What's going on at Dulce Refugio
I know that many people have passed through this orphanage and left their mark at Dulce Refugio. I want to keep all of you informed about what is going on with the kids and the construction process. Please remember to keep us in your thoughts and prayers; I hope you continue to help us out here at Casa Hogar Dulce Refugio. Gracias amigos!
Happy New Year everyone! January 2020 has brought another year and a new vision. My ministry will be changing for a couple of months and I am excited for the new project! I will still be helping out at Dulce Refugio very regularly and spending time with the kids almost every night but for now I feel God calling me to serve in my local church where they really need the help...I'll share the details at the end of the blog.
I returned to Aguascalientes on January 7th after a nice holiday break. It was good to spend Christmas and New Years with the family but it's also nice to get back to the mission that God has called me to.
Luis
Julian & Elena
Pepe
John & Marta
Aremi
We received 7 new kids this month:
-Luis is one of our older boys and is a good kid. He really likes story time when I read Bible stories to the boys before bed and he likes to pray.
-Pepe is a cutie but a handful. He is really hyper and doesn't like to listen very much. We're working on teaching him that in this house there are rules.
-Julian & Elena are brother and sister and are really sweet. They are a joy to be around and like to be picked up and hugged.
-John & Marta are back. It's their 3rd time with us in Dulce Refugio. I don't know about their family and why they keep coming back but as long as they are here we will do our best to take good care of them.
-Aremi is a character. She laughs a lot and makes a crazy face when she does...I love it so I try to make her laugh as much as I can.
I had to replace the skylight in the girl's dorm. This was a scary job and I'm very thankful that it is done and I was not injured. The plastic laminates were very old and worn out. The wind blew some of them off and the girls had a huge hole in their ceiling. I had to lift the material and the scaffolding onto the roof with ropes and then set up the scaffolding over the skylight. I had to be on a narrow platform about 4 stories in the air to screw in the new laminites.
In front of the school, I put the smooth, flat stones around the top of the rocks that go around the tree. This gave it a nice finish and now the kids have a place to sit in the shade. This was a design of mine and was one of the last things I wanted to do in the school.
I installed steel laminates over part of our carport. This job was never finished by Duane, the guy who was in charge of the construction before me, and for years I have wanted to complete it. I never had time because it was not a top priority and I had to focus on the school, but now that the school is done I can fix up things around the orphanage.
Kyleigh is here! Kyleigh has been my most faithful volunteer over the years and she is a great friend of Dulce Refugio. The kids and the staff love her and it is always a blessing when she is in Aguascalientes. It's only a short, 2 week trip this time, but one day she plans on coming back full time...hopefully sooner than later!
I had to make a trip up to the border. Every 6 months I have to drive my car 10 hours in each direction to get a new visa and car permit so I can be here legally. I went to the Reynosa/McAllan, TX border and got everything I need. I'm good to go for another 6 months!
I went to see the new project that I will be supporting/working on. My local church CFC (Centro de la Familia Cristiana) will be building a 2nd church in Cañada Honda, a small town outside of Aguascalientes. Currently, the church has a building in the town and holds feeding programs for children where they play games, feed them, and most importantly teach them the Bible. After the feeding program they hold a church service for the parents. The ministry is growing and they need a larger space. They have purchased the land on the left side of the building and plan on constructing a big auditorium to hold many more people. Construction will start in February and will hopefully be completed in less than 6 months.
I'm really excited for this new mission. I love the people in my church and want to bless the work that they do. I will be working along side pastor Tino Gutierrez and supplying many of the materials needed for the construction. We are the only Christian church in this community so there is a great need for this project! I pray that you would consider being a part of what God is doing and support this ministry. Thank you and God Bless!
"Equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up."
-Ephesians 4:12