St. Simeon Skete, Taylorsville Kentucky USA

With St. Simeon, the God receiver, as our patron, the skete seeks to practice the ideals found in our Rule, The Thousand Day Nazareth. In simplicity and poverty, the skete embraces the struggle of inner life through the practice of the Prayer Rope.

See our website at www.nazarethhouseap.org

Donations should be addressed to: Nazareth House Apostolate, 185 Captains Cove Drive, Taylorsville, Kentucky 40071.

Important Notice: All writings, posts, graphics & photographs in this blog are the copyrighted property of (unless otherwise indicated) Nazareth House Media, a division of Nazareth House Apostolate and cannot be copied, printed or used without written permission from NHA Media, Taylorsville, KY.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

West Coast, East Coast, North, South







...and everywhere in between...   

A WEST COAST COUPLE  (we will simply call refer to them as WCC) has challenged everyone in ALL areas of the United States  and countries overseas, too ... 


by matching every donation given between September 24 and October 24th, 2011 up to $5,000.



  Here’s your chance to double your donation - you can give more with less coming out of your pocket.   Now is the time to give...



If there is someone out there that could put their compassion in action by donating  $5,000 in one contribution 


that would end this campaign and the WCC  will match it immediately.    Chances are.... that won't happen...


We know there are those that could make that kind of donation and it wouldn’t affect their standard of living one bit


 - but maybe they haven’t come across blogs about the needs of those in Sierra Leone.



  Maybe they haven’t seen the faces of the children as they hope for someone to change their lives. 



For a lot of us, its a bit of sacrifice to give $100, $50 or even less.  But we do it anyway, for our brothers and sisters in need.



And there are those that giving any amount is not a sacrifice at all.   Regardless, most of us here in the USA  have better housing than what is the "norm" for those in Sierra Leone




Zinc nailed up to another structure makes a home, a shelter for many....    




and you can get creative, but shelter is shelter, when you are without... you do what you can do.   


People are hungry, there isn't Soup Kitchens for them to go...



people are sick and there is not much of a healthcare system to seek help, and very little medical help is free.



 There are no “welfare” programs for these people and jobs (as much as they want them and are willing to work) are just not available. 


 Many times people have said, “I’m sorry - my little bit of a contribution won’t make a difference”.   


Well, with this matching gift - your donation just doubled!  Not bad, huh?    Every amount is used to make a difference.


Now the WCC want to see every State in the Union represented in this “Matching Game” to benefit the people of Sierra Leone through Nazareth House Apostolate ...so let’s show what we can do.  


Don’t worry about the amount, it will be matched.   Let’s get started and make a difference in many many lives.  



We all want to "save for a rainy day" but in Sierra Leone they just want to exist in that rainy day.



As of this morning, we have received 2 donations from 
S in Salem, OR   
E in Madison, WI
Total Received $50 Goal $5,000   




Let's have YOUR city, YOUR state represented in this campaign.   





Let’s make the WCC pay ....   Give today!
Nazareth House Apostolate
working in Kabala, Sierra Leone
185 Captains Cove Drive
 Taylorsville, Kentucky 40071 
or via paypal donation button on our website
www.nazarethouseap.org 


Note: The generous West Coast Couple have kids, mortgage and medical bills, they are not rich but just committed to Matthew 25:35...







Monday, September 26, 2011

NHA: changing the quality of life

At Nazareth House work is always going on, whether it be at the Skete in Taylorsville, Kentucky


 or at the compound in Kabala 


or at the One Hut village near Kabala.  


Wherever there is a Nazareth, you will find someone working hard. 


Through the financial gifts to Nazareth House, 




James has headed up a crew to provide a solid home



 for the One Hut Family Village, 

One Hut Village 2010




who until recently have been living in a thatched mud hut. 


One Hut housing early 2011



 The whole family crammed into a few tiny rooms. 





Now we are putting the finishing touches on a very solid structure.  



The bricks were made with mud but reinforced with concrete and a zinc roof is placed over head!  

A big difference from their past, 



One Hut children stand in their house looking up through the missing roof



especially with the recent tragedies they have experienced 

Wind blows roof off of One Hut housing facility


when the wind blew their roof off last Winter 




and then fire destroyed their thatched hut this Spring.  


