Presidents Report
Vida & Esperanza The 2005 school year proved to be an exciting year as we saw God fulfill his promise to provide for us with our own school building. In the spring we had 3 Mission Impact Servant Teams from the United States come and build the second floor of our school providing seven additional classrooms. We were able to have all 160 students in school at the same time and not have to have split sessions with a morning and afternoon schedule. This was yet another answer to prayer as the Lord provided in ways we never imagined. With the additional space we are equipping a home economics area as well as a dedicated computer laboratory. As the school continues to grow we are offering new programs that will contribute to the holistic education of each student. We are excited to have two new teachers from the United Sates coming in 2006 to join our teaching staff. The entire school meets together every Monday morning for a special Devotional time where we sing together, learn from the Bible and give thanks to God for allowing us to be a part of Escuela Vida y Esperanza. We know that God has brought each child to us for a purpose and we daily ask God to use us as he sees fit. New Life with Education The year 2005 was challenging and exciting. Thirtyseven children attended Nueva Vida in grades Kinder through sixth. At the end of the school year we held our first sixth grade graduation ceremony. Four of the graduates were in our first class in the year 2000. Five of them are continuing their education in Antigua in 2006. In August we were informed that we could not hold school in our present location in 2006. We had long outgrown this building and had been looking for alternatives without success. Finding an existing building in which to put an entire primary school was a real and urgent challenge. At this same time we learned of property for sale that would be large enough for the school and in a flat, central location. We praise God that the money was donated and the land bought in November. Construction began in December. In seeing that we were building our own school the landlords agreed to let us stay at our present location for another year.
Nueva Generacion Last year we minister about 600 students per week, students of two schools, one in Antigua and one in Guatemala city. Also I equipped eight
teachers, they reached about 2,000 students per week. I started the youth club in Antigua and we started the discipleship program of 30 students, that committed their lives to served God. We ministered those kids in the retreats or other events we had. This Year I`m ministering three schools reaching about 700 students per week, we are going to start the youth club in Antigua pretty soon and I`m looking or wanting to hire a teacher exclusevly to the area of Antigua. I need to raise US$200 for that goal. Proximos Pasos We started out the 2005 year with a new set of challenges. We were suddenly independent of any financial assistance from any missions group and found ourselves relying 100% on God’s provision for the school. It was truly amazing to see God provide for our every need through the Sowing Hope Child Sponsorship program. We developed partnerships with 60 individuals and families who committed to sponsoring 60 out of 63 girls allowing us to complete another school year. We were challenged in our faith and were ultimately reminded that our God REIGNS and is the only King who really loves and provides for ALL of His children. Praise the Lord. Not only did God provide for us in a way that we could offer an education to 63 girls in Santa Maria de Jesus, but as we shared with our partners some of the heartbreaking stories of girls experiencing the death or serious injury of a loved one to life threatening illnesses they actively participated with us in offering tangible solutions to those in need. Marta Julia was born with a congenital heart defect that with each passing day was creating more challenges for living a normal, active lifestyle. An amazing response to our request for financial assistance from several of our ministry partners allowed her to have the surgery needed and today Marta Julia is in the 4th grade leading an active life without the fear of impending death. The greatest blessing comes in seeing the families asking the question “Why would people who don’t even know us care enough to help us?”. It is through these experiences that we are able to testify to Jesus offering these families the hope that is found only in Him. Sowing Hope Highlights 2005 The Sowing Hope Child Sponsorship programs provided the opportunity for more than 150 individuals and families to partner with our 3 Christian schools in providing an education to more than 250 children in the communities of Santa Lucia Milpas Altas and Santa Maria de Jesus, Guatemala where the majority of these children would not have otherwise had the opportunity to go to school.
Some of the sponsored children were actually able to meet their sponsors for the first time this year. Others had the opportunity to entertain their sponsor families in their own homes, including an overnight home visit from a sponsor family from New Jersey. What a blessing it can be to see these two worlds merge! It is through these unlikely friendships with someone in another part of the world that these children learn about the unselfish love of Jesus. Mission Impact is always striving to find ways to make it easy for our partners to be involved in our ministries. The advancing technology that is increasingly available to us helps us offer more convenient and effective ways for donors to give in ways that minister more personally to them. In the later part of 2005, Mission Impact added to the website an online shopping tool or ecatalog which allows donors to browse through the needs for each of Mission Impact’s ministry sites offering the opportunity to make an online purchase for items ranging from school supplies to the purchase of materials for a school construction project, providing meals for malnourished children to providing access to clean water through the installation of cisterns, providing for a teenager to experience a weekend discipleship retreat or money to purchase medicines for chronically ill and disabled children. For a complete list of items available please go to the Mission Impact website at www.missionimpact.com. Servant Teams The Servant Team office, located in Denver, Colorado, had the privilege of serving 7 Mission Impact Servant Teams with logistical planning and pre field training. The office customized each outreach according to the ministry goals as well as gifts and talents of each team. MI Servant Teams were varied in generational makeup consisting of teens, retirees, children, professionals, and college students. A wide range of ministry took place in Guatemala with the Mission Impact field staff hosting more than 100 team participants. Servant Teams worked in the areas of construction, teen ministry, childrens ministry, medicine, including first aid training for Guatemalan teachers and parents, as well as appropriate technology. Many teams had the privilege of staying with host families which proved to be a wonderful experience. Team members carried to Guatemala donations of medical equipment, school supplies, small tools, sewing machines and sewing materials, vitamin supplements and other miscellaneous aid. The following quote from a 2005 team leader demonstrates the powerful impact of a Mission Impact Servant Team outreach on its participants: “This has been a wonderful week of seeking, working, serving and learning. The team has seen God at work among the Guatemalans, the host missions, our team, and each of us individually. Each day has brought us new experiences and insights into holistic development. Through this trip our team has
developed a true “university” (unity and diversity) as together, we have worked, rested, played, discussed, reflected, listened, written, watched, and learned. We are hearing God speak to us about our present attitudes and our future desires; about waiting and trusting in him; about using our abilities to serve him; about caring for the poor; and about listening to God for his direction through it all God is active around the world and in our lives; and through dedicated believers, he is bringing about holistic transformation into the likeness of his Son, Jesus Christ.”
The Mission Impact Servant Team office will contine to facilitate ministry for all teams applying to serve with Mission Impact in 2006. Kathy Dostal Servant Team Director Mission Impact