We are looking forward to a fun Christmas with family here in the USA. Its been fun to see all the lights and listen to non-stop holiday music and even get some cold weather. Not sure we will see snow for Christmas but we can deal with that. We wish you all a Merry Christmas and happy New year!

Family Photo December

Texas in December! Gotta love it!

Football season is finally over. Reed and Riley enjoyed playing and we enjoyed watching the games. Both boys are glad to have had the opportunity to play American football. Having never played they didnt know if they would get to play much but they took to it quite easily. All those years of Rugby in Africa paid off! Reeds team made it to the playoffs. Riley is looking forward to basketball now! Reed has decided to focus on Jazz band and editing for the yearbook.

Raelyn is just trying to get thru the year so she can go back "home".

Havent updated in a while....sorry, we have been using Facebook, so please check us out there.

We are currently traveling in the US sharing our story and raising funds to go back to Kenya.

Recently I had the opportunity to play golf in Maryland and it was a humbling experience! Pastor Keith Edwards and Jon Page from Trinity Life in Baltimore were good sports and didnt complain too much about all the balls I lost.

Hurricane relief Louisianna 08

Bryan traveled to New Iberia and Houma in southern Louisiana to help with Convoy of Hope relief efforts. Nova Pittman of the North Texas District and Duane Gryder, Motorcycle chaplain traveled together and we worked alongside Convoy of Hope staff and volunteers, the National Guard and volunteers from the community. We served 9500 people with food, water, ice and tarps to cover their roof damage. The churches opened their doors to provide places for volunteers and returning evacuees to sleep. Many people returned to find roof damage and flooding. Some people we met had lost everything! We were able to pray with people and offer hope.

Raelyn is a star!

We are enjoying some time on the road! We have spent the last few weeks traveling in Missouri, Ohio, West Virginia and Florida. We have been visiting friends and family and a several churches along the way. We have really enjoyed some relaxing times at the beach in Florida. We looked for treasure and shells and found all kinds of interesting things in the sand. Raelyn found a little starfish and we were surprised that she didn't want to keep it as a pet!

Its been good to get re-acquainted with friends we haven't seen in many years. We thank the Lord for safe travels and great weather.

Back in the USA

Our family has arrived back in Dallas, Texas and we are enjoying all the things we have missed these past few years. We are living in Maypearl, Texas at the District Campgrounds and the kids have discovered that the lake is full of fish! Sooner or later they will catch one big enough to keep!

Warehouse and Distribution Center

We have completed the first phase of our warehouse and distribution center. This facility will enable us to store items needed for disaster response as well as train workers and volunteers. We are in the process of painting and landscaping. Already the two containers are being used to store relief goods as we continue our response to the post election violence. Hundreds of thousands of Kenyans are still living in refugee camps for the displaced people. The Kenya Assemblies of God, Africas Children and Convoy of Hope are helping with food, clothing and school supplies. We are thankful to Assemblies of God Relief services for their support during this critical time. So many people have expressed their concern and have given sacrificially to help us respond. May God bless you abundantly for your sacrifice!

New 4x4 delivery truck

Its been a while since I posted and thats due to the crazy pace at which we have been living. For the past few weeks we have been working on our warehouse, clearing containers of food from the port and sending our delivery truck out to many refugee camps in Kenya. The truck has now delivered 25 tons of food to internally displaced people in various parts of Kenya. We are thankful for Speed the Light which funded the purchase of this vehicle.

"Your father has died"

On Jan. 21 I posted a story about our visit with a family who had fled the violence in Western Kenya. During our visit "Grandpa" asked for my name. When I told him he thought I said Mwangi and so he began to call me Mwangi. Pastor Simon explained that I wasnt Kikuyu but Grandpa insisted that my new name was Mwangi.
We laughed about it and had a good visit with the family. A week or so later I returned with some freinds for another visit. The family was adjusting and making a new life here in Central Kenya. On Friday morning ir recieved a phone call from Pastor Simon. He said, "your father has died". Mzee Mwangi had been sick and I think the stress of all that has happened was too much for this 83 year old trooper. The funeral is scheduled for this week and today I will meet with Pastor Simon to purchase the casket for the family. The family fled Western Kenya with the clothes on their back and they have no financial means to give Mwangi an honorable burial. The Assemblies of God church in Kiramithu has adopted the family and will be helping them re-build thier lives. Keep them in your prayers during this difficult time.

