Back-to School
Heading back to school can be quite
the undertaking for any family. But here at Mountain Top Ministries, we like to
raise the level of difficulty. Decisions had to be made, discussions had to be
had, supplies had to be bought, shoes had to be purchased, hairs had to be cut,
and many (MANY!) prayers needed to be said. By the end, though, all of our boys
are back in the classroom, equipping themselves with the skills and knowledge
that will one day open many doors.
As some of you know, Inter-American
School (the bilingual, Christian school where the five brothers have attended)
decided that they could no longer provide scholarships for all of our boys.
This, of course, was heartbreaking because we have had a great relationship
with the school throughout our time there. It also meant that significant space
had to be found in an already tight budget. However, we knew that God would
work out all of the details. David and J.T., with the help of Amber from
Breaking Chains, visited several schools and tried to ascertain what our
options were. At the end of this search, we met with Inter-American one last
time. At this meeting, they told us that all five boys could still receive the
scholarships—praise God!
We knew that at least four of our
boys would be attending Inter-American, but Yovani was given the decision to
switch schools since he would be starting high school this year. We were 99%
certain that Yovani would want to attend another school; however, after
speaking with administrators at Inter-American (who all wanted him to come
back—quite the testament to his character!) and speaking with our Honduran friend,
Gina, Yovani made the decision on his own to return to Inter-American. We are
proud that Yovani made this extremely grown-up decision by himself.
On February
3, the five boys started school once more. Jairo is in fourth grade; Francisco
in fifth; Mario in seventh; Marvin in eighth; and, Yovani started ninth grade.
Homework has taken over afternoons. Projects have started. Minds have been expanded.
In addition
to the five brothers, two of our other boys have also started school. Henrry
just started his first year of college. Henrry is studying to become a teacher
with the desire to become an effective educator by the end of his schooling. Henrry
takes five classes each day, which seems so different from American colleges.
Henrry has also started English lessons twice a week with J.T. In return,
Henrry will teach J.T. some Spanish, too.
Antonio, who joined us last year,
started school on February 7. Antonio is attending a school that is specially
designed for older teenagers and adults who never completed primary and
secondary grades. Antonio will be able to complete two grades each year. We
know that Antonio will work hard to accomplish this task and achieve his goals.
Going back
to school can be difficult—a lot transitions occur at once. Be praying for all
of MTM as we began anew with these transitions. We firmly believe in the
transformative power of education and know that our boys, equipped with newly
acquired skills and a love of God, will be positive change agents in our world.
George’s New Home
On February 16, 2016, Moutnain Top
Ministries with assistance from our friends Jessica, Margie, and Mark,
constructed a house for our new friend, George.
David first met George out of extraordinary circumstances a
few weeks ago. George’s mother was recently killed because she was no longer
producing what her “owner” desired from her—society is twisted! Because of his
recent loss, George, a young man, decided to run away from home before he, too,
met his demise. Unfortunately, life away from home was not all he hoped for and
soon found himself in some danger, nearly losing his life to some vicious
neighbors. Thankfully, David met George and took him in as one of his
own.
George hoped one day to be
part of a large family that could better the community. However, to do that,
George needed a home to call his own. David knew exactly the best place to
build George’s new home—basically in our backyard!
After viewing the pictures of the
house, you may think, “that house is way too small for George!”, but we are
convinced that George will find his new home like a palace.
Within in seconds of moving in,
George was already taking in the view from his screened in porch. Life is sweet
for George. We hope to help George start a new family soon. Until then, George
will enjoy all the corn all to himself.
In all seriousness, we are excited
to have our new chicken coop. Some of our boys desire to pursue careers in
agriculture; by having this project on property, our boys will gain and
practice applicable skills on a daily basis. Additionally, we go through A LOT
of eggs here—eggs are part of at least one meal a day. Chickens will help
provide us with this necessary commodity.
In January, a small group from
Morgantown Church of Christ came to work with us. This group helped build a
house for a family of four (this house was done by 11 a.m.), fed the on the
streets of downtown Tegucigalpa, passed out 160 uniforms and backpacks filled
with school supplies, worshipped with those at Breaking Chains, and spent time
with the kids at Didasko Children’s Home. It was a joy to see some from this
team reconnect with their Honduran friends and watch as those who had never
been here make new memories. We are grateful for the work that God directed
this team to do.
Recently, our friend, Jessica
Schroer, came to visit us. This trip was a special trip for her because she was
able to bring her mother, Margie, for the first time. In addition to helping us
build George’s house, Jessica and Margie also helped build a house for a widow
and her children, bought a feast for Didasko Children’s Home, and even jumped
on the trampoline with our boys! David enjoyed chauffeuring Margie around and
exposing her to the adventure that is driving in Tegucigalpa.
We love working with teams and
hosting our friends. If you or your church/organization is interested in
bringing a team this year, please conduct us ASAP!
Mountain Top Ministries began a
fundraising campaign to help us prepare for all of the back-to-school costs.
This fundraiser asked donors to take a numbered envelope and to send in a
donation that corresponded with the number on the envelope. If all numbers were
taken, then MTM would receive over $11,000!
At this point, around 90 envelopes
have been taken. Over $6,000 has been promised, with $3,000 having been
received.
If you have not already asked for
an envelope (or would like to take another one), you still can! Simply send us
a message via e-mail, text message, FaceBook, smoke signal, etc., and request
one. If you have received an envelope, make sure to send in your donation!
Promised funds are excellent—received funds are more practical, though.
Thank you for your continual
support of MTM. Without your help, none of this would be possible—each of you
is an answered pray.
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