Gree�ngs from FOSA! We hope this

newsle er finds you well and preparing

for the holiday season ahead. We are

excited to share that during our annual

Board of Directors mee�ng in July, we

elected a new Chairperson, Francie

Markham. As we make this transi�on,

we send a sincere thank you to Bob

Greising, for his compassionate leader-

ship in his role as FOSA Chairperson for

the last several years.

As we begin this new year, we are excit-

ed for the opportuni�es that lie ahead

for the children to engage in their com-

munity and for the community to share

with them. As there are challenges

ahead, with the unse led poli�cal cli-

mate and the growing needs of the

community, we value your con�nued

support of FOSA and those who care for

the children.

Please enjoy this update, as we share

with you some of the good things that

are happening through your support

and care for the children.

From Our Chair:

Meet Francie B. Markham I am so excited to have the opportunity

to introduce myself to you, the support-

ers of Fairfield and her children. My

name is Francie B. Markham and I

am the new chair of FOSA. As a re-

"red English teacher, a former co-

chair of the Somali Bantu Rese&le-

ment in my town, and a former UMC

missions director, I feel at home in

this work. I was elected at the July

FOSA Board mee"ng in Kentucky and

then had the privilege to go to Fair-

field at the end of July with my son

Aaron and his girlfriend Casey; it was

their second trip and my sixth. This

trip we were joined by Janine Rob-

erts, the Cornerstone missionary to Fair-

field and the Hope Project (See

hopeofzim.org and the project update in

this newsle&er). Also, she is the writer of

a novel Dare to Love Completely, the sto-

ry of her work in Old Mutare, available on

Amazon. Her humor, love, joy, and pa-

"ence sustained us throughout our three

weeks in Zimbabwe.

In 2001, I fell in love with Fairfield and

Old Mutare, when my church, Trenholm

Road UMC in Columbia, SC, sent a team

of fourteen to Africa University. I ended

up teaching at Hartzell High that trip,

though we toured the Babyfold and my

heart se&led there. Also my family is

proud to sponsor a child at Fairfield;

watching her grow has been one of the

joys of my life. Finally, I love raising the

money and finding the donated goods to

send in 40-foot, truck containers to the

Old Mutare community. The last one le9

on early June, 2010, and arrived in Sep-

tember. These truck containers, which

we send to Fairfield, are a great way for

you to get involved even further. I have

volunteers who work here in Columbia,

so, if you live nearby, you can join us for

the packing. Also, we constantly work in

the storage area if you are ever in this

sec"on of the country. Next, there is

always a list of needed items, including

money for the container itself. Since I

was at Fairfield this summer, I have been

slowly making the new list; here are

some of the needed goods, which can be

new or gently used:

� Single bed sheets, pillowcases, ma&resses, and

blankets

� Flashlights or lanterns requiring no ba&eries

(wind-up)

� Computers with USB ports, flat screen monitors,

and laptops

� 110 to 220 voltage adaptors/converters

� Men’s garden gloves, work boots, and watering

hoses

� Bath towels and buckets

� Long skirts or dresses for older girls/women

� Children’s books, pens, pencils, and notebook

paper

� Handmade, washable sanitary pads and pillow-

case dresses

� (E-mail me for these pa&erns; see my e-mail

above. These are great projects for a circle or a

sewing group. These items are needed and very

popular.)

� Balls of any sort (Kickballs and soccer balls are

the most popular; these can be deflated for

shipping and can be used. Another request

comes from the newly formed, Fairfield soccer

(football) team, who needs someone to sponsor

their t-shirts.)

This list will con"nue to grow and I will

keep you updated. Obviously, shipping

Sponsors Needed: Meet Mar�n

DOB: 8/29/2002 ���� Age: 8

Con�nued on Page 2

Fambai Zvkakanaka (Travel Well)

FOSA Newsletter

Winter 2010

Website: www.fosakids.org ���� Email: friendsoffairfield@yahoo.com

Martin came to Fairfield Children's Home in June 2004 from Bikita when he was less than a day old. He is a cute little guy who has developed his own personality now that he is in a positive environment. He has a great smile, enjoys his brothers and sisters and is rarely seen with out his brother and friend Chenai by his side.

something to me is expensive too. I always

welcome road trips to SC or parcel delivery in

advance to the container shipping. The FOSA

Board has already agreed to help in sponsor-

ing a container in 2011. Anything that you are

able to do is appreciated. Feel free to e-mail

me with ques"ons or sugges"ons; we always

value and need your exper"se.

Let me take this moment to remind you of

how you are changing a life when you spon-

sor a Fairfield child. Each child has his or her

own

space in

the

home,

an excel-

lent edu-

ca"on, a

mother

and an

aun"e,

food for sustenance, spiritual guidance, cloth-

ing, school supplies, and a family for belong-

ing, security, and enjoyment. Actually, joy is a

perfect word to express the lives of these

children because you care. Thank you from

the depths of my heart and theirs for your

sponsorship(s).

Con�nued from Page 1

As we got off the plane in Harare in late

July this year, we were eager to return to

Fairfield Children’s Home; our first visit

was summer of 2009, so we were going

back to see old friends and to make new

ones. We traveled with Janine Roberts,

the Cornerstone missionary to Fairfield.

