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FORWARDING AGENTS;

Mrs. Evelyn Hill & Mr./Mrs. Sam Mitchell

P. 0. Box 2746, Napa, CA 94558

MeABWE

THE
"Therefore go
and make

disciples
doles of
all nations.."

PICKETT

Matt. 28:19

LINE
Judith L. Pickett, Secretary to Central Africa Mission
P. 0. Box 392, Chinhoyi, Zimabwe, Africa
February 1993 Newsletter
Dear Christian Friends:

Hello, on this bright and sunny day in Zimbabwe. I love the sunshine, but we are wishing for
a few more rains. So far we have had fairly good rains and most of the crops are growing.
However, the rivers and dams are far from full and will not last us until another rainy
season. Nevertheless, it is so wonderful to travel out in the bush areas and see the green
grass and the thin, thin cattle beginning to fatten up again and see the beautiful fields of
maize (corn), cotton, potatoes, soy beans and tobacco.

My women's work has begun again in earnest. Over the Christmas holidays and the planting
season, most of my groups took a break which also gave me a break. Now we are going full
force, working with 14 groups on a part-time and full-time visitation basis. My assistants
(tutors) teach literacy three mornings a week here at the Shona-speaking Church in Chinhoyi
and then travel out with me Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons and all day on
Thursdays. Besides the Bible lessons, we teach literacy, hygiene, lessons about AIDS, and
now lessons on ways to prevent Cholera.

Because of the drought, many areas are now faced with a Cholera epidemic. My tutors and I
carry our own boiled drinking water wherever we go as well as water with disinfectant to wash

our hands during the course of the day. It is the custom for all the women to greet us by
shaking hands, and the Minister of Health has issued a warning that this custom is very
dangerous. So we take every precaution and are giving lessons to the women on preventive
ways of protecting themselves. They are eager to learn, but the conditions they live under
make it very difficult to protect their families all the time. Many in the bush (country)
areas have no sanitary facilities and just use the open bush for toilets which makes it very
difficult to protect themselves.

Perhaps you remember about three years ago, I wrote an article in my newsletter about the

little, three-year, old girl who was burned by falling into a pot of boiling water. Well
tragedy struck this family again. The father and breadwinner of a family of seven died last
week leaving the mother and children completely destitute. He worked for a mine and the

family should have received a pension upon his death. However, he had been legally married
before and had divorced his first wife, but he had no legal marriage certificate with his
second wife, which means she has no claim on his pension money. The children of the first

marriage will receive it. This destitute woman has been the chairlady of one of the groups
I work with and a dear friend. My heart is broken for her.

The day before the funeral I went to pay my respects and ended up taking relatives to sign
papers at the mine office, ordering the plain wooden box covered with black material, taking
them to the mortuary at the mine to make arrangements for the body to be brought there from
Chinhoyi, and then back to pick up the box. I then went to Chinhoyi to get the body so it
could be returned to the mortuary at Alaska Mine. When all this was done, I went back to
report to the family what had been done. They begged me to stay and preach, but I felt that
should be the responsibility of the evangelist who would be there later. This same
evangelist had four funerals that particular week, and he was exhausted. My intended visit

of one or two hours turned into an all day affair. I returned home emotionally and
physically exhausted. By the way, the death certificate read Cholera and possible AIDS. It
is frightening the number of deaths that happen per week.

FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH

2659 FIRST STREET
NAPA CA 94558-5599

Non-ProfIt Organiz.
U.S. Postage Paid
Permit No. 28

Napa CA 94558

HORIZONS
BOX 2427

KNOXVILLE TN 37901

Well, my girls are beginning to leave the nest. Kina, the oldest girl, is now living in
Harare and working for the Zimbabwe Christian College. Her other job closed down at the end
of December, and she was offered the job at the college. She was a bit frightened of the

responsibility involved, but I am told by the principal that she is doing a fantastic job.
Another missionary, who noved from Harare to Masvingo, is letting Kina move into her
apartment, which is fully furnished, so this is a marvelous opportunity for her. I am so
very thrilled that she is working in a Christian atmosphere. Irene still remains at home and
works in the local pharmacy, but she is now getting the urge to move on since her sister has
left the nest. But I am satisfied that they are good girls, and it is time that they learn
to live their own lives. The Bible College, however, has very little funds to pay their

