This little girl is definitely more of a toddler now than a baby. She loves to climb & get into things.
excited to sit in a big chair by herself
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Honduras
We stayed at Pico Bonito during our last night in Central America. Here was our cabin we stayed in, complete with hammock.
The view from the porch where we sat to read & enjoy a cup of coffee our last morning.
We then enjoyed a guided hike where we spotted some beautiful yellow flowering trees
The hike ended at this waterfall where you could take a refreshing dip
Then we boarded our plane amidst this beautiful land back to had back to Naples
We came back refreshed and energized, which we didn't expect. We saw and heard about such poverty, corruption, despair and injustice. But, we saw hope amidst the brokenness. We heard about glimmers of hope, peace and mercy being extended by the faithful missionaries we met. The Lord is at work in these countries.
We are excited for our church to partner with the amazing work already taking place to bring education, food, hope, medical care, homes, mercy, grace and love to the people in these areas.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Nana Camp
Last week, Hudson & Anna Kate had a very special week. They spent the week at our house with Trent's mom (Nana) & her best friend (Ms. Bebe).
In addition to both kids being sick while we were gone, they got to swim, go to the beach, go to the movie theater, have ice cream at "Old McDonalds" and lots of other fun treats.
Having Vickey & Ms. Bebe here gave us such peace that our kiddos were in good hands while we were out of the country.
Thanks a ton!! We're glad that you got to spend time with our sweet kiddos and they got to spend time with their super Nana!
Saturday, June 18, 2011
House of Hope
We had the privilege of seeing & hearing firsthand all that God is doing through this incredible outreach. This woman started speaking to prostitutes in Nicaragua 10 years ago and had women telling her they wanted to leave the lives they were living, but couldn't.
Currently, House of Hope houses 65 families of girls & women leaving prostitution. A family never includes a dad, but looks like some age mother or grandmother with one or more children.
The families live here, the children go to school & the girls/women learn a simple trade to earn some income.
It also houses girls who have been literally captured out of slavery. One man lives on the grounds and does raids whenever they hear of a child in prostitution. He will break into a brothel during the night, taking girls from as young as 5 years old. Often, their families have sold them into slavery for a few dollars.
The girls live in a dormitory (above is one room of it), eat all their meals together and attend school.
One woman who was living there shared her story with us. They encourage women to do that because it helps with the healing process. She spoke to our small group through tears of some of the deepest anguish I've heard. She has been at the center for a few years and has had radical transformation. She's still struggling, but striving to raise the grandkids that are with her to break the cycle.
They are in need of a long-term worker. The work is vast, God is moving, but the laborers are few. Check out House of Hope and let us know if we can share more about this amazing ministry with you.
Currently, House of Hope houses 65 families of girls & women leaving prostitution. A family never includes a dad, but looks like some age mother or grandmother with one or more children.The families live here, the children go to school & the girls/women learn a simple trade to earn some income.
It also houses girls who have been literally captured out of slavery. One man lives on the grounds and does raids whenever they hear of a child in prostitution. He will break into a brothel during the night, taking girls from as young as 5 years old. Often, their families have sold them into slavery for a few dollars.
The girls live in a dormitory (above is one room of it), eat all their meals together and attend school.
One woman who was living there shared her story with us. They encourage women to do that because it helps with the healing process. She spoke to our small group through tears of some of the deepest anguish I've heard. She has been at the center for a few years and has had radical transformation. She's still struggling, but striving to raise the grandkids that are with her to break the cycle.They are in need of a long-term worker. The work is vast, God is moving, but the laborers are few. Check out House of Hope and let us know if we can share more about this amazing ministry with you.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Nicaragua
We've spent the last 2 days touring various ministries in Nicaragua and we have 1 more day here before we travel to Honduras.
We visited a re-nutrition center in Matagalpa, a city about 2 hours outside of the capital city. Here, they take babies and children who are malnourished and get them back to reasonable health and release them to live with family.
...10 years old. Extreme malnourishment stunted her growth and she could not walk correctly. They said she spoke like a 15 year old though.
