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I remember vividly anticipating the arrival of a package from America, which was to contain five pairs of shoes for me! In those days in Tanganyika shoes were not readily available and I was growing faster than my parents could keep me in shoes. We were always required to wear shoes because of jiggers, which were prevalent in the dirt. These little bugs would “get under your skin” literally and lay their eggs inside your toes and feet! It was a major chore to dig them out and sometimes infection followed. Shoes were an absolute necessity for our protection and health.

Finally the day arrived when my new shoes arrived after taking nearly three to months to come by ship from the Sears and Roebucks store. With great eagerness and enthusiasm I...

One of my most unpleasant experiences as a youngster growing up in Tanganyika Territory was having to swallow terrible tasting medicines for various diseases or illnesses! Having to swallow bitter quinine daily against malaria was bad enough but when worms took up residence in our bodies, we had to swallow a tablespoon of castor oil. This horrible oily stuff made us gag every time! It became so bad that each night my dad would lay us across his lap, holding our nose until we gasped for air. Then mom would shove the wretched medicine down our open mouths. I can still taste the vile stuff today, it was SO bad tasting! Being good kids we really tried to be good and ‘vowed’ each night that tonight, we would be good and take the dawa like good children. BUT...

Barb and I met at the Rift Valley Academy where we were both teachers. I had the joy of introducing her to the beautiful country of Kenya. We went on safaris, hunting trips, hikes and walked the sandy beaches where Kenya touched the rolling waves of the Indian Ocean. We were eventually married in the RVA chapel with my father performing the wedding and the RVA choir providing the music.

For our honeymoon we rented a cottage at the coast. While walking on the white sugary beach a young Kenyan boy approached us and offered us an unusually shaped seashell. I had been collecting shells for many years. (This was back in the time when...

     It was in an early morning call of desperation. “Bwana, kiboko iko ndani ya shamba! Saidia!” Here’s a loose translation. Mr missionary, please come down to the lake as the hippos have been eating in our gardens and have destroyed our crops!

My dad, Oliver Donner, was not an avid hunte, but when there was a need to assist someone in a plight, he was willing to help. Quickly he gathered up his rifle and walked to the lake with the distraught villagers to view the damage.

In the cool of the night hours, the huge hippos from Lake Victoria would come ashore to find grazing to sustain their...