Dear Friends,

Missions team with Jose Luis and Beto preparing to pour church floor

Our neighbor & helper, Nancy

What a fun adventure we recently experienced!  Adam, our eldest son, came down with a missions team of young adults from his church, Corinth Reformed, near Grand Rapids, MI.  We assisted the local workers in laying a cement floor in the Catholic Church in Quimixto, a small village south of Vallarta.  This was a great example of lending a hand up instead of a handout.  The village provided over 60 volunteers who worked diligently for 2 days hauling cement and sand, mixing and spreading it by hand (an exhausting job), and expertly finishing the floor.  The people were very grateful and welcomed our team with loving encouragement.   Thankfully, we were blessed by the help of a wonderful friend and excellent interpreter from the Chicago area.  Marilyn dedicated her generous offering and talent in remembrance of her beautiful daughter, Maria Elena Nudell, and her loving husband, Ben Cocogliato.

Adam and Marilyn preparing to present Bibles

Giving out Bibles

Once the floor was completed, the team went to 3 of the villages to host a FUN DAY.  After serving lunch, the children from 1st through 6th grades played 4 different games Adam and the team had prepared.  They received ribbons, bags of candy with Gospel tracts, and finally, the presentation of Spanish NIV New Testament Bibles to every child.  Over 400 Bibles and tracts were generously donated by Allen and Christi Fairchild, friends from Missouri who own a condo in our building, and had visited our feeding program.  Thank you, Allen and Christi!  An added joy was giving out beautiful baby blankets the women from Corinth Church made and sent down.  We seem to always know people with babies, already here or on the way!

The Winners!

Proud Bible owners

It was a terrific week, with the added excitement of a hurricane prediction and schools closing one day.  All that resulted was a stormy water taxi ride on high, rolling swells and a little rain with cool breezes.  Wish you could have been with us!

We have 2 more weeks, and then will head to Texas to visit San’s and my families.  From there, we go to Chicago and time with our friends, and our immediate family gathering at the Lake (with 8 grandchildren now, and soon, a new son-in-law, Sergio Armendariz, Emily’s fiancé!).

Again, thank you for giving.   Please pass the word about us to others who love kids and want to help feed them and share the Lord’s love in Mexico.

Love and blessings,

Paty with her new blanket and children’s Bible

Randy

 

PS From Sandra: 

We received a lovely ‘Thank You’ from 3 Mothers in Yelapa we want to share with you,  to show your help is greatly appreciated by real people!

“Dear Pastor Randy and all the people who donate their time and money to support and feed the children in the small villages of Mexico. We live in Yelapa and the children here benefit greatly from the two lunches Randy provides every week.  Randy and the ladies here never miss feeding the children a balanced complete meal. They are so reliable.  Randy also encourages the children personally. On behalf of the parents and children here in Yelapa, Thank you all, muchas gracias a todo, for all your love and support.”

Sincerely,
Veronica Joya R., Alicia Rodriguez A., & Maria Morgan M.