staff. If any church or group within the church would like to help the college with this
necessary expense, please contact Principal Dave Altman, Zimbabwe Christian College, Box H96,
Hatfield, Harare, Zimbabwe. Approximately $300 American dollars per month is all that is
needed to cover Kina's salary and another employee, who has been paid thus far by funds from
a missionary who returned home. Those funds will soon be used up, and the college will then
have to assume these salaries.
PRAYER NEEDS:

Pray for the families of AIDS victims

Prav for Cholera victims and their families

Pray for the health of my assistants and 1 as we travel many miles a month
Prav for more rain for this country
NEEDS OF HOMEN^S SEWING PROJECTS:
1.
2.

Extra large-eyed sewing needles for embroidery or sewing.

Embroidery floss-bright colors at least two or three of each color (can be sent
in an airmail letter envelope two or three at a time) or sent to my forwarding
agents to be included in boxes.

One yard or more pieces of checked gingham material, medium size checks, bright
colors (material can be sent one or two yards together in a manila envelope
airmail) or sent to my forwarding agents to be included in boxes.
Dressmaking pins

New or used spools of thread (all colors)

New or used tape measures (in yards or centimeters)
Seed beads or broken necklaces (to be used in Judy's boutique hobby) and for
African ladies who make beaded doilies and tea showers.
Love in Christ,

Judy Pickett

FORWARDING AGENTS;

Hrs. Evelyn Hill & Mr./Mrs. Sam Mitchell

P. 0. Box 2746, Napa, CA 94558

Z IIVIB ABWE

THE
"Therefore go
and make

disciples of

'

all nations.."

PICKETT

Matt. 28:19

LINE
Judith L. Pickett, Secretary to Central Africa Mission
P. 0. Box 392, Chinhoyi, Zimabwe, Africa
May 1993 Newsletter
Easter Meeting with a Difference
Dear Christian Friends:

Hello again! It is a beautiful sunny day here in Zimbabwe. Our rains are still continuing
although this is the month when they usually finish. We are not complaining though, as we
have needed good rains for a long time. We are anticipating a cold winter, because the
nights are already quite cool while the days are mild,

I trust that all of you had a lovely Easter and were blessed by the worship services you
attended. Let me tell you about my Easter, which was quite different. I had been invited

by the Evangelists in the Gokwe area to attend their Easter meeting, where all the churches
come together for a four-day meeting. This is an area some five-hours journey from Chinhoyi,
but where we have many, very, active churches. Because of the distance, I canno^t go on a

regular basis to work with the women. The Evangelists felt that this four-day meeting would

be ideal for me to teach and get acquainted with their churches. On the Thursday before
Easter, two of the women that work for me. Michael Nyandora's wife, his

one of his grandsons all loaded into my truck at 6 a.m. and headed for Masiti Church where
the meeting was being held.

We arrived around noon and settled in as others were arriving. During the afternoon we were

served tea and just had fellowship while others arrived. The men of the church were busy
butchering a cow, which was to feed the crowd for the meeting. I had made curtains to fit
my truck windows, so hung them up preparing my truck to become my bedroom for the next three

nights. We were meeting in a very isolated area right out in the open bush lands, 'he'"

were no facilities for bathing, except a grass roofless shelter in which I would take a
bucket of hot water from the fire to take my bath. Fortunately there was a government clini

close by. where I was able to use their Blair toilet (a very roughly put together cement
structure with circular walls with a hole in the middle). The women were avowed to sleep

on the veranda and open court yard of the clinic at night, and I pa^ked my truck
building and slept inside of it. Mrs. Custudio, Hrs. Hachaya, and Mrs. Nyadoro. Prepared
their beds on the ground right beside my truck. The men set up a sf^^'^^^ysuard system, so
I was guarded each night. I was the only white person among five to six hundred Africans.
Since this was a possible Cholera area, I had taken all my own boiled drinking water for
myself and my tutors and a cool box of ice with some food for myself when I got tired of the

sadza and relish.

