what i love about being home:
soft toilet paper
clothes clean and fresh out of the dryer
apples, pears, strayberries, peaches
a cool breeze
what i miss about haiti:
keso
love-mita
pharra
renise
dieunit
adeline
chabine
katiana
chedline
isguerda
cherline
erta
cherley
mikerline
ruth
ranald
cendy
oline
kenny
franky
walgens
clairmond
daphne
phan phan
the hojaras
alicia simmons
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
my favorite parts of the trip
meeting the kids lucas and i sponsor. keso. love-mita. lucas and i didnt think that being a sponsor would be such a big deal to these kids. Love-mita freaked out and ran and told all the other girls in the cabin in like 2 seconds. Keso was reminding the other boys all week of the fact. lucas and i decided to increase our sponsorship amount for them.
jumping up and down till it hurt with keso during worship. the smile on the kid's face: priceless. and when the music slowed down... he didnt. awesome.
speaking creole. it means the world to them. it opens a door. i remember meeting pharra. i said "bon jou" and so did she. but when i followed that with "M' conta fe conesance ou" (i am pleased to meet you) she smiled and our eyes connected. she is such a beautiful girl and has such an incredible story.
trying all the haitian food! sometimes i didnt know what kind of meat i was eating!! scary! one day after lunch... people were rushing outside. i did too to see what the comotion was. two goats in the bed of a truck. lunch tomorrow!! wow.
also the hardest part... hearing some stories from the kids themselves (through an i of how they got off of the street. about 7 or 8 of the girls in my cabin told us their stories through an inturpretor. hunger to the point of tears. being scared for their lives. voodoo. begging in the streets of port-au-price. being called names and cussed at. oragnge hair from malnutrition. being mistreated. BUT GOD... sent susette mannaserro out to talk with them. Jesus hand pick each of these girls out of their horrific lives into a new life with Him. one girl said she wanted to help girls get off the street too one day. renise. i love that girl.
the talent show. im telling you this is the most awesome talent show EVER. the first 3 acts were verse recitings. um the crowd was on thier feet and on the benches yelling and cheering. the thrid one had to be the loudest. it was for david. all by himself reciting a simple two line verse. i decided then and there is was the best talent show ever and wondered if the kids would keep up the excitement all the way through. they did. it was amazing. the finale was a fashion show by 6 of the girls in my cabin. steller. the al had the walk. and pharra had the perfect runway face. katiana followed with the her biggest brighest smile. you should have been there.
alicia simmons
jumping up and down till it hurt with keso during worship. the smile on the kid's face: priceless. and when the music slowed down... he didnt. awesome.
speaking creole. it means the world to them. it opens a door. i remember meeting pharra. i said "bon jou" and so did she. but when i followed that with "M' conta fe conesance ou" (i am pleased to meet you) she smiled and our eyes connected. she is such a beautiful girl and has such an incredible story.
trying all the haitian food! sometimes i didnt know what kind of meat i was eating!! scary! one day after lunch... people were rushing outside. i did too to see what the comotion was. two goats in the bed of a truck. lunch tomorrow!! wow.
also the hardest part... hearing some stories from the kids themselves (through an i of how they got off of the street. about 7 or 8 of the girls in my cabin told us their stories through an inturpretor. hunger to the point of tears. being scared for their lives. voodoo. begging in the streets of port-au-price. being called names and cussed at. oragnge hair from malnutrition. being mistreated. BUT GOD... sent susette mannaserro out to talk with them. Jesus hand pick each of these girls out of their horrific lives into a new life with Him. one girl said she wanted to help girls get off the street too one day. renise. i love that girl.
the talent show. im telling you this is the most awesome talent show EVER. the first 3 acts were verse recitings. um the crowd was on thier feet and on the benches yelling and cheering. the thrid one had to be the loudest. it was for david. all by himself reciting a simple two line verse. i decided then and there is was the best talent show ever and wondered if the kids would keep up the excitement all the way through. they did. it was amazing. the finale was a fashion show by 6 of the girls in my cabin. steller. the al had the walk. and pharra had the perfect runway face. katiana followed with the her biggest brighest smile. you should have been there.
alicia simmons
funny things about haiti
A new car costs less than a used one
I think if you have one cell phone you have more money, but if you have 2 or 3 you are either poor or just careful with money. You might use one for text messaging, one for calling people in Haiti and one for calling other countries. Rich people can just get one to use for everything
People look at you funny until you start speaking Creole to them. Sometimes they look at you even more funny, but most of the time smile.
The line to get into the airport felt like there was going to be a riot at anytime (ok maybe it wasn’t that bad)
The last hotel we stayed at had a no smoking sign. The room came with two ashtrays.
