This season has been jammed packed full of everything under the sun. Although my body is literally sick of overworking/organizing/prepping, I love celebrating and putting sweet smiles on so many faces. We have been preparing Christmas newsletters and photos to send to all of you! (Also, be sure to check back here on New Years to read our Newsletter online)
We have had several large orders from supporters of our ministry help us sell our bead wrap bracelets. This Christmas, we have been able to bless 23 women and their families by selling their products. They have had us busy busy busy ordering from our women, printing cards, cutting and packaging over 700 bracelet orders!
As the year 2014 comes to a close we have had to finished up logistics for this year with Finding Hope. This includes tax information, nonprofit records, tracking donations, and important papers for our ministry. Our town has also generously donated more land to Finding Hope! We are growing more and more everyday! Praise the Lord!
A dear friend of mine, Cristina was able to visit again this year! Cristina has been back several times to Porvenir, this time specifically to start a health project through her school. Thanks to her help we have had one more person to help us with all the craziness!
We always love when we get to visit our sponsored children. They hold a special place in our heart. We were able to share a small Christmas present with the family, visit four children who I truly consider my brothers and sisters and kiss their precious little faces! I am looking for two sponsors for this dear family. If you would like to know more about them and how you can be a part of their future, please send me a message!
This year, we were able to host two Christmas parties. One for our Womens beading group and the other for our Sunday School kids! Both were a huge success filled with lots of food, pinatas, crafts and activities, cookies and cakes and lots of happy holiday joy.
Sunday School kids in the back of a pickup! Just a "few" of the 60 kids who showed up for our Christmas party!
Almost all of our women celebrating a year FULL of bracelets!
For the past few mornings (squeezing in ANY time we could find) we spent making 200 Christmas goodies to hand out to all our families in El Porvenir! Just a lil treat that for most people have never had a candy cane before!! Note to self: Make more next year and next time something easier! The 24th we walked around town for hours visiting everyone and sharing a little joy with those we love so much!
This year we were honored to be able to celebrate with our special firefighter friends in a Christmas dinner and gift exchange! With lots of food, great company, and karaoke we were able to share a bit of the season with people who do so much for this community. More than firefighters, they are a large part of a BIG change for this town!
Along with the Christmas dinner, the firefighers also hosted all things "Christmas events" taking part in Porvenir. They hosted festivities like the lighting of the tree, the setting up of a hand-made manger scene, the best tamale cooking contest, a hidden treasure activity, Christmas parade (of which we got to ride with Santa on the ambulance), karaoke night, crowning of Miss. Porvenir Christmas, and more. Everything was filmed live on a local La Ceiba channel and I was even interviewed and starred on TV (haha yet again)!
This year I was able to visit a very poor village just outside of El Porvenir, meet a few families and their children who touched my heart deeply. Thanks to Anne Fowler who donated a mattress and COPECO an organization in Honduras, Don David and "Feed the Children", and the firefighers for their collaboration and organization, this family along with several others got new mattresses, food and toys. Hopefully they were able to have a bright Christmas with a little gift of Christs love.
Their old mattress.
Their house of sticks and mud
One of the several children who sleep together on this bed
Last week a local family, a second family to me, were able to get married. They have been together for years and all their children are grown. If you remember earlier this year I posted a few pictures of their church marriage. Well this time, they were married legally! Haille and I were able to be present as "witnesses" and share this special day with them!
All of these activities/events/parties meant crazy busy days getting everything together and making it just perfect! It was a wonderful Christmas season and I am overjoyed to have spent it with so many special friends. I am blessed to have so many people in my life who love and care for me as family.
I would love to say my body can rest and maybe ill get some sleep but its not over yet! Christmas day will be spent with our missionary family over a Christmas lunch together and an evening church service celebrating the birth of our Senor y Salvador. The 26th we will do another food distribution and anxiously wait a work team for our Women and Children Center! The 27th my WONDERFUL family comes to Honduras! I cant wait to show them everything so special to me and share the coming of the new year together! So many great things still to come :)
Feliz Navidad y Prospero Ano Nuevo!