Their were morning devotions each day, a preaching service in the evening, and classes for

the men and women all day. Of course there was lots of singing, and the young people from
each church presented their choir songs.

We had prepared sewing kits consisting of 1/2 meter of material, embroidery floss, a needle,
and crochet cotton. Not knowing how many women we would have, we prepared one for each

church to purchase. One or two ladies from each group would learn the chicken scratch

embroidery pattern, and they would then be able to go back to their church and teach others.
It worked out beautifully, and the women were so thrilled to learn. Every free moment they
had between sessions, they were busy sewing and passing it around among all the women of
their church to learn.

FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH

2659 FIRST STREET
NAPA CA 94558-5599

Non-Profit Organiz.
U.S. Postage Paid
Permit No. 28

Napa CA 94558

HORIZ NS

BOX 24a7
KNOXVI1I TN 37901

We had planned several Bible lessons for the women, as well as a hygiene lesson and a lesson

on Aids. The Evangelists came to me and sai^, "Ambuya, the men also want to sit in on your
hygiene lesson." Mai Machaya was to teachJ:he hygiene lesson to the women, but she said,
Ambuya, I get very personal about their private parts; and I would be embarrassed to talk

in front of the men." The men accepted ho\i she felt, but said, "Please Ambuya, will you
teach us about hygiene?" I agreed to teach them very basic hygiene on cleanliness.
Mrs. Custudio taught the young girls while Mfb. Machaya taught the women, and they all seemed
to be satisfied. Mrs. Custudio, who has attended a seminar on aids, taught a lesson to the
whole group, men and women.

Easter morning was a beautiful sunny day, and we had a lovely worship service under the
trees. My tutors and I teamed up with the Evangelists and their wives and made a choir, and
we sang for the service. Immediately afterl my tutors and I left for the five-hour drive
home. On the way home, we dropped Mr. &lMrs. Nyandoro at their home. Ever since his

motorcycle accident, he had been wanting^me to see his home village. Wliat_a beautiful place
it was"! Tlis houses and fields sat on top offla hill overlooking the whole area. In front of
his house was the biggest Baobab tree I have ever seen. The roots extended up out of the
ground and made chairs for us to sit on.

I had three days of rest, then off to our Church of Christ National Women's Conference at

Gweru.

I was just an observer at that meeting, but I did stay in town with missionary

friends, which made it a bit easier for me.l

Death strikes again among my groups. The chalirlady of my Chivere group, which I have worked
with for several years, lost her husband. He died very suddenly, and it was a great loss to
her and their nine children. He had been an intercontinental lorry driver (semi-truck
driver), so had provided a good home for them, She does all the crop planting and harvesting
at their bush home and was chosen farmer of t le year in 1992. She will at least be provided

for, but her lost is still overwhelming,

attended.

It

was one of the largest funerals I had ever

He was buried in a cotton field W ithin sight of his home.

I must close, but wish to thank everyone for ithe lovely Easter and birthday cards and gifts

I received. It means so much to me to know|you care.

Please continue to pray for the health situations over here. Pray especially for the unrest

in South Africa, which often flows over into Zimbabwe and affects our people, who have
relatives living in South Africa.

'

I want to thank those of you who have senti and are sending checked gingham material and

sewing supplies for my groups. A new need has arisen again for pencils and small prizes to
give to my ladies, who have worked so hard in literacy and Bible lessons. Scripture rulers,
ball point pens, pin cushions, book markers 1 small Bible story books for children, or any
little thing that they would enjoy would be most appreciated. They can't read, but they
enjoy the pictures, as the stories are interpreted for them. I am not having to pay customs

these days on packages, if the value is kept |ow and the package is small (shoe box size or

manila padded envelopes). All my birthday bo:|ces have come through without my having to pay
anything on them to customs. Praise the Lord!
Yours in Christ,

Judy Piickett

F0RWARDIH6 AGENTS:

Mrs. Evelyn Hill & Nr./Mrs. Sam Mitchell

P. 0. Box 2746. Napa, CA 94558

Z 1MBABWE

"Therefore go
and make

disciples of
all nations..'

