Miraculous Yeses
Four years ago today, a tragedy occurred nearly 9,000 miles away that sent shockwaves across the Atlantic Ocean and touched the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Their story and the stories of those who were there, while marked by death and grief, have God’s fingerprints all over them. And in a miraculous way only the Lord could have imagined, He used humble children to inspire nations.
The Miracle Kids
The only three survivors of a bus crash that took 35 lives in Tanzania, Wilson, Doreen, and Sadhia became household names in America. You’ve read about them in the news and seen their pictures on TV, but what’s happened to the Miracle Kids since that tragic May morning in 2017? In short, life as they knew it ended, and their new reality resembles little of their pre-accident existence. They could not have realized it then, but the moment the wheels of their school bus left the road and went careening down a steep, mud-covered ravine, they were launched into an entirely different life — one they never expected.
Perhaps one of the most surprising outcomes of their accident was their deep friendship with each other. Wilson and Doreen had grown up in the same village and knew each other from primary school, but Sadhia was practically a stranger to them. Before the accident, differences in religion and home lives drove a wedge between the three Miracle Kids. Now, they are, as Sadhia puts it, family. To this day, Sadhia and Doreen room together, when four years ago, they hardly crossed paths.
Doreen is a lot like any teen-aged girl you’d meet today. She sleeps in, sloughs off her homework, and rolls her eyes at a list of chores. For all her classic teen angst, Doreen has an incredible passion for life and for her faith. It was this tenacity that saw her through injuries that had surgeons shaking their heads in despair.
On the other side of the teen-girl spectrum is Sadhia, who has risen through the ranks and become class precept (what we might call a hall monitor in the US), doling out discipline sentences to her fellow classmates. At speaking engagements, Sadhia stepped up to the plate and took on the role of spokesman for her friends, the classmates she lost, and her country. None of this is surprising as she possesses incredible poise under pressure and leadership skills that belie her age.
The girls may seem like polar opposites, and in many ways they are, but their shared experiences have forged between them an unbreakable bond and a true sisterhood.
Then there’s Wilson. He might come off as shy, but once the ice breaks, so do his walls. Wilson is clever, intelligent, and personable, and wins you over with his smile and his knack for conversation. His curiosity and thirst for more knowledge are never satisfied, and that shows in his schoolwork and other areas of his life. Wilson and the other Miracle Kids are looking forward to graduating from O (ordinary) secondary school this fall and are excited about the future that lies ahead of them. Wilson is exploring his education options. To attend university in Tanzania, he’ll need an additional two years of A (advanced) school, or he may have the chance to attend college classes here in America.
The Miracle Kids are, at heart, just that — kids. They have dreams, they have moods, they have futures. Though people throughout their own country and others recognize their faces and throngs (even their teachers) scramble to get pictures with them, they have found a way to balance their celebrity status with normal life. Each of the Miracle Kids has handled their time in the spotlight with grace and a true understanding of the platform and opportunity they’ve been given. They know that it was not pure luck nor even the skill of the many doctors who oversaw their medical care and recovery that saved them. Wilson, Sadhia, and Doreen know that it was God’s provision and His provision alone that plucked them from the wreckage and that there is a much bigger plan at work — they were saved for a reason.
We have the distinct honor of continuing to care for the Miracle Kids and watching them blossom from critically injured children in hospital beds to young adults carrying a torch of hope and faith.
But the Miracle Kids weren’t the only ones who were eternally transformed by the events of May 6, 2017. A handful of Americans who were miraculously in the right place at the right time with the right skills returned from their missionary trip to Tanzania as completely different people.
Through an American’s eyes
The Land Rover’s tires screeched to a halt just a few yards away from the mangled wreckage of a school bus. The first feet on the ground, sliding through the mud belonged to Jennifer Milby, Manda Volkert, and Kevin Negaard. We caught up with Kevin Negaard to get his unique perspective on the incident and life in the aftermath.
Negaard never expected to be an international missionary. He was perfectly comfortable mentoring young men on the baseball field and serving children and adults with disabilities in Sioux City, Iowa. In fact, when he was asked to board a 20-hour flight to Tanzania, he almost said no. But the Holy Spirit prompted him to pack a bag and head for a remote village in West Africa, so obeyed, but still grumbled a bit under his breath.
