Val's Story

Dr. Val grew up in a small town in central Oregon, Fossil. She had great friends who were ranchers, and fell in love with the animals all around. She got her graduate degree in veterinary medicine at Oregon State and Washington State, and worked for a couple years in Tillamook, Oregon. (Yes, the place with the great CHEESE and ICE CREAM!) Dr. Val came out to Uganda as a veterinary missionary in 1992. She initially enjoyed sharing God’s love with the people in the lush, mountainous highlands of Kapchorwa, together with her diverse team from Mission: Moving Mountains. The people of Kapchorwa, the Sabiny tribe, are friendly agriculturalists, farming the fertile mountainsides of Mt. Elgon. During that time, she heard rumours of an aggressive, warrior tribe to the North, the Karamojong, who had been frequently conducting armed cattle raids on the neighboring tribes. The Sabiny people would flee to the mountain caves and hide as soon as they heard the shout of raiders climbing the mountain. Val started praying for the Karamojong. When her mountain ministry ended in 1995, she shifted down to the plains and joined Christian Veterinary Mission, working with the Teso, together with Dr. Brad Frye and his family. The Teso people also neighbor the Karamojong, and had been brutally raided for the previous 10 years, leaving the Teso region almost devoid of livestock.  Dr. Val worked with Dr. Brad and other CVM missionaries for 2 years on restocking projects and did training of Community Animal Health Workers. Val also assisted with the PAG to set up and train their community development workers.

During this time, Dr. Val kept hearing of the warring Karamojong, and how everyone feared them. No missionaries would go there. The few who went, lasted only a short time before they fled. It was too dangerous. Even the UN forbid any excursions through the war-filled land. God tugged on Dr. Val's heart, and she knew she needed to open her heart to serving God in Karamoja.

In 1996, she began excursions to visit the Karamojong, treating animals and training Commuity Animal Health Workers. Although the ministry was quite dangerous, with armed raiders often encountered on the roads, Dr. Val was confident that the Lord had brought her into strong relationships with the herdsmen and warriors for a purpose, and that He would protect and preserve her while she served in this warzone. Over the next several years, she began networking with the various churches in the communities of Karamoja through livestock training and herbal medicine research and develpment. She also had some good help from other missionaries and short term visitors. As the minstries grew and became more impactful, Dr. Val established an indigenous team. She was the Team Leader for a few years, then handed the team over to National leadership in 2004, first under the Church of Uganda, and then under their own NGO: CLIDE Consultancy.

CLIDE blossomed and became quite fruitful, with many new minsitries coming up: Peace ministries, Agriculture, Health and HIV, Child Sponsorships, Livestock Revolving loans, etc. All of them were integrated with spiritual teachings to maximize the spiritual impact of CLIDE's practical assistance and partnerships.

The years went on, with Dr. Val as a single lady, living a simple, village life, but full of spiritual adventure. She hoped, and was actually confident, that the Lord would eventually bring someone along side her as her life partner: a strong, godly man, with an adventurous spirit. But what man would ever leave the US and come live in a little grass thatched hut in Uganda?

Waffle's story:

Waffle grew up in Iowa, but traveled alot, since his Dad was in the military. He had great mentors in the Boys Scouts and became an active Eagle Scout, mentoring many other young men. Waffle loves variety and adventure, and loves to learn new things. He studied marine biology and Biblical Studies, and also became a sheet metal worker, a diesel mechanic, and headed a camp for abused children, as well as setting up ropes courses and zip lines for the Boy Scouts and other organisations. He later began an adventure ministry for young people, doing kayaking, spelunking, rock climbing and mountaineering. After he received EMT training, he was able to train many others in vertical rescue techniques. His enjoyment of high places led him to work as a steeple jack repairing broken wind turbines and working on Portland highrises (on the outsides of the buidlings!), while participating in short term missions all around the world, including South America, Alaska, Asia and Africa.

Waffle met Val at a missions conference led by Louis Palau, in Oregon in 2008, called Mission Connection. Little did he know what kind of "connection" the Lord had in store for him! (ask him for more entertaining details!)

The Lomilo's story:

Waffle and Val were married in the Peace Villages in Karamoja (Nakayot) in January 2013. They had a traditional African marriage ceremony on the first day, with the raiding of the village and capturing of the bride, then the distribution of dowery animals and clan celebrations. The second day was the formal wedding, also in the village, with a couple thousand people in attendance. Two other couples joined in and got wed at the same time, since everyone was there celebrating already! The third day was the Samburu traditional marriage, with singers and dancers from Samburu serenading the visitors and the couple.

Here's a fun video of our marriage! Tribal Marriage in Karamoja

A honeymoon on the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro was extra special, with 7 of their good friends and family members joining in for the fun! 

When they got back to the states, they had one more wedding ceremony in Fossil! Val's mom got to come then and many of their friends from Fossil.

After their furlough time in the USA, they returned to Uganda and began their joint ministries with their friends and colleagues in CLIDE Consultancy.

Now, it's years later and they are loving the ministry here in Uganda! Dr. Val is the Team Advisor, while Waffle is the Spiritual Facilitator. God is doing amazing things and we look forward to seeing His Hand continue to work in their hearts and through their hands.

Please PRAY for the Lomilos!   

Here is their PRAYER CARD: FRONT  PRAYER CARD: BACK