Episode 36 - Don and Laura Noble - Our most difficult projects ever, including a remote desert in Kenya and Communist Cuba, and Don’s first Maranatha project involving a plane crash, circumventing a war, and breaking down in the middle of the ocean.
Don and Laura Noble join the show to talk about some of the most problematic projects, countries, and situations we’ve had to deal with over the years, and why Maranatha chooses to push through these roadblocks, when it would be easier to just move on. They discuss the difficulties of working in Mozambique after 30 years of war, the socio-economic disparity in Angola that made things problematic, and other brief examples of specific projects that posed issues.
The group then recounts in-depth a specific project in northern Kenya with extreme logistical requirements, bringing churches and water wells to the Daasanach tribe there. It took Maranatha’s in-country crew five days of driving from its homebase near the capital city of Nairobi (Dustin said 3-4 days, but it was five), half the time on roads and half the time through the desert with no roads, to make it up near the Ethiopian border where the Daasanach call home. The team had to bring everything they would need for construction and well drilling, because there was no going back for supplies. They were told to prepare like they were leaving Earth for another planet. Don tells the story of one of the villages where experts said we would not find water, and how a double-miracle that occurred. Beyond that, a number of Maranatha’s crew decided to get baptized in salty Lake Turkana during the trip after witnessing everything they saw.
In the rapid fire question round, Don and Laura share their biggest travel pet peeves, a country they’d like to visit that they’ve never been to, where they’d love to see Maranatha work in the future, and the most unique gift they’ve ever received or been offered on a Maranatha trip.
Don tells the story of his very first Maranatha trip ever in 1983, which involved a small plane crash, changing plans to a commercial flight, circumnavigating the U.S. invasion of Grenada by flying to a another island, taking a boat to an island called Bequia to finally get to their site visit. After the visit, their boat broke down on the way back without any communication, and when they finally made it back late to the Adventist Church headquarters in Barbados to spend the night, they realized the church leaders locked the gate and went home, forcing Don to scale the exterior wall to gain access. Not a bad first trip. Don references our map tool showing our projects around the world, so here it is: https://explore.maranatha.org/map.
The group then shifts its focus to Maranatha’s work in Cuba—how it started, why we chose to work in a communist country in the first place, and some of the challenges in making progress there over the last three decades.
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On September 19, 2026, join us in Sacramento, California, for our annual convention, Mission: Maranatha. You’ll be inspired by volunteer testimonies, stories from the mission field, and updates from Seventh-day Adventist Church leaders around the globe. Plus, be blessed by Oakwood University's award-winning choir, The Aeolians.
Learn more at https://maranatha.org/media-events/maranatha-convention/
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