pigs are cranking out 10-12 piglets each, and we buy litters of piglets every once and a while. So what with ducks and their eggs, and chickens, we have food enough for the children. We are now plowing the gardens and getting them ready for planting vegetables and fruit. Once the rains die down, the kids will be planting all kinds of stuff.
Again, we thank you and may the good Lord and His Mother bless you! We pray for you and yours daily.
Father Mike
