Welcome MTM friends to 2014!
I am happy to report that our December "Christmas in the Colonia" trip was a huge success. Fourteen MTM volunteers joined by 35 local volunteers worked side by side with much joy and enthusiasm to assure that everything would be ready for distribution. Even though the weather was very cold and windy, everyone bundled up and made the best of it. Our brothers and sisters were very happy and excited to see us and grateful for all the blessings they received.
Melanie, Pat and Claudia and their helpers distributed coats and other holiday goodies to the sponsored kids and their parents. All the children were especially excited to have Santa there for a visit. We distributed soccer balls and toys to about 750 kids, 250 blankets and 750 bags of groceries to all the families in attendance. With the Christmas spirit in all our hearts and their arms filled with gifts, everyone departed with the anticipation of celebrating the birth of CHRIST!!!
Thank you all for making this possible. Amor y paz! Rachel Fannin
If you would like to join us on the February 7th & 8th Mission Trip, please contact me at rachel.fannin@mtmaustin.org
    
The Joy of Christmas Giving
We had a wonderful Christmas celebration with the sponsorship children and their parents. As usual we had a number of activities taking place including sharing cookies and other goodies with the children and their families as they waited patiently to receive a new jacket and school supplies. The sponsored children also received Christmas gifts including soccer balls, dolls, toiletries, socks, etc. while their parents and preschool siblings were treated with a small gift as well.
Two of our college students were proud recipients of $125 scholarships to be used for their college tuition. As a part of the application process, the two recipients, a young man and a young woman, agreed to assist MTM as volunteers for a minimum of two hours on each of our trips. Thus, as we gave them their scholarship funds in one hand, we grasped the other hand to lead them to their first assignments. Our intention is to engage them in the administrative part of the ministry so that they may gain experience that will translate to a work environment.
Finally, as I look back on 2013, I would be remiss if I did not thank the many people who help make the sponsorship program hum. First of course, are our sponsors who have provided unfailing support from the program’s inception. Second are those volunteers without whose assistance the program would not survive. The list includes Rachel Fannin, Pat Gavia, Cherie Wilson, Caryn Wontor and our newest and most overworked volunteer, Claudia Valdez. Others include Diane Sanders, Cherie Guy, Warner Davis, Belma Villareal, Kay Arnold, Frank and Judy Maldonado, Shannon Donahue, Julio and Mary Moreno, Angie Steding, Mike Gwynn, the wonderful folks at Church of the Holy Apostles in Sugarland and my wonderful husband Casey who drove all over South Texas to assist me in fulfilling our obligations to our sponsors and to the children we serve. And, last but not least, I want to thank those children. Every time I am in their presence, I observe first hand the resiliency of the human spirit and the joy that can be found if one is open to finding it in the most unexpected places. I can unequivocally attest that I, and many others, receive far more from our encounters with the parents and children of the colonia than they receive from us. Each of those experiences is truly a gift from God.
Warmest Wishes for a Happy New Year!
Melanie Fannin
Click on the link below to donate online
Or mail donations to:
Mission To Mexico
P. O. Box 92351
Austin, Texas 78709-2351
|
|
|