For the past two weeks we have been assisting with a camp in Tigoni, Kenya. The refugees fled to the Tigoni police station following threats by a rival tribe. Most of them were able to leave with their belongings and arrived at the police station with everything they owned. Several missionary families adopted the camp and began supplying food and other supplies to help meet the needs. The Red Cross had placed 4 volunteers at the camp and over the last two weeks we have worked together closely. We took on the responsibility of providing fresh vegetables for the crowd which at one point was well over 6000 people. We made daily trips to the camp with supplies of cabbage, greens, onions and tomatoes. We also made several trips to deliver water and blankets. On Friday an announcment was made that the camp was closing and that busses would arrive to take the people to Western Kenya where most of the Luo tribe members are originally from.
I have to admit that I was surprised to see the busses show up. Friday and Saturday people frantically packed thier belongings and got their names on the list for various areas of western Kenya. By Saturday evening the camp was nearly deserted. Only a few that are too sick to travel or have no where to go remain in the camp. Im including some pictures of some of the people I met over the last two weeks at the camp.

Charles, one of the refugees became the head cook. We worked together to provide meals for the masses. Groups of volunteers came almost everyday to chop vegetables and help Charles cook the meals. Charles called me today from Western Kenya where he hopes to be reunited with his wife soon.

This young boy is one of 10,000 people living at the refugee camp in Eldoret. Our church members number around 1000 in this camp, including several pastors with their families.

Our family spent Sunday afternoon with a Kenyan family that recently arrived in Limuru, Kenya. They are part of the 350,000 displaced people in Kenya. We were able to take them some blankets and spend some time hearing their story. After the elections on December 27th, their neighbors turned on them and chased them from their homes. They lost everything they owned including all their livestock. The whole family fled to Nairobi and have now settled in Limuru, near one of our churches.

Reginas new home

This is the corner of the police station parking lot where Regina shares a space under a plastic tarp with her family. They have no mattresses and only some cloth that they cover with. Mom tries to cook and keep things as clean as she can but its been raining for the last few days. The police station is the safest place for now.

Regina

13 year old Regina fled Mathare Valley a week ago when the houses in her neighborhood were burnt. She now is sleeping under a plastic sheet with 10 family members. She wants more than anything to go back to school. We are currently assisting with food and blankets.

Peace agreement

The big news here in Kenya is the peace agreement. Former UN secretary Kofi Annan was able to convince the two Kenyan politicians to come to an agreement. For the most part, Kenyans are happy and the general mood on the streets is calm. Its funny how sitting in traffic can be an indicator. During the weeks just after the elections, the streets in Nairobi were deserted and it was a weird "ghost town" like atmosphere. As I sat in traffic the last few days, I thought about how normal that felt. I still don't like it but at least it tells me that people are going back to work and school and so forth.
Keep us in your prayers. The real work begins now as we help people try to start their lives over again. Many are still displaced and we are helping with food and school supplies so their kids can get into school. There are nearly 500 Assembly of God pastors that are among the displaced and we have a plan to help them get re-settled. With Gods help, we will make an impact on this nation for the Kingdom. What the enemy meant for destruction, God will use for his purpose.

Kenya Election violence

The past couple of weeks have been tense here in Kenya as you have seen on the news.
Following the presidential elections on Dec. 27th, violence erupted. Voters on both sides claimed that the out come had been rigged and they took their frustrations to the streets. Its reported that over 600 have lost their lives and over 300,000 are displaced as a result. The countries infrastructure has been crippled as violent mobs have blocked road ways to protest the outcome.
Even worse than the demonstrations and protests has been the tribally motivated crimes that have taken place.
Our Kenyan friends have told us stories of people who had been friends and neighbors in their village suddenly turning on each other. Houses and farms were burnt down by people who had been their friends just the day before.
All across Kenya churches, schools and police stations have become refugee camps. Even here in Nairobi you can find hundreds of people who have fled the violence.
Our churches are reaching out during this time of crisis. Its an opportunity to share Christs love in a tangible way. To demonstrate Gods love to people who may not know him in a personal way.
Keep our churches in your prayers as they respond. We pray that everything we do would point people to Christ.
We know that many of you have been praying for our safety. We appreciate it and we ask that you would continue to keep us in your prayers. We are presented with a wonderful opportunity to share Christ and we need Gods wisdom as we do this. Pray that we would be His hands extended.

Welcome to our blog. We trust you will add us to your prayer list and visit our site frequently. Feel free to write and share your thoughts. We will try to keep our info current so you can get a feel for the life we live. Sometimes the site will focus on our work and sometimes it will focus on our family and maybe you'll see a little of both most of the time.
We feel like Africa is our home and we want to share that part of our lives with you.
Africa is a wonderful place for kids. Lots to do and lots to see and experience. We will be sharing some of that with you too, so visit and write often. Thanks for your intrest in our family.
Bryan and Kimberly, Reed, Riley and Raelyn Burr