Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY200006A
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00:01 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:19 Removing pain 00:24 Lord, let my words 00:30 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:46 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:09 Hello, and welcome to another 3ABN Today program. 01:12 I'm Jason Bradley, 01:13 and I'm so glad that you could join us. 01:15 I am going to be talking 01:18 with guests from FARM STEW International. 01:21 We have Joy Kauffman, 01:22 who is the founder and executive director 01:25 of FARM STEW International. 01:26 Welcome. Thank you so much. 01:28 You're welcome. We have Dr. Frederick Nyanzi. 01:32 Did I say that right? 01:33 That's right. All right. 01:35 And he is a board member for FARM STEW International, 01:38 and we have Cherri Olin, who is the executive assistant 01:42 for FARM STEW International. 01:45 I'm so glad that you guys could make it 01:47 and that we have this opportunity 01:49 to sit down together. 01:51 I've checked out your ministry, of course, Joy. 01:53 I've talked to you on multiple occasions 01:56 and you're no stranger to 3ABN. 01:58 You've been here before. 01:59 That's been a blessing. Yes. 02:01 And you as well, Doctor. 02:02 Yes. Yes. 02:04 And this is your first time, Cherri. 02:06 Yes, it is. 02:08 Yeah, so we are... 02:09 I am happy to have you here, 02:11 and I know our viewers are as well. 02:13 Before we dive deep into what FARM STEW is all about 02:17 and a little bit your background 02:19 and upbringing and all of that, 02:21 we're gonna be blessed in song. 02:23 And our song is coming from Jaime Jorge 02:26 and it's entitled, "El Shaddai." 02:42 Okay, if you clapped, you have to sing. 02:44 El shaddai, el shaddai 02:49 El-elyon na adonia 02:54 Age to age you're still the same 02:58 By the power of the name 03:03 El shaddai, el shaddai, 03:07 Erkamka na adonai 03:12 We will praise and lift you high 03:17 El shaddai. 03:21 Through your love and through the ram 03:26 You saved the son of Abraham 03:30 And by the power of your hand 03:35 Turned the sea into dry land 03:40 To the outcast on her knees 03:44 You were the God who really sees 03:50 By your might You set your children free 03:58 El shaddai, el shaddai 04:02 El-elyon na adonia 04:07 Age to age you're still the same 04:11 By the power of the name 04:16 El shaddai, el shaddai 04:20 Erkamka na adonai 04:25 We will praise and lift you high 04:30 El shaddai 04:34 Through the years you've made it clear 04:39 That the time of Christ was near 04:44 Though the people failed to see 04:48 What Messiah ought to be 04:52 And though your word contained the plan 04:57 They just could not understand 05:02 Your most awesome work was done 05:06 Through the frailty of your son 05:13 El shaddai, el shaddai 05:18 El-elyon na adonai 05:22 Age to age you're still the same 05:27 By the power of the name 05:32 El shaddai, el shaddai 05:36 Erkamka na adonai 05:41 We will praise and lift you high 05:46 El shaddai 05:50 We will praise and lift you high 05:55 El shaddai 06:07 Wow, what a beautiful song. 06:08 Thank you Jaime Jorge for that. 06:12 I'm looking forward to hearing about your story. 06:15 Well, I praise God for my story 06:17 because it's His story really working through me 06:20 and I've been passionate about malnutrition 06:23 since I was a young child. 06:25 But I didn't know 06:27 about the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 06:29 I didn't know plant-based people 06:30 even though I felt convicted 06:32 to become a vegetarian at age nine. 06:33 Oh, what, at age nine? 06:35 What brought about that conviction? 06:37 I just loved animals, and I just couldn't eat them. 06:41 It was just as simple as that. 06:43 But I looked forward to the Second Coming of Jesus 06:46 from being a young child. 06:47 And when I... 06:49 It took me a while to find the Adventist Church really, 06:52 I didn't really meet a real Adventist 06:54 until I met Cherri 06:55 when I was already almost a little over 40. 06:58 Oh, okay. 06:59 So I'm excited to have Cherri on the call here today 07:02 and are on the show 07:04 and really to be able to tell her story 07:06 of successful friendship evangelism. 07:08 Wow! Friendship... 07:09 Now break that down, friendship evangelism. 07:12 What is that, just witnessing to somebody else, 07:15 is that befriending somebody else? 07:17 And how does that work? 07:18 It's letting God use you. 07:20 I know when I went to where Joy and I met 07:23 was at a child education class for children 07:29 when they were young. 07:30 And so when I walked in, 07:32 Joy just happened to be smiling and I said hi, 07:35 and the friendship sparked and we lost touch. 07:39 And so through that it was just sharing my faith, 07:42 but also befriending her 07:43 when whatever she needed anything. 07:45 I was just like, 07:46 "Oh, well, okay, I can help you." 07:48 And it just grew from there. 07:51 Nice. Nice. And so... 07:54 Okay, so nine years old vegetarian or vegan. 07:58 And then you guys ended up meeting later on in life, 08:02 friendship evangelism. 08:04 Now you're in the Adventist Church. 08:06 Okay. Yeah. 08:07 And it's so exciting because when I first heard 08:10 about some of the ideas, 08:12 they were so different 08:13 in terms of the Christian convictions. 08:15 I mean, I was a Christian, 08:16 but there were some very different ideas 08:18 in the Adventist Church. 08:19 And I kind of thought 08:20 some of her ideas were a little crazy. 08:22 It took me a lot of time and study with my pastor 08:25 to really understand the truth that we teach. 08:29 But then when I had the idea to go to Africa in 2015, 08:33 she thought I was a little crazy. 08:35 I thought she was very nut. 08:37 I said, "Why do you want to leave your kids 08:38 and go somewhere that's dangerous. 08:40 Stay with your kids." 08:42 So you guys kind of switched? 08:45 We switched roles. 08:46 Got you, got you. 08:48 And so, Dr. Fred, 08:49 tell me a little bit about your background? 