Amy Medina

We can see it written across his face as soon as we make eye contact across the church foyer. He is thinking, “Oh, that’s Gil and Amy Medina. They are missionaries…somewhere….somewhere in Africa. But I can’t remember for how long or what they are doing there….” [Looks nervously at our picture on the wall.] “Don’t we get their newsletters? My wife reads them….I’m supposed to know!”

That’s when we hear the question: “So…how’s it going…over there?”

We translate: “Where exactly are you living and what are you doing?” Don’t worry; we don’t take it personally. We can’t keep track of where you work or everything you are doing either, even if we do get your Christmas letter!

So here is the answer:

Gil and I live in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, East Africa. Tanzania is directly south of Kenya. Dar es Salaam is a city of over 5 million people right on the coast of the Indian Ocean.

Our ministry is at Haven of Peace Academy (HOPAC). HOPAC is a school that was established by the parents of missionaries for missionary kids (MK’s) about 15 years ago. Why is there a need for HOPAC? Well, the only other international school costs about $15,OOO/year. Many Tanzanian schools, though many are in English, put hundreds of students in a classroom and teachers are often bribed for grades. Of course, there are exceptions, but very few meet western academic standards.

All the teachers at HOPAC are missionaries, from a few different countries. Elementary school uses a mixture of American and British curriculum, and secondary school uses all British curriculum.

HOPAC has 3OO students from 3O different countries in kindergarten through 12th grade. About 4O% of the students are the children of missionaries. About 4O% of the students are Tanzanian. The rest are children of businessmen who are working in Dar. HOPAC is a day school, though one mission organization has built a dorm next door which houses about a dozen students.

HOPAC is bursting at the seams. Every class has a waiting list. This school year, there were 6O applicants for the kindergarten class—which could hold 22—and that is without one speck of advertising. The school could easily double overnight if it had the space and the teachers. HOPAC has a fantastic reputation and is much more affordable for families than the other international school.

HOPAC is also a Christian school, firmly based on the Word of God. However, 3O-4O% of the students come from non-Christian homes. All of the students participate in Bible classes and chapels, but parents are willing to let their kids do this because HOPAC is such a great school. Which makes for amazing opportunities for us teachers to invest in such a diversity of students.

Gil is the chaplain at HOPAC, which means he is in charge of the spiritual life of the school. He also teaches Bible to grades 7, 8, 9, 11, and 12 and an elective photography class. He has often coached after school as well. I used to teach elementary school at HOPAC until we got Grace. Now I teach 6th grade Bible and help out in a few other ways.

We see our primary ministry as discipleship. So we do everything we can to spend time with students. We host youth group on Friday nights at our house, and we have students over for lots of other reasons as well. We take students with us when we go places. We spend a lot of time counseling. They have become incredibly dear to us and their sorrows and joys become ours.

And… “How’s it going?” It’s going great. We love it. More specifics to come in later posts.

I didn’t blog last week.

Our entire family came down with amoebic dysentery. I don’t really think you want the details. It isn’t pretty. Google it if you are overcome with curiosity. Let’s just say I am very, very thankful for modern medicine.

But that’s really not the purpose of this post.

I have decided to start a series of posts of Frequently Asked Questions that we get as missionaries. I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and originally I thought this series would correspond well with our Home Assignment, which was to begin in March. Now it will begin in October, but I have all these ideas floating around in my head so I’m going to do it now anyway.

There are a few reasons for this:
1. We often receive the same questions from lots of people. We don’t mind answering those questions repeatedly, but there are probably many other people who are too shy to ask or never get around to it.
2. I’m discovering more and more prospective HOPAC teachers or others who are considering missions who are finding my blog, and hopefully this information will be helpful. I would love it if this blog helps to inspire someone to go into missions or teach at HOPAC.
3. Some of you readers don’t really know what we are doing here, and even those of you who get our letters might not remember–don’t worry, we understand.
4. There are a lot of misperceptions about missions, yet sometimes people don’t know the right kinds of questions to ask.

I also want to invite you to leave any questions you might have in the comments section. I will be happy to do my best to answer them. There may be certain questions I can’t answer in detail due to the fact that this blog is open to the world, but go ahead and ask anyway.

Note about comments: Usually the only people who leave comments are those who have their own blogs–because they know how much bloggers love feedback! But FYI, on this blog, anyone can leave a comment, even if you don’t have a Google account. Leave an ‘anonymous’ comment, but just sign your name at the end.

One last thought: You should know that missionaries love being asked questions. We love to share about our lives and ministry; we want you to understand; we don’t want to seem so different. But we get self-conscious because we often wonder if people really want to hear about our lives. So the next time a missionary comes to your church, don’t feel bad because you can’t remember what country they live in or their kids’ names–just ask again. Listen and be excited. You will make their day.

FAQ posts coming soon!