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A Sponsor’s Blessing

by AmericasBlogBrazil

Valquiria was among a group of adolescent girls peppering me with questions just before classes began one morning. Valquiria suffers the effects of Albinism – the absence of the pigment melanin in her skin. This condition is especially challenging in the dry, hot climate, 10 degrees south of the Equator, where the sun shines in punishing brilliance nearly every day. Valquiria needs a prescription lotion to protect her skin. Several times this has been supplied through gifts from her sponsor. In this recent photo, she is pictured with other students receiving gifts from sponsors and the school’s assistant director. Because of sponsorship, Valquiria studies at our ICCM school, which is readily recognized as the best in the region. The students are taught to value, respect and love each other. Your prayers for her are much appreciated, especially because her father recently passed away after a three-year battle with cancer. It was a delight to learn both the director and assistant director of our school were themselves sponsored through ICCM. Every sponsorship of a student at our Monte Santo school is an answer to prayer.

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Making a Difference in Brazil

by AmericasBlogBrazil

I met Andrei when I visited our ICCM school in Monte Santo, Bahia, Brazil, in September. I asked if I could get a picture with him because I knew his sponsors. After we had our picture taken together and he had returned to class, Sirlene, the school’s assistant director, told me more about him. Andrei’s behavior at school had been poor. The staff noticed he was eating as much as possible at meal and snack times. His teacher thought his behavior would improve if he could come to school early and have breakfast before class. She suspected he was coming to school very hungry – possibly without breakfast and or no dinner the night before. Gilson, the school’s director, arranged for Andrei to be among the students who arrive at school early to eat breakfast, due to nutritional concerns. Andrei’s behavior improved markedly. When I saw Andrei during another visit, he proudly showed me the shoes that had been purchased, with a gift sent by his sponsor, to replace the tattered ones he’d been wearing.

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Light and Life Christian School

by AmericasBlogConnected CommunityParaguay

God gave school director Jonathan Da Cunha a vision for the city of Encarnación. There was only one Christian school in town at the time. Jonathan felt led of God to start Light and Life Free Methodist School with the vision of reaching families for Christ and providing the opportunity for academic excellence in a Christ-centered environment. The school opened in 2002, offering Pre-K through 1st grade. Other grades were quickly added and 2011 marked the first high school graduating class. These graduates, many of whom go on to university, are finding marvelous ways to give back to the program that gave them a good start.

  • Encarnación is a border town, central to commerce. In recent years, a major financial crisis drove away families in search of work. God has been faithful to sustain the school through hardships and challenges.
  • The school ministers to many students from humble, single parent homes where it is difficult to make ends meet.
  • Light and Life Christian School beautifully ministers to parents as well as students. Throughout the year, parenting classes, workshops, and retreats are offered. The focus is on strengthening the parent-child bond, helping family members connect and relate well with each other, and assisting in their spiritual growth.
  • The school seeks to be a light and bring life to the children and families of Encarnación.
  • The home began with 10 children on January 6, 2003. It quickly grew to a group of 30, including some mothers.
  • Currently, there are 17 children living at the children’s home, the maximum number allowed according to current government regulations for the size of the building.
  • Four of the 17 are orphans whose parents have died.
  • The father of 4 siblings (a different group of siblings) is in jail for murdering their mother.
  • They have begun adding a second floor for more bedrooms. They lack $8,000 to finish remodeling to government standards so more children can be added. They feel a sense of urgency, having to now turn away children.

[scp_block_quote_alt width=”70%” float=”left”]This school is eligible to be a Connected Community. This new additional sponsorship model allows a church in the U.S. to come alongside as a partner to impact the lives of ICCM children. Contact ICCM Church Relations Director, Jen Finley, 1-800-342-5531 ext. 228, for information on connecting with them.[/scp_block_quote_alt]

Gifts to help complete the expansion that would allow Light and Life Children’s Home to accommodate more children may be sent to ICCM, or give to this need on the ICCM website. (Write Light and Life PA in the comments section or memo line.)

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Light and Life for María

by AmericasBlogParaguay

ICCM sponsorship has truly brought light and life to 14-year-old María in Paraguay! Today her beautiful smile and outgoing spirit give testimony to the marvelous ministry of our Free Methodist Light and Life Children’s Home and Light and Life Christian School in the city of Encarnación.