PICKETT

Hatt. 28:19

LINE
Oudlth L. Pickett, Secretary to Central Africa Mission
P. 0. Box 392, Chinhoyi, Ziraabwe, Africa
November 1993 Newsletter

Dear Christian Friends:

Several months have passed and 1 have not gotten a letter off. Where does time go? It seems like only yesterday that I was
making plans for my Planning Retreat to organize my work for the year of 1993, and now I am planning for 1994.
I am very excited about the Planning Retreat for this year. Last year just my tutors and I met for three days at a camp near
Harare to plan our schedule for 1993, to study and fellowship together, and be spiritually uplifted. It was such a profitable
experience that the idea was formed to include the wives of our evangelists in the Chinhoyi area. I discussed the idea with
Brother Dale Marshall, and he felt that it was an excellent idea. We have seven evangelists, who work with us with the Shona
speaking people. In the past their wives have not really been helpful, as they did not understand or feel the need to be
supportive of their husbands. Over the years, different seminars and meeting have been held that encouraged them to take
part in the work of the church. So this year, I am including them in our Planning Retreat

With my three tutors, myself, and the seven wives, there will be eleven of us. We will meet at Resthaven Camp from
December 6-9. This is a camp run by the TEAM Mission, and there are different size houses which can be reserved for the

time you need. We have reserved the largest house, which actually holds 15 people. We will do our cooking, but each woman
will have her own bed, etc. This was a surprise to my tutors last year, as they are so used to going to meetings, rolling up
in a blanket, and sleeping on the floor or ground. So we are excited to see the amazement of the wives when they see our
house. Three of the women have nursing babies, so they too will be along. TTie program includes devotions night and morning
led by myself, the tutors, and two of the older wives. I will prepare the lessons, and the theme is "SERVING GOD IN LOVE."
We will also have a planning session, where we will prepare our traveling schedule for 1994, share ideas to use in the women^s
work, and have a couple of tours of interesting places in Harare. Please pray that this will be a time of spiritual growth and
refreshment for all of us.

Tragedy strikes again. A few months back, I was saddened to learn that Uie evangelists at Chidamoyo, whom I had sent to
Bible College and who had worked with me during my time at the hospital, Oliver Marowa,had gone astray with women other
than his wife. We learned this when he became a victim of the HIV-AIDS virus. Two weeks ago, Dr. Gloria Cobb, who now
lives in Harare, and I decided to go visit Oliver, who had been sent to his home for his final weeks of life. We planned to
arrive unannounced on a Saturday, which we did, only to find that Oliver had passed away the night before we arrived. We
ended up staying over for the funeral on Sunday.

Mrs. Custudio had gone with us, and Mrs. Kwachenera met us there. When night came, my truck became our bedroom once
again. Fortunately, I had packed my curtains for the truck, as we thought we might have to stay the night Dr. Cobb slept
in the front seat of the truck; and Mrs. Custodio, Mrs. Kwachenera, and I attempted to sleep in the back. At African funerals

the mourners usually play drums, sing, dance, and cry all night. We had pulled the truck back behind the house thinking we
would get some sleep, but we certainly did not get much sleep. African custom at funerals is that the daughter in laws (all
young married girls of the family-he actually had no married children) crawl on their knees around the village,sweeping the
ground, clearing the path from the home to the grave site, and going before the casket to the grave. Of course, they must be
paid for these tasks. They do so much and then stop and expect relatives or guests to pay them something before they
continue to do the job. We realized at 5 a.m. that the ground around my truck was being swept and little piles of dirt were
being left for us to toss some money on. We did not want to disregard their customs, so we placed a few coins on the piles.

Later when tea came they demanded $10 for our morning tea. Still later, Mrs.Custudio and Dr. Cobb had started to the grave
site where Mrs. Kwachenera had gone to help collect stones to place on top of the grave. They did not realize the path had
been cleaned and was again charged $10, The family were very argumentative and some said we did not have to pay. I finally
spoke to the man in chaige of the proceedings and explained that we respected their customs and would give some money,
but we had come to visit not knowing the man was dead and were not prepared rinancially. We felt the daughter-in-laws were

FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH

2659 FIRST STREET

Non-profit Organiz.

