Monday - November 27, 2006

So much has happened since I last updated, that I hardly know where to start. From my second trip to Haiti on November 10 to deliver the school supplies to leaving the DR on November 16 for our staff retreat to surprising my family in Disney World on November 20, the last three weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind! I am now in the states and will be until January 4, and it looks like the next five weeks will be just as hectic as the last few have been!

The second trip to Haiti was just as memorable as the first, though it ended with some sadness for me as I do not know when I will be able to go back again. I met the administrator of the school and we visited each class to let them know about the school supplies they would be given and the books that were going to be purchased for the school. They were very excited and appreciative - I continue to be impressed by the humbleness with which the children I have encountered in Haiti and the DR receive gifts. There is no greediness or expression of rightful ownership displayed - instead, there is a graciousness and warm expression of thankfulness. In all, we took a notebook, packet of pencils, and eraser for each of the 153 children in the school, and a notebook, packet of pens, box of chalk, and a chalkboard eraser for each of the teachers, along with two gallons of blackboard paint to transform the press board "blackboards" (which you can see behind us in the picture above) into actual ones for each classroom. After purchasing all this, there was $300 left, which I gave to the school for the purchase of textbooks that they desperately need since in each classroom 20 to 25 students are currently sharing only a handful of books for each subject.

Just before we left, I was able to share one more special gift with these children that was the result of a special gift to me from a dear friend of mine. You may remember that I had put granola bars on my "wish list" shortly after I arrived in the DR and found out how expensive they are here. As a result of that, I received several boxes of granola bars - the majority from one friend who sent a total of 154 granola/breakfast bars! While I was very happy to receive these, even after sharing several with the other G.O. staff and snacking on them for several weeks, I had almost 40 bars left, so I took them with me to Haiti and shared them with the children at the orphanage. This also became a great lesson in cross-cultural ministry for me as I realized after handing them out that these children had not seen anything like these before and did not know how to open the wrappers. After helping them figure that part out, they discovered that a treat was inside, and it was fun to experience their discovery with them! If I get to go back, I know what I will take with me again - even if I have to buy the boxes in the DR!

After returning to Santiago, I was able to host a "Teacher Appreciation" event for the teachers at the school G.O. supports and where I have been working for the last three months. We had pizza (which is a special treat for the people in this area and is very popular) and I expressed my thanks to them for welcoming me to the school and into their classrooms and for all the work they do with the children. After that, I introduced Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences and gave them an "MI Quiz" which they took and then I briefly explained how just as they all had different primary "intelligences," their students do as well, and though we tend to teach mainly to verbal and logical learners (and in my observations at the school, teaching to these types of learners was primarily what I saw), the majority of us actually learn best through other techniques. This will be something I will explain further in the teacher training on January 8th, but I wanted to introduce it to them with the hopes that they would start to evaluate their own lesson planning prior to that day.

We ended the night with each of the teachers and administrators receiving small gifts of appreciation that I used my ministry money for this month to buy. During my time at the school, I witnessed each teacher being given a piece of chalk for each day by the administration and sharing blackboard erasers, so I made sure to give a box of chalk (colored - just for fun) and an eraser to each teacher. These are basic tools that make a teacher's job easier, and hopefully, in a small way, these gifts helped do just that.

The next day, I went and said good-bye to the students, thanking them for their attention and encouraging them to continue working hard in school (especially in their English classes), and letting them know when I would return. What was most exciting for me in doing this was that I spoke to them first in Spanish and then translated all I said into English! My Spanish was not perfect, but it was certainly more than I could do when I first arrived in Santiago!

