October Mission Trip - Building Community Cinder Block by Cinder Block
By Rachel Fannin
During our October trip, Father Tony asked if we would collect cinder blocks from the families of the colonia when we distributed groceries on Saturday. We passed the word on Friday to everyone present and put up signs that we were collecting cinder blocks for a church building project. We were so happy to see the overwhelming response from our friends in the colonia. They were more than happy to help their community! God is good!!!
Below is Father Tony's response to the cinder block project:
“In the Santa Rosa chapel we had a rotten plywood outhouse. Now we are going to have a cutting edge, block outhouse with separate rooms for guys n gals!! Thanks for the blocks!”
Christmas in the Colonia
Praise God!!! We will be having our Christmas in the Colonia trip this year. (We missed last December due to the drug violence.) We will be celebrating with our friends on our December 6-7 mission trip. Please prayerfully consider joining us. The colonia is a very special place to kick off the Christmas season, it promises to put you in the Christmas spirit!
We have 800 soccer balls special delivery from our friends in Katy, Texas. Members from Church of the Holy Apostles (COTHA) purchased and stored them last year so that the children of the colonia would receive a very special gift for Christmas. A soccer ball in the hands of a child in the colonia helps keep them entertained and out of trouble. They will be thrilled to receive them. The younger children will receive stuffed animals. We hope to purchase blankets in Nuevo Laredo for the babies and the elderly. All of our “love cargo” will be purchased and transported by our own very special angel, Claudia Valdez. Thanks to God and with your help, we can accomplish our mission of bringing love and hope to our less fortunate brothers and sisters.
If you would like to help, please send a monetary donation to the MTM general fund to help purchase something on our colonia Christmas wish list. The Donate Now link is provided under the Treasurer's Report as well as in the sidebar column to the right.
WISH LIST
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Baby blankets (approximately $5 each )
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Twin to full sized blankets (approximately $7-$8 each)
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Extra groceries for the holidays
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Other Christmas goodies for the kids
On behalf of the families we serve through your generous donations MUCHAS GRACIAS! May you and your family have a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Amor y paz,
Rachel
Sponsorship Report
By Melanie Fannin
Celebrating Our A Students
Our October trip was busy. We took new photo ID pictures, processed new children into the program and passed out school supplies and hygiene items to the 174 sponsored children in attendance. And, in what we hope will become a new tradition, we celebrated those children who had an A average during the 2012-2013 school year.
13 kids received purple ribbons for attaining an A average last school year. Some were jubilant. Others were a wee bit embarrassed. However, all of the children and their parents shared one emotion; an appreciation that MTM recognized their achievements.
Our hope is that by recognizing excellence in such a public way, we will encourage the other children to aspire to improve their performance. Time will tell whether the plan is successful in lifting the group up, but we know for certain that it had a positive impact on those children who received the purple ribbons.
Don’t forget that we are currently seeking sponsors for the 2013-2014 school year. Our letters have gone out and we have had a wonderful reponse to our appeal. However we are still 80 sponsors short for this year. Please consider sponsoring at least one child or if you have previously sponsored a child(ren), please renew your sponsorship(s) at the same or a higher level. The children and the MTM Sponsorship volunteers thank you for your support!!
Treasurer's Report
By Pat Gavia
THANKSGIVING AND CHRISTMAS GIVING!
At this time of thanksgiving, I’m very thankful for our Mission to Mexico supporters. We rely on YOU to continue to fund our mission trips in order to feed the hungry, provide some relief to the sick, and assist the families with their school expenses. For this December trip, we have budgeted to provide groceries (beans, oil, rice, flour and soap) to 750 families at a cost of $5,000. That’s just $6.67 per bag! For just $100, you can feed 15 families!! Your donation is vital in allowing us to ease the hunger of these families for at least a little while. Please prayerfully consider donating today.
If you are looking for the perfect Christmas gift to give someone; please consider donating to Mission to Mexico in honor of this special someone. We will send you a donation receipt and send the person you are honoring a card notifying them of your gift if you provide us with their address.
Click on the link below to donate online or mail your check to the address below:
Mission To Mexico
P. O. Box 92351
Austin, Texas 78709-2351
Volunteer Report
By Bob Bickers
My wife, Vicky, and I were blessed to experience the October mission after being away for a year. It was so nice to see so many familiar faces both volunteers and locals. We were impressed by the amount of work completed on the church. The marble work at the alter is just stunning, the ceiling insulation will help with temperature control. It was quite comfortable inside.
The concrete blocks on the exterior greatly improved the structure and exterior appearance. The method by which the blocks being provided shows the love the people in the colonia have for God and a facility to in which they can worship. It was amazing to see the people of the church bringing one block at a time as a donation and the block masons donating their time to put the blocks in place.
It was so rewarding seeing the faces of all of the residents of the colonia.
Vicky was very happy about serving the locals by providing some basic medical care and dispensing over the counter medications. At my last count, the medical team saw and treated over 60 men, women and mostly children. The people of the colonia are so grateful for any help or assistance that they get. Their smiles and thanks are so genuine. If we could bottle their love for God, it would shine brightly and light our way.
The security is tighter and we are in the process of improving what we do for not only the volunteers, but for the colonia. The cars are well identified as MTM vehicles with large magnetic door signs. The group crosses the border in a convoy, all traveling together. We travel a different route, crossing over the Colombia bridge which is much less traveled and no need for traveling through the heart of Nuevo Laredo. We are very aware of our surroundings. We did not feel unsafe, and I know Father Tony would alert us of any new problems. It is a privilege to serve God in this way.
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