Hey guys, Meagan here!

We’re in the air now on our way to Atlanta. It’s such a nice view from up here because there aren’t many clouds and the water is so pretty! I had a wonderfully amazing time on the trip and returning home is bittersweet. I’m excited to see my family again but I’m really going to miss the DR and the friendships I made. Yesterday I had to say goodbye to 2 young girls who totally captured my heart. Last night the people from Sendero and Quisqueya gave us a goodbye party It was very sweet. Well I love you all and I’ll be home soon. (Yes Hanna, I bought you postcards ☺ )

~Meagan Thompson

Well we are on the journey home. It’s a bittersweet feeling. I’m ready for some real American food and my own bed, but it still can’t compare to the time I spent here in Dominican Republic. I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything!

_-Dana Straub

It always blows my mind being up in the air. The view is just so intriguing. Like right this minute, from my window seat, I think we can see the Bahamas! Anyway, it’s still amazing how quickly this week went by… it seemed like it was just yesterday that we were arriving at Casa de Abraham…and I’m definitely going to miss the memories made there. The trip to the Dominican was quite an experience and was worth going on. Alright, I think im going to take a nap now. Peace out!

~Ashley Morgan

Hey ya’ll!!! Happy Sabbath! J

First off, I just want to say HI to my parent and all my friends, I miss you all like crazy and can’t wait to get home to see you all. Oh and mom and dad, YOU GOT JOKES! Don’t worry I will find that blanket when I get home!!!! J

So our trip is coming to a close, and boy is it sad! The many things that we all have experienced here will travel with us from now until forever. The kids here are just beautiful, and have the biggest smiles, even though they have so little, the impact that the kids have had on us are just incredible. It’s weird to think that our time is almost over and I feel like we could have done more, but what we are bringing home with us are grateful hearts and the hope that what we have done here has impacted all those we have encountered.

It’s awesome to see all the different sides of the people who we came with. None of us care what others think about us, but we are putting ourselves completely out there and giving our all for the people here in DR. I have never seen such a hard working group, one that rarely takes breaks, and its awesome to see what we have accomplished. For me, I went 3 days being sick, but even though all I wanted to be was at home in bed, all I could think of was the people that I have met here, and the more I want to spend time with them, drawing them closer to Christ.

So even though we are leaving tomorrow, what we are bringing home is greater and far more valuable then what we left behind. We have truly created memories that will last a life time.

God bless ya’ll, and pray for us as we travel home tomorrow. Can’t wait to see you all, and show off the AWESOME tan I got!!!! Lol J

Love you all!!!

Sarah Quimby

Feliz Sabado a todos en casa!! J (happy Sabbath to everyone at home) I cant wait until I go home tomorrow!! I’m excited to tell everyone about my trip and to see ½ of my family. My mother is actually enjoying herself in Mexico and she wont be coming back until Friday, but I’ll be with my Dad. Well anyways every night we have worship and I’m always looking forward to hear the word of God. The trip has come to an end but I’m so happy that I came and I’m hoping and wishing to come next year please pray for our safe travel as we head on back I can wait to see you mom and dad!!

Love you all!!

Maria Galeas J

Hello everyone!

So I know it’s the last day on this trip and this is my first blog…but I’ve just had the most amazing experience so I must tell everyone about it. Jole and Omar(hehe) took five girls including me to a local hospital to look around and also pray for people. First off we stopped in the pediatric ward and saw lots of babies, which mostly had congestion. We prayed for the babies and their families and then gave them teddy bears. We saw the “burn unit”. It was a room just like any other with two people in it but the room could hold up to 6. We also prayed for the two men in that room and heard their stories of what happened.

Never in my life will I think the same way about hospitals. People always complain about privacy in our hospitals and only if they knew how it was down here I don’t think they would. We are so lucky to live in such a wonderful country that is so clean and that has so much capability to cure us when we are sick and fix our broken bodies. Here they may not have the best medical care in the world but they do have lot of hope in Jesus.