08:53 Now, I am originally from Uganda. 08:56 Okay. 08:57 I grew up in Uganda. 08:59 I came to US to study at Loma Linda University. 09:04 Now at that time, I was... 09:08 After I finished, really I went to Loma Linda Foods 09:11 to work there as a nutritionist. 09:14 And then after working there for about five years, I said, 09:18 there should be something which we can do 09:20 because in Uganda, people are malnourished, 09:23 not because they don't have raw materials, 09:25 but because they don't know how to grow the food, 09:29 which are nutritious. 09:31 And I say, "How can I be of an impact 09:35 to our country there." 09:37 And also at that time, 09:39 I realized that Loma Linda Foods 09:40 were producing invitational food products, 09:45 nutritious food products, 09:48 which are out of their plant sources. 09:49 I say well, let me go and study, 09:52 so I went to Colorado State and studied there 09:56 about how to manufacture formulate these food products. 10:01 Wow! 10:02 Now so far I haven't done 10:05 where I could go and implement what I learned, 10:08 but I was volunteering 10:11 at Adventist community center. 10:16 And there was someone 10:17 who had attended one of the conferences here 10:20 and Joy presented. 10:25 And when he came back, he asked me, 10:27 "Do you know FARM STEW?" 10:28 And I said, "What is that?" 10:30 He said, "It's in Uganda." 10:31 And I said, "In Uganda? 10:33 I've never heard of it." 10:35 Then I wanted to contact her, but before I did, 10:40 I realized that we are gonna have her 10:42 on our Uganda-American Adventist Association Committee 10:48 in Chicago, right? 10:51 Right. 10:53 And then that's where she told me about it 10:56 and she asked me whether I would like to join, 10:59 and then I did agree, so here I am. 11:03 Wow. Wow. 11:04 So you caught the vision? 11:06 Amen. Yes. 11:07 Well, and the cool thing is God has planted this vision 11:10 in the hearts of several 11:11 of our board members have the same story 11:13 where they were already doing work 11:16 in this type of field. 11:17 And they were yearning for something more 11:19 where we would really combine the physical 11:21 and the spiritual together. 11:23 And I think that's something unique 11:24 about FARM STEW. 11:25 We're reaching the most basic spiritual needs. 11:27 But... 11:29 I'm sorry, basic physical needs, 11:30 but we're doing in a spiritual Bible infused way. 11:34 So I think that really helped Dr. Fred 11:36 and some of our other board members just capture it. 11:39 Nice. 11:40 So, you know, and talking about FARM STEW, 11:43 what's the mission? 11:45 So our mission is to be 11:47 what we call a recipe for abundant life. 11:49 And so, you know, Jesus in John 10:10, 11:52 He says that He is here that we may have life 11:55 and have it more abundantly. 11:57 But the first part of the verse also is important. 12:00 It's that the thief comes to kill, steal, and destroy. 12:04 And so right there in one verse, John 10:10, 12:06 you have the great controversy. 12:08 So I've gone out to many other Christian organizations. 12:12 I'm teaching them about the great controversy 12:14 through that one verse. 12:15 Wow. 12:17 And what we want to do is 12:18 create an environment 12:19 for even the poorest of people in the world 12:21 to be able to combat hunger, disease, 12:24 and poverty in their community, 12:26 and to equip them so that they can show 12:28 that Jesus desire can be realized 12:31 in the here and now. 12:32 They can have an abundant life. 12:33 And so that's how it's being fulfilled? 12:35 Amen. Yes. 12:37 And you guys have a global impact? 12:40 Yeah, we have. 12:42 We started little, little. 12:44 Okay. 12:45 I was over there on a trip that was funded 12:46 by the United States Agency for International Development 12:49 on just a three-week mission trip. 12:51 It was mission for me. 12:53 I met Adventists there. 12:55 They actually converted me. 12:56 They caused me to finally get in the baptismal waters 12:59 because I wanted to be part of this global family of faith. 13:01 Yes. 13:03 They inspired me. 13:04 And so we started in Uganda. 13:06 God just showed me that the training 13:08 that I was bringing needed to be continued. 13:11 Even when I had to go home 13:12 and like Cherri said had to go back 13:14 and take care of my own children. 13:16 I felt like there's children dying here. 13:18 Yes. 13:19 And there's local people committed, 13:21 Seventh-day Adventist Christians 13:23 that can do this just as well 13:24 or better actually than I can 13:26 'cause they can do it in the local language, 13:28 knowing the culture, everything. 13:30 So we hired five people originally. 13:33 Now that has expanded 13:34 to where we have four teams in three countries. 13:37 And we're going to be launching in a fourth country 13:40 later this month in Rwanda in partnership 13:42 with our medical school in Rwanda, 13:46 the world's seventh Adventist medical school. 13:49 Wow! So yes. 13:50 We are very, very excited about what God is doing. 13:52 That's huge. 13:54 So you guys have been growing, and growing, and growing, 13:56 and God's just been blessing the ministry. 13:58 What does FARM STEW stand for? 14:01 So it's an acronym. 14:02 Okay. 14:04 And it's similar to some other health message acronyms 14:06 that our church has helped make famous all over the world 14:09 and has helped people 14:11 all over the world get healthier, 14:12 but our acronym is a little bit different. 14:15 You can see we start with the letter farming. 14:17 Okay. 14:18 Like you said, 14:20 there's beautiful climates in a lot of these places, 14:21 but people don't know how to grow the food. 14:24 So farming, attitude, rest, and meals is FARM. 14:28 STEW is sanitation, temperance, enterprise, and water. 14:32 Nice. 14:33 So these are what we call the eight ingredients 14:36 in the recipe for abundant life. 14:37 That's incredible. 14:39 Now why would you say that temperance is so important? 