Before leaving the DR, I was also able to meet with the pastor of the church in Hoya del Caimito, which is where I live, who is also the president of G.O. in the Dominican, and with the pastor of the church in Hoya de Bartola (or the "hole" as it is commonly called), to discuss the ministries I would like to begin in their churches. Both were excited and encouraging, and we were able to plan out specific start dates for the English and Drama ministries! Beginning in the second week of January in Caimito, I will teach an English class on Saturday mornings for adult learners and a Drama class on Monday afternoons for 3rd through 5th graders. In Bartola, I will teach an English class on Tuesday afternoons for 12 to 14 year olds. This schedule will allow me to work with teams when they are in and in the school in Caimito when there are not any teams here. I am very excited to be able to begin teaching again! The first few months here were a wonderful blessing, during which I was able to begin building the relationships that will enable me to begin these ministries in January. The overall plan is to train a Dominican to take over the English and Drama ministry in each church so that I can then move to another church and start the process all over again! Please pray that I continue to take one step at a time and follow God's leading, as I can have the tendency to jump ahead of Him at times!

Returning to the states on November 16 for our staff retreat was a blessing, and we were able to relax and spend time getting to know one another better and being thankful for the family God has led each of us to through being a part of G.O. Ministries. There were times when I separated myself from the group to have some down time on my own with God, and I was able to reflect on the last three months. There have been some rough spots, and beginning something new is never easy, especially when it also means beginning new relationships as well as a new way of life. While I have never felt completely alone and have clearly felt God's presence, there were times when I just did not understand why certain things happened (or did not happen). During one particular quiet time, God led me to Isaiah 55:8-9 that says "'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the LORD. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.'" Through reflecting on and journaling about those verses, God reminded me, once again, that He is in control, and though I may want certain things to happen in a certain way at a certain time, it may not be what is best, and though I do not need the things I think I want, what I do need is to trust Him and let Him do His work, His way, in His time. He will certainly give us and do for us immeasurably more than we could ever or would ever dream of for ourselves.

One of the blessings He gave me and my family was allowing me to be in Orlando, Florida, at the same time they were for a vacation in Disney World! When they first planned to spend Thanksgiving week in Disney, we all believed that I would be in the Dominican at that time and would not be able to go. However, after finding out that as a result of the staff retreat, I would end up in Orlando on the 20th, I called my dad, and we were able to arrange (with my mom's help) for me to surprise my sister, brother-in-law, niece, and nephew in Disney World! It was hard to keep the secret, and I had to be a bit sketchy with my sister about the details of my return to the U.S. (which I still can't believe she let me get away with), but it was all worth it to see the looks on their faces when I showed up just as they had finished riding Space Mountain for the first time (can anyone ever ride Space Mountain just once?). My niece pretty much always stayed attached to me in some way for the rest of the day (that's her hugging me in the picture), and I think it took an hour or two for the look of shock to totally leave my sister's face (she's the one with her hand on her forehead). The rest of the week was fun and exciting as we explored new and old attractions at Disney, and sitting down with my family for Thanksgiving dinner reminded me of all I have to be thankful for at this time in my life.

I will be in Virginia until the 29th when I leave for Louisville, and I will be in Louisville until December 22 when I will return to Virginia until January 4. Hopefully, I will be able to see each of you and get caught up in person! If not, please know that I am thankful for your prayers and support, and I thank God for you each time I think of you. I am still trying to work out the details for a reception in Louisville (location has been a challenge), and I will let you know when I have more information.

May God bless you in all you do, and I pray that this Christmas will be a time for you to celebrate Christ's birth and the reason for His coming!

Con amor de Jesucristo,
Catherine

Thursday - November 2, 2006

Well, I missed updating last week, but that was because we had teams from four different churches here, and we were a bit busy! Last week, we actually had more women here than we had beds available in the dorm, so our bunk beds in the apartment came in handy and we each had roommates for a few nights!

Two weeks ago, I was able to visit our ministry hub in Ouanamenthe, Haiti, where G.O. supports a church, school, feeding center, and orphanage. It was an amazing experience that had a profound effect on me. Earlier, I had written that La Mosca in Santiago was the poorest area I had ever seen. but Haiti now has that distinction. I truly cannot imagine anything worse - from children running around in the streets naked and dirty, to people living in houses made only of sticks and mud; I was overwhelmed by the need that surrounded me. The only way to truly describe how I felt was that it made my heart hurt, and I imagine that is only the smallest percentage of what God feels when He sees his children struggling to survive in places overrun with such poverty.

