Chess and Seed production
I am sitting opposite the table from the local head of police and principal of the local school. The Community Police Forum and police are meeting with the principal to discuss some issues regarding transport of the schoolchildren, but soon the meeting changed to a familiar ring I have heard so many times:
“What are there for these children to do? They are idle! There is no activities to keep them busy! Nobody is doing any extra effort to help these children! If I were in their shoes, I would also do the wrong things that they are doing!”
I could sense the despair and frustration of the police officer and principal. They have a heart for the community, but feel like they are fighting a losing battle against forces way too strong for them to overcome.
Although it cannot be regarded as the poorest among the poor, Onseepkans, like so many similar communities all along the Orange River, have a sense of futility when you visit them. Many of the people have fallen into a state of just existing, day to day, with no vision and hope for the future. You ask yourself the question, how can anyone make a difference to the lives of these people? How can you fight the despair of rejection and abuse, broken family structures, absent father figures and alcohol and drug abuse? Can you blame the children of these communities for not excelling at school, gambling, smoking marijuana, drinking, living immoral and doing wrong?
“I want to start a chess club.” I am still not sure why the thought came to me. Somehow deep inside it just felt like the right thing to do. As chairperson of the local Community Police Forum (CPF), I presented the idea in the monthly meeting. The CPF is a forum comprising of members of the local community and serves as a body that works for better co-operation between the local police and community. It also strives to implement positive projects uplifting the community and youth. Five months ago I was elected by the Onseepkans community as chairperson of the CPF Onseepkans. The other members of the Forum were excited about the idea of a chess club. Even some of the police men where excited. One responded: “I would love to join. I used to play chess on provincial level many years ago!”
Steve Evers and Kent Reisenauer visited us beginning August 2018. I shared with him my vision for a chess club and asked if ITMI could help us sponsor the first 10 chess sets. A month ago we finally received our chess sets and had our first chess class in the local community hall. On arrival, it was only me, the local Police captain and one of his police members. I thought to myself “another meaningless project with no interest from the local community.” The captain asked me how it was advertised and remarked that maybe more time is needed for it to get known in the community. I saw myself packing up and going home, explaining to my family that no one really showed up. The next moment a few children appeared in the doorway … some more children …. some young people … and even more children! I had to borrow the captain’s cell phone and called my wife and said: “Bring the children over, I need help!” That was the start of the chess club. Now we have some regulars that come every week and after the first three weeks some of them are already playing full games. It is a wonderful opportunity to pray with them, win their trust, and teach them discipline, order and to concentrate.
“We started a chess club,” I told the school principal. His face lit up. “That is something good! Our children are clever! They will do well! Can you start next week at the school also?”
Martie teaching community children chess
It is now just over seven years since we first came to Onseepkans, and in many ways it had been seven lean years for us.
Within weeks since we first came in October 2011, the irrigation canal completely ran dry. Not only does the canal serve the agricultural community, but also many households of which we were one. Weeks after we settled in Onseepkans we found ourselves with no household water, and drinking water from the nearby community were many times suspect, to say the least. It was middle spring and already we faced temperatures of 40 degrees (104 degrees Fahrenheit) and rising.
In those early days we had to collect every bit of grey water from the wash basins to flush the toilet, and many days the drinking water that we collected was not only green but also alive! Elmane would spend many hours in the heat boiling water to get it drinkable, and then again many hours to try and cool it down! Needless to say within weeks we all found ourselves sick in bed with diarrhoea. God taught us many valuable lessons that first few months in Onseepkans.
The house where we started in 2011
We knew from the start that part of the hope we need to bring to the people of Onseepkans would have to be agricultural activities. Onseepkans have no real other economic activity than agriculture. The local communities would talk nostalgically about the “old” days, when the commercial farmers used to plant the fields with maize, peas, beans, cotton, Lucerne and all kinds of crops that brought economic wealth to the community through job creation and many other benefits. But this all came to an end, commercial farmers moved away, their houses became ruins, Prosopis thorn bushes overgrew all the irrigation fields, and the irrigation life line canal of Onseepkans ran completely dry.
For many years we prayed and sought God’s direction how we should help to serve the community. We tried a little shop to give them groceries at fair prices, farming with animals, goats and sheep, we tried helping those who had animals at “outposts” (reed and sink huts with a pen for their animals in the “veld” surrounding the settlements), we tried to start a garden and teach the people basic gardening principles, we tried farming with Lucerne, we tried all different kinds of agricultural activities on a small scale in our desperate efforts to help and guide the people. Yet we continuously found ourselves facing the giants, giants of rejection and abuse, broken family structures, absent father figures and alcohol and drug abuse.
We realized that we needed a place of our own where we could develop God’s mission, and for over a year we pleaded with God to open a way for us. In 2013 God graciously opened the way for us to buy our own property. Our hearts were full of joy, since God made room for us in the land. But still God did not show us the way that we could develop the mission and bring hope to the people. We continued with our gardening efforts, we continued with the animals and trusted that God will bless our efforts. We also had many setbacks in the process, but we pressed on in blind faith. We explored all avenues, but yet did not get clear direction. We were like blind people trying to find their way in the dark.
Beginning 2018 I was at Kwasizabantu Mission in Natal with some of my children, when I received a call from a seed producing company. I vaguely had contact with them a year before. “We urgently want to start in Onseepkans this year,” I heard over the phone. They came to see my wife Elmane, while I was still in Natal. She phoned me excitedly, “They look like good people and are serious to get involved with us!” God opened a door that catapulted our little mission in a whole new direction. All of a sudden we found ourselves in the middle of commercial seed production with different trials taking place. We suddenly learned about commercial seed production of shallots, carrots, lettuce, cauliflowers and watermelons. We learned about hybrids, male and female plants, pollination by hand, fertilization programs, and many more. We now found ourselves in a situation where we could give people work, people come and ask to work for us. We praise God for the doors that He opened for us. Now we can also sow the seed of the Gospel in the lives of people, as they work for us. We can pray for them, encourage them, and teach them principles of proper work ethic. God knew beforehand where He wants us to be, for Him to glorify His Name. Truly, we can agree with the Psalmist in Psalm 34:8 “Taste and see that the Lord is good”
My wife, youngest daughter and myself in the carrot seed production field
Thank you to all our brothers and sisters in Christ who were willing to stand with us through the difficult years, trusting that God will lead the way. May God richly bless and keep you for your faithfulness towards Him and His kingdom.