14:43 So temperance, we know self-control 14:46 is one of the most important characteristics 14:47 to success in life. 14:49 Anywhere globally, we need self-control. 14:52 Our message is a little bit expanded to that 14:55 because we consider not only the substances 14:58 that people abuse, 15:00 but also we talk about sexual temperance. 15:03 If you think of the continent of Africa, 15:05 AIDS is still raging. 15:07 And so we need to really address the biblical sexuality. 15:11 And we do so in a variety of ways 15:13 in the context of these communities 15:16 and also in the context of helping young girls 15:19 who are struggling to stay in school 15:22 because they don't have what they need 15:23 for their menstrual hygiene. 15:25 We help them with sharing a biblical sexuality, hygiene, 15:29 and we also equip them with... 15:31 That's a whole another subject, 15:32 but we equip them with what they need 15:34 to be able to stay in school. 15:35 Wow. Wow. 15:37 So you guys are meeting a lot of different needs? 15:39 It's a packed acronym. 15:41 Yes. Yes, absolutely. 15:43 And we have a video, correct? 15:45 Yeah. 15:46 Let's take a two-minute quick trip to Africa. 15:48 That would be awesome to get to see it live. 15:51 Yes. Let's go there now. 16:01 In Sub-Saharan Africa, 16:02 one in three children is severely malnourished. 16:07 People are suffering from diseases 16:09 that they can prevent 16:11 with simple habits and healthy food. 16:15 They don't know about sanitation. 16:19 Education is a necessity. 16:22 Kids have no hope of a better future. 16:35 But Jesus came to this world, 16:37 so we can have life and have it more abundantly. 16:41 FARM STEW is a recipe for abundant life. 16:46 That includes ingredients 16:47 that prevent hunger, disease, and poverty. 16:50 Our mission is to improve the health 16:53 and well-being of poor families 16:55 and vulnerable people throughout the world. 16:57 Drawing on biblical wisdom and sound science, 17:00 our African-Christian trainers equip families 17:03 by conducting hands-on classes, 17:05 freely sharing practical skills, 17:07 so people can help themselves. 17:10 Thanks to the FARM STEW training, 17:12 people learn to live abundantly with fresh homegrown food, 17:16 clean water, tidy homes, 17:18 savings clubs, and strong community ties. 17:21 FARM STEW also supports girls to stay in school 17:25 by giving them washable pads and confidence. 17:28 Your gifts equip desperately poor families 17:31 and vulnerable people so they can help themselves. 17:42 Will you give for abundant life today? 17:48 FARM STEW, a recipe for abundant life. 17:54 Wow. Wow. 17:56 Dr. Fred, you're from Uganda? 17:58 Yes. 17:59 How do you share Jesus with people in Uganda? 18:02 I mean, does it take a team? 18:06 It's very interesting. 18:07 Thank you for asking that question 18:09 because people are hungry 18:13 for seeing Jesus. 18:16 And as matter of fact, 18:19 FARM STEW has worked too hard 18:22 to make sure that the people... 18:26 They're not hungry. 18:28 They know Jesus, 18:29 who is the one who take care of them. 18:33 Now one time Joy asked me to go 18:39 and accompany her 18:40 on the train the trainers. 18:46 Is that right? Yes. 18:48 That's true. 18:49 That is where the trainers whom we have in Uganda, 18:53 they are the nationals, not people from U.S. 18:57 But those nationals who are trainers, 19:00 they go and train the trainers. 19:02 So you train... 19:04 Let me just make sure 19:05 that I have a solid understanding of this. 19:07 You train the people in Uganda 19:11 that are natives of Uganda to be able 19:15 to teach other people in Uganda. 19:18 So you... 19:19 And if you see the picture, you'll see not just Uganda, 19:21 but South Sudan as well. 19:22 And South Sudan. Oh, wow! 19:24 And you can see actually, 19:25 Dr. Fred is in that picture in the front row 19:27 with his South Sudan shirt. 19:29 Nice. 19:31 So the yellow are South Sudan trainers, 19:32 green are FARM STEW Uganda trainers. 19:34 Wow! 19:36 And then we also have volunteers 19:37 that we train as well. 19:38 So they're the ones going out 19:40 bringing this message of abundant life. 19:41 Now I love that idea and that concept, 19:44 but what's the philosophy behind that? 19:47 And as opposed to taking Americans over there 19:51 to work and do all that, 19:53 what's the philosophy behind that? 19:56 Really, that's very important because the people in Uganda, 20:00 they know the people in Uganda. 20:03 Someone from outside won't know the culture. 20:07 It will take some time before they can understand. 20:09 Yes. 20:10 Because for example, I'll tell you one thing 20:13 that when you tell some of the people 20:18 in Uganda or Sudan 20:20 that you need a latrine, they say what is that? 20:23 I can't do that. 20:26 Those people in Uganda 20:27 are the only one who can understand the culture, 20:30 why don't they want to go in latrine? 20:33 Can we help them 20:35 so that they can learn 20:36 how to have latrine in their homes 20:39 so that they can dispel all those fears 20:41 which they have? 20:43 Because they have latrine near them. 20:45 And that's what they do. 20:46 They do it outside and cover it, 20:48 which we are teaching them that 20:50 that is spreading disease all over. 20:52 Wow. 20:54 So the nationals who will know, 20:56 they know what kind of food their people like 20:58 because if we bring macaroni, 21:01 they say what is that? 21:04 But they know the corn 21:07 which they call maize over there. 21:08 Maize? 21:10 That's what they like. 21:11 And they know how to prepare it. 21:13 Oh, okay. 21:14 And really, when you look at what they have and try to... 21:16 For example, the food, 21:18 try to make it nutritional 21:22 then you'd be happy. 21:24 And the only way unless someone from outside 21:27 has to take a long time 21:29 learning all those things that they can have, 21:31 but those nationals, they know that. 21:34 So it will take shorter for them to train. 21:37 So they're ahead of the curve in the sense 21:41 that they don't have to learn about the culture, 21:43 they're in the culture. 