There were bright spots, though, in this country of contrasts. At the school, we saw little girls dressed in beautiful dresses, likely the only decent piece of clothing each of them owns, and the church was painted a bright and welcoming blue (which, naturally, I loved). While at the orphanage, we played with the children after they had eaten lunch, and their smiles were bright and beautiful. While we could not talk to one another except through the little bit of French I remember from high school and college, and which they are now studying in school (90% of Haitians speak Creole, even though French is the official language of the country), we could communicate through hugs, smiles, and laughter. Sitting and playing with or just holding these children whose parents have either died or abandoned them because of their physical disabilities, which are seen as evil here, I experienced some of the best few hours I have had since I left the US. The shy and quiet ones always seems to get my attention the quickest, and to be able to draw a smile out of a child and eventually draw that child onto your lap who previously had been hovering around the edges of a group, and then giving that child a few moments of undivided love and attention is to me one of the greatest gifts God gives us to share. When it was time to leave, I was not ready to go, and I am looking forward to going back and laughing with and sharing God's love with those children again.

I will be going back on November 10th to take much needed school supplies that I will purchase with the balance of the money donated by Woodland Hills Church of Christ. We will be taking textbooks, notebooks, pens, pencils, chalk, and some blackboard paint to use to cover the pressboard they are now using as "chalkboards." The school is located on the second floor of the building that houses the church, and that area is also used as a dormitory to house groups when they come to work in Haiti. Two of the classes actually meet in rooms where there are also bunk beds! The other classes meet in an open area with nothing to separate one class from the other except for a foot or two of space between the desks. The good news is that there is a new school being built next to the church that will have a total of 16 rooms once both floors are finished! What struck me the most was the difference between the children we met on the street and those in the school - here was hope and joy, out there was hunger and sadness. The work of the church (which has 800 members), school, feeding center, and orphanage has already begun to make a difference in this community, as concrete block houses are slowly beginning to replace those of mud and sticks, but there is still much work to be done. While it may seem overwhelming to us, nothing is impossible to God, and He is clearly doing His work in Haiti, and all we have to do is follow His guidance to support that work in any way we can!

After returning from Haiti, I was able to jump in (literally on Tuesday when I worked with the soccer clinic with the children from La Mosca) and start working with the teams. The soccer clinic was a lot of fun, and a few of those skills I learned as an eight-year-old seemed to come back to me pretty easily (though I would say I was about as good as I was back then, which is actually pretty bad, but it's the spirit that counts - right?). There was also a medical clinic going on at the same time at the church in La Mosca, and when we got rained out of the afternoon activities at the soccer clinic, we were able to go help that group out as well.

That same week, another group came in to do another medical clinic immediately after the first one in another area of the city called Los Perez. The pastor of the church there, Nico, is one of my favorite people here - he always has a smile on his face and a warm greeting for whomever he meets! This medical clinic also offered dental care, which consisted of pulling teeth since preventative care is only for those who can afford it, which is a small percentage of the people here - one patient had seven teeth pulled! I was assigned to taking pictures, but also ended up helping out in the pharmacy (don't worry - only with organizing, not with filling prescriptions!), and being assigned to guarding the door when it came time to stop allowing patients in for the day. In the middle of the day, a storm rolled in and everyone from outside ended up inside - talk about hot, muggy, and "close"! Through it all, the doctors, nurses, and dental team kept working, and it was a great day overall.

The next day I was assigned to the construction team, to once again take pictures, but we got rained out again. So, they did some impromptu children's ministry that was a nice surprise for the children and certainly something I was better suited for than construction, even though I was looking forward to getting to work on building the church at Hato del Yaque again!

