Strong Missions Children's Park

After years of work and many hands helping, the Parque Infantil Strong Missions is open for playing!  Yesterday I stumbled upon some photos from the beginning of this year, and I was struck by how much it has changed in the last year.  While most of the heavy labor was done in 2010-2011, it is this year that the park has really started looking like a park.  Each group that added a mural to the wall this year made it more welcoming, and the local municipality also kept their promise to provide the landscaping and some of the playground equipment.  The children are enjoying it a lot, and now they don't have to play in the streets.  Thank you very much!  Please enjoy this video!

We're in the midst of our end-of-year fundraising campaign!  We need $20,000 to fully fund our feeding and education programs through February of 2013, and we don't want to cut any of these valuable programs.  Please contact us if you, your church, school, or family, would like to partner with us in this effort.  Here is our Christmas flier, please contact us for additional materials.  For larger donations, it is preferred if possible to donate by sending a check (made out to Strong Missions Inc) to our Texas address, which will reach us more quickly:
Strong Missions Inc.
11608 Prince Phillip Way
Manor, TX 78653-3773
Thank you to all of you!  Your support makes our ministry possible!

Yorleny's house is all done!

Many of you have worked on the construction of the house we built this year for Yorleny and her family.  As you can see in the pictures below, it turned out great, and the family is really enjoying their new home.  Here is a note from Yorleny to all of you:
"Hola and blessings!  I want to give thanks from my whole heart to all of you, starting with Strong Missions.  That God touched your hearts so that this beautiful miracle could become reality.  Today I am sincerely very grateful for all of you.  If in me there there is something I can do for you and it is within my ability I won't think twice about extending my hand as you have done for me and others today.
May God prosper each one of your homes and bring you each day success and triumphs from all the good that you have done with families that have been blessed by all of you.  Today I can't find words to thank you for what you have done with my family; I will always pray to God for this big family that is all of you.
I say goodbye thanking you for everything that you have done for me.  It was more than I had hoped for.  But I know God touched your hearts and took control so that it would be this way.  Thank you with all my heart.
The doors of my house will be open for anyone from Strong Missions, just as they were from the beginning of construction until it was finished."

Even though Yorleny says she has trouble finding the words, she says it better than I can.  Thanks to all of your for the blessing you have been to this family and this community!

 Brian and Alicia helped put the finishing touches on the house, painting the gate and moving the rocks and rubble from out front.

Yorleny, Jordan, Josue, Priscila, Sharon y Matthias in front of their old home. 

La Carpio ministry

We are beginning a ministry partnership in La Carpio.

  

La Carpio is the largest precario (slum) in Costa Rica, with 40,000 people and close to 30,000 kids live in an area of 296 square kilometers, surrounded on 2 sides by rivers and another by a landfill which receives over 700 tons of waste daily.  Over half of the population lives below the poverty line, compared with 22% of the national population.   In addition to poverty, the people face struggles with drugs, violence, gangs and crime.

There's a new Evangelical Methodist Church organizing there, and they are already starting to feed children (about 45) 1 meal a day one day of week with the little resources they have. We would like to increase their frequency of their feeding program, but cannot do this without your help.  We are excited to be partnering with them and helping them to minister to their community.

Pentecostal Church Work

Today I want to share with you about the progress we've made on construction at the Pentecostal church this year.  The plan is to add a second story to the back part of the building to give the church more space for its feeding program.  They've been feeding 50-60 kids in the Costa Rican summer months when kids aren't in school, but estimate the need to feed about 100.  This project gives them the space to do that.  Last year we dug and poured footers for the support columns.  This year we welded the first part of the column up, demolished the stage in back, resurfaced and poured the floor, and installed a concrete counter top.  It's about all we can do until the rain stops for the year and we can remove the roof for the second story.  Thank you to all of you who have been a part of this project!  I know the people of the Iglesia Nuevo Pacto are very grateful to have this new space for ministry.

 Some strong women attacking the old stage.

 The Pentecostal church has a very active children's ministry and loves it when teams do activities with the kids.

 

 

Methodist Church construction 2012

We've wrapped up our busy season, and it has been a busy season indeed.  Just getting caught up on project posts now.  Today I want to feature the work at the Evangelical Methodist church of Carrillos, where we've been working since 2010.  This expansion will be for a feeding program for 100 kids on the ground floor, and a parsonage on the second floor.  Over the last several months we've put up the rest of the walls (all the way up to the second story), roofs, concrete floors, and septic system.  Those who worked on the septic system know how much work went into that, even though it's all underground and invisible now.  Thank you for everyone who has come and worked on this project!

 

Also notice the new wall and sidewalk.

 

Interior of the dining room/kitchen.