A team of 8 from MCC and other Harford County churches is serving in the Dominican Republic Apr 17-25, 2009

Updates will be posted here and on FaceBook.

You can be a prayer partner for Steve and Marlene Adams, Andrew Duggins, Jenny Krichton, Theresa Miranda, Claudine Riportella, Lisa Robbins, Jill Shuck, Greg Lehman in the D.R. - and team administrator Andrea Stross their stateside contact person.

Our team serve under the direction of Sandy & Val Lamm MCC missionaries Monte Cristi, D.R. as part of Christian Dominican Evangelistic Mission

from Kenya Dec 08 team member Rick Conniff (Dec. 12, 2008)

Here are a few journal entries from the past five days:
12/7 – It’s amazing the swing of emotions one can go through in just a few hours. Yesterday we spent six hours with Keith Ham’s staff in Pangani learning about their ministry and touring their facilities followed by a walk thru their neighboring slum where their youth live. The living conditions defy description. From the love and concern of the Mission of Hope staff to the extreme poverty and overwhelming need, our team was left noticeably touched. The silver lining was the hope we saw in their success in reaching and changing both the kids and their families lives thru education, nutrition, and spiritual growth.

12/8 – Wow… our trip to the boarding school in Joska was amazing. What struck me the most was the spiritual level and discipline of these kids. Their worship service was powerful…from spirit-filled worship to well orchestrated skits to young kids quoting 20 memory verses. And the kids ran the service! The afternoon was devoted to playing games. The kids were so attentive and excited to do anything as long as they were part of something and getting some attention. We managed to get a group together to throw a football around and before you knew it we had two teams running plays and making a game of it. Again, the emotion we felt as a team seeing God working thru this organization to change these young lives was so gratifying.

12/9- The visit to the Huruma Madoya school to participate in their kindergarten graduation was another day of blessings for our team. We got to see much of the same – kids being loved on and fed both physically and spiritually. What a joy being able to spend time with these kids…to see their hunger for learning and their respect for discipline. The Mission of Hope staff have been incredibly gracious to us; the kind of graciousness that comes only thru men and women of God being obedient to His Son.

Received this email from team leader Tom Moen late Tue PM:

Greetings from Nairobi

Our arrival here was without incident (the only way to fly)!

We hit the ground running last Saturday morning. Keith Ham (Christian Missionary Fellowship Missionary) took us through an orientation and described the situation on the ground in the Mathare Valley and in Joska (boarding school).

Around the table with us were some amazing people…

Josaphine – Head Social Worker

Edna – Community Health Evangelism Coordinator

Paul – Micro Enterprise Oversite

Fred – Health/HIV Aids control

Maggy – Admin Assistant who helps hold it all tgether

The numbers of kids in the schools continues to grow.

Here is the break down…

Pangani (the original center) 950

Kosovo 363

Bondeni 266

Mathare North 200

Huruma Madoya 144

Joska (Boarding School) 448

TOTAL 2,371

They will open 2 more centers in January of 2009!

This is amazing! Just a couple of years ago the only school (Pangani) was around 150 with 300 children on a waiting list for a spot in the school…yesterday we had a Kindergarten Graduation for 142 children combined with a Christmas celebration for the entire school and had well over 1,500 kids and parents present in an area about the size of 1 ½ basketball courts! Our Team was never so pleased to be in tight quarters.

Amongst MANY joyful encounters already one stands out for the Team…that was meeting BARAKA and asking him his name. Many of you reading this know the story of Baraka but I am including it here so you can be informed…

THE STORY OF BARAKA…

One world…6 nations…one 8 year old boy named BARAKA from the million population slum of the Mathare Valley in Nairobi, Kenya…he is deaf and he is mute…his name, “Baraka”, means “BLESSING” in English…and that’s exactly what the community in Nairobi prayed for…a blessing!

Suffering a blow to the head as an infant, damaging the cochlears in BOTH middle ears, he has not heard a sound since the age of 6 months. As an infant his Ugandan father abandoned the family and his mother, too poor to care for him, sold him to a family that lived on a farm. A couple of years later, after his mother died, Baraka’s grandmother bought him back and they moved into the Mathare Valley.

Baraka and his grandmother came to know Mary Kamau and the Hope Mission School in the Pangani section of the slum. Though unable to hear or speak the school children receive him into their class where he quickly makes many friends. Soon after the start of the school year Baraka’s grandmother died…leaving him orphaned once again. Hadija, a woman already providing a home to many orphans, accepts Baraka into her home.

The community starts to PRAY…God, help Baraka HEAR! God, life here is so hard, help Baraka HEAR! God, give him a future, help Baraka HEAR!

Meanwhile…Baraka’s story is shared in a conversation by CMF missionaries while on furlough in the US and God begins to move the nations to answer these prayers!!!

