Mission Partners
The Latham's on Mission with Mercy Ship.
Meet the Latham Family
Simon, Amélie, Zara (14), Héloïse (12) and Sophie (10) are members of our congregation. In the summer of 2023 they left to go on a Mission with Mercy Ships to Sierra Leone in West Africa.
The family had felt a calling for some time to serve on a mission and were looking for the right Christian NGO (Non Government Organisation) in a developing country to suit there specific job skills, namely health and education. This was to be a whole family mission and Mercy Ships ticked all the boxes where they could all contribute and serve in a country where the need is great.
They live on the ship in an international community where the girls go to school and Simon works as Lead Crew Physician, the GP for the general crew on board, and Amélie is the Primary Care Giver and the current Physical Education Teacher ( Age 5-11). Each family has a full time working parent and the other one is the primary care giver, part time. This means the children have a parent around after school, during academy holidays and when the other parent is on call weekends/nights meeting all the hospital patients.
The move to live on a ship brings many challenges, from living in a family house, into a cabin on a ship, with many other families. A huge change in schooling, friendships and family visits, aside from all the physical and material adjustments.
What is Mercy Ship ?
Mercy Ships is a faith-based international development organisation that deploys hospital ships to some of the poorest countries in the world, delivering vital, free healthcare to people in desperate need. There are 2 ships, the Global Mercy in Sierra Leone and the Africa Mercy going to Madagascar in February 2024.
As well as completing thousands of urgent operations onboard our floating hospitals, Mercy Ships volunteers also work closely with host nations to improve the way healthcare is delivered across the country, by training and mentoring local medical staff, and renovating hospitals and clinics. Mercy Ships follows the model of Jesus by “bringing hope and healing to the forgotten poor”, helping people of all faiths and none.
Find out more by visiting the Mercy Ship website.
Why Sierra Leone?
It is the sixth time Mercy Ships has partnered with the Ministry of Health of the West African nation to provide free specialised surgeries and targeted medical training to Sierra Leoneans. The life-changing surgeries delivered will include tumour removal, cleft lip and palate correction, cataract removal, orthopaedics and reconstructive plastics. The need in Sierra Leone is great, as is the potential of this nation. A rapidly growing country with a population of more than 8.6 million. Sierra Leone is positioned at 182 out of 189 countries in the Human Development Index, used by Mercy Ships to assess where its services are most needed. As of 2015, it was estimated that there were only 0.2 surgeons, anesthesiologists, and obstetricians per 100,000 people in Sierra Leone.
The Latham's are currently in Sierra Leone until June 2024 after which the ship will take 6 weeks back at its base for maintenance before its next 'field trip'. This could take the family back to Sierra Leone or onto other places such as Ghana, Togo and Benin.
Specific Prayer Pointers.....
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That we carry on to settle well on the ship and adapt to a very different way of life,
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The girls will have more friends their ages (teenagers)
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Simon's workload and intensity in his job will be relieved by more staff coming in
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More volunteers will come and join the adventure (the 2 ships are under staffed at the moment)
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The surgeries will go as planned and patients are recovering well
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Lives will be transformed physically and spiritually.
Please follow the Latham's journey with their newsletters....
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Newsletter #4
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