On the fourth day of each team's visit, we went out and evangelized in the neighborhood where the clinics were offered, explaining that while we came to offer these clinics to meet the physical needs of the body, it is the spiritual needs of our souls that are most important, and only God can truly bring help and healing into our lives. Doing this was new for me, but I found that I enjoyed meeting the people of each community, inviting them to church, and sharing the Truth with them. On the evangelism day in Los Perez, I was in a group with Nico, who speaks more English than I realized, and he insisted I translate for him! It was rough going, to say the least, but he helped me, and we were able to get our message across! At one house we met up with a young man who had come to the clinic who also spoke very good English, and he joined us for the rest of the morning acting as translator, which was a huge relief for me! My Spanish is coming along, but I still have a long way to go!

Over and over again at the houses we visited, the people told us how grateful they were that the teams had come to help their communities, and the work the teams did, whether it was construction, children's ministry, or medical/dental help, was a great way to open the door to talk about the One who sent them. God has given each one of us talents to share with others, and there is no better way to use them than to lead others to knowing about Him and His redemptive love for us.

This coming week, I will be hosting a "Teacher Appreciation" event for the teachers at the G.O. school here in Hoya del Caimito as a precursor to the teacher training that has been scheduled for January 8. While I was hoping to do the training before I came back to the states for the holidays, it is better to offer it before the start of the new semester, as the training involves classroom management strategies that are best introduced at the beginning of a semester. God's timing is perfect, and I know His hand has been in this, so the postponement is not a disappointment. One thing I will do with the extra time is work on preparing my presentation in Spanish so that I will not need a translator, which would be very exciting!

Over the next few weeks, I will be preparing to return to the states. Please pray that I am able to get everything organized, and that I don't forget anything! Also, please pray for safety on the trip to Haiti and for all of the G.O. staff as we are traveling over the next few weeks. I will probably wait to update again until after the trip to Haiti.

I will be in Louisville the first three weeks of December and am planning to have a reception for all my supporters - watch your e-mail for more information!

Thank you for supporting my ministry!

Con amor de Jesucristo,
Catherine

Monday - October 16, 2006

As promised, here is my first weekly update! Things are pretty quiet here right now. The team from Michigan left on Tuesday, after having a "despedida" Monday evening, which is literally a "leaving party." This is something that happens with each team and is a time for the group members and national workers to share what the experiences of the last week have taught them and to celebrate their new relationships as brothers and sisters in Christ. The team also watches a video presentation put together by our staff photographer/web site designer (who is also part of the Sports Ministry team - she stays very busy and does a great job all around!). The presentation was great to watch, and it was an emotional time for many of the group members. It was also hard for many of them to say good-bye to the national workers with whom they had worked so closely. I was sad to see this team go too, as I had been able to connect with a few of them even though I had only worked with them part of the time they had been here. I told them that since they were my first experience with a team, I would measure all others by them!


For a bit of a break, my roommates and I decided to go to the beach for two days, and it was wonderful to get away and have some "bonding" time! On Thursday, we took a bus to Sosua (which cost $100 pesos each way - equivalent to $3 U.S.), which is on the northern coast of the island, and it was beautiful! The picture to the right is a self-portrait of Jen and I as we prepare to leave Santiago.

While in Sosua, we snorkled and swam in an ocean of crystal clear water (it looked like a swimming pool!), laid out on the beach , relaxed by the pool, and had some great meals! Can you tell that I enjoyed the trip? :)

The picture to the left is the view from our hotel room, and the one to the right is of the bay on which Sosua sits.




We returned Saturday afternoon in time to greet our staff member who was returning from a two month stay in the states after being flown there for emergency medical care, which you may remember happened on the same day I arrived here. He is completely healed of Dengue Fever (which has become an epidemic here in the DR and in a few other Carribean, Central, and South American countries) and feeling much better - for which we all praise God! Please pray for continued protection for all of us as there is no vaccination for Dengue, which is spread by mosquitos. The government here is trying to combat the disease through spraying susceptible areas for mosquitos, educating the public, and offering free testing, but people are still contracting the disease, and the DR is the only country curently dealing with Dengue that has had deaths associated with it, primarily due to people not going in for treatment until it is too late.