21:44 Exactly. 21:45 That makes sense. What does training look like? 21:48 So I want to show 21:50 actually the picture of our trainers 21:52 training in South Sudan. 21:54 They are out in the bush. 21:56 They're out, oftentimes just on tarps. 21:59 You can see this whole group of women, 22:00 these are two of our South Sudan trainers. 22:04 They do hands-on cooking classes. 22:06 You can actually switch to the picture 22:07 of the greens as well. 22:08 We teach about eating local greens. 22:12 Like he said, everybody loves their maize, 22:14 which is a great food except for sadly they eat it 22:17 in a very highly refined white just powder, right? 22:21 It's 30% to 50% of the calories of Sub-Saharan Africans 22:25 are coming from this white powdery substance. 22:28 So you can imagine the rates 22:30 of diabetes, cancers, even hemorrhoids. 22:34 People are constipated. 22:36 They have no fiber if that's all they're eating 22:38 is a white substance powder. 22:40 So really diversifying the diet, 22:42 helping them get, like the greens you said, 22:44 also the beans. 22:45 We do a lot with soybeans trying to encourage, 22:48 and people get very excited 22:50 about being able to make soymilk. 22:52 Milk is kind of a universal, wonderful thing 22:55 that people enjoy being able to give to their children 22:58 and drink hot as a tea or beverage. 23:00 They love it. 23:01 We teach them how to make it with something they can grow 23:04 and get almost for free. 23:06 That's incredible, 23:08 because now you're kind of creating your own food source. 23:11 Exactly. That makes sense. 23:12 Yes, and saving a lot of money in the process. 23:14 Exactly. 23:16 Actually, that's a lot of the comments people say is 23:18 they have now not only are they saving money on food, 23:22 they're saving money on medicines 23:23 because their kids are healthier. 23:25 And they also are saving money in a club. 23:30 So our enterprise, the E stands for enterprise, 23:33 and we have what's called savings clubs... 23:35 Okay. 23:37 Where the people are coming together, 23:38 and every week they might be just putting in a quarter 23:41 into the club account. 23:43 But then they have capital 23:45 for when they want to start a business. 23:47 We have one club, where they're putting in... 23:50 Each family is putting in $1.75 a week. 23:52 Wow. 23:54 And we're really excited 23:55 because we're gonna partner with that club 23:56 and hopefully over 50 more this year 23:59 to actually use some of those funds 24:01 to become a water pump insurance plan. 24:05 So we've leveraged some donors 24:07 that are gonna help us bring water 24:10 and we're inviting people to come help us 24:13 to bring water into some of these communities. 24:15 And the community itself will be responsible 24:18 for having an insurance plan and doing the maintenance. 24:21 Nice. 24:22 So that it's sustainable. 24:23 Everything we want to do is sustainable locally. 24:25 Absolutely. 24:27 And, Dr. Fred, maybe you can touch on this. 24:29 I heard, you know, $1.75 a week, 24:32 now to an American citizen that doesn't seem significant. 24:36 That doesn't seem like a lot of money. 24:40 Why is that like so impressive 24:44 that they're saving $1.75 a week? 24:49 That's very impressive 24:51 because if you look at the families 24:55 in the countryside, 24:58 their income a year, I mean, a month, 25:03 let's say 50,000 shillings a month. 25:09 Now what is 50,000 shillings a month? 25:12 Yeah, that's what I'm trying to figure out like, 25:14 I'm not converting that one. 25:15 That is $20 a month. 25:17 $20 a month? 25:19 $20 a month. 25:20 And there are some families 25:22 who can't even have that $20 a month. 25:24 Wow. 25:25 And if you see that they can save $1.75, 25:30 that's a lot of money 25:33 when they have to go to work, 25:36 they have to spend about $2 to go to work. 25:41 Wow. 25:42 And sometimes I wonder 25:44 how they managed to get that all that money, 25:47 finance their transportation 25:49 and all that expenses. 25:51 Because it's unbelievable, 25:54 but this, what she was talking about, 25:57 Joy was talking about is very important 25:58 because they can help them to save. 26:00 And when they bring all that money together, 26:03 they will be able to do a lot of things, 26:05 buy seeds as she said, 26:07 do other things so that they can advance. 26:11 Wow. 26:12 You know, and Cherri, when she went to Africa, 26:15 which in and of itself was a miracle story. 26:17 Yeah, because she thought 26:19 you were crazy for going to Africa. 26:20 Yeah, exactly. 26:21 And I told her I'd never go to Africa. 26:23 Yes, yes. 26:24 And one of the things is she had this impression 26:27 that maybe it's not really that bad over there, 26:30 maybe just all these organizations 26:31 are just showing the worst of the worst. 26:33 And I just want her to share what she learned. 26:35 Yeah, growing up Adventist, 26:36 you know, you grow up with the idea 26:38 you want to help others, 26:40 but I didn't have the passion that Joy had. 26:42 And so you tend to... 26:44 I hate to say it, but you have the opinion. 26:46 They're showing me the worst. 26:48 You know, it really can't be that bad 26:50 over in Africa, but it is. 26:53 When we were in the villages, those homes 26:56 that is what their daily life is. 26:58 That's their normal life. 27:00 Furniture like we think of today 27:03 is not what they have. 27:04 They're excited to have the plastic chairs 27:06 that we put on our patios from Walmart. 27:10 You know, they don't have much 27:13 so for them to get, and be able to save, 27:16 and have vegetables that they can buy small things 27:19 like a uniform for their kids, 27:21 they can't wait for Joy to come back. 27:23 I've seen them on the teams where we walk in 27:25 and they can't wait to show them. 27:27 This is what I was able to get for my kids 27:29 or provide for their needs. 