Earlier this month I had the privilege of traveling to Alpharetta, Georgia, where the Maxwell family lived for six years. We moved there 20 years ago, and we have lived in Africa for 14 years, and it sometimes seems that we are just getting started.
Ian and I have met so many amazing people over these 20 years, and I loved being able to get together with many of them during my visit back. I had a fabulous dinner with David and Lynn Floum, whom we met at Kings Ridge Christian School (KRCS) when our kids started going there in 2006. Lynn and two of her girls traveled to Swaziland with us in the early days and have been great friends ever since. I am committed to getting David here in 2027! I hope he reads this!
Then I got to meet up with my Bible study girls. We called ourselves “Not Yo Mama’s Bible Study” because we could be quite funny, bordering on irreverent, and while we took the study seriously, we didn’t take ourselves seriously. I miss them and treasure our get-togethers. Thank you, Anne, Leslie, Laura, and Denise, for always making me laugh.
Then there was the gathering of KRCS moms whose children have traveled to Project Canaan and went home changed. I wanted to meet with them and hear their stories. Alumni mom Leslie Kurtz joined me for a second meal, and it was just fabulous getting caught up.
Today I want to tell you about another amazing woman whom I have known and worked with for 21 years. Her name is Tricia Ford. Tricia has been my assistant, my shoulder to cry on, a friend to pray with, a second mother to my children, someone to laugh with, the person who brings me back from the edge, my confidant, my ride-or-die, and my friend.
Tricia is a humble wife, mom, grandma, and co-worker and does not want any spotlight on her, but our whole family and the Heart for Africa team wanted to do something to honor her 21 years of service with this ministry. She will DIE reading this, and we were struggling with how to tell her how much we appreciate her, so someone gave me the idea of writing about her. And that is what this blog is about.
Tricia does ALL the planning for our trips and makes sure we have transportation, a bed to sleep in, meetings set, and she seems to never sleep when we are traveling, waiting for a call that our flight was canceled or we missed a train. When we first moved to Africa and our kids couldn’t call us here on their phones, Tricia was the one they called from the ER department. Thankfully there were no police calls.
Tricia says that she doesn’t have a great memory, but if we are trying to remember the person who _____ 10 years ago, or the organization that _____ 15 years ago, she can find it. She does all the preparation work for the Heart for Africa U.S., Canada, and Eswatini Boards of Directors, takes minutes for each, tries her best to ensure that we remain compliant with each country’s laws, and keeps us all out of jail!
Tricia is a joy to work with, always. She “spins a lot of plates,” to use her own expression, and while she thinks they might be crashing, they never do.
Tricia, I love you as a friend, a sister, and a co-worker. I love that you have stuck by me through the highs and the lows, through joy and sorrow, and everything in between.
May the Lord richly bless you today and every day.
Janine