Student Sponsorship 2008-2009

For several years we have organized a Student Sponsorship Program here in San Pedro to aid children, youth, and young adults achieve their educational goals. There are many families who can't afford some or all of the costs associated with schooling, and we ask that you help these brothers and sisters by giving their children a brighter future. Here are our primary-level students this year:

• Laura Vazquez Rivera: Laura is one of 3 sisters from a very poor family who recently started attending our church. She is very sweet and inquisitive and always ready to help, even at her young age.
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• Dulce Vazquez Rivera: Dulce is Laura's sister and she just entered school this fall. She always accompanies her parents when they come to church activities and when they work around the property.
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• Poncho: Poncho is a new member of our church and attends faithfully every week along with his older sister. He is a hard worker and does his best in his school.
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• Willy Lopez: Willy enjoys attending children's events in the church. He has learning difficulties but will work through them with help from God and the church family.
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• Pedro Castellanos: Pedro has been in the church all of his life, as his mother is a church leader and part of the worship team. He just turned 8 and is learning to work hard in his school.
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• David Mejia: David lives with his grandmother, after both his parents left several years ago without explanation. He attends church faithfully and is an excellent soccer player.
• 

For $20/month you can help one of these children work through primary school. Your offering will be used to pay enrolment fees, school uniforms, and supplies. Write to sanpedroshm@gmail.com if you would like more information or would like to help. Offerings can be sent as normal giving, but please designate "Student Sponsorship: Name of Child".

Flooding

Here are some pictures taken today from the highway between Torreon and San Pedro.


The land as it usually looks.......
A house unfortunately built in the river's path...



A retaining wall of dirt along the highway...

A factory surrounded by trenches and sandbags. I saw them start this work on Tuesday morning, and it was finished by Tuesday night...


A field of cotton.....

A juvenile detention center.....

Update

Hi all,

Sorry about the lull between blogs...here's what's been happening in San Pedro:

-Stephen is traveling in the States, all the way from Virginia to Texas. He will be traveling until the beginning of November, so please keep him in your prayers.

-El Calor played their first game of the season on Saturday, winning 5-0. This week they will be playing in Torreon on Saturday afternoon.

-We are experiencing flooding here in the middle of the desert...sounds strange, doesn't it? Many years ago a large river flowed through this area (hence, it is known as the Laguna (lagoon)) but the river was dammed and now the only thing we have in abundance is dust...we have experienced substantial amounts of rain this year and the dam filled up past its safety point, so the government decided to allow a controlled release of water to bring levels back under control. Traveling along the highway between San Pedro and Torreon, you see cars pulled over at the side of the road and people just standing and looking at the water - actually, the crowds started when the news just came out about the flood, and for several days you could see people just standing in the riverbed, waiting for the water to arrive. Last week the water level seemed to be going down, but this week it is up again, and yesterday we heard that the water might reach San Pedro. This happened about 15 years ago, and I am told that San Pedro became an island, with the surrounding fields and roads covered in water. This morning as I drove to Torreon I saw backhoes and trucks with sandbags and people out digging trenches and building walls to protect their homes and towns from the water. Returning at night I saw how much the water had advanced - in some places it was nearly at the highway, and several houses were flooded. I arrived at the house and Peter presented me with an escape plan:Please pray for our safety as we travel through the path of the river, and pray that the waters would not bring destruction to the region, but instead bring blessing and abundance.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. (Isaiah 43:2a)

End of Summer

On Monday we said goodbye to our last summer group, who came from Texas to spend the weekend with us. They participated in our Friday night church service, the Saturday morning children's breakfast, an outreach in the village of San Rafael on Saturday night, and both services on Sunday.

Making balloon shapes for the children at the breakfast...





Sharing a testimony in San Rafael, and the crowd of onlookers...




School starts next week for most children here, and many universities have already begun classes. Timothy's first day of university was yesterday, Elisa begins her second year of university in two more weeks, and Peter will be homeschooled this fall as he enters Grade 8. Also, the Id Pues missions school will be opening September 1. Please keep all of these in prayer, joining with us in asking God to use his children and young people to spread his love in their schools, and wherever they go.

Christ Church Nashville Visit

We have just said goodbye to a wonderful group from Christ Church Nashville who were here for 9 days and who participated in various outreaches and projects in San Pedro and the surrounding area. Their visit started off with the bus breaking down on their way here from the airport, but thankfully the week went smoothly after that!

Here, practicing dramas to perform at the rehab center, and pictures from the service.

At the children's breakfast ministering, handing out food, and painting faces.


Then, we went to the first preseason match of El Calor.

The last couple of days were spent painting the outside of the church.

More Project and Ministry Pictures

Here are a few pictures from this week: the children's breakfast, which got rained out, believe it or not!

Also, a service at the Torreon rehab center...








... and pictures of the new sidewalk outside the bathrooms on the property...



...and the new garbage containers built by the group here this week from Arkansas.

Grace Center

This week we enjoyed a visit from a group of more than 30 youth and leaders from Grace Center in Nashville. They arrived very early Wednesday morning after a delay at the border, but the rest of the week went smoothly. They worked on several projects around the property, fixing roofs and painting buildings, and also saw some of San Pedro. They ministered at both rehab centers and at the children's breakfast, as well as in our regular church services. On Sunday morning 12 of the youth were baptized, along with two people from Templo Cristiano Libertad.

End of Vacation

Hi everyone,

It's been a while since the last post, but we're up and running again and will continue to update the site once or twice a week. It's summer, and that means lots of groups are coming down to visit. Right now we're waiting for a group from Nashville, who will be helping us finish the breakfast building in Torreon and participating in services and outreaches in and around San Pedro. A quick note: this group got held up at the border because they were unable to obtain the necessary permit to allow them to bring their bus into the country. If you're coming here and planning to drive, make sure you check all the requirements before coming...I will try to find some links for you with the rules and regulations for border crossing.

Día del Niño and April Baptisms

On Sunday we held a special service to celebrate Children's Day. We have a large number of children in the church and many are already involved in ministry, despite their young age. We have a group of young panderistas (tambourine players), a youth drama team composed of participants between 12-17, and young musicians. This year the drama team performed a skit for the younger kids, and afterwards all enjoyed a special dinner.
Also, last week we had several baptisms, one planned and four decided-on-the-spot...
As well, our soccer team, El Calor, has made it to the second round of playoffs, despite a difficult first round. They play tomorrow in Torreon and then will travel to Tijuana for a Sunday game. Please pray for the team as they travel and play for the glory of God.

55 Years Later

On Friday April 4, David and Elizabeth Tolman celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary. Elizabeth was in Durango teaching at a women's retreat, while David was at home in Tepic, but I'm told they are planning to go out for dinner when she returns...

Shortly after their marriage in 1953, they left to serve as missionaries in South Africa. They returned several years later with "three and a half children" as Elizabeth describes it, and settled in Ontario, Canada. In 1976 they moved permanently to Mexico with their three youngest children. They founded Seedtime and Harvest Ministries, and now, over 30 years later, they are still together and active in service, along with 2 of their sons and their families.

Who knows what the next 55 years will hold?