NAPA CA 94558-5599

U.S. Postage Paid

Permit No. 28

Napa CA 94558

HORIZONS

BOX 2427

KNOXWLLE TN 37901

being unreasonable just because we were missionaries and white. He agreed and spoke to them, and we were not bothered
again with such demands. The brothers of the deceased had not yet arrived, so the family had no money and had made no
plans for the burial. We ended up paying $80 for the casket and $75 for material to line the casket and wrap the body. My
truck also was used to carry the casket from the builders house about 10 kilometers away to the village. The deceased,
Mr. Marowa, left his wife and six children, the eldest of which is flnishing his high school education this next month.

Dr. Cobb, Miss Kathy McCarty, and myself were all asked to speak at the funeral. It was a hard task, because the villagers
and family were being difficult because of the manner in which he died. I chose the story in the bible of the woman caught
in adultery and how Jesus asked her accusers to cast the first stone. I concluded that even though we felt what he did was
wrong, none of us are without sin. Therefore, we could not point a finger of accusation at Oliver. It was a volatile situation
and a bit frightening at times, but we knew we were in the Lord's hands.
Then this past Thursday, my tutors and I traveled the 50 kilometers to one of our women's meetings at Zowa. The roads were
very rough, more than normal, and about five kilometers from the church we came down into a hump in the road fllled with
rocks. The car bounced hard, and we heard a loud bannnng/twannng that scared us all and jolted us hard. I was only going

about 20 miles an hour so immediately stopped. We all got out and looked under the car. A long rod was handing down, and
my heart sank. We could not loosen it further, so we started on because we were in a very isolated area. We felt if we could

just get to the church, then we could get help or send someone back to Chinhoyi on the bus to inform Dale of my plight I
was creeping, but another low place pulled the rod completely off. We picked it up, put it in the back, and made it to the
church. We explained to the ladies that we must get our meeting, lunch, and bible study over quickly and head back home,
so we'd be off the dirt roads before dark. Three men looked at the truck and felt that I could drive it verv. very, slowly home.

The truck was listing to the right side (driver's side) and drove very rough, but we made it. I took the tutors home, picked
up my daughter, and headed to the garage before it closed. The mechanics laughed at me for thinking it had something to

do with the steering, as I had visions of the steering locking and throwing us off the road. It turned out to be the torsion bar,
which holds up the frame of the truck and works the springs. Fortunately, only the bolt was broken and not the whole bar.

After two days and manufacturing a new bolt, the truck is back on the road again. Through all these experiences, I am
overwhelmed how God protects us and guides us to safety. Our work with the women is going so well, and I feel Satan is
trying to destroy it in many ways, but God never fails us.

As a results of the jolting, I have been suffering with my back badly this week. However, today I am on top of the pain so
praise the Lord for that. However, I have another heartache which is harder to deal with. My daughter, Irene, is still not
back to normal. She lost her job and refuses to return to the psychiatrist and counselor. She is spending more and more
time with her African relatives, who have little regard for God. They are feeding her full of superstitious nonsense, but she
is 26 and I have no legal authority over her. I just have to sit back and pray that she will come to no harm physically. She
has spent the week living with her real mother who lives in an appalling situation. No bathroom facilities, about six people
sleeping in one room, cooking over an open fire, and right in the heart of one of the worst slum areas of the African section
of town. Again, I feel that Satan is trying to get to me; but through prayers and the love and strength of my Christian family
here, I WILL HAVE THE VICTORY THROUGH JESUS. Praise God for Tina,the oldest girl, who is happily living in Harare.
She is doing a fantastic job as office manager for our Bible College and has earned the respect of all the missionaries,
students, and the church in that place.
PRAYER NEEDS; My daughter Irene, the health of my sisters Donna and Joyce in the states, my own health, safety with my
tutors in our many miles of travel, a successful retreat in December,success for plans made which I cannot reveal at this time,
a good rainy season for Zimbabwe, and the families of the many AIDS victims dying all around us.

Yours in Christ,

Judy Pickett