The answer follows this global trail…

A South Korean Doctor who develops a simplified procedure for a cochlear implant…

An Indian Doctor in search of ways to help the poverty stricken children of the world…

A “chance meeting” between these two doctors in Bangkok, Thailand…

A pilot program for the procedure started at a Nigerian hospital…

Funds pouring in from the US for the procedure and travel expenses…

A boy from Kenya…who’s name means “Blessing”, who is a “Blessing”…receives a “Blessing”

One world…6 nations…one 8 year old boy named BARAKA…now he can hear soon he will speak. The Mathare slum…one million people in one square mile…Baraka truly is ONE IN A MILLION!

God cares for His world…God works through His world…God so loved the world!

On Sunday we went to Joska for a 3 ½ hour worship celebration and play day…that is where we first saw Baraka. It was hard to hold back the tears when I said to him, “What is your name?” and he said, “BARAKA!”

We praised God for this answer to PRAYER!

Africa Dec 08 Mission team arrives

Joe Leturgez (husband of team member Linda Leturgez, and MCC staff member) sent his email:
"I received a text message from them approximately 5:15 pm this afternoon.
Nairobi is 8 hours later than East Coast United States. The weather forecast for Nairobi is daily highs about 80 degrees and nightly lows in the upper 50s with no rain for the next 10 days.
The team is scheduled to return to the United States on Thursday December 18 landing at BWI at 4:20 pm on British Air flight BA0229 from London Heathrow.
Please be praying for their safety and for the effectiveness of their mission."

Friday, November 7th and Saturday, November 8th 2008

Dear Family and Friends,

Friday was a long work day and we did not finish our letter. Again today you will get a double dose in the form of a combined Friday-Saturday letter.
We spent a second day (Friday) in Noun Boe at Christ For All Nations Church and Bible School.

When we arrived, some of the young men were already working on the well. The young man who was so helpful on Thursday returned on Friday. We learned that his name is Henasay. Without his help we would not have finished the project. We had hit mud at 27 feet on Thursday. On Friday morning, they hit sand around 30 feet and then flowing water at around 33 feet. Jim had them continue until about 36 feet and then inserted the well liner. By lunch time, we were pulling up sweet clean water!! The rest of the afternoon was spent on protecting the well area and instructing the local group on its’ use and care. Tom did a marvellous job of getting creating excitement and enthusiasm in the younger children. The shouts and praises were audible across the schoolyard. You would have thought the rocks they gathered were candy based on their enthusiasm for the task. We used the rock and gravel for the clean area around the well. When it came time to mixing concrete for capping the well area, the young men were far less enthusiastic about the mixing job but they got it done anyway. At the completion of the well, Pastor Jolly gathered the group together to give thanks to God for sending Jim and Tom.

Nearby to the well is a coconut tree. While we were finishing the well one of the boys asked Tom and Jim if they would like some fresh coconut. Mistakenly we said yes, and in about ten seconds a five-year old scampered up 25 feet of coconut tree. He was not strong enough to twist off the coconuts and so his friends tried to throw a knife up to him. Tom stopped the knife throwing. The five-year old came down and teenager climbed up and began tossing down coconuts. We were soon drinking fresh coconut juice and eating the meat.

Jerry and Sylvia completed their counselling teaching in the morning. Attendance was lower than on Thursday. The Senior Pastor from the Mae La Camp joined the class again. Singing by their class again provided a trip highlight. Jerry and Sylvia remarked that is was nice to hear some long familiar hymns such as Alas and Did My Savour Bleed?. Afterward Jerry and Sylvia made a tour of the local village. It is especially foreign for us to find a large number of animals living in close proximity to living quarters. However, the pigs, chickens and cows are also a stark contrast to the occasional satellite dish we see.

Alex became the Community Health Evangelism (CHE) Teacher for the day. He took the lead in teaching about water contamination, and Solar Disinfection to an interested audience.

In the evening we got a good chuckle at Tom’s expense. Ordinary Thai food is spicy to an American palate. For dinner Tom ordered a ham and SPICY cheese sandwich bagel. Within a bite Tom was commenting on the spiciness but surprisingly he kept on eating. The exercise culminated with Tom sticking his tongue in a glass of water and not being able to feel his lips. This did not of course stop Tom from teasing Alex about mixing chocolate ice cream and white rice for desert.

Saturday morning we headed to Mae La camp. A quick stop at the local supermarket was necessary to buy coffee, sugar, and milk. We needed to purchase a ‘gift’ for the camp authorities as ‘thanks’ for having access to the camp.

Mae La Camp contains about 50,000 refugees. We were told that only about 50% of these are actually registered with the UN. Registration with UN is the key for receiving food rations and possibility of securing political asylum moving to a foreign country.

Upon arrival at Mae La, the team split into two groups. Jerry and Sylvia met with the adults and Tom, Alex and Jim met with the children. While Jerry and Sylvia demonstrated teaching excellence, Tom and Jim appeared to be conducting some form of Abbot and Costello routine and Alex played the straight man. The adult session focused on counselling which seemed to resonate with the attendees. After some simple water education for the children, English practice had the children giggling, with phrases such as ‘Tom has a big nose’. Alex managed to build nicely upon the silliness with some relevant bible passages. The adult group sang for us again with gusto – with both groups faith and joy came out across the language barrier

After lunch, three of us were invited to visit Henasay’s hut and to meet his wife and son. This was a chance to learn a bit about life in the camp and some personal insights. Hanasay had built his hut when he arrived in Thailand about 2 years ago. The entire hut was constructed from bamboo and leaves. The bamboo provides everything from structural components to woven floor mats. During the visit to his house, we learned that he risked deportation by joining us in Noun Boe (outside of the refugee camp). Without offering deeper explanation, Hanasay shared with us that his border from Burma one year ago crossing was not any easy affair.