This week I will be meeting with the principal of the school to decide on a date for the teacher training, continuing to work with Raquel, and for the next two weeks I will also be scoring for the SAT. We have two teams coming on Saturday, and I will be working with them as well, continuing to learn more about the ministry. Please pray that I balance my time well! Scoring for the SAT is something I enjoy doing and that keeps my English skills sharp, and I hope to be able to keep it up while I am here. The next two weeks will be a test of that, as my primary responsibility is to the ministry. It is important to me to always do the best I can in any situation to which I have committed myself, and my prayer is that I will not overextend myself and thus not be able to do the work God has called me here to do. I continue to pray each day that I will be able to discern His voice in my life and follow the promptings of His Spirit.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support. I will be returning to the states in late November and will be in Louisville for the first three weeks of December, and I hope to see all of you then!

Con amor de Jesucristo,

Catherine

After writing this month's update, and after talking to a good friend who said she wished I updated my blog more often, I have realized that I do need to update this site on a more regular basis. So, this one is pretty long as I have tried to include everything I could think of that has happened over the last month! From now on, my plan will be to update weekly, as Sunday afternoons are pretty quiet around here, so feel free to check each week for new updates!

Now that I have been here for a little more than six weeks, in some ways Santiago is beginning to feel like home to me, but I have also been experiencing a bit of homesickness. While discussing this with a close friend, she commented that some people who know how close we are have asked her how she is dealing with me living down here, and she has responded that first, she knows I am doing what God has called me to do, so even though she would selfishly want me there she cannot be upset about the situation, and second, she hears a peace and contentedness in my voice that she has never heard before, and that is even further verification that I am where I am supposed to be. Hearing this from her has helped me as I attempt to adjust to this new way of life and to do what God leads me to do each day. I honestly did not know there was any change in how I sounded, but I have felt at peace here and a sense of being “in the right place at the right time” that I have not felt as strongly before. It seems that each day presents a situation or circumstance for which I can see God has prepared me, and though I am not following the timeline I had written out prior to coming down, I know that I start each day asking for God’s guidance and each day His timeline is being followed, and there is nothing more I could want or need.

A few weeks ago the staff took a day trip to the capitol, Santo Domingo, to visit the colonial section of the city and enjoy a break from “regular” work. I also was able to meet up with Stephanie Haugen (formerly Stephanie Cherry for those of you who go to NECC), who is currently working with her husband in Santo Domingo for Willow Creek Christian Church. She has been here six months, and it was great to meet with her and get her input on adjusting to the culture and learning the language! While we were together, we visited the first church built in the “new” world in the 1500’s. It is a Catholic church simply known as the Cathedral and still holds services today. The staff also visited the first government building in the Dominican where Christopher Columbus and his brother worked, and where the first courthouse in the Americas was located!

This last week I experienced my first “team” – which was from Kentwood Christian Church in Michigan – and I was able to work with them one day at the construction site of a new church in an area of Santiago called Hato del Yaque and one day doing children’s ministry in another area known as La Mosca (literally “The Fly” because it is a community located at the base of a huge mountain of trash that burns constantly and attracts thousands of flies). In Hato del Yaque the team was involved in construction of a church, and I worked with the group that was putting up the walls of the church, which consisted of making sure they had the concrete block, mortar, and concrete they needed, so I was hauling buckets of mortar and concrete and lifting concrete blocks all morning. When lunch came, I was ready for a break! It was some of the hardest, most physically demanding work I have ever done, and I have a new appreciation for the work the teams do when they come down and that the national workers we support do every day to help build up their communities.

We were working next to a public school, and when the morning session ended, the children came by the work site to see the Americans working. Even though we have teams coming down throughout the year, Americans are still a pretty rare site in Santiago, and we regularly attract attention wherever we go. When a group of students ended up close to where I was working, we had an impromptu English class that I would have loved to continue, but we had to get back to work! This prompted one of the workers to ask if I would offer a class for them on Saturdays, and I said I would be happy to! As I put my ideas together for January, including a class for the workers will be on my list of things to do!