Bottles of Acid are the equivalent of Clorox
Haitian culture dictates that if you have two of something the other one is excess and therefore can be taken without asking. I never actually experienced this, but this was what I was told. When you get there and realize how little people have, you are ready to give it up anyways.
Lucas Simmons
fini for this time
Friday-the end
What? Today is our last full day with the kids Haiti is a different place than what you hear about in American media. We tend to forget, I think, that Haitians are people and instead focus on all the safety concerns. These children in are glowing with God’s glory and are such happy kids. I love them and I hope I don’t get all worked up about coming back again. I am definitely being changed by being here. Today we piled into three trucks and a bus. Alicia & I were in the bus and I can only describe this adventure as a constant game of chicken. The best part was the gas tank for the bus was sitting right next to the driver. We are on our way to Kaliko now, a beach resort in Haiti where we will play with the kids in the pool.
That place was amazing and most of them loved the pool. It had air conditioning too so we were actually cold. We had a great time of worship and prayer that night and got to really encourage each other. The next morning we returned and finished our time of worship and prayer together. How awesome. Then we all went to the pool again. Then, it was time to leave and we had a teary goodbye. I don’t think any of us can believe that week is over and I know my heart is still there. Seeing the kids leave knowing they are still there – it is so hard for me to imagine now that I am back in California. After we left Kaliko, the bus we were on broke down 3 times. Good thing we had some handy guys around. After a 4 hour journey, we arrived at the Hotel Montana, which is a nice hotel in Port-Au-Prince. We shared a meal, debriefed and went to sleep. This morning we got up and the hotel had no clue they were supposed to take us to the airport (not a surprising thing in Haiti) but eventually we got a bus. As soon as we sat down in the terminal, they started boarding the plane.
More pictures coming soon…
Lucas Simmons
Thursday, June 26, 2008
pa gen internet
i think that's how you say we had no internet in creole. That was what happened yesterday and why I didn't update. This week has been a blur sort of, so I am trying to remember things as best I can. yesterday, our medical guy, Kurt, gave the kids some basic medical training which they really enjoyed. We had worship after that and then Alicia showed the kids the dance she made up (which they loved!). You would think in a normal camp day you would have worship first, but we have to plan our worship times around when we have electricity. That's not always easy because it doesn't seem to always have the same schedule. Group dicussions followed. Then we had these big air filled bumper things that we put on and had relay races. After that it was just a normal day of soccer and crafts and playing around followed by an amazing time of worship at night. After the "official" time of worship was finished we played worship from a CD and most people danced around and worshipped. Oh yeah and we got to see what's for lunch today, goat. They bought them on the street. The goat slaughter also woke me up this morning.
Today we had a time of worship, but in Creole. This normally makes me cry, I was on the verge of crying... it's just so beautiful. It was only drums and singing. No guitars! Tonight we are having a talent show. Tomorrow we head to the beach and then we are almost done. I don't know about everyone else, but I certainly don't want to come back to America :)
This whole electricity thing is limiting the amount of time I can respond to e-mails, sorry.
More photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucastheexperience/sets/72157605133107968/
i will try to update you all again, but keep us in your prayers for the last couple of days that God would touch their hearts and that we would just be a blessing to them
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
update, but no pictures
No pictures tonight, I am working on a slideshow of the kids for tonight's gathering. Maybe in the morning, when we get electricity.
"If God created all this and it's this beautiful, then how beautiful is God." - Patrick one of the kids from the orphanage
Today we started out eating breakfast with our teams and then went to chapel and had bible study afterwards. The kids love soccer and pretty much any other game on the soccer field. We continue to meet and connect with more people that are here at the facility. Today we talked with Pierre who is one of the owners of this place (or that's what we got from talking with him. I also talked to a man named Joseph who asked me to call his fiance in California when I get home and let her know he is ok. Then, it was back to the soccer court again. The kids are so great and the people are so friendly. I just enjoy saying bonjour or bonswa to everyone passing by...
Anyways it's almost time to eat...
Lucas
another ayiti update
sorry i didn't update yesterday. there's this thing called electricity and another thing called air conditioning, showers and toilets that are not overflowing with gross stuff that we take for granted in America. Part of me gets grossed out and part of me goes hey you're in the third world what do you expect? I try to let that part take over and just figure out how I can survive in another way haha. I don't think the toilet situation is helped by the fact that they put acid down them. That's at least what the bottle said, who knows what was in it.
Right now we are at our camp facility in Port-Au-Prince. Electricity is spotty and internet is slow, we brought our satellite connection with us. I was going to update last night but I opted to sleep. First I would like to say that the guitar we thought was lost forever was indeed found at the airport.
