Many of you have had questions about our accomodations in Zambia. A Zambian work team has been building our home under the direction of a North American Contractor living in Zambia and working through Every Orphan’s Hope – an organization that GEMS has been partnering with in Zambia. In addition to some assistance from short-term mission teams, this is how the other three buildings (teachers’ quarters, library/clinic, and preschool/Kindegarten building) on campus were built as well.
Our home is a side-by-side duplex that we will share with the Roelofs. This is a beautiful (and comical) detail in how God has brought this whole thing together. For those that may not know, Drew and I own a small rental property business together and, as couples, we have always joked about how much simpler life would be if we just lived in one of our duplexes together. In His wisdom (and humor?), God arranged for our families to be called to serve together and now to live together, supporting each other in life and ministry. You may be able to see from the pictures below that the home is an identical mirror image duplex. GEMS and the contractor were gracious enough to allow us to have some input on the design of the home prior to construction. One of our favorite additions was the shared back porch that will connect from each kitchen and allow us to share time and meals together as families.
Duplex viewed from the garden
duplex viewed from water tower (front)
dining room
hallway
back porch
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view from back porch
The DeKam Family in Zambia 
Wow, your house is looking great! Less than a month now, huh? Sorry we can’t make it to Maria’s on Wednesday – we will be bringing Laiya to Chicago (she’s heading to Hong Kong for 10 days!). That’s pretty funny how your family and Drew and Arika’s family will live in a duplex together! Blessings!