Now to my dad and mom…I miss you! I have loved my experience here, but I am ready to come home. Dad thanks for always telling me stories about medical stuff and mom thanks for always telling me stories of Africa. After this I know I have a calling from God to go work over seas in a hospital to help the truly needy. I LOVE YOU!

~Natasha Allen

Hello Family and Friends

Please forgive me for no pictures or recent posts. For the past 3 days we have had little or no electricity where we can access the internet. Currently I am working on battery back up at Richie´s mother-in-laws house and only have 1-2 more minutes of power. Will send pictures ASAP!

Everyone safe and sound!

Love
Joel

Hey guys, Meagan now J

Today was such a relaxing day! Definitely nice to take a break after 4 really long days. Sunday through Wednesday our daily schedule went something like

Worship,

Breakfast,

Work

Work

Work

Lunch

Work

Work

VBS

Dinner

Worship

Shower

Sleep

So today was a relief. But I guess I have to spill the news to mom and dad… I lost my wallet today. I honestly don’t know how. I know the location I lost it but I don’t know how it left my hand. It contained about $50 and an empty memory card… L Everyone was really nice about it and they’ve been helping me out financially so I’m ok.

I love the beaches here. They are absolutely gorgeous! There are palm trees everywhere and the water is clear. You can stand wherever and look down and see your feet perfectly.

Last night and this morning there were a lot of gloomy looking clouds in they sky so I was really afraid it was going to rain. Last night before I went to sleep I “blew” the clouds away J This afternoon was perfect.. One thing about the beach was that we get bombarded by people wanting to sell us stuff. And they wouldn’t just ask you once it’d be like infinite times, even when we were sleeping. It was a nice day though.

The kids here have touched me so much. The last day of VBS was yesterday at Sendero and in the middle of the crafts I broke down crying. It was so sad that all these sweet children weren’t going to be with us anymore. One girl who looked about 12ish pulled me down next to here and wiped away my tears. When I told her why I was crying, she told me to please stop because if I didn’t she was going to cry too.

Mi familia, I love you and miss you lots. I’m dying to play our new piano!!! Every time we sing I really want to play. Piano withdrawls.. Caleb I’ll be home really soon! Kisses for Hanni. Mommy and daddy I miss you. Please bring Hanna and Caleb to the airport.. or at least wake up when I get home in the middle of the night! J I love you all!

~Meagan Thompson

Hola!! J

This is Maria and I just wanted to let you know that I’m having the best time of my life!! J I’m so happy!! This is my first time going on a plane and outside the country! When I was in the plane I was so scared and thought I was going to die but at the same time it was so exciting to fly off. When I got here to D.R. I was so excited to start working. Now I’m here sore and wishing that my mom will give me a massage but I wont get that until next Friday b/c she’s in Mexico enjoying her self with her family after not seeing them for 25 years. I’m so happy for here! J I’m here w/ JC and he said that when he gets home he wanted to drink Arizona Fruit punch and Goya pineapple soda! Even though I’ve been so exhausted and tired and sore from working all day, it has been a amazing experience.

On Monday night, I said my testimony to the group about how God transformed my life from the way it used to be. I also talked to them about how you have to defeat your battle not by yourself, but with God. Also that if you pray to him, he will answer it if it is his will not yours. I have no words to explain how thankful I am to God for giving me this opportunity to be here in the Dominican Republic. The food has been so good, the locals have been so kind, and the kids have been an inspiration to me just by their smiles. I have seen two kids that are not good in health, and it made me cry when I saw them. One of them is ten moths old, umbilical cord hernia, and the other one was about three and had a disease called turners syndrome. When I see these kids, I wish I could help them so much with their health problems, but all I can do is pray for them. My spiritual life with God has been stronger than ever because of this mission trip,

I have met new friends in this mission trip, and this mission trip has given me a clearer mind about things. When I come back home on Sunday, I’m not going to keep my mouth shut, but instead spread the word more than ever. I’m thankful for the people that gave me the opportunity to be here, and I’m hoping and praying that I can come next year because they are going to be here waiting for me. I thank God for everything he has done for me and I’m praying that I will be able to come next year to Dominican republic and as many mission trips as a I can.