At La Mosca the team brought materials to share the store of Jesus feeding the five thousand, taught about the importance of sharing with one another, and led the children in crafts that told them about God’s love for them. The children were very receptive and enjoyed their time with the team, basking in the love they were being shown and sharing their bright-eyed smiles as they made paper roses and colored scenes that depicted the story they had been told, but as we drove away I could not help thinking what the rest of their day would be like.


This is the poorest area I have ever seen, with children running around in whatever clothes had been given to them or they found in the mountain of garbage that looms over their shacks, dust constantly being kicked up from the dirt roads, smoke from the burning garbage seeming to soak into your skin and take over your sense of smell, and a sense of hopelessness and despair in the older people who watched us drive up in our air conditioned bus and attempt to bring some measure of joy into the lives of their children. When faced with these circumstances, I wonder if we truly can make a difference, but I am encouraged by my memories of the light in children’s eyes. Recently I was reading an article in the Fall 2006 issue of Compassion Magazine in which Compassion International President Wes Stafford addressed this issue by explaining, “Poverty is a mindset, a spirit that tells its victims they do not matter. We then move from this state to despair, apathy and finally fatalism. We can change this by telling the little ones that to God they matter. They start to gain courage and confidence and then start to change things. When a child moves from ‘I don’t matter’ to ‘I can fix this,’ we have won the battle.” Offering this afternoon of children’s ministry was one step in the process of telling these children that they matter to God, and the ongoing work of G.O. Ministries in La Mosca will continue to work toward sharing this truth with them and helping them gain the strength to bring about change in their communities as we all continue to learn that with God all things are possible.


In a recent e-mail, a friend asked me a series of questions I thought you all might be interested in hearing the answers to as well! So, here goes …

Tell me more about a typical day for you.

There really is no such thing as a “typical” day here. One of the things I have realized is that in some ways just getting the simplest things done can be complicated here, such as going to the store. We have one vehicle (a 90s model Toyota pick-up) for staff use that occasionally chooses (rather randomly from what I can tell) not to work. So, if I need something from La Sirena (the Dominican version of Wal-Mart), if the truck is available and running, and I can find someone to go with me who can drive the truck, since I am not able to go anywhere on my own, and I am not brave enough – yet – to drive down here (more on that later), then we can go.

The trip itself only takes about 20 minutes (my family is laughing right now as they read this, since I insist that it only takes about 20 minutes to get anywhere in Louisville too), but with the heat and traffic, you’re already a bit worn out when you get there. The traffic is a bit crazy – there are lanes and lights and traffic laws, but no one pays attention to them. The one thing all drivers do is honk to let you know they are passing, or crossing an intersection, or turning. So, pretty much all you hear is a lot of honking while you try not to worry about the other vehicles that are passing by with barely a few inches separating them from you.

After arriving at the store, you try to get everything you can think of, since you may or may not get back here in the next week or so, while also figuring out exchange rates and trying not to audibly gasp at the price of a box of granola bars. Getting through the line is pretty much the same as at home though, whatever lane you choose ends up moving the slowest, and then back out into the heat and traffic to go home. Only now, all your purchases are in the back of the truck, and if there are just two of you, you are cautiously watching the truck bed each time you stop to make sure no one helps “lighten” the load a little. However, if all of the seven staff members who currently share access to the truck wanted to go, then five people are in the back of the truck with the purchases, so you do not have to worry about the bags disappearing, but if you are the driver, you do have to watch that you do not lose a passenger! All that just to go to the store – I’m usually pretty beat when we get back!

When do you think you'll actually get into a classroom and begin teaching?

My observations in the school went well, and I was able to see every class except the ones for the 2 and 3 year olds. I also met with the principal of the school and we talked about how I can help there as well as what items the teachers and students most need that I can help purchase through my ministry money, the teacher training I would like to offer on classroom management, and how I can get involved in teaching this semester. As a result, I have a new assignment – to work with the new English teacher they hired for the first through fifth grades. Her name is Raquel, and she is a young Dominican who speaks English very well but has not had any teacher training. She is very enthusiastic about teaching and very energetic, and with some guidance, she will do well. I will be sitting in on her classes with her as a mentor teacher and then meeting with her after each school day to discuss the day’s events. She is very receptive to me and I am excited about building this relationship!