Abandoned by their father at an early age, María and her three siblings found themselves in a desperate downward spiral. Their mother, who was suffering from lung cancer, had made the difficult decision to move to Argentina to find better work in order to support the family. María and her three siblings (2 brothers, 1 sister) were left in the care of their grandmother, who found it impossible to provide for their needs. Light and Life Children’s Home opened their doors and hearts to the children, forever changing the course of their childhood and future.

The Lord, in His loving care for this dear family, quickly provided sponsors and the children were immediately enrolled in nearby Free Methodist Light and Life Christian School. They began to enjoy and deeply appreciate all that sponsorship offers. The physical, cognitive, emotional/social, and spiritual well-being of each child became a priority.

Many positive influences helped each one move from darkness to light and from despair to life. Character building classes at school, a loving Christ-centered environment in their new home and caring Sunday school teachers at church, who took a personal interest in their growth and development, all helped lead María and her siblings to faith in Jesus, which has made all the difference.

María’s transformation is remarkable! No longer painfully shy, fearful or insecure, she is now a confident, happy, active 6th grader. A good student, she has a knack for sports and enjoys music. María’s thankful heart for what God has done, and is doing, in her life leads her to enthusiastically bring friends to church so they too, can meet Jesus.

In October 2016, María’s 32-year-old mother succumbed to lung cancer in Argentina. The news of her death deeply affected María, who is the eldest. Through it all, María’s testimony is a beautiful one: “God gives me the strength I need each day to move forward. He has great plans for my life! Jeremiah 29:11 tells me so!”

Recently, Pastor Luz, Director of Light and Life Children’s Home, took María to visit some of her relatives. Upon seeing the changes in María, the whole family decided to follow Jesus as well and experience His transformation for themselves.

The small seed of sponsorship is bearing great fruit in the lives of María, her siblings, and many other children in Paraguay and around the world.

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Kenya Boys School

by AfricaBlogKenya

At long last, the dream is a reality! Phase 1 of the Dr. Buconyori Free Methodist Boys Boarding School in Kenya is complete. Classrooms, dorms, dining hall, soccer field, and other essentials are ready to go. The first 80 boys are being selected.

The keys are being received by the leaders of ICCM and the FMC in Kenya. The leaders are overflowing with gratitude to God and to all the generous donors, prayer warriors and work teams who made this a reality. We have never been able to offer students a secondary school education. This historic “first” is worth celebrating!

With Phase 1 complete, it’s time to get ready for Phase 2! By early 2018, these freshmen will be sophomores, and 80 new freshmen will arrive. How can we keep the momentum going and be ready for that exciting day? It’s essential for us to move forward! How could we not choose to provide life-altering opportunities for another batch of boys? (And yes, the girls will be next, after Phase 4 of this project. …)

Daniel Shanzuh, ICCM’s National Coordinator for Kenya, gives us these architects’ estimates for Phase 2:

Classrooms and Bathrooms $54,069
Dormitories $59,052
Faculty/Staff Housing $61,123
TOTAL ESTIMATE $174,244

Would you help us launch the second essential stage of this huge undertaking? A generation of students with very few options for a good education are hoping and praying that we’ll be there for them yet again. Please consider a generous gift to Kenya Boys School Phase 2. Thank you!

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Restavek Freedom

by AmericasBlogHaiti

“Restavek” is a system of domestic servitude in Haiti. Long tolerated in the culture, it is finally being brought into the light and recognized as a form of child slavery.

When I first began as Director of ICCM in 2008, I learned about the restavek arrangement, whereby extremely poor parents, usually from the countryside, send their children to work for a family in a town or city. They expect the child will receive food and housing in exchange for their work. But hundreds of thousands of these children live in dire poverty with no hope of an education and in grave risk of physical, emotional and sexual abuse. They have no way to leave and no advocate to whom they can report abuse. In reality, they are slaves.

