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They’re growing up fast, hug your kids people!

 

First things first: 

At the end of the last newsletter we wrote that we had BIG NEWS ABOUT OUR MEDICAL MINISTRY!

For the last 2 1/2 years we’ve been hosting and working with nurses from Colorado who have come to visit and have helped us develop and implement a nutrition program as well as help plan our clinic.  Karlie Ruiter, an emergency room nurse, has been coordinating EVERYTHING!  That’s taken a huge load off and has allowed me to spend more time with the boys at the middle school and academy.

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Karlie and her husband Jeff are moving to El Rosario in August to run everything medical.  And because God is so faithful, Jeff will be stepping in and eventually take over the building ministry!  That will include coordinating and managing house builds, building clean air stoves, bathrooms and delivering water filters.

If Vonda and I could interview 1000 couples to join us, we would choose Jeff and Karlie, every time.  They are compassionate, kind and on fire for the Kingdom.  They understand “The harvest is plentiful,” and they’re ready to pour themselves into serving Jesus alongside us.  *** If you’re interested in partnering with Jeff and Karlie, please message me.  You would be fortunate to be on their team.

Our favorite Instagam posts / photos:

Speaking of our nutrition program!

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These little ones stop by the academy with their momma’s every Friday at three in the afternoon. We pull out a scale and weigh each one. They always stare down as if they have any idea what the numbers mean.

I don’t know why they love it so much. They’re always smiling. They’re always excited. Maybe they feel the peace at the academy that I feel. Like the Holy Spirit rests here.

Before they leave we pray for them and we give them PediaSure for the week. We give their momma’s papayas, eggs, and black beans.

When Karlie Ruiter, a nurse form the States, and her husband move here in August, our nutrition program will probably grow five times.

Until then, it’s slow and steady growth for these little ones. They’re under the watchful eye of our Lord.

According to the United Nations World Food Program, 50% of kids in Guatemala are undernourished and that number climbs to 70% in rural villages.  I absolutely believe those numbers. I see it every day.

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What we’re doing now / What we’re excited about:

All moving parts, are moving.  We’ve hired Rolando, a strong Christian man from El Rosario, to lead bible at the academy, which is a huge answer to prayer.  We’ve always wanted to have Guatemalan men teach bible, but honestly, we never even dreamed Rolando would be part of our team.  It would have been too good to be true.  And yet, with God, all things are possible.  Even the things you don’t dream about.

We’ve hired a private tutor to give our 21 scholarship kids the best opportunity to succeed!  I’m super excited about this!  They meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4-6pm.  This supplements their day of class on Sundays.  The first week was amazing.  The students said Luis explained things better than their teachers at school!  I can’t wait until next year when they’ll be learning from teachers WE hire.

The academy is in full swing and we have about 40 kids going through our doors every day!  We have 80 boys enrolled in the academy!  That’s a lot of tortillas.  Just sayin’.  Our food budget is growing alongside our second building.

The middle school is in its fifth week and I can’t tell you how much I love it! My favorite part of the day is the 7:30-8:15 a.m. bible study.  I’ve been teaching these boys since they were in the 3rd grade!  I wish I could beam you here for a day…for a morning.  I CRAVE to share this ministry with you.  I know my words and photos don’t do it justice.

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In the next newsletter I’ll be sharing more about our “Six day Intensive Exposure to Missions.”  If you’ve ever wanted to learn what missions is about, if you’ve wanted to take your relationship with Jesus further, you don’t want to miss our next newsletter.  Seriously.  If this is you, don’t miss it.

The walls of the building next door are climbing!  It feels like construction will be done next week…but, there’s a lot of work to do.  We currently have enough cash raised to get us through mid May.  If we can raise the remaining $75,000, the building will be done at the end of July.  The day it’s complete, the day we can move in, we’ll be filled to capacity.  We’re ready to move the middle school boys over, open the clinic and we can’t wait for Karlie and Jeff to get their butts over here to help us out.

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What’s coming up:

In a few weeks we’ll be announcing our SPRING CATALOG!  We’ll be sharing how we plan to raise the needed funds to finish construction.

Personal Life:

Last month we took our first vacation in 4 1/2 years.  We drove 10 hours to Tikal, a Mayan Ruin deep in the Guatemalan rainforest.  I’ll just let the photos tell the story.

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Sunrise was so beautiful.  Clear skies.  We could hear the howler monkeys waking the forest up.

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Dang.  I have beautiful kids.  They’re growing up so fast.  I can’t slow it down!  Hug your kids people!

