Yesterday, I took my parents to Chaanga Clinic. Oh my word! This Clinic was built by The Salvation Army in the later 1930's in an extremely rural area. In fact it has been deemed one of the most 'hard to reach' clinics in Zambia. It is run by Chikankata Hospital.

This was my third visit to Chaanga Clinic during the time I have been here. We went because the corps (church) in the UK where my mum and dad has given money to paint the building inside and out and do some repairs to the structure. The deal was I would find the money for the paint and the community members would do the work. I went to meet with the staff and inspect the work. The end result is that the building looks very fine and the people of the area were so happy. I was also very proud of the parents, who despite being on holiday took the time to visit with me.

The Clinic has no electricity and no running water. It has barely enough staff. Yet the people cheerfully do whatever they can. The Clinic is largely staffed by Salvationists and is a real credit to the organisation. It is a real place of hope and sacrificial service.

The road on the other hand has to experienced to be believed. A 35 mile journey took us over 3 hours and on some areas you just drive on rocks. It was on the same road that one of our ambulances was blown up when it drove over a land mine during the Rhodesian conflicts of the early 80s. Last night I had the mother of all headaches as a result of six and a half hours on simply bumping down the road.

It's a very special place and everytime I go there, I feel immensely proud of The Salvation Army and Chikankata for being loyal to Chaanga Clinic and really trying to develop it.

William Booth once wrote;

"The Salvation Army stands for hope that when every other light is extinguished and every other star has gone down, this one gleams steadily and clearly out in the darkened sky "If only I could get to the Salvation Army - they will do something for me"".

He could have been talking about The Salvation Army's Chaanga Clinic