27:31 My kids aren't sick anymore 27:33 because they're eating what they need to eat. 27:35 It really is a huge thing for them. 27:38 And so this would be 27:40 in certain areas of Africa, correct? 27:42 Because I mean, 27:44 you have Cape Town, South Africa, 27:45 you have Egypt, 27:46 you have so many different places 27:49 that are rich in resources, 27:51 but then you have some parts of Africa 27:53 that are just completely devastated. 27:56 Okay. 27:57 That is really true. 27:59 For example, I grew up in the... 28:01 near Kampala. 28:03 And, of course, it's completely different 28:05 from the other parts of Uganda. 28:07 Yeah. 28:09 Now, as matter of fact, I thought, as she was saying, 28:13 what people are showing us are not true 28:16 because I come from Uganda, never seen those things. 28:20 When I had a chance to go up north in Adjumani, 28:24 I realized that is true, 28:26 they got thatched houses. 28:30 That's what we find there. 28:32 When you're living around Kampala 28:33 in the southern part, 28:34 you don't see those things. 28:36 So you think those are, \no, they're just odd people... 28:38 And as a matter of fact, 28:40 when I was going there I say no, 28:42 I think these are for refugees. 28:44 That's what they know. 28:46 I realized that no, those are homes. 28:48 Wow. 28:49 Yeah. 28:51 So that is very true. 28:53 That in Africa you have a lot of areas 28:56 which are well off and other areas are not. 29:01 That are poverty stricken areas. 29:02 Exactly. 29:03 And those are the areas which FARM STEW want to reach. 29:06 And that's where we have some in north and the east, 29:12 and we want to go to the northwest 29:15 because that is the poorest area in Uganda, 29:21 but weren't having money to go there yet. 29:23 Oh, okay. 29:24 Okay. Yeah. 29:26 Shifting gears a little bit. 29:27 You have an online learning platform, correct? 29:29 Right. 29:31 So we tell people 29:32 about sharing the recipe of abundant life 29:34 and we've been encouraging our donors, 29:37 we've been encouraging anybody that learns about FARM STEW. 29:39 If you're interested, share the recipe. 29:41 It's what our trainers are doing on the ground. 29:43 But then we looked at ourselves, 29:45 how are we sharing the recipe? 29:46 So we're really excited and we have actually a manual 29:50 and a flip chart which we will show, 29:53 but we have an e- learning program 29:55 which we do have a picture of. 29:56 Okay. 29:57 And what we decided is 29:59 we want to make this recipe available to anywhere. 30:02 There's even people in the United States 30:04 that really can't afford fruits or vegetables. 30:07 There's people here that don't have water even. 30:10 So we want to really be a blessing 30:12 to anywhere in the world. 30:13 So we made this free e- learning curriculum. 30:15 And it's on our website, 30:17 you just click the recipe and you'll have a drop-down box 30:20 that will say free e- learning curriculum 30:22 where we share the basics of what is FARM STEW, 30:26 and we equip people in the mini course 30:29 with a PowerPoint and a script. 30:30 So people could go and share this message 30:32 in their own churches. 30:34 They could show the video off of YouTube, 30:36 you just type in FARM STEW 30:38 and that PowerPoint anybody can go 30:40 and present this in their churches 30:41 or in their community group. 30:43 And then the FARM STEW basic course 30:45 is really learning the basics of what our FARM STEW trainers 30:49 are training in the field. 30:51 Okay. 30:52 So we want to make this available. 30:53 We actually have it already translated into Spanish, 30:56 and we're working on Swahili 30:58 and our prayer is that God will mobilize resources 31:01 'cause translation and, you know, doing all this, 31:03 that's also not cheap. 31:06 So we're working to try to really reach the languages 31:09 of the people also in this training. 31:11 Wow. Got you, got you. 31:13 So what is your website though? 31:16 Oh, it's www.FarmStew.org. 31:20 Okay. So it's an organization. 31:22 We are a 501(c)(3) non-for-profit. 31:25 And we are also a member of ASI. 31:27 I'm actually the vice president of the Lake Union ASI Board. 31:32 And we love ASI. 31:33 There are so many wonderful Adventist ministries, 31:35 and that's something else we're excited about. 31:36 We've had a number of the ministries 31:38 that have asked us to partner with them. 31:41 So that's some of the things that we're exploring in 2020. 31:44 How do we partner with other ministries, 31:46 train their workers. 31:47 For example, there was an AFM worker 31:50 who told somebody in Senegal about the e-learning course. 31:53 Oh, wow. 31:54 And I get this email from Senegal 31:56 from this woman that just took the course 31:58 and was thrilled with being able 32:00 to implement FARM STEW in Senegal. 32:02 No "official FARM STEW" person 32:04 has ever stepped a toe in Senegal, 32:06 but the message has gotten there. 32:08 And that was a partnership through AFM. 32:10 So there's a lot of possibilities 32:13 we feel that could really equip many ministries 32:16 with this message. 32:18 Absolutely. 32:19 And now I'm gonna throw out a question. 32:22 This can go to either one of you. 32:25 What are some stories of transformation and miracles 32:28 that you can tell me? 32:29 One of the stories, 32:31 that's one of my favorite ones is 32:32 when Joy was first over there, 32:35 we had a team that started working 32:37 and there was a grandmother, 32:38 who was very sick. 32:41 She took FARM STEW's message all of the acronyms to heart 32:44 when she was trained on them. 32:46 Prior to doing them, she could hardly walk. 32:49 They thought she was gonna die. 32:52 And she couldn't wait for Joy to come when she came back 32:55 because she was standing behind Joy 32:57 jumping up and down and said, 32:59 "Now I can play with my grandkids 33:02 because of what your training has done for me." 33:05 Wow. 33:06 And she just wasn't drinking water 33:08 and wasn't eating the nutrition that she needed to feel good. 33:13 And we have actually a video I would love to share it. 33:16 This is from a community 33:18 where there was an Adventist woman 33:20 who saw a FARM STEW trainer with his FARM STEW shirt 33:24 in the market and said, "What is that?" 33:27 And actually, this message has spread 33:29 far and wide in Uganda. 