We have served at Project Canaan since December 2012. We met while living and serving together at Children of the Promise, an infant care facility in northern Haiti. After we married, the opportunity arose for us to move to Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) with a missionary friend. We were excited to see what doors God would open for us. During our first year in Eswatini, we heard about Project Canaan. We were instantly captivated by Heart for Africa’s mission to provide a safe home to orphans and vulnerable children, providing employment and sustainable income through the farm, and serving the larger community and country.
As a 3rd generation dairy farmer, I enjoy all things farming. Growing up on a farm, I gained practical experience with mechanics, welding and of course agricultural knowledge. My skillset has proved to be incredibly useful here while my time in Haiti, where supplies were extremely limited or nonexistent, prepared me to be creative when faced with challenges. I first began working at the Lusito Mechanic Shop where I was able to repair PC vehicles and provide basic training to the Swazi staff. Since then, I have helped dramatically expand the dairy farm. I’m dedicated to ensuring that the dairy farm is well-managed, fields are developed and milk production continues to increase.
Having served at an infant care facility already, Maria was thrilled to begin working with the teeny tiny babies and the aunties at Project Canaan. The excellent care provided for the children here is one of the many reasons we love this place! Maria is so thankful to have played a small part in providing care to some of the children there, and it is a joy to continue to see them grow. Maria now has the privilege of being a stay-at-home mom to Kate, 4, and Owen, who is now 2.
Eswatini is our home, and we firmly believe we’re supposed to serve here for the foreseeable future.
We would love to build a house for the Dairy Manager on the farm. It would be wonderful to decrease commute time back and forth – sometimes several times a day – to Project Canaan. If you know anything about farming, I’m sure you realise that there are many seasons when the workload seems huge. While these seasons can’t be avoided and you need to “make hay while the sun shines,” we would love if we could also enjoy more time together as a family.
We believe living at Project Canaan would allow us to serve here for longer, our family-unit would be strengthened through more time together, and I could be more productive with my work hours at the dairy. We would also like to live in community with others who are serving here and be more involved with the children who call Project Canaan home. The time has come for us to plant roots here and ensure that we can serve well for as long as God wants us here. We would be so grateful if you would support us in this mission by helping us raise the money needed to build a Dairy Manager House on Project Canaan.
Your gift to Heart for Africa in support of a home for the Dairy Manager will be fully tax-deductible. Would you please prayerfully consider helping us build the Dairy Manager House on Project Canaan?
Ready to make a difference?