When we arrived in the combi [FCH bus],

we received an enthusias"c welcome,

filled with hugs, handshakes, smiles, and

songs. Throughout the next three weeks,

we enjoyed spending every day with the

children, mothers, administrators,

aun"es and friends of Fairfield. With joy,

Janine welcomed us into her home.

Most days we began our mornings with

Fairfield adults and holidaying [school

vaca"on] children at morning devo"ons

in the conference hut. Once they asked

us to lead the devo"on and some"mes

Fairfield secondary students led the pro-

gram. Then for several hours every day

we were outside pushing li&le ones on

swings, running around and having fun

with all the kids. Aaron was constantly on

the soccer field or basketball court, while

Casey painted the girls’ fingernails and

played. We found that the various balls

we packed were very popular.

Three "mes a week, we led a teenage

Bible study with all Fairfield secondary

school students. During this "me, we

sang contemporary Chris"an songs,

played games, and discussed passages of

scripture; we encouraged them to mem-

orize several verses every day. For our

last Bible study, we le9 Fairfield for the

a9ernoon and went to La Rochelle for a

picnic and a walk around the botanical

gardens; everyone enjoyed the field trip

to this beau"ful loca"on.

Also, Francie Markham and Janine

joined us in leading two separate Bible

schools for the children in grades two

through four and in grades five through

seven. During Bible school, we read a

story from the children’s Bible, colored a

corresponding picture, and a&empted to

sing songs with mo"ons. The children

always had high energy, which made the-

se "mes fun, but "ring.

During many a9ernoons, we tutored

secondary school students in math, sci-

ence, and English. Francie assisted the

students with English, Aaron helped

Memory Making Through Fairfield Fun By Aaron Markham and Casey Edwards

them with math, and Casey tutored

them in science. The students were on

winter holidays while we were at Fair-

field, but their exams were quickly ap-

proaching. They were happy to get

extra help and to clear up any confu-

sion they had. Also the students loved

teaching us Shona, their na"ve lan-

guage.

One Sunday we enjoyed the Vumba

Mountains trip with Janine. As she is a

veteran of the area, we saw beau"ful

places, ate delicious food, and even

spo&ed a baboon playing on the lawn

and in the trees. We each brought

along good reading material, as the

weather was perfect for relaxing in the

sun at the Leopard Rock Hotel.

On one special evening we were able

to buy enough chicken for dinner in

every house and for all aun"es’ and

workers’ families. Another night, all of

the mothers and aun"es joined us in

our home for a jewelry party; needless

to say, Aaron did not par"cipate in this

event, but he did help to serve refresh-

ments to everyone. We realized that

planning ahead meant we could give

gi9s like donated jewelry and have eve-

ryone feel a part of something bigger –

the act of loving each other there and

of others caring for them from afar.

Prior to our departure, we provided

each house with new supplies to help

with everyday needs. These supplies

were bought with dona"ons we had

received from friends and family at

home in the United States and from

FOSA; the mothers and children were

all very apprecia"ve.

We loved our "me at Fairfield. The

hospitality and generosity we were

shown while living there made it feel

like a home away from home. We

joined the celebra"on at Fairfield, as

Janine returned to live there again,

a9er many months in the US. Now we

are looking forward to our next oppor-

tunity to return. We celebrate the chil-

dren and staff of Fairfield, along with all

those who sponsor Fairfield children.

We saw firsthand God’s love in ac"on

during our three weeks in Old Mutare,

Zimbabwe.

More Memories from Fairfield Fun in Summer 2010 Francie, Aaron and

Casey enjoyed various

ac"vi"es and events

with the children and

families of Fairfield

Children’s Homes. If

you or someone you

know is planning a trip

to Zimbabwe, please

feel free to contact

FOSA for any help we

can provide.

HOPE assists close to 100 children in

the surrounding farm and village

areas who are orphaned, malnour-

ished, or HIV posi"ve. We recently

graduated 7 children from the nutri-

"on program. Children are referred

to us from the local doctors if they

are malnourished or if the mother

dies while the baby is s"ll young

enough to need milk. We provide

bananas, peanut bu&er, eggs and

milk for the first 2 years and then

reassess each child. When they

come to us, they are o9en too weak

to even hold up their heads, but

when we visited the 7 children at

their homes over the last weeks, we

found children who are now walk-

ing, playing, smiling and happy. We

also have many children who test

HIV posi"ve, who are allowed to

con"nue on the nutri"on program

un"l they are adults so they have

enough food to stay healthy while

taking their medica"ons. HOPE has

51 children on the educa"on pro-

gram which assists with school fees

and supplies. We are happy that 38

of these children currently have

their own sponsor to cover all their

costs each month. We are hoping to

raise 4 $1,500 scholarships each

year so that one child per year can

be selected to move on to university

and be covered for their 4 years of

higher educa"on. Our first HOPE

graduate to receive the scholarship

is now studying engineering and is

excelling in school. We hope this will

provide orphans with a strong back-

ground so that they may start into

adulthood safe and secure about

their future.

Project Update:

HOPE Reaches Out, Supports Children Sponsors Needed: Meet Surdzai

DOB: 3/3/1994 ���� Age: 16

Sarudzai and her younger

brother Justice were placed at

Fairfield when they were very

young. She has a shyness to

her personality, but is growing

into a beautiful young woman.

She cares for her family and is

very responsible.