The Starfish Story by Loren Eiseley

Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”

The young man paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”

“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, “It made a difference for that one.”

Statistics Have Names

When we first began working in Uganda in 2003, we were overwhelmed by the statistics!  There are  millions of orphans.  We weren’t sure how we could possibly begin to make a dent in the problems of Africa, but then we were reminded of the starfish story.  We are not called or capable of helping all of the hurting children or people of the world, but we are capable of helping one child at a time.  We are capable of loving one widowed grandma at a time. So, that is what we have done!  Together, we have helped hundreds of children. 

Before we stepped up to make a difference in their lives, they were working as prostitutes, working as slaves, living on water for days at a time.  They were not learning to read or write.  They didn’t know what it meant to be loved.  For some of these children, the sun was up and the tide was going out.  They were headed for death!

Now many children have been rescued off of the streets and from life circumstances that most of us can’t even possibly imagine!  There are still many more children that are within our reach.  We can pick them up and give them a chance at life.  We can let them know  they aren’t alone and that someone truly cares for them. 

Thank you in advance for helping!

Mike and Lori Salley
Show Mercy International
www.showmercy.org

 

 

We want to introduce you to some “starfish” that need someone to pick them up!

Would you consider helping them today?

Bryan is a 11 year old boy who was rejected by his father as soon as his mother gave birth to him. His father ended up dying from AIDs, and his mother remarried. His stepfather didn’t treat him well, and his mother had a hard time providing for him so he was brought to Hope Children’s Home. Bryan likes living at Hope because he can sleep in a bed. His favorite color is red, his favorite subject is science. With your sponsorship of Bryan, you will help him receive the education he needs to fulfill his dreams of becoming a doctor. Click here to help Bryan.

Anna is a 7 year old little girl who lives with her parents in a village in Uganda close to Hope Children’s Home. Anna is fortunate in that she has both her mother and father who love her. She tells us that she “loves them so much” because they never beat her up. Can you imagine? Both of her parents travel to the city of Kampala to work to support the family. Even so, her parents are very poor and cannot afford to provide a quality education for Anna. Anna’s favorite food is rice served with beef and her favorite color is red. Your sponsorship of Anna will provide her with a school uniform, school fees and a healthy meal for lunch during the school year. Let Anna know she is loved and supported today.  Click here to help Anna.

(Mike just returned early from his trip to Uganda.  This was an update he sent after he had been there for a few days.  There are more updates coming in the next few days as well.)

 

Our trip to Uganda is off to a great start. I am here with two other friends, Randy Varga and Doug Banks. Our primary mission is to work with Engineering Missionaries International, who have sent 8 engineers from the US and UK to fully design and help layout our Field of Dreams project. (to read more about this project, click here)

 

 The EMI team is volunteering their time and talents to help see the mission of Show Mercy realized. We are so excited about the plans/drawings we are already seeing presented. Our 25 acres of land will be a place of excellence and is such a vital part of our expanding mission in Uganda. 

 

The first few days were spent talking about the heart and vision for this project as well as working on a full survey of the entire property and building design. Here are a few things on our heart to accomplish with this project.

 

 (Click on the pictures to see a larger version.  First picture is aerial view of 10 acres with our potential layout)

 

 Houses for Long-term Volunteers (we currently have 2 families preparing to leave this summer.  We will be posting more information about them, but you can click here to find out more.)

 

Housing for Short-term Teams You can see a sample picture of the short term visitor cottages in the bottom left picture.

Children’s Cottages – Our heart is to raise up leaders and work with children one on one. (Click on the pictures to see a larger version.  First picture is aerial view of 10 acres with our potential layout)

Training Hall – in the near future, we plan on providing opportunities for people to volunteer a month – two months at a time.  While they are volunteering with Show Mercy and reaching out to the poor, there will also be organized times of encouragement, training and teaching from our staff and guest speakers.

 Medical Clinic – This clinic will help the medical teams and long-term medical staff to reach out to the village as well as the Show Mercy children. 

Say No To Hunger Program-pictured to the right (we have been gathering hungry children from the village to serve them a meal, but most of all giving them love and encouragement; click here to read more about this exciting project)

 Agricultural projects – we will be growing food and raising chickens and/or livestock.

 

We expect to begin building soon after the designs are completed!  We are so excited about this project!

There is still time for you to get involved!  If you were inspired or stirred after reading about the many different aspects of the Field of Dreams, please considering donating to help us bring it to completion.  Every dollar will make a difference and help to us touch many many lives! To donate towards this project, click here. 

More updates coming soon!

 

Mike Salley
Show Mercy International
www.showmercy.org