One of our translators for the day was a 23 year old young lady named Geakoh. She is the wife of Mookoh, translator for Jim,Tom, and Alex when they came to the camp on Sunday. Mookoh told us his wife was expecting to deliver their first baby within the next 2 weeks. When Tom & Alex saw Geakoh, we guessed she might be the mom-to-be. Geakoh had been a school teacher in Burma before fleering one year ago. Alex had been carrying a couple of Angel Bears entrusted to him one of his daughters. He was tasked with giving them a good home. Alex gave the bears to Geakoh.

Before leaving Mae La, we handed over medical supplies and Burmese language bibles. In Mae La, as with each of our work sites this week, we have been welcomed with open arms. The people have been friendly and giving. It is hard to imagine that we have been able to give as much as we have received.

We will be leaving Mae Sot tomorrow after worship for our drive back to Bangkok and the final portion of our mission trip. While we have said it individually to friends and family, as a team we want to recognize your sacrifice. We are only able to be here because of your support. Thank you.

Sharing our God given talents and gifts with our brothers and sisters,
Alex, Jerry, Sylvia, Tom and Jim.
Here are some pictures:http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=11267&l=d7343&id=1196427976

Didn't take as many today, since I was supposed to be working too :)
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=11149&l=a5dee&id=1196427976

Monday, November 03, 2008

Dear Family and Friends:

Today was a great day. We worked hard.

We had breakfast at 7:00 AM, packed up our supplies, and headed back to Khwe Ka Loc Orphanage. For the next couple of days we are using a small pickup truck for team and supply transport. The advantage of this of course is that Tom, Alex, Jerry, and Jim get the chance to enjoy God’s air-conditioning riding in the truck bed.

We arrived in the orphanage by about 8:30. The sight of 200+ children of all ages – some shy, some bold, but all curious - watching our arrival was an emotive experience.

After a bit or organizing, agenda modifying, and negotiation (more on that in another letter) we jumped into our respective projects:

Jerry and Sylvia taught conflict resolution and basic counseling techniques for about 6 hours to a mixed group of adolescents and young adult men and women. Translations were a challenge; however they made it through the material like champs and most certainly planted some ‘mustard seeds’. Through God’s great providence we pray these will grow. We all find ourselves working to adapt to local styles of learning, communicating, and influencing.

Tom and Alex worked closely with younger children. Tom was thrown into the impromptu role of English teacher extraordinaire. Alex and Tom both became ‘corpsman’ using our team’s first aid kit to deliver some basic first aid for children with open cuts, scrapes, etc. Most of the young children run around barefoot in the muck – dung – sludge combination that covers some parts of the grounds. We used this as an opportunity to teach some basic first aid care for superficial wounds. We find no shortage of need and are working to prioritize our resources with the clear objective of teaching and empowering.

Jim led the well drilling effort using a team of teenage boys. These boys eagerly labored in the heat and a few of them showed potential as leaders/teachers. We were already getting water at a depth of 2 feet but continued down to about 19 feet. The effort was advancing in a good way until some of the boys dropped the drill head down into the bottom of the shaft. After a couple rather quiet moments and some tongue control, we cobbled together a grappling hook, fished around in the water, and retrieved the head. We are practicing improvisation and patience.

Alex connected with a two Catholic missionaries from the Philippines living in Mae Sot who joined us at the orphanage for lunch. These Filipina women work as teachers for the children at the God’s Love and Care Development Institute. They were very interested in our work and we have agreed to meet on Tuesday evening to share the CHE (Community Health evangelism) Program knowledge resources.

At dinner we met a missionary who graduated from Manhattan Christian College in Kansas, who knows Charles Cook and Loren Deckard. There was an immediate bond with Tom as they had both fought in Viet Nam,

Finally, we had a meeting with Somchai to understand the development and direction of his mission work here. We will share more about this when we get back.

It is only possible to report to you in this short letter a small fraction of:
Today’s sights – both uplifting and disturbing,
Today’s experiences – both joys and distresses, and
Today’s learning - some easy and some hard.

We ask you to pray for the children of Khwe Ka Loc Orphanage.

Working for the children of God’s kingdom,

Alex, Jerry, Sylvia, Tom and Jim


P.S. We missed mentioning an important highlight yesterday: When the team was separated into two groups yesterday at the Mae La Refugee Camp, Jerry got the “opportunity” to preach. While Alex was to deliver his sermon at one church (and with about five minutes notice) the local pastors delegated to Jerry to preach at another church. While caught completely off guard and filled with some trepidation, Jerry gallantly stepped up to the task. F L E X I B I L I T Y