At the end of March, Farm of Nambikay was able to purchase additional solar panels – including the proceeds from the Grace & Glory benefit concert, which took place at the beginning of 2020! The roof of the farm is now full of solar panels! This time the connection went a lot faster …
Where with the first set of solar panels everything was regulated by the electricity company after a year, the solar panels could be connected immediately this time. With solar energy we contribute to climate improvement. At the same time, more solar energy is generated than we need, which means we can also generate extra income.
In the past months it has become clear that a number of team members of the farm are going to stop with their work at Farm of Nambikay.
The coordinator Kanna is going to work full-time for his church, and a pastor also stops his part-time work on the farm to be fully committed to his congregation again. They both remain involved with the farm as we work with these local churches.
Because another team member is leaving, there is currently a small team left.
In the coming months, Uthayan wants to look at how the farm can be less labor-intensive to farm, in order to save costs and to retain more money for the small-scale projects in the vicinity of the farm. Uthayan will discuss with the team how and with whom the core activities on the farm can proceed smoothly. It is nice to experience the involvement of the advisory committee in Sri Lanka during this period!
At present, the covid-19 situation is fortunately stable in the area of the farm, but in other parts of Sri Lanka there are many infections. Restrictive rules still apply for foreign tourists, so that little use can be made of the guesthouse.
Nevertheless, from time to time local church groups stay, for which Farm of Nambikay can serve as a place to equip. For example, in mid-April, a youth group will come to the farm for a few days for their “camp”.
We want to offer more such possibilities on the farm: activities aimed at building faith and understanding how to properly deal with the climate and the environment.
Thanks and prayer points:
• We thank you for the permission for the solar panels!
• Would you like to pray for a stable team?
• And for possibilities for equipping church groups on the farm?