No recent postings!

Hi, Everyone... Joel phoned me this a.m. They are having trouble having electricity to update the blog. "We're in a third world country- We haven't had electricity for two days! I hate to leave the work site to search for an "internet-cafe!"'
He'll write it ASAP. And he may already have! Just FYI to those of you wanting words from or on your kids. Deb Stoia

Seema here. Tuesday morning, 7:25 AM. Just finished worship and waiting for breakfast to arrive. It’ll probably be the usual, plantains with a little bit of something on top. But I can’t forget the fruit on the side. OH, and the anticipation of the discovery of what freshly squeezed juice we get. Woah, it just arrived. So I was wrong, empanadas it is. After breakfast we plan to break up in to 2 groups. One small one going to Quisqueya to do rebar, and the rest going to Sandero to do the foundation. I will be going to Sandero to work with cement in the hot sun and then at 5 we have a VBS for the kids at Sandero. This has been the usual for the past 6 days. Time flies when you’re on the same schedule everyday. But it has been a great experience for me. I know I didn’t go into too much depth about how this has made me feel, but I will check in later! Keep us in your prayers, it’s going to be a hard day! Adios.

Seema Khandagle

Just a short note today. The past 2 days have been a blur of work and sleep. The projects are coming along nicely. No significant injuries or illnesses at this point. Most everyone has been so tired from working the past 2 nights we just fall into bed and sleep! I tried to get more kids to blog today but they were all "too tired!" I understand because just holding my arms up to type is killing me!

The quesqua site is almost finished. They are putting the last steel up and pouring the last concrete today. We just started pouring concrete at the Sandero site yesterday. Man is that some work. Pushing wheel barrow after wheel barrow load of concrete up, over, around, and under obsticals is a pain. Carrying the 94 pound bags of concrete, then pushing loads of rock, sand and gravel into the mixer is no fun either!

I must say I am very proud of these teens. After a group discussion and vote it was unanimously decided that we skip the snorkeling trip and invest that money back into our mission building projects! We will take that day and spend it playing volleyball on the beach and swimming in the ocean. Our only expense will be gas and food. What a wonderful and unselfish sacrifice they have chosen to make!

God has richly blessed on the trip. Our vehicles are held together by prayers, duct tape and a HUGE dose of Ralph Craig! If not for him Richie Silie and I would still be stuck on the side of the road thumbing a ride into town to post this blog.

The weather here is perfect! Low 80´s with a cool breeze all day and low 70´s at night. The mesquitos are not as bad as they were on the pre-trip and the breeze helps keep them away.

Sorry you have had to listen to me prattle on and on but since the posts today were so anemic I thought I would say a few things while the pictures upload (takes between 5-10 minutes per picture)

Love to all. Please continue the prayers and comments to previous posts. The kids love them!

Joel

Happy Sabbath!

Its only been three days since we have arrived here and it is already nice to have a day to rest. For the past few days we have already made a lot of progress on the projects that we have started. Block has been laid at Quisqueya. The lot recently purchased to continue the school at Sandero has already been marked to start the foundation. About fifty Bibles have been delivered to houses and more are going to be delivered today. VBS has been a great success having nearly two hundred kids each night (water color craft has already been completed without to much damage done to the church!)

We have all been astounded by the hospitality shown to us by the local people of the church. Every (delicious!) meal we have had has been hand prepared and served to us by these generous ladies. Every day they ask us to open the windows so they can hear what is going on inside of the church but we love because we can smell the great food that they are making for us. Then after every meal the clean all the dishes and help us tidy up the church. It is incredible to see how much the church gives.

Everyone is safe and doing well but now it is time to load up the bus and head over to the church for the service and after church we are all hoping for a trip down to the beach…..!