The principal and I also talked about planning the teacher training for the first week of November, so I have begun putting together some materials for that. It looks like I will not begin teaching in earnest until January when I return from the states, and then it will probably be in the churches G.O. supports as opposed to the school, providing an outreach to the communities they serve. The longer I am here, the more that idea appeals to me, as it will be a new ministry in the churches and a way for me to get more directly involved with the people in the community. Also, almost every day I see children playing in the streets or looking for something to do when they are not in school, and I am looking forward to starting up the drama ministry in January as an outreach for them.

What is your apartment like? Your roommates?

I live in a three-bedroom apartment with two other single female full-time staff members, and so far things have been going well. Our apartment is large by Dominican standards – about 1000 to 1100 square feet and in addition to our bedrooms, we have two bathrooms, a living room / dining room area, kitchen (that is in desperate need of new cabinets), and a laundry room (where we have a washing machine but no dryer). We each have bunk beds in our rooms because in the summer we will host any single female interns who come to work with G.O. We also recently put screens on the windows in the living room area, and that has helped cut down on the mosquitoes quite a bit. My room is decorated in blue and yellow - no surprise to anyone there!

How about the food?

So far I have enjoyed the Dominican food I have had – particularly fried plantains, yuca, and mangoes! When teams are here, we eat a lot of chicken and rice as the main staples, and the sauces used for flavoring are very good. I have not come across anything very spicy and have not had any significant problems with the food.

Is it hot/muggy/rainy?

September and October are very warm here, and it seems very strange to me that it is October 9th and nearly 95 degrees today. There is a pretty constant breeze though, which helps, and it gets cooler at night. Some days it is muggy, but nothing like Louisville in August! The last week we have had rain in the evenings, which has brought welcome relief from the heat, but so far it has only rained all day or been overcast all day two or three of the days. Usually, the sun is out almost all day, and the weather is generally beautiful.

How have things been going in your ministry?

With part of the money from Woodland Hills Church of Christ, we were able to purchase 24 new desks for the school to make sure every student has a desk! As the principal said, “It is like a gift from heaven!” The new desks are for the first grade classroom and are designed for smaller children, and the larger desks in that room can then be moved to other classrooms where they are needed. I also used my ministry money for September to buy five radio / cd / cassette players for the school. These are for the preschool through second grade classes whose curriculum included media that could not be used without them.

Working with Raquel has been a blessing, and she has already made some significant improvement in her classroom management! She and I put together a list of class rules and consequences that she presented to her students at the beginning of each class on Friday, and the students responded well to them and as a result to her! This week I will be working with her on developing more engaging lessons now that she has their attention. She loves the English language, and I hope to help her translate that love for the language to her students so that they will be inspired by her and the lessons she teaches.

While I have not been teaching myself, I have enjoyed being in classes with Raquel and interacting with the students as I help her become more comfortable in her role. Being in the school has also helped me improve my Spanish, which is very important for me if I want to begin teaching on my own in the churches in January!

Prayer Requests:
Sale of condo (with the recent heavy rains in Louisville, the roof has started leaking, and that will need to be fixed before it can sell)
Fundraising (This month I will be contacting the churches where I put in requests)
Peace and patience during this time of adjustment
Becoming more fluent in Spanish
Development of strong relationships with staff and nationals
Safety and positive experiences for the teams coming this month

Sunshine (one of my roommates) and I
are all smiles at my birthday dinner. :)


Ministry Info:
On August 22 I moved to the DR, and though the day I arrived was a hectic one all around, I am very excited to be here, and I praise God for his leading and guidance that brought me here! For the last three weeks I have been adjusting to the culture and learning more of the language, and the staff helped me celebrate my birthday on the 6th with dinner at a local restaurant!

I started observing at Colegio Evangélico Isaías Emmanuel (the G.O. school) on the 5th, and I will be there every Tuesday and Thursday in September. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings, I am taking Spanish classes with two other staff members, and I use my afternoons to do my homework (tarea), and hopefully I will begin visiting some of the local churches with which G.O. works to learn about the various areas of the ministry.

