Mthatha, Ahoy!: Bedford Christmas

The Bedford Orthopedic Hospital (whose grounds I live on) is also an African Medical Mission project and is the only public orthopedic hospital in the Mthatha area. It is funded both through the government, the African Medical Mission, and donations. Beginning as a single operation room, the hospital now has a male ward, female ward, children’s ward, and spinal unit which are nearly always full and the hospital serves numerous outpatients. This has largely been done through the work of Jenny and her late husband, Chris McConnechie, whose legacy is still very alive in the Bedford community. He is buried in the graveyard here and people still talk of him all the time. Every December, Jenny carries on one of their traditions and buys presents for all of the patients that have to stay in the wards over Christmas. I had the immense honor of getting to be a part of that this year from the shopping and wrapping down to the distributing and unwrapping. We gathered with the hospital staff and nurses, began with prayers, and made rounds through all of the wards, singing and distributing gifts as we went. All of the kids either got a car or a doll, the men got a care-package that included a hat, soap, sugar (they’re always complaining about not having enough sugar for their tea), and other goodies, and the women got a care package similar to the men’s except with a beaded necklace instead of a hat. It was a really joyous occasion and the kids even did a small Christmas play and some traditional dancing. The best part was getting to help the kids unwrap their gifts. Most of them couldn’t manage it on their own because they all had a cast of some kind and it was a real treat to get to sit with them for a bit. Stephen, a fellow YASCer, came up for a few days from Grahamstown and got to join in the festivities as well! All in all, it was a really great and heart-warming experience and I am in ever-increasing awe of all of the work that Jenny does and the abounding love that she exudes in this place.