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Newsletters - Oct 2004
Alongside Ministries en Nicaragua
Evangelism Through Relationships
Halle and Kathy August, Missionaries
amen@ibw.com.ni
www.alongsideministries.org
Oct 2004
Dear Friends,
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Feliz Dia de Independencia! Happy Independence Day!September 14th and 15th are national holidays for celebrating Nicaragua’s independence from Spain. It is observed with patriotic school activities and lots of flag waving. Our preschoolers made their own flags and heard the meaning of the symbols on their flag. What they don’t know is that their teacher is learning right along with them. The 5 Central American countries that were all liberated from Spain at the same time all share very similar flags – white with blue borders. The center of the Nicaraguan flag has a triangle topped with a rainbow that signifies peace. Just below the rainbow is a small red hat which symbolizes liberty. Along the bottom of the triangle are 5 volcanoes symbolizing brotherhood and unity between the 5 Central American countries. The blue borders symbolize the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. All through September you see many, many Nica flags demonstrating the pride and hope that the people have in their country. |
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Here’s another picture of something very common in everyday life here in Nicaragua… chickens. (Not necessarily people hugging them. That’s only Halle trying to protect them from Benz – the rottweiler.) This is our chicken and rooster named Juana and Horacio after the friends that gave them to us. Oddly enough we’ve grown somewhat attached to these crazy birds. However, the rooster is probably going to be placed in foster care (Is that like Foster Farms?) somewhere far from here. He has a bit of a crowing problem. That is, he crows at all hours of the day and night regardless of where the sun is. We’ve decided that cartoons depicting roosters crowing to welcome the morn is as fanciful as the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus but a lot more annoying! Juana does a fine job of laying eggs without any help from him. What is he crowing about anyway?
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Here are a couple more friends – the human kind. This is Loyda and her daughter Maria. Some of you may recognize Loyda from our mission trip here in 2000. She lives just a couple of blocks from us now and is the director of a small private Christian school of about 115 children in preschool through 6th grade. Maria, her daughter, recently had some medical expenses involved with getting contacts and eyeglasses and, through the help of our church in Woodinville, was able to receive the medical care and the prescriptions that she needed. She is following in her mother’s footsteps as far as reaching out to help her community. She currently volunteers as a teacher at a community preschool in the morning and helps with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders in the afternoon. This may be one of the preschools which Alongside Ministries will be supporting during the next school year. |
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El Salero (the sports center) is slowly but surely taking shape. Here is a band of workers planting the grass on the soccer field. Here in Nicaragua it is not possible to buy grass seed. Instead, everything is planted from sod. These guys pull the sod apart and plant plugs every 4-5 inches. In time and with help from mother nature (we’ve had lots of rain lately!) the grass will grow and spread into a beautiful field. We’ve been told it should be ready for play in 2-3 months! You can see along the back side of the field the cyclone fence that marks the roadside boundary of the sports center. Thank you to all of you who continue to support our ministry and specifically the sports center ministry!
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One of the most rewarding experiences in Kathy’s preschool has been to watch the children begin to understand the value of books. Before preschool no one had ever read to them and they’d never experienced the joy of hearing a story and looking at the pictures. Now, they honestly beg to hear stories such as Green Eggs and Ham, Caps for Sale, and Big Dog, Little Dog. It is a highlight of our morning to read stories together. You can imagine, then, how excited Kathy was to hear that Beth Napoli, an Usborne books distributor, has offered to head up a book drive to provide books for Nica children and our preschool programs. |
There are 2 easy ways to order:
1. Shop online at the August’s E-show from October 7th to 27th. It's very simple. You begin by going to www.UsborneBooksEshop.com. Under “Active E-shows” on the right side of the web page, click on “Alongside Ministries in Nicaragua”. Then “Search for a Wishlist.” In the name space, type “Alongside Ministries in Nicaragua”. You will see a list of the books Kathy has selected. Select the ones you would like to order and quantities and "continue to secure checkout". To “Choose Shipping Location”, be sure to select “Send to Wish List address”. Continue on to place the order.
2. Contact Beth Napoli directly to order books. You can call her at 425-398-9148 or email at beth@UsborneBooksEshop.com.
If you still have room on your Christmas shopping list perhaps you’ll consider buying a book for a Nica student. They won’t get it at Christmas but it will be just like Christmas for them to receive a new book of their very own later on in the year!
While life keeps us busy down here we still find time to think about and miss our family and friends in the Northwest. Thank you to the many of you who keep in touch with us through e-mail and for the many more who keep in touch with us through prayer support. We really do feel God’s hand on our lives down here and covet your prayers that keep us right where we want to be – in the palm of His hand.
We will continue to pray for you all, as well, and are looking forward to seeing you soon!
Serving Together,
Halle and Kathy August
AMEN
Alongside Ministries en Nicaragua
Thank you for supporting our ministry in Nicaragua.
Your gifts, sent to Eastside Development (formally The NEO Foundation),
will be used for our general ministry activities or wherever you designate.
Eastside Development
PO Box 301471
Portland, OR 97294 |