Observing in the school will allow me to learn the school’s culture, which is very different from what I have been used to, and give me opportunities to practice my Spanish! It has been a great experience, as I have missed being in a classroom and interacting with students, but it has also been a bit mentally exhausting! Here the school has two sessions that each last about 3 ½ hours – one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Different students go to each session to try to reach as many as possible. So far I have observed the two first grade classes, the second grade class, and the third grade class. The students are excited that I am in their classes and wanted to talk to me – one second grader even practiced her English with me, and I was able to talk to them some “en español.” I found them to be very patient with my attempts at Spanish, and I am grateful for this time to watch and learn!



Perhaps what struck me the most while observing this past week was the third grade class that had 39 students in an approximately 10x15 room, and 13 of them were sitting on folding chairs because there were not enough desks (see the picture above). Add to this the fact that there is no air conditioning and temperatures are in the 90s, and the room was “close” as a friend of mine from Illinois would say. Before I left the states, Woodland Hills Church of Christ, which is one of my supporting churches and my family’s home church, had a special collection that brought in nearly $1400 for me to be able to purchase school supplies for the children here, and I hope to use some of that money to help alleviate the conditions in that classroom. Next week the principal will return from a mission trip to Columbia, and I will meet with him to discuss this and the next steps for implementing my ministry.

In just my first couple of weeks in Santiago, God has opened my eyes to the unique experiences I will have the opportunity to have while serving Him here – both in and out of the school. One night last week, two staff members and I went with two men who work with G.O. to a “Chago Hut" on one of the major streets near our neighborhood and had sandwiches. While the food was good (think State Fair food), what I enjoyed most was the conversation – one of the men, Ramono, had some questions about the states, and it was interesting to hear his view of the state of our nation. I could not help but wonder what type of picture we made - two Haitian men and three American women, sitting in plastic chairs on the side of a busy Dominican road, talking about God and the role He is to play in our lives and decisions, and allowing Him to bring us together as brothers and sisters in Christ ... I have never had an experience quite like it.

I am excited to be here, but it has not been an easy transition. There have been a couple of times when I have been driven to my knees or my Bible in response to a situation or event, and each time God has continued to remind me that He has a plan for my life, He is in control, and my only job is to come to Him with my needs, trust Him to do what He says He will do, and be obedient to what He is telling me to do. My first night I had a “what have I done?” moment, and I picked up a scripture book a dear friend had given me years ago. In it, she had personalized the verses, and I ended up on Jeremiah 29:11, which reads, “For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future.” It was exactly what I needed at that exact moment. I know He has brought me here, and I know He will continue to take care of all the details of my life and my ministry!

Prayer Requests:
Sale of condo
Fundraising (I am waiting to hear from four churches in Louisville and one in VA)
Peace and patience during this time of adjustment
Becoming more fluent in Spanish
Development of strong relationships with staff and nationals

Wish List:
Granola bars :) (They cost $5 a box here!)
Dark chocolate, Mike & Ike’s – or any gummy/chewy candy :)
Stove and refrigerator for our kitchen – we have a dorm size frig (for 3 people), and friends just gave us a double burner (we only had one burner before)

Mailing Info:
I have joined a group called Agape Flights that allows me to receive packages in the DR at a much more reliable rate than any other shipping method. Agape is a Christian organization that is a mailing service for missionaries in the DR and Haiti. They fly to Santiago once a week, usually on Thursdays, to bring packages and mail. They ask that boxes not be more than 40 lbs because members are doing the loading/unloading. Also, it will cost me $1/pound for packages shipped. You can make a donation via their website (www.agapeflights.com) in my name to cover the cost of the package, just be sure to include the information about the package in the notes.

My address with Agape is:

Sipperley SGO 18602
c/o Agape Flights
7990 15th Street E
Sarasota, FL 34243

Thank you for supporting my ministry!

Con Amor de Jesucristo,
Catherine