Sincerely,

Cassandra and Abie

Hey it’s William. So today was the Sabbath and I went to Quisquava. It was an all Spanish sermon spoken by ed. I didn’t understand it but I got about 5% percent of the Spanish words. Before the sermons there were these two men that dedicated a song us and I have never heard a song that sounded so awesome in a foreign language in my life. It was awesome.

For lunch we had potatoes with cheese, spaghetti, and the best fresh squeezed juice. I ate so much it was unbelievable. On the ride back sarah, kelli, kaitlyn, jr, joel, and I all sat in the bed off the truck driving through the town and highway. It was so relaxing just having the wind blow in your face. While leaving Quisquava we saw a lady and two little boys just digging through trash that the locals have thrown out of there vehicles or mopeds. It pretty hard to witness this when I wanted to just jump out and give them money to help so they can get new clothes probably for the first time ever.

Once we got back to the camp ground I was joking around with every one, having a great time, taking pictures with everyone. Everybody ended up at the roof of the building were the boys and girls were playing taps while I sat back resting in a hammock or talking to Ralph. When it got to 4:30 it was time to go to the beach.

When we got to the beach I started to get nervous because two nights ago I had told ed I wanted to do worship. So he said yes. We all were joking around on the beach, wrestling here and there when it came time for worship. Ed had gotten up and started the worship by singing a couple of songs. When he ended with Sanctuary to close the songs and then prayed he just stepped to the side. I had then gotten up from sitting down on the beach and started asking two questions then went right into my worship talk. To be honest all my nervousness about mumbling or not being loud enough was an issue. I felt so good being up there. After my worship talk I couldn’t believe it, the majority of people were hugging each other and some crying. I felt like I had done the best I could ever do. Everyone came up and told me how good of a job I did, it just made me feel so awesome inside.

Well tomorrow is going to be another great day cause I get to work with my bud Ralph laying brick.

Sincerely

William messenger.

Hey hey hey!!

Wow, what a great ending to our first week here! It truly has been a great an awesome blessing and experience for all participants; students and staff. If I had a few chapters I may be able to catch you all up on the work and experiences we have had. From almost not getting on the plane in Baltimore and sitting on a plane on a runway for 3 hours to eating so much food that we sit in a wonderful food coma afterwards! Shhhhh, I think there’s a conspiracy going on down here in the Dominican Republic. They are feeding us such awesome food and they’re making us all gain unwanted weight so that when we all get on the plane it won’t be able to take off and we’ll be stuck here eating more good food and building more schools….ahhhhh!!!......I haven’t quite confirmed it, but I am having my suspicions!!

On a more serious note, we, the staff, are being blessed by seeing the young people at work. It has been a blessing to see these young people working hard and arduously at the work sites and then seeing them at work at VBS with all the kids. If only you all were here to see the talents and love for Jesus these young people have! We’ve been challenging them to reconnect with Jesus during our worships. We have been doing a lot of praying and a lot of sharing. Our hope is that each participant can have a reencounter with Jesus through our mission this week.

Well, I don’t want to make this too long, so I better sign off for now. I hope to update you all later.

Hasta pronto! Desde la Republica Dominicana!

Ed Garcia

PS- Hi Jeannie, Gabriel, Briana and Conrad! Miss you and love you!

Day number five and I’m having a difficult time remembering what play we are doing in two weeks! This trip is such a reminder of what is truly important in life, to share Jesus with each other. Our Sabbath was a good example of that: the “Brown-Man-Group” hit the beach for vespers and William Messenger’s testimonial moved many hearts! It is truly wonderful to see this group work together laying block and directing a daily VBS. The camaraderie is wonderful and everyone is focused on delivering this country a new school and a half. This morning we received word that at the end of the evangelistic series 16,000 had been baptized, 700 yesterday alone. The Holy Spirit is clearly working the hearts of this country and the hearts of this team.

We ask that you continue to pray for us daily, hourly.

Missing you, Jim.

Jane Lanning