By: Fr. Edgardo Espiritu, SDB

Ethiopia has just emerged from a turbulent period in it’s history.
Fr. Espiritu lived there during those 15 traumatic years.
He shares with us some of his experiences.

The panoramic view I daily enjoy from my room, perched high on the tower of the Don Bosco Retreat House in Mambucal, reminds me daily of a far away country, Ethiopia, where I spent almost fifteen years as a missionary. Of course, Mambucal except for the letter Mhas nothing to compare with Makale. Where I now see verdant forest, Makale can only boast of brownish desert sands. But then Makale was 9,000feet above see level, where as now I am only at a barely 1,000 feet. Each has a beauty all its own, as well as memories that are dear to me. One such memorable event would be my first meeting with the young who on May 3, 1992 will be ordained the FIRST ETHIOPIAN PRIEST.

By: Sr. Brenda Villarin, D. C.

Missionary in Ethiopia

Throughout the 14 years of my missionary work in Ethiopia our Lord has filled me with “good things.” What good things? The opportunity to minister to His needy people in the re-settlement village, people relocated by the government from the famine stricken area to more verdant farm lands

Famine

I am a Filipino Daughters of Charity working in Ethiopia for the last 14 years. By now everyone knows of the terrible famine affecting millions of people which have hit this land in the last decade. The government has relocated many of these starving people from drought stricken areas of special resettlement sites, are much fertile.

Sheep without Shepherd

In their first year as settlers these people are like sheep without a shepherd.” They landed on virgin lands with almost nothing but little huts made from dry grain and corn stalks for their shelter. Our response as a Church to their need was to provide for their basic needs: food, clothing, shelter, health care. Once they have picked up in health, they work away with great determination not to stay in a state of utter poverty.