“Miracles defined the incident.” That’s the only way Negaard can explain what he and his cohorts experienced that day and the months that followed. The way he explained how the events fell into place sounded more like a scripted Hallmark movie than real life.
Not only did their trip to a safari that morning place them near the accident site mere moments after the incident, but Negaard recalls countless moments where only divine intervention can explain the timing and outcomes. Their medical training kicked in, and they began to triage the situation. Expecting to assess injuries and prioritize the most severe, they slowly began to realize that their efforts were futile as all were dead. All but five.
The Americans prayerfully watched as the children’s mangled bodies were haphazardly loaded into vans and driven away. None of them knew how they would ever find the kids in the maze of Tanzanian villages. But Negaard was determined.
The next day, he noticed a Tanzanian shop owner wearing an Iowa University sweatshirt. Unable to help himself, he chatted up his fellow Hawkeye fan. It was this instant friendship that bridged the language gap when Negaard noticed someone reading a news article about the accident and needed help to get information about the location of the children. The shopkeeper also helped Kevin find a driver, and equipped only with a hospital name, Negaard and company rushed to the hospital. Since they arrived after visiting hours, they had to sneak into the hospital. God again intervened, and once inside, hospital workers immediately guided the Americans to the children. Sadly, they discovered that two of the five children taken from the scene of the accident had succumbed to their injuries. Wilson, Sadhia, and Doreen were now the sole survivors. And the moment Negaard connected with these aptly named Miracle Kids, he knew there was no letting go.
Through a network of people, including STEMM founder Dr. Steve Meyer, Franklin Graham and the Samaritan’s Purse team, and Iowa Representative Steve King, arrangements were made to fly the three children to the US for advanced medical care. During their 90-day recovery in the States, the Miracle Kids and their mothers stayed at Sioux City’s Ronald McDonald house, but any time they visit for medical checkups, Wilson, Sadhia, and Doreen stay in the home of Negaard and his wife, Gail. Kevin recalls dozens of memories of eating coocoo and chips (chicken wings and French fries) with naked (no ice) Sprite (pronounced sprite-ee) at Townhouse restaurant. He fondly remembers the Miracle Kids’ first trip to Pizza Ranch. Their Tanzanian instincts took over, and they started serving themselves from the buffet with their hands.
Grateful for these moments of light-hearted hilarity and the many miracles that made them possible, Kevin thanks God daily for allowing him to witness changed hearts and lives.
One of the most poignant moments for Negaard in this entire journey happened months after the accident. Doreen was walking with crutches, and her school accommodated her needs by moving her classes to the lower level of the school building. Still, there was a two-inch mountain to climb to get into the classroom. As Doreen approached the small step, someone came beside her and helped her into the building.
It was Sadhia.
Two girls who were once strangers and even religious rivals, were now the best of friends.
He even saw his wife (a self-professed anti-traveler) fall in love with a distant land and the people there. Negaard remembers a time when Gail and Wilson’s mom ran to each other and collided in a big-momma bear hug, a term of endearment they use to show how deeply they care for and respect each other.
From world leaders to grateful fathers, Kevin has also seen bridges built between Tanzania and the United States and has watched God move on a global scale.
Had he said no, had he tended to his own concerns, had he not said yes to the uncomfortable, Kevin and his family would have never been able to experience God’s perfect timing and will in such a unique way. “The answer is always yes,” said Kevin when asked what he has taken away from his experience. “Say yes even to the uncomfortable and the unfamiliar, lest you miss out on what God has in store.”
A story to live by
But what does this all mean for you? This story could inspire you to act on behalf of these children — you could certainly donate, come to our auctions, or like more of our posts on social media. But we want our mission and the story of the Miracle Kids to do much more than that. Kevin often references a Bible verse that perfectly encompasses the message of the Miracle Kids’ story. From the book of John, it reads: “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
It is our prayer for you that this verse becomes a truth for you as well, and that this story sparks within you genuine gratitude for life and a passion for walking with God and living out His will for you. The answer is always yes.