POWERGRAMS

33 Cars dodging cows and travelers pushing loaded baggage carts on the streets between terminals at the airport can mean only one thing: Clay County Business Office Manager Debbie Whatley is on another mission trip to Kenya. Whatley and her husband, Rick, have for several years supported the Mescal's Children's Center of Hope, housing 30 orphans ages 6-15 in Luanda, a small town near Lake Victoria some 230 miles northwest of Nairobi. The Whatleys, with three other Alabamians supporting the orphanage, visited late last summer, bringing Bibles, games, candy and the most coveted of all: soccer balls. It was their second trip. "The biggest thing is just spending time with the kids," Whatley said. "They speak English, but they have a really hard time understanding Southern. They really struggled to understand what we were saying." The sights and sounds of Luanda are a far cry from the luxuries of Whatley's hometown of Lineville, as they visited the homes of the orphans with no electricity, plumbing or water. "The kitchens were the most different," she said. "There are three stones with a fire in the middle. No tables. No storage. No refrigerators. No silverware. They eat with their fingers. They drink water in containers stacked around the kitchen. Sometimes the parents' bed is in the kitchen. "If they were lucky enough to have an animal, they PROFILE Rick and Debbie Whatley with the three children they sponsor: Elizabeth, Linet and Daniel. Kenyan Connection Kenyan Connection WHATLEYS AID ORPHANS LIVING NEAR LAKE VICTORIA By Gilbert Nicholson

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