33:31 It's also doing so in South Sudan 33:33 and other places. 33:34 But this lady said, "I think I heard something about it." 33:37 And probably from 3ABN, actually, who knows. 33:40 But she stopped Jonah, one of our trainers 33:43 and Betty who's the leader of that team, 33:46 and she wanted FARM STEW to come. 33:48 They formed a women's group. 33:50 This is in a community, 33:51 where there's a small Adventist Church 33:53 and a huge mosque. 33:54 Wow. 33:55 So they are organizing this women's group 33:57 and Nora in this video is just one of about ten women 34:01 that gave their testimonies. 34:03 I just sat there 34:04 and cried tears of joy listening, 34:05 so I hope your viewers enjoy. 34:07 Yes, let's check it out. 34:13 I reach my thanks to God, 34:18 that who give us life. 34:31 Indeed good, you've enabled, you people, the FARM STEW guys 34:35 who have brought this message to us. 34:39 I found Betty. 34:46 She was the first person 34:47 told me to hear about FARM STEW. 34:54 The word FARM STEW is so wide. 34:58 It is not small. 35:04 When FARM STEW teaches you, 35:06 it helps your family 35:07 even the community and your neighbors. 35:14 Indeed my family there is a very big difference. 35:17 There's a big change in my family. 35:23 Even my husband feels so happy. 35:30 My husband is happy, 35:32 things which he did discover in me seeing in me, 35:36 now he sees something in me. 35:41 FARM STEW taught us how to prepare sauce. 35:49 Even our husbands are being surprised asking, 35:53 "Where do you learn all this?" 35:59 We always tell them FARM STEW, FARM STEW. 36:05 In our homes, the plates talk FARM STEW, 36:09 the house is talking FARM STEW. 36:12 The song is a FARM STEW. 36:23 I have a copy where you can see 36:27 mine is not just talking you just to see it 36:29 when you reach in my home. 36:40 In fact, the Farm STEW lesson, this is not something to hide. 36:44 You reach out to somebody's home, 36:45 you just know that this one 36:47 has ever had lessons of FARM STEW. 36:55 For me getting the money to buy milk was a problem. 37:03 But at my home now, we take milk as we like. 37:16 Even my husband asked me that you people, 37:20 "Where do you get all this money? 37:21 You buy a lot of milk. 37:23 I can see liters and liters of milk." 37:25 He was surprised. 37:28 I have a lot to talk about FARM STEW. 37:32 I can't finish. 37:37 But I thank the grace of God. 37:44 That you people, you seated here 37:46 and you thought about Africa, it is surprising. 37:51 May God bless you. Thank you. 37:55 Oh! 37:57 My sister Betty, may God bless. 38:02 May God reward you what you like. 38:04 Thank you very much. 38:21 Wow! 38:23 Those ladies seem very passionate 38:24 about FARM STEW. 38:26 Is there anything else you would like 38:28 to add to that video? 38:29 Sure. 38:30 Well, I should have introduced Betty 38:32 in the green shirt. 38:33 Of course, she is the FARMS STEW trainer 38:35 in that video who's been working 38:36 in that community. 38:37 And you can just see from Nora, 38:39 not only has her life been transformed. 38:41 She went from not being able to feed her children 38:44 to now being not only able to feed her children 38:47 but having a vibrant witness in her community. 38:49 Like I said there was about 10 women 38:51 with similar testimonies 38:53 and it's also bringing together their marriage 38:56 and creating unity amongst the women. 38:58 And I just really praise God 39:00 because that's what we would love to see, 39:04 this holistic, relational creating. 39:07 And then when you have a common set of practices 39:10 like having a garden, having... 39:13 I do want to show the hand washing station, 39:14 the tippy tap. 39:16 That's something you probably never heard of. 39:18 No, never. Okay. 39:19 So this is a hand washing station. 39:22 The World Health Organization 39:24 says that hand washing can make a bigger difference 39:27 than any medical intervention or even any vaccination, 39:30 just simple hand washing. 39:32 So we're bringing water, 39:33 hand washing proper techniques into these villages. 39:37 And simple things like that 39:39 are changing the health of the children. 39:41 Wow! That's incredible. 39:43 So do you see like a lot of malnutrition in those areas 39:47 and how does that affect or impact? 39:51 Sadly, we do. 39:52 I want to show a picture of Unuso 39:55 which is a story that's going on right now. 39:56 I want your donors and listeners to pray for Unuso 40:00 because Betty who was in the video, 40:03 actually, she has a huge heart. 40:04 She's taken in about eight orphans. 40:06 Her grown children help take care 40:08 of these orphans. 40:09 You can see on the left, 40:11 Unuso when he was admitted to the hospital 40:13 and evangelist called Betty 40:15 and said, "What can we do for this little boy?" 40:17 Betty, not only does she go out and train in the villages, 40:20 but she's taking kids into her home. 40:22 And you can see the progression. 40:24 That's just over a month period. 40:26 Wow. 40:28 So this is the FARM STEW recipe. 40:29 It's a highly nutrient dense foods 40:31 that we're feeding people. 40:33 And she has a huge garden behind her house 40:35 that she learned because of FARM STEW training 40:37 and she was writing a letter to me saying, 40:40 "Thank you for equipping." 40:42 And it's not thank me, 40:43 it's thank all of us the collective view all 40:45 throughout the United States, 40:47 and even Canada and other places. 40:48 We've had a donor from Australia 40:50 give to this work and it's a thank you, 40:53 you are saving lives of children 40:55 through this work. 40:57 Yeah, I know it can't be cheap to have a global impact. 41:01 One of the things that I love about FARM STEW is 41:04 that you guys are actually stimulating the economy 41:07 as well over there with the farm-to-table. 