Missionary Jeannie Acheson-Munos was an advocate for these children until her death in the 2010 Haiti earthquake. A young girl named Fanya had stolen Jeannie’s heart. Jeannie did everything in her power to set Fanya free from her owners, without success. In 2007, Fanya burned to death while tending a charcoal fire. She was only one child living in restavek, but her death compelled Jeannie to help others in restavek. ICCM’s anti-trafficking project for 2017 is to partner with “Restavek Freedom,” a Haitian organization aiming to end restavek in our lifetime.

Funds from Freedom Sunday will spreadRestavek Freedom’s message throughout all 130 Free Methodist churches and schools in Haiti by several means.

All school directors and pastors will be trained in a 12-week Justice Curriculum, and then lead small groups of church members and teachers through this course. Pastors will have access to a 12-week sermon series on biblical justice.

Restavek Freedom also produces an immensely popular radio drama that educates people about the reality of the restavek system. Additionally, they organize a singing competition in which Haitian writers perform songs of freedom. Our new partnership will bring the children and teachers in our schools into the influence of these powerful communication tools.

Restavek Freedom also supports caseworkers who work to ensure children living in restavek get enrolled in school. In the worst instances of abuse, they intervene to remove a child from the situation.

Jesus came to set the captives free. Hundreds of thousands of those captives are children in Haiti. Let freedom ring!

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Alleviating Poverty through Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Reforestation

by AmericasBlogHaiti

For over 50 years, ICCM has supported children and families in Haiti through education. Tens of thousands of children have discovered the joy of learning, hope for living and the love of Jesus through our persistent efforts.

Sponsoring children’s education, providing uniforms, books, and lunches, and employing teachers and others who oversee 59 schools — these are no small accomplishments! Children’s education through the Free Methodist Church is our core mission.

Yet we know that for Haiti’s long-term economic survival, and even to keep up with the ever-increasing cost of feeding our students and working toward paying a living wage to our teachers, we also need to work on sustainable initiatives. In 2013 we began partnering with Eden Reforestation Projects in Haiti, casting a vision for Creation Care through our schools and getting children involved with “hands in the dirt” projects. Now we are taking this partnership to a whole new level, and it’s exciting!

Eden and ICCM are now partnering with Agrinotech, a successful Haitian-led agricultural group, and Harvest Craft, a small NGO, to tackle poverty and deforestation on several fronts:

  • Teaching the most effective ways of planting trees and transplanting saplings; 60% of these will be fruit trees, and others will provide materials for fencing, building, and burning. As thousands of trees are established, they form a canopy that lends shade and nutrients for ground-based crops.
  • Teaching best practices for chicken and egg projects that are now being implemented by Agrinotech and Harvest Craft.
  • Establishing nurseries at ICCM schools, training adults and upper grade students in all phases of farming.
  • Working with Haiti Providence University to create an Agricultural Extension Center where small farmers can come to learn better methods, purchase vaccines and other necessary items for raising goats, chickens and other small animals.

How do these initiatives fit with our long-term goals in Haiti? Just as extreme poverty forms the breeding ground for child labor in the restavek system, many other seemingly insurmountable problems in the lives of our friends in Haiti are caused by the poverty arising from the country’s 98% deforestation. For instance, the absence of trees degrades soil and makes subsistence farming less and less viable. Crop failures and decreasing yield undermine food security for families and the country as a whole.

Fund for Peace rates Haiti as the 10th most fragile nation in the world. Our graduates will only have a chance at a job and an improved future if the extreme poverty is addressed. Although our impact may seem small, as we partner with others and combine our resources and personnel, we can work holistically for the Kingdom of God and the betterment of Haiti.

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Good News from Chile

by AmericasBlogChile

Nicole is a beautiful 14-year-old girl. Her father (pictured here with Nicole) is Chilean of Spanish descent, and her mother is a native south Chile. Nicole lives with her parents. She divides her time between her studies and helping on the family farm.

When Nicole was born, the family had many economic and developmental needs. Her parents were very young.

After they began attending the Free Methodist Church, Nicole and her sisters became part of the ICCM program. As sponsored children, they received Bible teaching at school. Nicole shared the gospel with her parents through a Wordless Book bracelet. Today they attend church. Nicole is a children’s Sunday school teacher.