So here is what I wrote for yesterday:
Today we woke up early and got ready to go to camp. We loaded all our bags and mattresses in the truck. We arrived after about 30 minutes and then did the opposite. The place is pretty nice for Haiti and there's a lot of staff working here and I have tried to talk to them. One of the cool things is that the worship we do is really loud. So people who are at this place just come and sit down and hang out. The kids arrived over an hour late, but they are excited for camp. We played soccer, but we had everyone tie their leg to a friend's leg. Worship and the message was great. Our topic for the week is heroes of the faith, tonight it was Abraham. Earlier today we made t-shirts for our different color teams. The cool thing to say around here is "I am the best" It sounds so funny with their Haitian accents. It was cool to see them put "Jesus is the best" or "Jesi se pli bon" on their shirts.
Back to now, this morning I am realizing how we cannot do this on our own and we need Jesi to be able to do this. In a few days I will be back in America and these kids will be here. Pray that we follow Him and that He touches their hearts this week.
Anyways that's the update. I better go before the electricity cuts out. Somehow it takes me about an hour to do these! I will try and have another one later today, but who knows.
here are more photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucastheexperience/sets/72157605133107968/
lucas
Right now we are at our camp facility in Port-Au-Prince. Electricity is spotty and internet is slow, we brought our satellite connection with us. I was going to update last night but I opted to sleep. First I would like to say that the guitar we thought was lost forever was indeed found at the airport.
So here is what I wrote for yesterday:
Today we woke up early and got ready to go to camp. We loaded all our bags and mattresses in the truck. We arrived after about 30 minutes and then did the opposite. The place is pretty nice for Haiti and there's a lot of staff working here and I have tried to talk to them. One of the cool things is that the worship we do is really loud. So people who are at this place just come and sit down and hang out. The kids arrived over an hour late, but they are excited for camp. We played soccer, but we had everyone tie their leg to a friend's leg. Worship and the message was great. Our topic for the week is heroes of the faith, tonight it was Abraham. Earlier today we made t-shirts for our different color teams. The cool thing to say around here is "I am the best" It sounds so funny with their Haitian accents. It was cool to see them put "Jesus is the best" or "Jesi se pli bon" on their shirts.
Back to now, this morning I am realizing how we cannot do this on our own and we need Jesi to be able to do this. In a few days I will be back in America and these kids will be here. Pray that we follow Him and that He touches their hearts this week.
Anyways that's the update. I better go before the electricity cuts out. Somehow it takes me about an hour to do these! I will try and have another one later today, but who knows.
here are more photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucastheexperience/sets/72157605133107968/
lucas
Sunday, June 22, 2008
fini jou 3
bonjou -
please look at our blog as I updated that earlier today go to http://www.haiticampinabox.blogspot.com we went to church this morning so cool! to preface that, Alicia Kelley Robert and I were talking about following God's will and following with what He prompts to do. So read that knowing that we talked about not missing opportunities for what God is calling us to do.
Today I was hanging out and talking with the security guard Juancito here again and he wanted me to come and hang out with him up front. So I think I stood there and talked with him for about 30 minutes in Creole. I can't even remember what we were talking about, but it was cool just to communicate somewhat. I still had to pull out my Creole book every once in awhile to understand :)
Today some people went downtown to the airport to see if Aaron's guitar ever made it. It somehow got lost on the way from Florida to Ayiti. I don't think they had much luck... Others worked on the plumbing and most of us went to the boys to hang out with them. I got to talk to Israel, one of the older boys just about where I am from and everything. It's been an incredibly busy day for everyone and camp starts tomorrow. We are not sure how tomorrow is going to work out... we were planning on taking some stuff to the place we are having the camp, but that did not happen. After a little while we went (or joined in) on the kids playing soccer and basketball. We also got a good amount of rain just before dark, all the kids were running around enjoying it. Now we are just trying to get ready for tomorrow...
look for the latest pics @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucastheexperience/sets/72157605133107968/
lucas
Get your bounce on
That's what John McHoul, the pastor at port-au-prince fellowship told us while worshipping. If I saw on the street I would probably think he was homeless. But this church was so spirit filled. You could feel God's presence there. We were worshipping and dancing and John told us to "Get our bounce on" I so wanted to turn on my little camera and grab some video/audio of it. I doubt I could have captured it for you and I think you need to come here to experience what is going on in Haiti through the ministries down here. The sermon today was on Matthew 6:19-34 which happens to be my favorite part of the Bible. A Haitian man sat next to me and as we were reading the verses I felt God telling me to ask him if he had a Bible. So I said "Eskee ou gayay La Bib?" and he replied no. How many Bibles do I have at home? This guy probably can't afford one Bible. So I gave it to him and wrote him a little note. After service, he asked if I would be back next week and I said no I would be going back to California... so he asked for my number and I gave it to him and he gave me his and I told him I would pray for him. Such a great experience just following what God asks for you, it's so easy to reach out and the whole sermon the guy preaching kept talking about how you need a Bible to be able follow God. This guy has the opportunity to do that now. Yay!
anyways i can't just sit here and blog all day i need to go be in ayiti
Saturday, June 21, 2008
AYITI Jou 2!!
