God works when people pray

Shortly after sharing with our church family in Moscow of our plans to spend 10 months teaching at the Nazarene hospital station at Kudjip in Papua New Guinea, our long-time friend, Oveta Franklin invited us over for lunch and to share a story. 

Art Franklin 1944

Art in Papua New Guinea (photos
courtesy of Oveta Franklin/John Miller)

Volleyball game played by soldiers
and Papua New Guinea nationals

 She proceeded to tell us that her husband Art had served as an Army medic on the north coast of Papua New Guinea during World War 2. During the 1944 Battle of Hollandia, Art was in the initial landing with the Amphibian Engineers. Over the year Art was stationed in Papua New Guinea, he struck up friendships with the friendly nationals and even traded for a woven arm bracelet with one. After the war, Art always had a special place in his heart for the people of Papua New Guinea. He and Oveta prayed earnestly for them and Art wrote a letter to Nazarene World Missions to encourage them in the work in Papua New Guinea.

Papua New Guinea children pose
with American soldiers

The first Nazarene missionaries Sydney and Wanda Knox, arrived in 1956 and started a church and school.  In 1957, the Australian provincial government gave Nazarene World Missions, property in the highlands at Kudjip that was situated between 2 warring tribes. After Sydney died in 1958, Wanda eventually returned with her two children to teach in the mission primary school and later at the Bible College. In 1967 the hospital was completed.  As time passed, more doctors and nurses came, nationals were trained, and the hospital expanded. In 2012 to 2014, the hydro project was built consisting of a dam, canal, and powerhouse. Along with backup generators, the hydro project allows Kudjip station to generate power for the hospital and over 100 staff houses on the station.

Today, there is a flurry of construction projects on station thanks to a grant from Australian Aid. The original buildings are being torn down and replaced with new facilities directed by project managers Earl and Jordan. Their construction crews of approximately 80 nationals were hired from the nearby villages. 

The 135 bed hospital serves 7,000 patients a year and 55,000 outpatients. The following link provides informative statistics for 2018.

Kudjip Nazarene Hospital

The hospital is staffed by doctors from the US, Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea. The rest of the hospital staff including administrative and maintenance, is made up of nationals that live on the station or in the nearby villages. Rural health clinics have been established throughout Papua New Guinea.

The hospital station utilizes connections with various resources.  A shipping container with supplies is sent to the station every 3 – 4 months from Medford Oregon. Recently two nationals from the local area - a 7 year old girl and a 17 year old boy - made a trip to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for open heart surgery sponsored by Samaritan’s Purse – World Medical Mission.

True to the core value of Nazarene missions, sharing the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ is paramount to the mission of the hospital. Five national chaplains - two women and three men - minister to the spiritual, emotional, and mental needs of patients and visitors. Last year, chaplains helped start four new churches in villages of patients who visited the hospital where there are no churches. From the church that the Knox’s started at Kudjip, there are now 14 Nazarene districts with 700 organized churches and preaching points throughout PNG.

The Nazarene College of Nursing is located on station which offers a three year degree program. Enrollment at the college is 150 students with 50 students graduating each year. Students also graduate with a lay minister’s license. They are involved in visitation to local women’s and men’s prisons. Upon graduating, many of these students take jobs in some of the most remote areas of PNG.

Fifteen minutes down the road is the Melanesia Nazarene Bible College and Teacher College. The long range goal is to merge the three colleges into one university. All three colleges are administered by nationals.

In 2017 on the 50^th anniversary of the hospital, the PNG government officially recognized Kudjip Nazarene hospital as the provincial hospital for Jiwaka Province. The geography of Jiwaka Province consists of valleys separated by rugged mountain ranges. Patients will sometimes travel for days to get to Kudjip hospital. Each patient brings a watchman or watchmeri to provide food for them, do laundry, and assist them with other daily affairs.

Thanks to the fervent prayers of people like Art and Oveta Franklin and many others; as well as those who have come to serve here; the Nazarene Hospital station at Kudjip continues to be a beacon of hope for the people living in the highlands of Papua New Guinea.

Operating theaters will increase from two
to four when the new surgical center
is finished.

“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.”

- Jesus

The new pharmacy.

Workmen pour concrete.

Work and witness teams come from
the states to build houses for hospital
staff.

The two story admin. building
takes shape.

The 1.5 Km canal carries
water from the dam to the
powerhouse.

Under the direction of Earl Hartwig,
the dam was built by 175+ local
workers from 2012 - 2014.

The core value of the Kudjip
Nazarene hospital.

All concrete used in projects on station
  is mixed in these 1 bag mixers. 33,000
bags were mixed for the hydro project.