41:09 Exactly that. 41:11 And also I want to share a little bit 41:12 about the pads effort 'cause that's another way. 41:14 We always try to buy local, hire local, and be sustainable. 41:19 And Cherri, she has a heart for this. 41:21 When I went over to Uganda 41:23 one of the reasons 41:24 my husband and I got involved in it 41:26 was because of the pads. 41:28 We have two girls and we could not imagine 41:30 as parents them not being able to have pads 41:33 for their menstruation and be able to stay in school. 41:36 A lot of people, young girls 41:38 between the ages of 12 and 15 end up dropping out of school 41:42 when their menstruation starts 41:44 because they have no pads or anything. 41:46 It's shameful for them. Yeah. 41:48 So they end up having to stay at home. 41:50 Well, FARM STEW found AFRIpads, which is a company 41:54 who makes pads reusable pads in Africa, 41:58 and they employ women from Uganda to make these pads. 42:02 So it's enterprise, 42:03 it's keeping the women involved, 42:05 but yet it's also helping the young girls. 42:08 And that is the only thing FARM STEW gives away 42:11 because we feel like the girls jobs 42:13 is to stay in school, 42:14 where the parents job is to learn 42:16 and sell the stuff they get from the garden. 42:18 The girls just to stay in school 42:20 because we want to change the cycle of kids 42:23 dropping out of school. 42:24 Yes. 42:25 And that's this was really important 42:27 to me and my husband, 42:29 and it was just an awesome to see that. 42:31 And the idea that they when you go in 42:34 and see the actual training, 42:36 where we train them how to take care of themselves 42:39 and the pads and stuff, 42:40 the hope when they realize they're going to get these 42:43 to be able to stay in this school. 42:45 I get chills every time I mention it 42:47 because the transformation in the classroom 42:50 is un-describable to you. 42:52 Wow, wow. 42:53 And we have this great picture of here this woman, 42:55 Cherri who said I'll never go to Africa. 42:57 Let's see her in Africa. 42:59 Oh, wow. 43:00 All of these girls were given pads 43:02 during the training at this particular school, 43:04 and this is an Eastern Uganda. 43:06 And Cherri's heart was so big 43:08 that she actually sponsored all the teachers 43:10 getting pads too. 43:12 So she's surrounded 43:13 by a group of very, very grateful teachers 43:16 because this is in a very rural area. 43:18 And not only do we share with the pads, 43:21 but we also have panties, 43:23 and we have drawstring bags 43:25 that we now have an enterprise 43:28 that is deaf Adventist Christian, 43:31 who we started a sewing enterprise 43:34 'cause we were buying panties, 43:36 and we've realized that the girls 43:38 didn't even have panties. 43:39 So our first year we thought 43:41 we're doing good job passing out pads 43:42 and we realized these girls they don't even have shoes 43:45 much less panties to attach a pad to. 43:47 So we've had to kind of grow our scope 43:50 for $15 a girl now. 43:52 They get a pack of four washable cloth pads, 43:56 a few pairs of panties 43:57 and then a drawstring bag 43:58 that's made by this deaf enterprise. 44:01 So we're excited to share about that as well. 44:03 And in our most recent donor newsletter, 44:06 so every quarter we send out a newsletter 44:09 letting people know the impact 44:10 of their investment in FARM STEW. 44:13 So there's a story about this deaf enterprise 44:15 and also about the farming schools 44:17 that were teaching. 44:19 I wanted Fred to maybe share a little bit more 44:21 about the importance of the dietary diversity 44:24 which is our way of saying getting their diet 44:27 to not just be white food, but this colorful rainbow. 44:31 That is true. 44:32 You know, FARM STEW is doing a lot of work in that area. 44:37 They have introduced what the soy milk. 44:43 Here I think some of you, 44:45 some of the people here in the US 44:46 they know soymilk 44:48 and they sell it in the grocery stores, 44:49 but there they have to date on their own. 44:51 And that soymilk has proteins 44:54 and minerals and vitamins and other nutrition. 44:59 Now also another thing which they have done, 45:02 which they do that they teach people 45:05 to eat their colors, 45:08 different colors, vegetables of different colors. 45:10 Okay. 45:12 Because, yeah, that's what 45:13 when I was going to nutrition school, 45:15 they say eat your colors which USDA says, 45:19 but over there also they have told people 45:22 to eat their colors, 45:24 the yellow, green, purple and all that, 45:27 so that they can have proper nutrition. 45:31 Of course, legumes and grains are needed also 45:36 so that they can have complete protein. 45:38 Because people without eating meat 45:41 you have to have complete protein, 45:42 but if you have grains and legumes, 45:45 you have complete protein in your diet. 45:47 Nice. 45:48 And really, I remember watching a documentary 45:51 and saying that basically when you do eat meat, 45:54 you're getting secondary protein 45:56 because the animals are eating the plants 45:58 and then you're eating the animal 46:00 and getting part of that plant protein 46:02 when you could just go directly 46:04 to the plants in the first place. 46:05 Well, it's so exciting 46:07 that our plant-based nutrition message as a church. 46:11 I mean, there is so much science 46:13 backing it up now. 46:14 And even that's the first time I learned 46:16 about Adventist actually 46:18 was from reading the clinical literature 46:20 when I would write my papers, 46:22 back when I had to go make photocopies 46:25 and everything in the library 46:27 and actually go find the actual journal 46:29 ancient times before Google. 46:30 Yeah. 46:32 And the clinical literature even from the 80s 46:34 was already saying that Adventists were healthier. 46:37 And this diet is now proven 46:40 not only to be healthier for people 46:41 but healthier for the planet. 