Day 2 was awesome... but first I forgot a few things from yesterday
First off. I think I forgot my toothbrush. One of the many joys of being married haha. Also, I brought a copy of my Haiti book and the kids are loving it and tearing it up! I didn't think it would be such a big hit?! One of the guys I worked with on the playhouse at the girls home Fritz(nel) was saying he really liked it. He kept saying this, so we finally got to the point that he wanted a copy. So I think I will be leaving that here with him. I was excited to bring it and show the kids and some of them yesterday were reading all the way through it. Another thing that amused me yesterday was that I am wearing the same hat and shirt and glasses that I wore the last time and one of the kids that came to the airport said he recognized me. Fritz(nel) also said he recognized me, and Renald too. How awesome!
Today we got up early and then we worshipped and prayed. That was an awesome time to just reflect and thank God for what He is doing through us. Then we went to a VERY crowded Haitian market and I'm not thinking anyone bought anything. When is the last time you have been to a market and they had live chickens flapping around and everybody was yelling at you to buy something? It was a different experience, 20 americans in the middle of a thousand or so Haitians. I was excited to practice my Creole. On the way back we also saw a parade for some Haitian rapper(s) that died recently. We also were able to hang out with the boys and girls at their homes and play soccer, football or make bracelets. I love the look on people's faces when Alicia or I speak Creole. We talked to the guard today at the Manassero/Hojara home about if he likes it here, where he is from and stuff. So much has happened today I feel like, I am trying to still process it all. Then we got to go check out the ravine, where it seems to be some of the poorest people. We gave some of the kids candy and talked to the people. One guy was shaving with a razor blade, so I got to ask him if he cuts his face with it in Creole haha. I think he thought it was funny that I knew how to say that. Tonight, some are going to the boys home to watch Zorro and tomorrow we are going to church! I am really excited about that. Maybe tomorrow I will have a better update about today, just like yesterday. I am trying to write everything down as it happens, but sometimes there is just not enough time.
Thank you for your prayers, everyone here is doing great. It's not THAT hot, but it is hot and the mosquitoes seem to be relatively non-existent.
More photos! I think I'm up to around 300, i try to be as discreet as possible because people do get mad if you take a picture without them giving you permission...
Friday, June 20, 2008
day 1
We made it! We've had a long day, but it's been so cool being back here and seeing all the kids. So awesome! So here's an update I wrote earlier today. I wrote a couple of others, but wasn't able to send them to everyone so check out www.haiticampinabox.blogspot.com
Here is my updat efrom earlier today. After arriving at the airport, we walked thorugh customs. Then Ted and Lisa and some of the kids were waiting for us when we came out of the airport. We split into different groups - some wento to Eco depot others went to buy mattress and still others to an orphanage tour. Alicia and I went on the orphanage tour, even though I had been - I just wanted to hang out with the kids. Then I got whisked away to youth group on the roof of rod and Brittany's. Who knows what tomorrow will bring, not really much planned except planning for camp!
The internet is kind of slow, so i had to cut down the size of the pics alot, but I still wanted to send something along. http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucastheexperience/sets/72157605133107968/
Lucas
On our way
Nap ale ayiti. Its excited to be surrounded by other team members and of course my wife. Darin and Carolyn gave us some reading materials on the plane. I think most of us are spending this time bonding with other teammates or sleeping. We are on our way to fort lauderdale and only have a fifty minute layover and I think we are running late. Everything else has gone smoothly... In fact I don't think they even weighed our bags! We spent so much time worrying about a few ounces haha. Hopefully we make it through haitian customs without a hitch. We are anxiously counting the hours until we arrive. We pray that God goes before us and clears a path for us. How exciting is this???
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T
Thursday, June 19, 2008
bonjour!
Hey All!
I hope you don't mind if I e-mail you every few days while I am in Haiti. Some of you I know better than others, but most of you I figure have either been or have an interest in Haiti.
Alicia (my wife) and I are going for nine days and we are SO excited. We leave tonight at 10:45 and will get there sometime tomorrow morning.