The new maternity ward.

The Jiwaka Provincial hospital.

As a young boy, our friend
John Opa was in Wanda Knox's
1st grade class. She would give him
food and pencils, and he in return would
collect firewood sticks for her.

Our five hospital chaplains prepare
to embark on a trip to Kenya for a chaplains'
conference.

Hospital staff housing for nationals
was built in picturesque Jordan Valley.

Easter greetings from Kudjip

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  John 3:16-17

Easter greetings from our side of the world at Kudjip
in the highlands of Papua New Guinea.

Kudjip

Birds of Paradise

Making our way down the steep muddy path in the early morning light, we followed our guides Willy and John through a grove of coffee trees. Our destination was the tall gum trees that lined the creek bottom, where we hoped to see Raggiana and Superb Birds of Paradise. As we made our way down to the creek, more and more children from the bush houses on top of the ridge joined our quiet procession. We were led here by avid birdwatchers, Dr. Bill and Marsha McCoy.  In January, Bill and Marsha retired after serving 22 years at Kudjip hospital and the Melanesia field office respectively. Crossing the creek, we arrived under a canopy of coffee trees and tall gum trees. We patiently glassed the tree tops with our binoculars, looking for a flash of orange plumage – the telltale sign of a Raggiana Bird of Paradise. One of the young PNG boys became Brenda’s private spotter, pulling on her sleeve and pointing up in the direction of the brightly colored birds. We finally saw a few to make the early morning experience a success. The Superb Birds of Paradise with their dark plumage were harder to spot even though we could hear their unique calls. There are 39 known species of birds of paradise found only in Papua New Guinea.

Coffee trees and a gum tree
canopy provide ideal habitat
for birds of paradise

Later in the year, we had the opportunity to travel to Kumul Lodge located at 8,585 feet in the mountains of Enga Province. Owned by nationals, Kumul Lodge is a great place to view and photograph Ribbon-tail Astrapia Birds of Paradise, Brown Sicklebill Birds of Paradise, and other fascinating species including Tiger Parrots, Smoky Honeyeaters whose face patch changes color, Crested Berrypeckers, and White-winged Robins.

 Check out these two links:

Raggiana Bird of Paradise

Superb Bird of Paradise

Avid birdwatchers,
Dr. Bill and Marsha McCoy

Brenda's personal guide and spotter

Ame receives a helping hand
across the creek

Kumul Lodge

A male Ribbon-tail Astrapia
Bird of Paradise (Moira Miller Photo)

A pair of Zebra Parrots (Moira Miller Photo)

Smoky Honeyeater
(Moira Miller photo)

A female Brown Sicklebill Bird of Paradise
(Moira Miller photo)

We checked out this "bird of paradise"
on our way through Mt. Hagen. It
is the closest thing to fast food in the
entire highlands of PNG!

Hey kids! Check this out . . .

A boy and his parrot at the market.

Have you ever wondered what kids do for fun on the other side of the world, 11,000 miles from where you live? Here in the highlands of Papua New Guinea, we have observed a variety of games and activities that kids do for fun once school is over for the day. Once, while walking along the Wara Kane (Kane river), we watched a group of kids race tuna fish cans along the river’s edge, herding them along with sticks. Speaking of sticks, cut a puck out of a flipflop, get some kids with sticks, and head to the basketball court for an exciting game of stick hockey! Fasten anything (organic or inorganic) that resembles wheels to a stick and you have a popular push toy that you can take with you wherever you walk. By the way, walking is the most common mode of transportation here in the highlands, and we know some kids who walk an hour and a half one way to school each day. Of course, basketball is a popular sport, with a basketball court on the station where we live. Pets are common with the kids of missionaries on station. Pets include rabbits, guinea pigs, cats, and a couple dogs. Prior to returning to the states on home assignment, Josiah hosted a weekly “bug club”.

Below are pictures of other games and activities that are common to this area. Compare them with what you do in your free time.

A game of marbles is always popular.

An intense game of 4 way chess.

Kids learn to play chess over their winter holiday.

Naomi and Anna demonstrate their tree
climbing skills.

Not many playgrounds boast having an airplane to play on.

Sometimes play takes a backseat
 to chores.

PNG is a bug collector's paradise.

Wheels on a long stick provide entertainment
 on those long walks.

Ethan shows off his pet guinea pig.

A bucket of chalk unleashes creativity.

Daniel's prize possession - a slingshot
made by a village friend.

Cooling off in the canal is great fun
on a hot day.

Catching polliwogs in the baret (ditch) at recess time.