Dear Friends,

Hola from Nicaragua! It's been hot and dry – very typical for this time of year but we are anticipating the rain will be starting any day now. It's always a nice change and reminds us a little bit of our northwest roots, especially if we're sitting inside our local air conditioned coffee shop while it's raining. If we use our imaginations we can almost convince ourselves it's not 85 degrees outside but maybe a cool northwest 60 degrees or so.

Life in and around AMEN ministries continues to move right along. After a busy and unpredictable start to the year (January, February and March) April was a nice and calm  month and gave us an opportunity to prepare for a busy summer. We have groups and friends coming and going for the next five months and are looking forward to meeting new folks, re-acquainting ourselves with friends we haven't seen for awhile, and accomplishing a lot in the areas of projects and evangelistic programs. We want to say thank you again for the Toyota vans that were able to purchase thanks to the generosity of our home church, Woodinville Community United Methodist in Washington state. They have been put to good use since we bought them almost 3 months ago. A week doesn't pass that they are not used and often they see almost daily use. They have made our lives easier and have really reduced the wear and tear on our personal vehicles. We know that with the busy months ahead they will continue to see a lot of use. Please pray for our safety on the roads as we motor about the city and countryside with our teams, neighbors and guests.

We are excited and pleased to announce an addition to our ministry team. Karel and Myra Norman and their two young daughters will be moving here  to Nicaragua on July 1st and have committed two years to working alongside us in our ministry with youth and families. Karel, formerly associated with Living Hope Free Methodist church in Bothell, Washington, and his family brought a youth team down 2 years ago and through that short term mission trip God started doing a work in their hearts, preparing them to respond positively to a call to Nicaragua. As is God's way, many of the details of setting up a home here have just fallen into place without a glitch. A few months ago a missionary family with 2 young daughters, friends of ours through our church here in Managua, decided to move back to Canada. They lived in a townhouse apartment at Quinta Allyson (our former apartments). Karel and Myra were able to buy all their household belongings (including toys for the young girls) and even arrange to keep the townhouse so their home will be all set up and ready when they arrive in July. God even provided a family in need of a place to stay till July to live in the apartment and cover the rent till the Normans arrival. We anticipate that Karel and Myra will be involved in many aspects of our ministry including teams and sports center projects and that they will also find a niche that will really fit their personal gifts and talents – perhaps working with the older youth, helping to develop our library program, or working with the preschool. We are open to whatever and wherever God desires to use them. Please pray for their on-going preparations and fund-raising efforts and for them as a family as they make a huge life change with their two young daughters.

Shortly after the arrival of the Normans we will be welcoming Grace Chesmore, also a former short term mission team member from Washington state, who will be living with us for about six weeks this summer. Grace came down with her family with a team from First Presbyterian church of Bellevue in February 2007. She has been involved in a Spanish immersion program through her public school system in Bellevue and is fluent in the Spanish language. She will be joining us for a time of personal growth, an opportunity to use her language skills on a daily basis, and a time of investing in some of our ministry programs and activities. We look forward to having fun with a "daughter" around the house for a change.

Washington state will be well represented here in Nicaragua this summer as we are also looking forward to a small youth team from our home church in Woodinville spending a couple of weeks with us in mid-July. Our son, Brookes (now a Junior at Northwest University), will be a part of the leadership so that team holds an extra-special spot in our hearts! We are anticipating a rather small team but we know that God is preparing for just the right people to be involved. Please join us in prayer for this team that they will be open to God's touch through their experience in Nicaragua.

On a personal note, we want to wish our son Britton and his wife Chelsea congratulations on their one year anniversary and also announce that our oldest son and his wife, Brandon and Misty, are expecting a baby in September. We are excited to welcome a new August into the world.

Thank you all for your wonderful words of prayer, love and encouragement during the sudden death of Kathy's mother in March. God's presence and blessings were abundant during our time in Washington to prepare for her memorial service. The service itself was such a blessing for all of our family and the many that attended. It was so wonderful to touch base with so many friends that we haven't seen for many years. The memories that were shared about both of Kathy's parents brought many tears of joy mixed with a little sadness, but also filled our hearts so that during those moments when we think of and remember Helen we are able to pull up those good memories of her wonderful life during her healthy years. Thank you again for your support during our difficult times.

Please continue to pray for our ministry and for all those who are investing their time to come and work with us here in Nicaragua. Please pray for travel safety and for their personal safety while in this third-world country. Also, please join us as we pray for and give thanks for those who continue to support us financially. With your support we are able to continue to move forward as God directs. We hope you might all be able to come and see for yourself someday what God has been doing in our neck of the woods.

Serving Together,
Halle and Kathy August
AMEN
Alongside Ministries en Nicaragua