I went to Haiti in August of last year. My poor wife Alicia - she didn't go. Boy has she heard about it ever since. I think most times people get culture shock when they're in a different culture and are relieved when they go back to their "normal" way of living. Is that how it works? I came back and have just wanted to go back to Haiti ever since. There's something so wonderful about people having joy even with so little. In America, we live our days rushing around going in a little circle all day. something has just changed inside me and I can only explain it by telling you that it was God doing a new work in me. The story is so crazy and totally God and this e-mail is already long but if you want to know more, then just ask...
so finally after many months of waiting we are ready to go back tonight, for nine days. we are going with a team of 20 other people and are stoked on getting to use our creole and connect with the kids through a summer camp we are putting on in port au prince. i will be sending updates when I have internet, assuming I do. mosquitoes, bugs, voodoo, guys with guns and funny blue helmets, intense heat and humidity and sticking out like a sore thumb - these are all a part of haiti. but there is also the kids at the orphanage. in the middle of all of this absolute destitution (where people literally eating dirt) there is hope for this nation through what Jesus is doing with these kids. It is an absolute honor to be able to be a part of this and I am so excited...
please keep us in your prayers if you are a pray-er... we are also hoping to connect with a haitian guy we met who runs a restaurant in downtown LA who will be there at the same time, hopefully that happens but who knows. it's haiti!
please forward this along to whoever you like or direct them to www.haiticampinabox.blogspot.com like I said I will update when I can hopefully with pictures!
lucas simmons
p.s. if you forget about the blog: my facebook, lucasyalicia.com, flickr.com/photos/lucastheexperience (when there are pictures), lucastheexperience.blogspot.com, and aliciatheexperience.blogspot.com should all be updating
p.p.s. alicia actually went to the bank in AMERICA today and told the teller she was going to Haiti and the guy started talking to her in Haitian Creole! How funny and totally God is that???
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
3 days
... till we are on the ground in Haiti!! and only about 60 hours till we board our flight out of LAX. crazy! our countdown is ticking away!
lucas and i (alicia) are already almost packed. i only have one shift left of work. but there still seems like a lot to do! today as lucas works, i am going to work on a few dances that i want to teach the kids. i have a couple awesome songs. #1 "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield #2 "For the Lord id Good" by All Together Separate. #3 is going to be a song/artist i found on line yesterday: "Freedom" Nicole C. Mullen. check her out on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaMVow85gC8 (its a little shaky and blurry at first... but hang on it gets good!)
so we went over to the Kruse's last night. the house was so lively! loni came out to greet us, and then Darin, and then Carolyn. they were extemely overjoyed that we had brought not two, but four empty suitcases and two duffle bags. (thanks mom and dad) the kruse's have been accumulating everything from peanut butter to heavy duty construction lights and duct tapping then together for protection!! the camp for the kids is "camp in a box" cause we are bringing EVERYTHING that we need! our suitcases would help them pack donations, spagetti, team t-shirts, shampoo, etc. if it fits... stick it in!! but wait. what is its weight? each suitcase can only be 50 pounds. so there was quite a production being conducted when we arrived. some bags had left with other team mates the day before, others were sitting by the door ready to go, two were open on the kitchen floor (AND... there was suzette too!! on her knees helping pack up! so excited to see her!!), and now there were several more to fill.
we jumped right in. lucas was jumping on the scale weighing suitcases, and i was the "historian," noting what was in each suitcase after it had reached its correct weight. it was decided that suzette could be smuggled into haiti in one of our oversized suitcases. haha. loni fit in one too! i didnt try. darin came out with a megaphone and was duct tapping lanyards together and passing it like a baton to me. we even breaked for 2 minutes to eat ice cream sandwiches. yum. finally we celebrated when we had numbered our 17th bag at it's correct wieght! and then lucas and i we off with three excelently and maticulously packed suitcases.
tonight we are spraying our clothes that we will be packing with mosquito repelant, and choosing pictures to print out to show the kids our family, friends, and wedding. im also cutting lucas' hair! :) tomorrow i think we will be all packed and still have a whole day to wait!!
alicia
lucas and i (alicia) are already almost packed. i only have one shift left of work. but there still seems like a lot to do! today as lucas works, i am going to work on a few dances that i want to teach the kids. i have a couple awesome songs. #1 "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield #2 "For the Lord id Good" by All Together Separate. #3 is going to be a song/artist i found on line yesterday: "Freedom" Nicole C. Mullen. check her out on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaMVow85gC8 (its a little shaky and blurry at first... but hang on it gets good!)
