If you come on a Poetice trip, you will get a water bottle. You will carry this water bottle around with the knowledge that you are part of an elite club of mission-minded folks, since we have only been using these for a few months now. Since most of the water in Africa is not safe for Americans to drink, it is necessary to buy bottled water for the teams while we are in Zambia. Bottled water is expensive, and at the end of the day, there would often be 25 water bottles laying around, several with a few inches of water in the bottom, that had to be thrown out. After taking several larger teams, and seeing our in-country budget drained from the cases and cases of water that we have to buy, we decided to look for a more economical and environmentally-friendly way to handle the water situation. Thus, the advent of these super-hip “feeders,” as the Zambians call them. Each night while we are in Zambia, we boil water in the guest houses where we stay, fill the bottles, and have water to drink for the next day. It’s a little more work, but it’s virtually free, and there are fewer plastic bottles going in to landfills. It just makes sense. Plus, they’re sweet and we know you want one, but they aren’t for sale yet. You have to take a trip. Or wait for our online store to open. Doesn’t it just drive you crazy to keep clicking on that taunting store link and nothing happens? I understand, I do that daily. Soon…very soon. 
Tap Into Water
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If you come on a Poetice trip, you will get a water bottle. You will carry this water bottle around with the knowledge that you are part of an elite club of mission-minded folks, since we have only been using these for a few months now. Since most of the water in Africa is not safe for Americans to drink, it is necessary to buy bottled water for the teams while we are in Zambia. Bottled water is expensive, and at the end of the day, there would often be 25 water bottles laying around, several with a few inches of water in the bottom, that had to be thrown out. After taking several larger teams, and seeing our in-country budget drained from the cases and cases of water that we have to buy, we decided to look for a more economical and environmentally-friendly way to handle the water situation. Thus, the advent of these super-hip “feeders,” as the Zambians call them. Each night while we are in Zambia, we boil water in the guest houses where we stay, fill the bottles, and have water to drink for the next day. It’s a little more work, but it’s virtually free, and there are fewer plastic bottles going in to landfills. It just makes sense. Plus, they’re sweet and we know you want one, but they aren’t for sale yet. You have to take a trip. Or wait for our online store to open. Doesn’t it just drive you crazy to keep clicking on that taunting store link and nothing happens? I understand, I do that daily. Soon…very soon.
If you come on a Poetice trip, you will get a water bottle. You will carry this water bottle around with the knowledge that you are part of an elite club of mission-minded folks, since we have only been using these for a few months now. Since most of the water in Africa is not safe for Americans to drink, it is necessary to buy bottled water for the teams while we are in Zambia. Bottled water is expensive, and at the end of the day, there would often be 25 water bottles laying around, several with a few inches of water in the bottom, that had to be thrown out. After taking several larger teams, and seeing our in-country budget drained from the cases and cases of water that we have to buy, we decided to look for a more economical and environmentally-friendly way to handle the water situation. Thus, the advent of these super-hip “feeders,” as the Zambians call them. Each night while we are in Zambia, we boil water in the guest houses where we stay, fill the bottles, and have water to drink for the next day. It’s a little more work, but it’s virtually free, and there are fewer plastic bottles going in to landfills. It just makes sense. Plus, they’re sweet and we know you want one, but they aren’t for sale yet. You have to take a trip. Or wait for our online store to open. Doesn’t it just drive you crazy to keep clicking on that taunting store link and nothing happens? I understand, I do that daily. Soon…very soon. Adding the “International”
Many of you have noticed a subtle change to the Poetice logo recently. We have been toying with the idea for a while, and a few months back, decided to officially change the name of the our organization to Poetice International. This semantic addition doesn’t signify any major changes in the mission, but rather, we are hoping that it will be a better descriptor of what we already do. We found that many individuals and organizations were under the assumption that Poetice was the band of Founder Micah Kephart and weren’t aware that there was any goal outside of leading worship or doing a show. There is a band associated with Poetice, which Micah leads; in fact, many of the band members are employed with Poetice, or have some function within the greater mission. But unlike a lot of popular Christian bands who also promote non-profits, Poetice is a cause with a band, not a band with a cause. The music is important, but it is not the end goal. The music is a powerful tool to reach young people by inspiring them to dream, and a weapon of hope in battling injustice. The band is currently working on a couple EPs to be released sometime this year.
365 Campaign is making a difference
We’re thrilled to share this hopeful story from our partners at Fortress Vision in Choma.
Meet Nchimunya Mushitila, a seventeen year-old young woman living with her mother and five siblings in the Mwapona compound, the poorest in Choma District. She lost her father some time ago to HIV/AIDS.
Nchimunya’s mother sold vegetables at the local market, and her income was often not enough to feed all seven mouths, let alone pay for school fees. When there was a little extra money, the children attended school, but this was sporadic—days and weeks went by when the children were refused entrance into the classroom because of outstanding balances on their accounts. At seventeen, Nchimunya was in the ninth grade at St. Patrick’s Basic School; she and her siblings had all fallen behind because of so many absent days.