46:43 And so I really do believe this message 46:45 of FARM STEW when you look 46:47 at actually the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, 46:50 there's 17 goals, 46:52 FARM STEW hits on about 11 of them. 46:55 So that's one of our dreams is that, 46:57 you know, we have 8 million Seventh-day Adventists 47:02 in Sub-Saharan Africa alone. 47:04 Wow, 8 million? 47:05 Eight million 47:07 and it's the fastest growing divisions in the world. 47:08 Yes. 47:10 So we really feel like if we can get this message out, 47:12 if we can train our own people to go out with this message, 47:17 which is Christ method alone, 47:18 you know, it's caring 47:20 for the people's basic physical needs, 47:21 winning their confidence, 47:23 what can be more confidence building 47:25 than bringing your kid back from almost death to life? 47:28 Yes. 47:29 You know, it's almost a resurrection story. 47:31 And so we if we can train people, 47:33 and then not just train, 47:35 but we want qualified trainers 47:38 that can actually go out 47:39 and dedicate full time in the ministry. 47:41 And using this message that is the entering wedge, 47:45 it's opening the heart spiritually as well. 47:48 That's huge. 47:49 I think I might, 47:51 I might need to personally look at the chart 47:52 'cause my diet could use a little work to be on. 47:55 So I might have to look at the chart as well. 47:57 Well, go on the e- learning program 47:59 and you can learn a lot and you'll be inspired. 48:02 For sure, for sure. 48:05 No, I was just saying that FARM STEW 48:08 have been accepted by the people in Uganda 48:11 because last year was it 48:13 when we had a memorandum of understanding 48:16 with the Union Bank in Uganda. 48:19 So they see the need to partner with FARM STEW, 48:23 so that they can spread this good news 48:25 of not only spiritual good news, 48:27 but the health good news. 48:29 And actually, I'll say we've also been strongly endorsed 48:32 by Macquarie University, 48:34 which is the lead university in Uganda 48:37 by the head of Rotary Club in Uganda. 48:41 They see what we're doing, the value 48:43 and also the South Sudan attached territory, 48:45 and now this very exciting development 48:47 with the medical school in Rwanda. 48:49 So this is... 48:51 It's a very simple, simple message 48:52 we try to boil it down 48:55 because it's all about prevention. 48:56 And so if we can prevent disease, 48:58 we don't have to get 48:59 into all the technical diagnoses and everything. 49:01 Yes, yes. 49:02 So that's, that's my training is in public health actually, 49:05 I'm master's in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University. 49:08 And one of the things they taught us is that 49:10 you want to find a model that works. 49:13 Test it, you know, pilot it, research it, 49:17 make sure you're having an impact, 49:19 and then take it to scale. 49:20 Okay. 49:21 And I can think 49:23 of no better institution in the world 49:24 than the Seventh-day Adventist church 49:26 to be able to take this health message 49:28 to scale to truly, 49:30 truly impact the world for Christ. 49:31 Yes. 49:33 So we have these five freedom priorities 49:35 that we are trying to achieve this year. 49:37 And we want to have the freedom from shame, 49:40 for the pads. 49:42 We want the freedom to grow this program, 49:43 we want the freedom to share the curriculum, 49:46 and we want freedom from disease and drudgery, 49:48 which is bringing fresh and clean water 49:50 into the community. 49:52 So people can check out our website FarmStew.org 49:54 to learn about these freedom priorities, 49:57 and that's where we hope we are going in the future. 50:00 Nice. 50:02 What are some of your needs 50:03 as in ministry and organization? 50:05 Yes. 50:06 So for the most part because we buy local, 50:09 we trade local, we focus local. 50:11 What we need most from North Americans 50:13 is prayer first of all. 50:14 Our trainers are in somewhat violent situations. 50:19 I just learned about one of our communities 50:22 where someone was murdered just last night. 50:24 I woke up to that message. 50:27 So we need covering of prayer. Yes. 50:29 And then we do need financial resources 50:31 to make all of these freedoms happen. 50:34 So it's... 50:35 We've calculated and we don't plan this, 50:37 but it kind of worked out amazingly. 50:39 It's basically $15 a garden, 50:41 $15 a girl for pads, or $15 a person for water. 50:45 Wow. 50:46 And it's nice. 50:47 We do the classes generally cost us 50:49 about $37 a class. 50:51 Wow. 50:52 So you can imagine 50:54 if we're trying to take it scale, 50:55 it's gonna take a lot of people with the $15 50:57 or a little bit less people with, you know, larger check. 51:00 Yes. 51:01 But that's the support that we need most. 51:04 And we will let you know 51:06 about the impact of your investment 51:08 when you give to FARM STEW 51:09 you can be sure you will hear from us 51:11 and you will know our books are open, 51:13 we're transparent. 51:14 And we want to really make sure 51:16 that people have confidence in their investment 51:18 bringing spiritual and physical fruit. 51:21 And you also send out, 51:22 so you send out the newsletters and all of that as well. 51:24 Yes. Yes, yes. 51:26 Well, I can't believe our time is running away from us. 51:30 We're gonna put up your contact information. 51:32 Go to an address role and a news break, 51:35 and then we will be right back. 51:37 Don't go anywhere. 51:42 FARM STEW improves the health and well-being of poor families 51:45 and vulnerable people in countries 51:46 where one in three children are severely malnourished. 51:49 Your gifts make it possible 51:51 to mobilize local Christian trainers 51:52 who share practical skills 51:54 that equip people to help themselves. 51:56 Visit their website, FarmStew.org 51:58 to find out more about this important ministry. 52:00 Again, that's FarmStew.org 52:03 or call them at (434) 409-0866. 52:09 You may also write to them 52:10 at FARM STEW, PO Box 291, 52:13 Princeton, Illinois 61356. |
Revised 2020-03-10