After 7 wonderful weeks in the Netherlands and surrounding areas, we landed safely in Suriname last week. It was very nice to meet a lot of people and see how they are doing. On Friday, November 8, during our fundraising dinner we briefly reflected on the fact that we left for Suriname with our 3 children 35 years ago. It was so nice to review some photos from the past.

This week is filled with preparations for our trip to Lawa next Tuesday. The boxes with groceries are filling up steadily. Preparations are also underway for the first Foundations for Farming introductory training at the expertise center in the making on Friday 22 and Saturday 23 November.

We have had several rain showers last week, but it is still very dry inland. This means that the water level is so low that Chinese supermarkets can no longer be supplied. This means that the Wayana cannot buy rice. Next Friday, MAF will fly a plane full rice to Lawa. Other organizations are also working on food aid since the drought also affects the growth of the cassava.

Suriname celebrates its Independence Day on Monday November 25 and the next day we fly to Lawa. We hope to be there until December 16th. We look forward to meeting the people again. To hear from Ame and Susina how their English is going. To learn from municipal leaders what plans they have for next year. We would also like to hear from them how they plan to move forward with their vision to reach out to the First Nations in Canada. And we would like to learn how we can support them.

At the end of October, a whole group of Wayana and Tareno planned to go to Brazil for 3 months to evangelize and encourage the churches in the Amazon jungle. Due to the presence of soldiers in the area they plan to go, they have not yet left. There is no clarity yet on when they will be able to go, so everyone in the group is ‘stand by’.

Recently, a great project was started via Trans World Radio (TWR) to build two local radio stations in the interior of Suriname. Trio programs will soon be produced in Tepu and broadcasted, in Apetina Wayana programs. The studios have been built, the antennas are now being installed, charged by solar panels. Tom Schoen, whose father translated the Wayana Bible, grew up in Apetina as a child. He now works for TWR to supervise this project. This video beautifully portrays their family history.