so we went over to the Kruse's last night. the house was so lively! loni came out to greet us, and then Darin, and then Carolyn. they were extemely overjoyed that we had brought not two, but four empty suitcases and two duffle bags. (thanks mom and dad) the kruse's have been accumulating everything from peanut butter to heavy duty construction lights and duct tapping then together for protection!! the camp for the kids is "camp in a box" cause we are bringing EVERYTHING that we need! our suitcases would help them pack donations, spagetti, team t-shirts, shampoo, etc. if it fits... stick it in!! but wait. what is its weight? each suitcase can only be 50 pounds. so there was quite a production being conducted when we arrived. some bags had left with other team mates the day before, others were sitting by the door ready to go, two were open on the kitchen floor (AND... there was suzette too!! on her knees helping pack up! so excited to see her!!), and now there were several more to fill.
we jumped right in. lucas was jumping on the scale weighing suitcases, and i was the "historian," noting what was in each suitcase after it had reached its correct weight. it was decided that suzette could be smuggled into haiti in one of our oversized suitcases. haha. loni fit in one too! i didnt try. darin came out with a megaphone and was duct tapping lanyards together and passing it like a baton to me. we even breaked for 2 minutes to eat ice cream sandwiches. yum. finally we celebrated when we had numbered our 17th bag at it's correct wieght! and then lucas and i we off with three excelently and maticulously packed suitcases.
tonight we are spraying our clothes that we will be packing with mosquito repelant, and choosing pictures to print out to show the kids our family, friends, and wedding. im also cutting lucas' hair! :) tomorrow i think we will be all packed and still have a whole day to wait!!
alicia
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Last Meeting
Woo hoo! Only a week and a half to go. Here are some pics from out last meeting... http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucastheexperience/sets/72157605133107968/
The highlight I think was Darin’s hat and tie combo and he also busted out his whistle and kazoo that he will use to wake us up in the morning oh joy!
You’re probably wondering what that sounds like. Don’t worry I’ve got an MP3 of it here: www.lucastheexperience.com/mp3s/darin.mp3
Lucas
Friday, June 6, 2008
Haiti Camp Benefit Concert Results
Folks,
The return engagement benefit concert occurred Sunday, June 1 and it was a success on a lot of levels but a bit of a disappointment on the turn out side. Overall, though, the day was a great blessing.
Results numerically,
• Approximately $600.00 net proceeds to go to the camp fund.
• Approximately 100 people attended the concert.
• 20- 30 prayer cards were taken by the attendees. We have more if another church group can use them at an event before the trip. We will use them at MVCC to keep awareness going otherwise. They are beautifully handmade cards with an MdL child's picture and a request to pray for the child.
• Approximately 30 people asked to be added to the email list or expressed interest in possibly being more directly involved.
• A lot of supply donations were made because of the raised awareness.
• Hundreds of prayers were raised.
Qualitatively,
• The Manasseros were able to devote the day to MVCC's activities and it was a great time for all of us (and hopefully for them).
• Camp trip traveling team members from several of the churches were able to attend the concert and we were able to recognize how we are all one body serving God's children. We were also able to pray for the team and to show the Child Hope video.
• There was a nice time of fellowship afterward on the patio.
• The concert was fabulous as we expected. The creative arts team and the missions committee's goal of raising awareness for both outreaches and to provide a very enjoyable afternoon were met and God was well represented by the beauty and quality of the music. Thank you and God bless you Cheryl, Chris, Erin and Steve for performing for us. Thanks as well to David for the production, Kim for the organizing and MC role, Julie for the space arranging, Mary for the artwork and printing, Joanne for the prayer cards, the rest of the church staff for all of your support and all of the Haiti team and friends who kicked in to make the event run smoothly.
We are truly blessed.
Looking ahead, please pray for:
• Two of the team members went to Haiti today to stay for an extended period as well as to participate in the camp.
• The rest of the camp traveling team travels on June 19-29.
• More financial and provision support are needed for the camp. Contact Jamie Kruse or Brooke Herman at the addresses above if you want to help. You can also send checks to Child Hope International http://www.childhopeinternational.org/or MVCC www.mvcchome.org and mark in the remarks section "Haiti Camp".
• We are in the beginning organizing stage of a trip during the week of Thanksgiving, 2008 to kick off a feeding program for the neighborhood children near MdL. The goal is to have a children's church service type of event several days a week that will include a meal for these children who may not have one otherwise. It will be staffed by the MdL children as an outreach and as a skills/ministry training tool. We will need about 12 trip participants, organizers in the states and approximately $20,000 in pledges and actual funding to guarantee that it will be adequately funded for the first 12 months. Each of the trip participants will also be raising support. Of course, we mostly need prayer to make sure that our efforts are in the direction that God has planned. I’ll write more about this in the next couple of weeks.
Thanks again for all of your prayers and support. I pray that God blesses you all,
Jim Duggan
The return engagement benefit concert occurred Sunday, June 1 and it was a success on a lot of levels but a bit of a disappointment on the turn out side. Overall, though, the day was a great blessing.
