They Screamed, "We're Gonna Kill You! We're Gonna Kill Your Cows!"
From Phyllis last week: LOOK at this crazy toucan! Its bill is more than half the size of its body! It's the Toco Toucan; its habitat south and eastern South America! I won't see this bird today, on our 99 hectares west of Port Harcourt! (Unfortunately!) We're all going there this morning, the DSS, Mogodi, Musa, the Sogho community chiefs, a surveyor, I and my team. We're going to confirm the boundaries of our land. Once this is done to everyone's satisfaction, the DSS will HOPEFULLY give us the go-ahead to start developing our land. The forever home for the Port Harcourt Fulani. Praying!!
UPDATE: Absolute mayhem broke out when we arrived to confirm the boundaries of our 99 hectares in Port Harcourt this morning. The Sogho community brought over 50 people to protest our ownership of the land. People screamed at Mogodi, "We will kill you! We will kill your cows!" As we only had three police with us, we left, planning to return on Saturday with a much larger group of police.
Lord Jesus, please help us navigate this project in Port Harcourt. You KNOW! Direct our steps at every turn. Protect our loved ones, and keep them safe!
THIS WEEK, the Lord blessed us with MUCH NEEDED confirmation on our Port Harcourt project. It has been HARD. Progress has been illusive. It's dangerous here! We have had one delay after another. We have NOT even BEGUN this work! We haven't lost hope - we are trusting God for His timing - but we have faced more obstacles here than ever before. For all of these reasons, we were SO BLESSED and SO ENCOURAGED to receive the $50,000 funding for a school here in Port Harcourt! Hallelujah! God is working on our behalf! Pray with us that the level of difficulty we face in Port Harcourt will be the level of mercy God pours out on this people!
Phyllis says, "I'll tell the DSS today! They'll HAVE to let us start working, now!"
Honoring Barry Solem, 5/4/39 - 2/3/2026
Our dear friend, Barry Solem, was one of our biggest believers in - and donor for - Port Harcourt. He was a generous contributor to Schools For Africa. He was an advisor, encourager, and one of Missionary Phyllis Sortor's BIGGEST champions. Barry especially loved building schools, and was excited to see our Port Harcourt project take shape. Barry and his wife of 58 years, Karen, met Phyllis when, many years ago, she was at an SPU weekend at Camp Casey. When they heard she was captured and held for ransom, they prayed for her safe return.
Barry was born on May 4, 1939, in Spokane, Wa. He lived a life marked by faith, joy and purpose until he went home to be with the Lord on February 3, 2026, in Edmonds, Wa.
He often recounted days of growing up in Spokane and how fortunate he and his sister Bobbie were to have such loving parents. Their home was filled with music and The Word of God. They grew up in the church where Barry occasionally played his clarinet and sang. His dad was his hero. He graduated from North Central High School in 1958 and later moved west where he attended Seattle Pacific College. He then got his MBA from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business. While he valued education, he valued the friends he made during those years even more. He genuinely loved people.
After grad school, Barry began his career at RCA on the East Coast. During that time, he lived with the Luce family, who became lifelong friends. After returning to Seattle, he joined Boeing, where he spent more than 30 years in a variety of roles, including Operations Research and Boeing Computer Services, before retiring at the age of 55.
During his early days at Boeing, Barry met Karen Anderson. Married in 1967, they had two girls, Stephanie and Jill, and over the years they enjoyed many family events, trips and traditions. Their annual week at Cannon Beach Christian Conference Center grew to include all six of their grandchildren and was a favorite event for the entire family.
Following retirement, he volunteered to help a friend, Richard Steegstra, who owned Ballard Technology, eventually signing on as an employee and part owner until he retired a second time in 2012.
Barry loved to work with his hands and had a deep appreciation for architecture. He took great pride in helping design and build two homes, finding joy in creating spaces that were both beautiful and lasting.
Perhaps Barry's most rewarding years were after his work-life ended. He and Karen wintered in Palm Desert where they spent time with lifelong friends and he was part of Teleios, a men's Bible Study. Other highlights were traveling to Israel and China.
Barry invested in numerous ministries that shared the love of Jesus. Passionate about Christian education and indigenous missionaries, he was involved in supporting AIM International (Assisting Indigenous Ministries), HEED Uganda, Schools for Africa and Big Table. Barry is now in the presence of the Lord he loved and joyfully served, filled with gratitude for the life God allowed him to live and for the many people who impacted his life.
Thank you, God, for Barry! Bless his family as they mourn him and learn to live here on earth without him. Thank you that he has a new body in heaven, with You! We praise You for his life, his family, and the impact he had here on earth.
Summer 2026 TOUR!
July 1 Phyllis fly into Columbus, OH
July 5 Freedom Ridge Church, Mansfield, OH
July 9-10 Black Hills FMC Camp, Grafton, WV
July 12 Foundery FMC, Wellsburg, WV
July 15 NewPointe Community Church, Dover, Ohio
July 15-19 Tri-State FMC Camp, East Liverpool, OH
July 26 West Bethany FMC, Leoti, Kansas
August 2 Little Chapel Of The Hills, Divide, Colorado (Carol's church!)
August 5 Living Tower FMC, Aurora, CO
August 9 Ringgold FMC, Tryon, Nebraska
August 16 Corralitos Community Church, Corralitos, CA
August 23 Life Connection Church, Modesto, CA
August 29 Fundraiser Yard Sale, Shoreline FMC, Shoreline, WA
Sept 7th Phyl HOME TO NIGERIA