Ah, greetings! Blithely I am trying to write an update this month with a theme. Cecilia is not involved, but it could be good practice for her. Doubtful I am that many of you will notice the theme at this point, but allow me to explain. Exactly what I am trying to do is start each sentence of this email with the entire alphabet, A-Z and starting over again if it comes to that. Fortunately this has not proved to be too difficult so far, but we shall see as we progress.
Grace and love in our lives, August was a great month. Happenings include more political protests and such, but the overall reality is that for most of the country, life is back to normal, and the scheduled November election ads/propaganda are heating up as usual. Initially we thought that with the cancelled group we would have no visitors this month, but our pilot friend Lynn and some other visitors came for a few days, providing opportunities to bless a rural village with clothing, and a trip to Sampedrana to take more furniture, mattresses, and other odds and ends. Just in case you missed it, all those supplies are needed up there for the latest construction project that is completed except for more furniture needs. Knowing that some might want more information, I should include that the construction project is the mission house facility there, no nickname being applied yet except "Mission House 2...this time it is personal."
Leche is how we say milk in Spanish, and the milk project has officially moved into new digs using the old clinic. Much time is needed before we will be ready to start the remodel using that space for the mission house, so it seemed like a good idea to use the bigger space for the milk project that has been cramped for some time down at the church. New also is that through some additional support the milk project is happening three days a week instead of one, with better nutrition, and an increased focus on encouraging the kids to attend Church (less than 10% are now) as well as teaching them about hygiene and how to take care of themselves.
Offering help for that expansion of the milk project, as well as helping Dora with the garden project and many other odds and ends, we have Elizabeth here now until mid December working as an intern. Perhaps a bit odd for an intern's first week, she was joined the day after she arrived by other good friends Mark and Susan who were here to participate in a wedding as padrinos. Quite a pleasure that wedding, as it was for the optician in the clinic, Lourdes, and her husband Nahum, something of a topic of prayer for some time. Really interesting was that all in our family were able to participate...Valerie helping all over the place with transportation, organization, playing the piano, and more, Cecilia the flower girl, and Felipe who did the actual hitching (his first time doing so). Soren participated by eating an adult plate of food and drooling for cake, perhaps not a pivotal role, but one he filled nicely nonetheless.
Time to talk about the kids a little more, in that we moved them from the school near the clinic to a bilingual school that runs on a US schedule and will offer them the opportunity to get not only a Honduran degree but also one for the USA. Unusual as it is for them to speak in English for long periods, they are adapting well, and hopefully this will be very good for them in the long term. Volunteering to give us a 50% discount (since we are missionaries) is what enabled us to enroll them in this small, newer school, otherwise I do not think we would have been able to afford it.
Water is a necessary part of life, and the clinic/mission house are one step closer to being hooked up to the new public water works project that will be starting soon in our neighborhood, only needing at this point to build a cistern to house the water, and hopefully from then on out we will not have to buy water from trucks, or bottled water if we can get a purifier for both the clinic and the mission house. Xenon lights could not illuminate more clearly that Valerie is still plagued with health issues. You might think that all the pain, fatigue, and tiredness would slow her down...but God keeps her going through it all, although prayers for relief would be most appreciated. Zealous it is fine to be, provided the purpose is good, so says Galatians 4:18.
All this ends in prayer requests:
Blessings and guidance on the marriage between Nahum and Lourdes
Continued prayer for our country, its politicians, and population to move forward
Developing a good, new routine for Cecilia and Soren in their new school
Encouragement and protection for the pastors, Church leaders, and clinic staff
Finding more markets and possibilities for the Hill Climber coffee
General progress being made on the possibilities to buy property...for Cantaranas Church, and the clinic/mission house property
Healing for Valerie
In Nomine Domini Nostri Jesu Christi,
Just us workers Colbys
Knowing that some might be interested, here we have information on how to make donations to the mission. Lest there be any doubt, please send any checks, which must be made out to "His Eyes" to
Denny Smith
3036 E. Bricklin Ct.
Bloomington IN 47401
Make sure to include a note in the envelope if you want your donation designated for the Colbys or some other line otherwise it will be put into the general mission support.
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