Nicole’s parents were trained in a special program the church had developed, to teach about the care of water consumption. Nicole´s mother learned how to make jams and preserves through another church program. Today they work as a family harvesting different crops which they take to the village to sell. They have a much better house now. With much effort, they are even able to pay the university fees of Nicole’s sister. In the community, they are an example of how the gospel can transform lives and open a world of possibilities using the resources that God has given them, as in this case their plot of land.

Nicole doesn’t know what she wants to study yet, but she wants to help people. It’s relevant to note the majority of children in this area yearn to overcome poverty and their current conditions, becoming a support for the good of the family.

Nicole´s family and all the ICCM sponsored children appreciate the support and the work that the church is developing for their good.

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Stand Tall

by AsiaBlogPhilippines

In a few countries, ICCM sponsors children of pastors (PKs). One of our most vibrant, successful programs for PK’s is in the Philippines. Pastors’ families deeply value the encouragement and practical assistance of sponsorship because of the financial hardship and the stigma of being Protestant PKs in a Catholic-dominated culture.

For several years, ICCM Philippines has conducted leadership development camps for ICCM sponsored PK teenagers. April 2017 saw the very first camp for 9-12-year-olds. Sixty-eight PKs at the “Stand Tall” themed event shouted, “#ProudtoBeAPastorsKid!”

Group activities and speakers helped these children see themselves as God sees them. The goal was to help them learn to appreciate their worth and realize their potential as participants in their families’ ministries. They also learned about human trafficking, children’s rights, and online safety and boundaries.

Fun-packed days began with group devotions and presentations by ICCM alumni and staff. Kids made up their own dramas and showed great creativity in crafts.
Singing lively action songs, playing games, making new friends, learning how to swim — what’s not to love? Stand Tall Camp was a roaring success!

ICCM in the Philippines has often led the way for our global team, envisioning and implementing great ministries. Youth camp for teens led by ICCM alumni was one such innovation, resulting in many teens committing their lives to Christ and embracing their calling to serve Him in ministry. Now younger children are benefiting from the special love and intervention of our excellent team, led by Pastora Charita Encarnado (pictured below not in green T-shirt). We salute you, Charita!

I learned that it is really important to have a devotional time with God. … I now understand why I need to be filled with God’s word every day.”

– Jan Angel, 12

 

 

I enjoyed the camp so much. I learned about human trafficking and how important it is to protect myself, knowing I can use my voice.”

– Angel Janen, 9

We sponsor PK’s in some “Creative Access” countries. Ministers of the gospel in those countries are often interrogated, harassed, arrested and even imprisoned. Children in those settings who experience this trauma gain strength from meeting other children with similar struggles.
In other countries, the biggest concern is extreme poverty. Pastors in places with virtually no cash economy rely on small gifts of produce from church members and often must work in other jobs to keep food on the table. ICCM sponsors’ support for their children’s education and essential needs is a much-appreciated blessing.

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To a Child, Five Years is a Long Time!

by AsiaBlogThailand

Freedom Sunday 2011 featured our first anti-trafficking project, the Lahu Hostel in Thailand. For five years, 20 vulnerable children have lived together in safety, learned about life and God, attended school and experienced a future and a hope they would not have known without our care.

This was my first visit to meet the children and get better acquainted with the house parents, Pastor Anan and Nanci. I was accompanied by Belle Villanueva, ICCM Regional Coordinator for Southeast Asia, and Americans Corey and Connie Persing, who live and work in Thailand.

The children greeted us by performing beautiful songs and presenting us with gifts of woven bags, handmade by Nanci, which involved several months of painstaking work.

Nanci is also a great cook. When I asked what the kids love about being at the hostel, they said “The food!” And … “Singing!” Nanci loves to cook and Pastor Anan loves to lead singing with his guitar, so their gifts suit their roles well.

Everyone chipped in — older kids helped to prepare the meal.  Younger kids lined up to get their photos updated to send to sponsors — and they smiled! We all got in on the feasting, picture-taking, gift-giving, soccer-playing and all-around fun of a day together as family.

FMWM personnel Corey and Connie Persing and their daughter Ikaiasha have visited the hostel several times over the ­years. Corey will now begin his role as Acting National Coordinator for ICCM Thailand. They are excited to be a part of this great work of blessing and protecting children.