Results numerically,
• Approximately $600.00 net proceeds to go to the camp fund.
• Approximately 100 people attended the concert.
• 20- 30 prayer cards were taken by the attendees. We have more if another church group can use them at an event before the trip. We will use them at MVCC to keep awareness going otherwise. They are beautifully handmade cards with an MdL child's picture and a request to pray for the child.
• Approximately 30 people asked to be added to the email list or expressed interest in possibly being more directly involved.
• A lot of supply donations were made because of the raised awareness.
• Hundreds of prayers were raised.
Qualitatively,
• The Manasseros were able to devote the day to MVCC's activities and it was a great time for all of us (and hopefully for them).
• Camp trip traveling team members from several of the churches were able to attend the concert and we were able to recognize how we are all one body serving God's children. We were also able to pray for the team and to show the Child Hope video.
• There was a nice time of fellowship afterward on the patio.
• The concert was fabulous as we expected. The creative arts team and the missions committee's goal of raising awareness for both outreaches and to provide a very enjoyable afternoon were met and God was well represented by the beauty and quality of the music. Thank you and God bless you Cheryl, Chris, Erin and Steve for performing for us. Thanks as well to David for the production, Kim for the organizing and MC role, Julie for the space arranging, Mary for the artwork and printing, Joanne for the prayer cards, the rest of the church staff for all of your support and all of the Haiti team and friends who kicked in to make the event run smoothly.
We are truly blessed.
Looking ahead, please pray for:
• Two of the team members went to Haiti today to stay for an extended period as well as to participate in the camp.
• The rest of the camp traveling team travels on June 19-29.
• More financial and provision support are needed for the camp. Contact Jamie Kruse or Brooke Herman at the addresses above if you want to help. You can also send checks to Child Hope International http://www.childhopeinternational.org/or MVCC www.mvcchome.org and mark in the remarks section "Haiti Camp".
• We are in the beginning organizing stage of a trip during the week of Thanksgiving, 2008 to kick off a feeding program for the neighborhood children near MdL. The goal is to have a children's church service type of event several days a week that will include a meal for these children who may not have one otherwise. It will be staffed by the MdL children as an outreach and as a skills/ministry training tool. We will need about 12 trip participants, organizers in the states and approximately $20,000 in pledges and actual funding to guarantee that it will be adequately funded for the first 12 months. Each of the trip participants will also be raising support. Of course, we mostly need prayer to make sure that our efforts are in the direction that God has planned. I’ll write more about this in the next couple of weeks.
Thanks again for all of your prayers and support. I pray that God blesses you all,
Jim Duggan
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
a bright and cloudy day!
last night lucas and i visited a home group from Hope Chapel Hermosa that meets twice a month to pray for missions and missionaries. we were so blessed! God is so awesome. i love it when He works through the body of Christ... when it might just seem like random connections to us and answers the biggest and the smallest of prayers!
we were invited to come and share about haiti, about our trip this summer, and to get prayer! we ate and shared, and learned that the majority of the group were all involved in different summer missions trips: thailand, nicaragua, malawi, and vietnam. the trip dates all range from mid june and through july.
this morning i was praying and reflecting on our meeting last night and part of our theme... "a cloud of witnesses" landed in my heart. wow. i was so amazed. while we are in haiti one of these sisters will be in malawi and the others preparing for thier trips... two of which leave the day we get home! incredible. do you see it. do you see why i was floored with the way God truly has put a cloud of witnesses around us?
be encouraged team!! praying for you.
alicia
we were invited to come and share about haiti, about our trip this summer, and to get prayer! we ate and shared, and learned that the majority of the group were all involved in different summer missions trips: thailand, nicaragua, malawi, and vietnam. the trip dates all range from mid june and through july.
this morning i was praying and reflecting on our meeting last night and part of our theme... "a cloud of witnesses" landed in my heart. wow. i was so amazed. while we are in haiti one of these sisters will be in malawi and the others preparing for thier trips... two of which leave the day we get home! incredible. do you see it. do you see why i was floored with the way God truly has put a cloud of witnesses around us?
be encouraged team!! praying for you.
alicia
Monday, May 19, 2008
Keeping it simple
Dear Aaron and Nate, thank you both for taking the leadership role for our teaching times together in
I also wanted to mention how awe struck I was by Aarons testimony of being an orphan; your life validates the appropriation of life changing faith exemplified by the lives recounted in Hebrews 11. As Crabb states in his book, our brokenness is attractive to others (our spiritual friends) and causes us to lean into each other. I found myself glorying in God for His wonderful provision of a “real, flesh on the bones” example of a redeemed orphan that is willing to live right amongst these kids. Aaron, you’re another hero of the faith (all be it a New Testament version) to add to Hebrews 11 for these kids!