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And this is what happens when you ask your son to hold your phone for a second.

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 Let us know in the comments what your favorite photo is!  

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  1. I love all of the pictures.
    First, the Mayan Ruins look incredible.
    In fact, I’m jealous. 🙂
    But more than the ruins, I love the family (Dad, Mon + the 3 kids) shown in each.

    1. Thanks man. We may have to take that trip someday!

  2. Love everything!!! I am so excited to see the medical ministry and watch your team grow as fresh new eyes come to give vision! Love you all so much.

    1. And we love you right back! His ministry is growing so much. We feel privileged to be a part of it!

  3. Yay Jeff & Karlie! I’m so excited (and jealous) of your move! With God, all things really are possible! ❤

    1. We can’t wait for them to get here! You’ll have to start planning a trip with Jan to come visit all of us once construction is done!

  4. Jeff and Karlie are going to be a great addition to your team. Great people for a great cause. Love you and your family George!!! Gob bless you all!

    1. Thank you brother. YES! We can’t wait to work alongside them. 🙂 And we can’t wait to see you and Sharon in just a few months! 🙂

  5. Exciting as always. LOVE reading the updates George. Everything is going great ‘and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it’. Oh the Father is blessing you mightily and all work will be finished completely. This is God’s hand on this and who shall challenge Him!! Ruffle Neftali’s hair for me and tell him I love him. Love ya’s and speak soon. God’s richest blessings as always bro! Your N. Irish friend 😉

    1. Thank you brother! I’ll let Neftalie know you’re thinking about him and praying for him. And some day, you need to come meet him yourself!

  6. Love ’em all, of course, but Gabe’s maybe won my vote this time. 😂 Love seeing all your sweet faces and such a beautiful part of the country!!
    So so exciting seeing those walls grow!! 💛 Miss you, friends!

    1. Thanks Sara! Haha. GABE! I don’t think you would recognise him. He is GROWING SO FAST! Kid needs to get a job to help us out with the amount of food he eats!

      COME VISIT!

  7. All the photos were great! I like the perspective on your son in the staircase. Beautiful family and great family trip. Frame the family picture before the images get lost in time. My mom did a really good job of keeping and framing family pictures, they cover one whole wall at her apt. It’s nice to go back in time when I see them.Some day we will divide up those photos and take them with us in time.

    1. Hey Donnie! Thank you for your kind words. AND THANKS FOR THE REMINDER! YES! We need to print some of our favorites. It’s too easy to let them get lost online. Hope you are well. So good to hear from you!

  8. All such amazing news! The pictures are awe inspiring and I could not pic just one. I plan to be in Guatemala in July but I don’t know how far your group is from where I’ll be …it would be wonderful to meet all of you in person though. If it is in His plan then it will happen. May God continue to bless all of you and welcome to your new med team!!!

    1. Hi Cyndi! We would love to see you in July! Keep in touch. Thank you for your kind words and your prayers. <3

  9. I love the black and white photo of the little girl looking up as well as the kids that come to get weighed! Praise the Lord, your ministry is flourishing!! May the Lord continue to bless and provide. Xo

    1. Thank you Mary Lou. I could never have imagined the growth of the ministry. Our Lord blesses and provides at every corner. Xo.

  10. Hi George, Vonda and kiddos 🙂 Thanks for sharing these wonderful pics of your vacation. I <3 the "family" shot at the base of the "pyramid" like structure…especially the RED shoes 🙂 Secretly, I have always wanted a pair of RED shoes 🙂 Love hearing about life in Guatemala, all the updates about the ministry too! Excited to think about being able to make a trip there someday soon and see everything first hand 🙂 Thanks for the reminder to hug our kids. They are growing up way too fast!!!May God continue to BLESS your socks off, <3 Sisneros family <3

    Soli Deo Gloria,
    For God's glory alone!

    Debbie, Rob, Luke, Josiah and Maria Hard

    1. For God’s glory alone. Amen. YES! Thank you for your kind message and for always being so encouraging. It was an amazing week and so good to just be alone together. Once we adopt, that will change so we’re trying to soak it in. 🙂

      <3 George and Vonda

  11. Love the close up of your faces! You all beam with happiness, A blessing to finally have a vacation together. Vonda, are you getting younger on me. 🙂 God’s love shines through all of you.
    Praying for the addition, and hopefully see it in person. A big welcome to your medical team!

    1. Lori! So good to hear from you! And yes, Vonda IS GETTING YOUNGER! We can’t wait to see you again in Guatemala!

      Love,

      George and Vonda

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