Update - July 2002
On Sunday, July 21st, we were provided a free boat excursion with the girl’s soccer team. Our family, Enriqque (soccer assistant), and 9 members of the girl’s soccer team enjoyed snorkeling, swimming, and especially jumping from the second deck. Later, Enrrique and Joey each shared their faith with the girls, emphasizing the importance of a personal relationship with Jesus. Many of them attend a church, but they are not used to hearing about Jesus as a friend, someone who is with you on a daily basis. We’d love to show you a picture, but we felt it would be better to leave cameras at home for this event.
In
the middle of the month, Aly and Jeremy were able to attend a Dolphin/Scuba
camp at the nearby Anthony’s Key Resort. This was possible because of a
generous personal gift made to us. It was a great blessing, as they were
able to socialize with some American kids and experience some unique and
beautiful parts of God’s creation. There are definitely two “worlds” on
this island, and this was a taste of the other one. Few of the people who
live here on the island will ever get to experience the activities of the
dive resorts. Only the week before, we had gone as a family to deliver some
donated clothes to some of the families in Colonia Balfate. One of the
young women on the soccer team lives with her husband and 3 children, her
sister and her baby, and her husband’s brother, all in a one-room, 240
square foot home with two twin beds and no running water. Aly and Jeremy
continue to see the stark contrasts between “the haves, and the have-nots.”
If you would like, you can see some pictures of the camp on
Aly and Jeremy’s Page.
Joey
spent several days this month working to
improve “a kind-of park area” in Sandy Bay. Three old tennis courts are
used for basketball, volleyball, and fútbolito (soccer). The only problem
is the basketball rim had been torn down, there is no volleyball net, and
they have to use rocks for fútbolito goals. With the help of a couple of
other guys, we built 2 new fútbolito goals and then a completely new
basketball pole,
backboard,
and rim. This will keep a lot of younger and older boys busy throughout the
day and evening hours, as this is quite a popular hangout spot. Thank
you for the financial support that pays for these types of projects.
Each one provides a number of new acquaintances and contacts to whom we can
begin to minister!