Here’s the second in the series of filmed reports from the United States, Derek Goes to Africa.
A TV station called NBC25 has been following the exploits of Derek Van Dam, who is the man who reads the weather forecast on the station’s breakfast time news show.
In a series of reports that the station has called ‘Derek Goes to Africa’, NBC25 follows Derek and his church friends as they prepare to travel to Swaziland to visit El Shaddai orphanage and then it reports on what happens to Derek when he gets there.
These reports and others like them are important because very little about Swaziland gets covered in the foreign media. This is even more so when you look at countries outside the continent of Africa. Because of this people know very little about the kingdom. What little they do know they learn through the media.
This item, which was broadcast during NBC25’s evening news programme, follows a diverse group of people; they are described as young and old, as they embark on team building exercise before setting off on their journey to Swaziland.
Dale Woods, a pastor at the New Covenant Free Methodist Church, one of the trip’s organizers, says ‘as Americans we are part of a culture that is incredibly selfish.’
But they want to see ‘how can I put someone else first.’
Woods says El Shaddai orphanage has a ‘desperate need for help.’
When they get to Swaziland the group will build fences to keep livestock off the crops. Crops will be harvested to feed the hungry. It’s not made clear why a group of people need to travel half way across the world from America to Swaziland to perform tasks that Swazis are perfectly capable of doing themselves.
Perhaps Derek gives a clue when he says, ‘Our spare time will be spent embracing each of the Swazi’s needs.’
He also tells us that each of the participants are wearing bracelets on their wrists as a constant reminder of why they are going.
Perhaps this trip isn’t really about helping Swazis so much as giving a group of Americans a chance to ease their own consciences a little.
Make up your own mind. The clip which lasts nearly three minutes can be seen here.
A TV station called NBC25 has been following the exploits of Derek Van Dam, who is the man who reads the weather forecast on the station’s breakfast time news show.
In a series of reports that the station has called ‘Derek Goes to Africa’, NBC25 follows Derek and his church friends as they prepare to travel to Swaziland to visit El Shaddai orphanage and then it reports on what happens to Derek when he gets there.
These reports and others like them are important because very little about Swaziland gets covered in the foreign media. This is even more so when you look at countries outside the continent of Africa. Because of this people know very little about the kingdom. What little they do know they learn through the media.
This item, which was broadcast during NBC25’s evening news programme, follows a diverse group of people; they are described as young and old, as they embark on team building exercise before setting off on their journey to Swaziland.
Dale Woods, a pastor at the New Covenant Free Methodist Church, one of the trip’s organizers, says ‘as Americans we are part of a culture that is incredibly selfish.’
But they want to see ‘how can I put someone else first.’
Woods says El Shaddai orphanage has a ‘desperate need for help.’
When they get to Swaziland the group will build fences to keep livestock off the crops. Crops will be harvested to feed the hungry. It’s not made clear why a group of people need to travel half way across the world from America to Swaziland to perform tasks that Swazis are perfectly capable of doing themselves.
Perhaps Derek gives a clue when he says, ‘Our spare time will be spent embracing each of the Swazi’s needs.’
He also tells us that each of the participants are wearing bracelets on their wrists as a constant reminder of why they are going.
Perhaps this trip isn’t really about helping Swazis so much as giving a group of Americans a chance to ease their own consciences a little.
Make up your own mind. The clip which lasts nearly three minutes can be seen here.
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