I realize we’ve put you both in a stretching position, but above all else, just keep praying (as I am) for His leadership in your preparation. He will honor your hearts pursuit.
Grace to you
Second Team Meeting Pics and Video
Next time I will bring my good camera, I wasn’t planning on taking pictures this time:
Here is a small video of the Language Game
Lucas
Sunday, May 18, 2008
camp theme verse
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. - Hebrews 12:1
our dezyem meeting
that means our second mtg. 4 hours long. but you wouln't even notice... and ill tell you why. its on balboa island. thats right sun and sea. then theres food. good food. and we got cool people. we are mostly at that get to know you stage thats really fun. (personally i get a little awkward at times but when we talk about Haiti is all around excitement). add some worship, prayer, planning, strategizing, laughing, and learning, and you got yourself a fun four hour team meeting!! no kidding.
our last hour was that laughing and learning part. guest speaker Danny is a professor at USC. But he seemed more like a goofy dad of a 3 and 4 year old (he was both). We were wildly entertained. First thing he asked for 3 volunteers. Not something I usually jump at. And I didn’t, I kinda felt bad for the guy… no one was volunteering so i shot up my hand. We were then part of this game. With only 2 rules. #1We were only allowed to say one of 3 things (2up, 2down or 1up, 1down) and #2We couldn’t say the same thing twice in a row. As he started asking us what we were I was terribly confused. It didn’t make any sense. We guessed what we should answer with, but the answers he accepted and rejected made no seeming connection. After some more embarrassment he sent us out of the room and we gave each other our theories of what we thought we were supposed to answer with. When we came back everyone else in the room understood and we still did not. That made us feel a ton better and so it was just about 10 times harder to get what the heck I was supposed to answer. Like it wasn’t hot enough. I could feel my face so red, and I could feel the perspiration begin. Danny began to give us some hints. We still didn’t get it. In the end it was an illustration and an experience to understand what it must be like to learn another language. Yeah. It’s tough.
Danny then taught us some practical ways to teach kids English. Laughter. Music and Songs. Motion. The more fun the better. The more meaningful the better. (Lucas kind of already naturally discovered some of this stuff in his quest to teach him and I Creole. He also gave us some ideas about what to bring that usually perk an English learner’s interest. Like photos. hmmmm... I think we are going to do just fine.
our next meeting is june7th. back in balboa. Haiti will be just a bit less accomodating. but thats a reason i love mission trips. God is so vividly needed for everything. from your tolerence with the heat to the sustainability of your stomache and health to your ability to love selflessly. you just cant be about your own comfort. you are praying and seeking the Lord like crazy. like your life depended on it. man. to prepare for Haiti lets do that here. need God. vividly.
alicia simmons
our last hour was that laughing and learning part. guest speaker Danny is a professor at USC. But he seemed more like a goofy dad of a 3 and 4 year old (he was both). We were wildly entertained. First thing he asked for 3 volunteers. Not something I usually jump at. And I didn’t, I kinda felt bad for the guy… no one was volunteering so i shot up my hand. We were then part of this game. With only 2 rules. #1We were only allowed to say one of 3 things (2up, 2down or 1up, 1down) and #2We couldn’t say the same thing twice in a row. As he started asking us what we were I was terribly confused. It didn’t make any sense. We guessed what we should answer with, but the answers he accepted and rejected made no seeming connection. After some more embarrassment he sent us out of the room and we gave each other our theories of what we thought we were supposed to answer with. When we came back everyone else in the room understood and we still did not. That made us feel a ton better and so it was just about 10 times harder to get what the heck I was supposed to answer. Like it wasn’t hot enough. I could feel my face so red, and I could feel the perspiration begin. Danny began to give us some hints. We still didn’t get it. In the end it was an illustration and an experience to understand what it must be like to learn another language. Yeah. It’s tough.
Danny then taught us some practical ways to teach kids English. Laughter. Music and Songs. Motion. The more fun the better. The more meaningful the better. (Lucas kind of already naturally discovered some of this stuff in his quest to teach him and I Creole. He also gave us some ideas about what to bring that usually perk an English learner’s interest. Like photos. hmmmm... I think we are going to do just fine.
our next meeting is june7th. back in balboa. Haiti will be just a bit less accomodating. but thats a reason i love mission trips. God is so vividly needed for everything. from your tolerence with the heat to the sustainability of your stomache and health to your ability to love selflessly. you just cant be about your own comfort. you are praying and seeking the Lord like crazy. like your life depended on it. man. to prepare for Haiti lets do that here. need God. vividly.
alicia simmons
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