 But, now because of your compassionate generosity, their standard of living has improved greatly.  


The men of the village are hunters, they hunt bush meat for their food.  


Now they can focus on capturing that nourishment without worrying about the women left without proper shelter back home. 


Thank you and please continue to give so that others may also benefit from a gift of love. 




Please keep up the good work,  through Nazareth House you are helping so many people who've been straddling the line of existence and defeat.   By your contributions you provide that little boost they need to not only survive but to change the quality of their lives.  Thank you. 


Be a part of the Nazareth House Family

Join us today

Nazareth House Apostolate

Note: Bush meat has been known to carry disease, we have warned those involved of this situation.  However, man must do what he must do in order to provide for his family and this is the manner in which this village and many others in Africa survive.  They do not have the luxury or wherewithal to purchase neatly packaged sanitized food.  NHA does provide the rice for them as often as we have the means to do so as well as medical supplies. 


Friday, September 23, 2011

Delivered to your door


In this age of Internet Purchasing, many of us have found Amazon to be a real pleasure.  You can buy what you need while remaining in the comfort of your home and see it delivered within a few days.  AND on many occasions or with a specific membership your order arrives at your door in two days free from shipping costs.  


Living out away from the city and with gasoline being so highly priced lately, Amazon has been a very cost effective way to bring supplies into St. Simeon Skete.  


The border collie at the Skete, Chase, will someday be helping us to herd chickens into the Chicken Coop at night -  when we get one in place; however, until then Chase believes his duty is to greet delivery trucks.  


He waits daily at the door, looking for deliveries.  Chase is especially fond of our regular UPS Driver (Border Collies have high intelligence - he is discerning about who he likes). 

When James, our director from Sierra Leone, was in America he was delighted


 by the ability to buy something and have it delivered to you 


without having to ever leave your house.    Rain, sleet or snow, excessive heat...your packages are delivered. 

We agree with James - we like home delivery at the Kellia at St. Simeon Skete, too.  However, the ultimate home delivery is right under James' nose.  America may have access to many material goods, but compared to Africa they lack in the human to human, daily contact and fellowship.  While in our hurried lives we zip through the grocery self check-out without ever making eye contact - in Sierra Leone, its not like that. 


As Kadijah sits on the porch of the NHA Compound in Kabala, the neighbors approach her with the vegetables they have for sell.   Fresh picked and delicious brought right to the door. 


Kadijah, the ever prudent buyer, takes a  taste before she buys.


She makes her selection, pays for the groceries and the transaction is complete.  But so much more has happened, personal relations are formed and bonds of friendships grow.    

After the nice visit, the neighbors are on their way to the next house, to bring not only their goods but also their fellowship.  


Yes, Amazon gets our goods to us quick and packaged well at that, but you just can't match the personalization and love in the way home delivery is done in Kabala.  

In our fast pace world, the Kabala "Home Delivery Service" reminds us that there is nothing like human contact. 

As it is in Kabala at the Nazareth House Compound, so it is at St. Simeon Skete. Our regular delivery drivers (the humanity of the internet transaction) have become part of our lives, like family.    And even Chase is not left out of the interaction.  Chase gets a treat at every delivery.  


And like our staff in Kabala, we always offer anyone that comes to the doors at the Skete something to eat and/or drink and that especially goes for delivery drivers who have been hauling boxes in the heat or cold all day.  Hospitality is part of what we are about.  Its a win win situation all around - but best of all and most importantly we enjoy the fellowship.

The Internet, used properly, can be a helpful and effective.  We are social beings and nothing can replace human contact.  Taking time to get to know one another has a profound effect on our well being.  Sure we can rack up friends on Facebook but our grandparents can tell you there is nothing like person to person interaction.   The Fuller Brush man, the milkman, the iceman and other delivery workers were our grandparent's friends and source of neighorhood news.   They knew if they were having a bad day or a good day just by looking at their face as they walked to the door.    This is what Nazareth House Apostolate is striving to do, to keep the personalization in all we do, the touch, the smile, the love.   Join us today.