“At seventeen years, life has really taught me what it takes to be a responsible person in society,” she said, expressing how difficult it is to watch her mother struggle to provide for the family. Nchimunya’s family ate only once or twice a day and lacked basic clothing and shelter.
“Being an orphan is not a choice and never a good status to be in,” she said. “Society stigmatizes and discriminates us, as a result I cannot enjoy life to my expectations because people in my community treat me as an outcast.”
When she was able to attend school, Nchimunya had trouble concentrating on her studies and socializing with friends because she felt burdened by stress and depression. Nchimunya prayed that God would provide funding for her education and for her family’s needs. Just as she was about to lose hope, Fortress Vision Zambia identified her for sponsorship.
Smiling, Nchimunya said, “Fortress Vision Zambia is the hope for my education, and I am so excited even to find that there is an orphan choir at the Academy and that I’ll receive free musical instruction. When I complete my senior secondary school, I would like to become a music teacher. I really like what Fortress Vision Zambia is doing for Choma schools, communities, local churches, orphans and the vulnerable children in our township.”
Finally, Nchimunya thanked all the people who are spearheading the organization and all those who gave so that she may attend school.
Nchimunya’s story is just one of many that have been impacted thus far, by the 365 Campaign. The generosity and prayerful commitment of 365 people giving a dollar a day each year will fully sponsor over 100 orphans in the Choma Academy of Music for formal education, health and hygiene, discipleship, AIDS and Trafficking education and much more. We ask that you prayerfully consider joining the campaign by signing up here. We are eager to share more stories like Nchimunya.
Thank you for writing a stanza of hope in the life of an orphan. Second Student Camp was a Success
In April, approximately 150 young people gathered in Choma, Zambia for Poetice’s second international student camp. The American team, which had members from Maryland, South Dakota, Indiana, and Michigan, joined our Fortress Vision Zambia staff for a week of teaching, discussions, worship, drama, games, and making new friends.
We were blessed to have The Ransom’s worship leader, Phil Wiseman, returning with a band made up of musicians from his church, as well as others from New Life in La Plata, MD. As usual, a lot had to be done on the fly, but Phil has quickly learned how to mesh the talents of various band members and, as an expert trumpeter, he is great at improvisation.
Each international camp ends up being unique, based on the various passions and talents that the American teams bring with them. There is always music and solid teaching by both Zambian and American pastors and teachers, but we leave the rest of the program undecided until we see what the U.S. teams have to offer. Some teams might have visual artists, or actors, or writers on board. Others might include a more athletic bunch, with a passion for soccer or dance. So we try to create a camp schedule that allows for these gifts to be utilized, and the students to get exposure to as many opportunities as possible.
Many thanks go to the team from La Plata, which consisted mostly of teenagers. They blessed us with dramatic presentations and music, and had a blast teaching the Zambian students how to play American baseball. They brought not only instruments and sports equipment with them, but also willing spirits, servant hearts, and loads of enthusiasm!
Of course, the biggest props need to go to Fortress Vision. With Richman Syabbamba at the helm, they organized the day-to-day program, provided counselors and leaders for the students, cooked all the meals, and blessed us with music from the Fortress Band and the Academy of Music Orchestra.
It is so exciting, when we return every few months, to see the musical progress that the students in the Academy are making.
Because the camp was held in Choma, were able to tour the Choma Academy of Music, drop off some instruments that we had brought with us, and talk to the staff. We also visited the homes of two of our Academy kids, who are being sponsored by the 365 Campaign, and got to meet their families and hear their stories.
In addition to this, we visited a hospice and prayed with terminally-ill patients there, and visited a school full of orphans and vulnerable children. They sang a song for us, and we played games and colored with them. It was so much fun; some of us could have stayed there all week!
Of course, no trip to Zambia would be complete without visiting Victoria Falls. Since they had just finished the rainy season, the falls were at full capacity, and most of us wound up soaking wet.
We also happened to be in Livingstone on Easter Sunday, so we were able to celebrate the resurrection with our brothers and sisters at Central Pilgrim Wesleyan Church.
It seems like each team and trip we take are better than the last. Even though each location and program contains its own surprises and challenges, we feel like God is blessing our best efforts, and we are getting better at organizing and communicating the message God has laid on our hearts. We already miss our new friends from The Ransom and La Plata (and Kyle—we haven’t forgotten you, buddy!), and we are hoping to have an ongoing partnership with these churches. To those who went—thank you. God used you in a mighty way, and each one of you was a valuable addition to the team. To those who helped with funding and prayer and in countless other ways, thank YOU. We absolutely could not do this without you. Rest assured that your investment in this trip will reap dividends for years to come.