One of 2 schools we visited in the capital city. This private Christian school, holding all grades, is made up of Nicaraguans and classes are taught in Spanish. It costs $70 a month to attend and is fully self-supporting.
It was started in 2005 (I think that's the right year) and is at capacity with 300 students. They are planning to expand.
The vocational center within the school. They teach welding, electricity, blacksmithing, small engine repair and will add woodworking next school year.
We toured Tesaros de Dios, a center for children with special needs. Students, along with one of their family members, come 1-2 times a week for a few hours. The center is aiming to teach family members how to best care for their child/grandchild/niece/nephew.
Finally we spent time touring the Nehemiah Center, a collaboration center housing 7 Christian ministry organizations. From here, these organizations are working together to make an impact across Nicaraguan businesses, schools, churches, and communities.
I don't have any pictures showing the extreme poverty living conditions, but it is hard to even look at.
Views from the plane
a smoking volcano
We visited a re-nutrition center in Matagalpa, a city about 2 hours outside of the capital city. Here, they take babies and children who are malnourished and get them back to reasonable health and release them to live with family.
This little girls legs were smaller around than Anna Kate's despite being over a year older.
Guess how old this happy little girl is...
One of 2 schools we visited in the capital city. This private Christian school, holding all grades, is made up of Nicaraguans and classes are taught in Spanish. It costs $70 a month to attend and is fully self-supporting.
It was started in 2005 (I think that's the right year) and is at capacity with 300 students. They are planning to expand.
The vocational center within the school. They teach welding, electricity, blacksmithing, small engine repair and will add woodworking next school year.
They have horse therapy
Their computer lab
They have trained physical therapists on staff
Getting ready for devotions before learning time with trained special ed teachers
Students not ready for learning time start with early intervention
Finally we spent time touring the Nehemiah Center, a collaboration center housing 7 Christian ministry organizations. From here, these organizations are working together to make an impact across Nicaraguan businesses, schools, churches, and communities.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Getting Reacquainted
This week Trent & I get to be reintroduced to our first love...missions.
the high schoolers did a skit about being a teen in El Salvador, where violence is prominent. They were showing how God rescues those enslaved and bears the penalty for that enslavement upon himself
we visited a couple homes, including this one. For water, they have a pipe running into a cistern they built outside their home. Since the city controls when they have water and they don't know the schedule, they fill up the cistern when possible and then hope that water doesn't run out when it is turned off. This water is used for everything- bathing, washing clothes, drinking...
Yesterday, we flew to El Salvador with a team of seven people to see all that the Lord is doing here as well as in Nicaragua and Honduras. We hope to see ways our church can get involved in what God is doing in Central America.
This dear, humble, passionate couple is leading our trip. They've been coming to Central America for 9 years and have been a part of many amazing things happening throughout Central America.
This dear, humble, passionate couple is leading our trip. They've been coming to Central America for 9 years and have been a part of many amazing things happening throughout Central America.
We are meeting the people they love, visiting schools, orphanages, food centers, as well as encouraging the field workers this week. Monday we spent the day with this dear family. He is from the States, she is from El Salvador. They built this mission from the ground up.
The students eager to greet us when we arrived
visiting classrooms- this 3rd grader is doing advanced multiplication and wants to be an engineer
A class of aspiring doctors- they are hard workers
We served over 200 kids here for a special lunch
Lunch cooking
They held an assembly for us
the kindergardeners did a skit about Noah's Ark
the high schoolers did a skit about being a teen in El Salvador, where violence is prominent. They were showing how God rescues those enslaved and bears the penalty for that enslavement upon himself
this little boy came to sit on my lap during the assembly
during a walk down the road
a taxi
we visited a couple homes, including this one. For water, they have a pipe running into a cistern they built outside their home. Since the city controls when they have water and they don't know the schedule, they fill up the cistern when possible and then hope that water doesn't run out when it is turned off. This water is used for everything- bathing, washing clothes, drinking...
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