Operation Christmas Child - Gambia

(Second gallery required due to blog's restriction of 20 photos per gallery.)

Momma and babe!

Typical street view!

My official blog entry on the trip will come later. People have asked how they can share photos from my trip with their churches, so I am putting the photos here so that they can be shared. The notes below are taken from my husband, David's, presentation about Gambia prior to my leaving. Please note that these photos were submitted from several participants of the trip.

I went on an OCC distribution trip to Gambia (or officially, "The Gambia") from October 2 - 11. Gambia was a British colony embedded within the French colony of Senegal. Official borders have varied over the years, but the colony is basically 10 miles to the North and South of the Gambia river, travelling inland for around 200 miles.

Gambia has a long history of slavery, dating back to the 10th century. During the transatlantic slave trade, three million Gambians were taken from their land. This is particularly significant since the current population of Gambia is only two million.

Roughly 57% of the population is urban. Gambia provides free education up until grade six. Within the city, 52% of the grade-school are female, which is very significant compared to other under-developed countries. The percentage is likely lower in rural areas.

Gambia consists of 95% Muslims, 4% Christians, and 1% others.

Gambia weather is sub-tropical. It was very hot when I was there -- up to 40 C, plus high humidity.