Togo, West Africa: days 0–1

This would be my first trip to Africa. First trip alone overseas. First mission trip. 36 hours of flying, just to get there. And it was costing me $2500, though I'm unemployed.

Have you ever gotten cold feet? Did you turn back, or did you keep going?

I didn't really get cold feet while preparing for the trip. Until I got to the airport.

I was flying out of LAX at 7 a.m., so I'd have to arrive by 5 a.m. My cousin Pat was able to give me a ride, but only the night before. So, I went then and stayed overnight in the terminal. There was something about sitting in an empty terminal, with nothing to do for 6 hours, that just made me think, "Why am I going to fly for the next 36 hours to go somewhere I have no idea about, where I have no idea what I will do? What if I … just don't go?" What if I just got in a taxi, went back home, and didn't get on that flight? 

There's a scene in the movie Braveheart that I always remembered. William Wallace has been fighting many battles, but he was betrayed at Falkirk by some nobles. The nobles repented and have asked William to come to a secret meeting. William discusses this with his friend, Hamish:

Hamish: "The nest of scheming bastards couldn't agree on the color of shit. It's a trap, are you blind?"

William: "Look at this. We've got to try. We can't do this alone. Joining the nobles is the only hope for our people. You know what happens if we don't take that chance?"

Hamish: "What?"

William: "Nothing." (William walks back to his horse.)

I knew I could back out without losing much; just some money and some pride. But what would change in my life? Nothing. So I stayed in the airport, found a place to sleep for a couple hours, and got on the flight.

By the way, why did Mercy Ships chose Togo, or West Africa in general? This video explains a little.


During the trip, I shot mostly videos. Below is the video for days 0–1.


The above video has many short clips. I will describe each clip below, and you can jump directly to some of them. We'll do that by showing the same video, but starting it in the middle.

For example, the above video starts with some scenery from Brussels airport. Then I go looking for my teammates. My first teammate is Gene Anderson, from Texas.

Then, Gene and I enter into a long conversation about who we are and what we'd like to accomplish on this trip. The conversation starts 39 seconds in, but if you play the video below, you'll jump directly to this conversation. (0:39)

Eventually, Gene and I talk about not being in charge. I thought this was important, so you can see this directly here. (5:07)

Gene and I waited in Brussels airport for several hours, but we didn't find the rest of our teammates until just before boarding! We'd have to wait until later to get to know each other.

Our flight to Togo was on Brussels airlines. They didn't have fancy TVs in each headrest, but I was very impressed with their food. They even had ice cream!!!!




We landed in Lomé, Togo. This was the most worrisome part of the trip. In Africa, corruption is not uncommon. Many officials expect bribes and won't let you pass until they get one. Thankfully, when we told them we were with Mercy Ships, they let us right on through!

At the airport in Lomé, we met our team leader, Bill Foley. Bill and his wife Eileen are serving two years on the ship! However, Eileen was back in the U.S., so Bill had to lead our team solo. In the videos you may notice Bill's accent; he's from New York.

We arrived at night, tired and sweaty, so we basically went straight to our lodging and to bed. Our accommodations were surprisingly nice: We stayed at a secure facility called the "Seamen's Center," for sailors. We each had our own room. All of our beds had mosquito nets.

The next morning, Friday, Bill brought us breakfast at the Seamen's Center. We chatted and got to know each other a little better, and we had a short Bible study. Then Bill drove us to the ship, only a mile away.

Two of our team members had served with Mercy Ships before. For the rest of us, this was our first time seeing the ship. (6:36)


I didn't know anyone on the ship, but my sister did. She said I should find Jillian Norris, the hairdresser. Little did I realize that everyone knows Jillian, because everyone needs a haircut! (6:54)


Bill led us on a tour of the ship. It's amazing how much there is! Anyway, there is a cafeteria where they serve meals prepared by the cooks, but there's also a crew galley/kitchen for anyone to use. Here, Bill said that he and Eileen would make treats for when they visited prisoners in Togo. Bill was a cop for many years.

Looking out from the ship, we could see almost 50 ships along the coast! Bill explained that they're afraid of pirates.

On the deck is a large Mercy Ships logo. Great place for a team photo! (9:09)

From Mercy Team Alison

Here's my team! From left to right, it's Louise Underwood (Vancouver), Christine Bryan (UK), Gene Anderson (Texas), Bill Foley (New York), me (Los Angeles) and Alison and Peter Briggs (UK). Alison has been on more than half a dozen Mercy Teams! Our team was aptly named, "Team Alison."

Besides the cafeteria and the crew galley, the ship has a snack shop, a convenience store, and the only Starbucks in West Africa! Almost everyone on the ship is a volunteer and has to pay their own way to get to the ship and to stay on the ship. This includes Bill our team leader, Jillian the hairdresser, a guy named Jim who runs the convenience store, and the baristas in the Starbucks.

After the tour, we started working! Yes! Our job was to help where most needed, and Bill directed us. Louise went to hospital administration to scan and shred some documents. Alison helped out in the ship's school. (They have a full K–12 program.) Gene was given cleaning duty, which he accepted joyfully. (9:22)


I should mention that Gene first heard about Mercy Ships only last fall, and here he was, helping out in Africa. Also, Gene is 79. =)

Peter and I were in charge of cleaning up one of the storerooms. (9:33)


I also met with Miriam, one of the pharmacists. The ship strives for excellence, but the pharmacy lacks professional pharmacy software. Miriam wanted to know if I could help. (If anyone knows how Mercy Ships can acquire some professional pharmacy software inexpensively, please let me know!) (9:41)


Our work day ended at 5 p.m. We enjoyed dinner with the rest of the crew in the cafeteria, then we had the evening to ourselves. People are always hanging out around the ship or going into town. One of the crew, Briggs, gives free drum lessons. The local drum is called a djembe, and my whole team went to learn how to play it. (10:38)


Learning an instrument in a group setting is a little embarrassing. Thankfully, Briggs would lead us and make the loudest sound, so the rest of us could meekly follow along and pretend we knew what we were doing. Imagine my terror when Briggs said, "Now, we are going to play one at a time!"

Fortunately, I had already gotten over my cold feet.