European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 20, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Photo for a amps Lee Mccormick project Kenya workers haul tools across the flooded River above and try to undo the damage done to the ditch by the previous night s rain right. A amps Rosemary Sawyer rom continent continued irom Page 15 the in Mindor of the project workers to take with them when they flew trom Frankfurt april 6 Berger s sickness prompted Many prayers. Teenagers irom his youth group were perhaps most heartbroken and concerned. The night his weakened body was carried on a table top to a truck for a trip to the Hospital the Bamberg youths watched helplessly. Berger had collapsed earlier while talking to staff members after the trucks taillights disappeared into the night Lor Magadi the teen agers filed into a nearby storeroom to play. Their Seal cars and to shirts already wet from a sudden downpour became handkerchiefs and their in lends shoulders something to lean on. A two know that you re in charge Ana master of the universe Quot youth ministries director Russell prayed with the rest of the group in a neighbouring tent Quot and you re siding right there beside Ron Quot a a a april they told us As the Sun melted our bodies into the ditch was the coolest month of the year when we awoke each morning at 6 to Quot goo Good mor Brrning Kenya Quot and spoon variations on a sauce pan the air still Felt Cool but by Iho time we d Board the truck to head to the work site at 7, the Sun was heating up like the griddle they used or our wheat pancakes most of the group had never before swung a pick or hammered a shovel into the ground let alone in such temperatures. Quot it i had to do this experience Over again if All the variables were the same except for the heat i would do it in a second Quot said Karen Kleindienst youth Leader from Heidelberg West Germany. Quot but the heat was a major Factor in discouragement too. I could see it taking its toll on the  Jamie Davis 16, of Frankfurt knew the feeling. Quot i Felt like i was filling in the ditch teaspoonful by teaspoonful Quot said Davis remembering the first Day her team spent burying the new pipe. Quot it was so hot out there and i remember that i kept praying that the Clouds would cover the Sun or that a Little Breeze would come by but it never  by the end of the project he digging became Quot a matter of character Quot Kleindienst said. Quot you continued even when you did t feel like  its not every night that you get the luxury of dining in a restaurant Complete with waterfalls. It was every other night. Heavy Rains turned the intersection of the Lour fest tents that served As our dining room into a mini Niagara leaving Small lakes on the ground despite soil that drank rain like Coffee grounds. Tent dwellers had to wring out their waterlogged belongings. Clean clothes on the line were guaranteed a second and third rinse before they dried. The seasonal Rains that pleased local villagers had started about two weeks Early. The British broadcasting corp. Reported the Rains were Kenya s worst in a decade. In fact All but 14 of the 72 cars entered in Kenya s off Road rally had been washed out by the Rains. Worse than the inconvenience at base Camp however was the havoc the Rains wreaked at the work site. Water washed dirt Back into the ditch and caused the pipeline to float up in places we then had to go Back to a Muddy knee swallowing ditch pull out the pipe and dig it out again. Quot i Don t want you to feel frustrated with some of the things god has brought us Quot Heidelberg s Mike Whalen told the teams before they surveyed damage from the previous night s rain. But it was hard not to be discouraged. The Rains also prevented the use of a tilling device that would break up the soil to ease shovelling. A rain River that formed 800 meters from the pumping station had to be forded each Day. We had to build a foot Bridge and pull one of two Blue lorries across the Stream to provide transportation on the other Side. We had to mix Cement by hand because the Cement mixer could not be carried Over the River that surged stronger every Day. Quot so much of what we do is dependent on the weather Quot said Jim Methven a missionary with Africa Inland Mission the organization that oversaw the project. At least 150 Man hours a Day were lost simply because one of the two trucks was stationed on the far Side of the River and workers had to be transported to the site in shifts on the other truck. Early in the week the Africa Inland Mission engineers knew that the rain had washed away our chances of finishing All eight Kilometres. When the Rains cease local tribesmen would be paid $4 a Day to finish digging the last four Kilometres they said. Perhaps we re not going to finish because god wants the Masai people to assume ownership of the project through their involvement Russell speculated. The third world gained a third dimension that Day in the Masai Village. The scene shocked most of us who have Only met poverty in textbooks on television or in National geographic Quot i d read about All the people who were sick i d seen it on to i d thought that s really bad but id never really got to experience it Quot said Nicole Bower of Frankfurt. Quot the children a some of them having no shoes some having no clothes and the flies All Over  at first it was like visiting a zoo said Katie Sullivan of Heidelberg Quot we were the White people there with our  but after a few minutes she noticed the bars began to come Down she said. The americans started passing gum and balloons to the children. The Masai began to express their fascination with our cameras. The americans became less preoccupied with swatting flies. The Masai children started to sing. A As it turned out Berger did not have malaria. A virus apparently had caused his High fever and he was dehydrated. In another Happy ending Greg Duffy did no to have to Spray off at any uninvited predators. By the time help arrived with a spare tire that night we d developed a defense plan. We had decided to turn what could be viewed As our greatest liability into an asset. Since the Back end of the pick up was loaded with steaks and hot dogs left Over from our easter Cook out in Magadi we planned to climb onto the truck cab and fling the barbecued treats to any hungry hyenas who happened along. Fortunately we did no to have to employ the plan. Unfortunately the truck would t Start after we had mounted the spare. And As africans Murphy s Law would have it the spare had a slow leak so sometime around Midnight after trying to push Start the truck we towed it Back to Camp. But we were unfazed. After All this was Africa and we were the new Indiana Joneses. Page 16 the stars and stripes sunday May 20, 1990