Feb 2018 Updates!
Rockford, IL Trip
During the first week of January, a group from Rockford, IL made their annual trip to the Dominican Republic to serve with us in Cielo. Several of their team members were there for the first time, while others were returnees anxious to see their Dominican & Haitian friends and be back in the place they’ve grown to love. For us on staff at Mission Emanuel, it’s always such a pleasure to see these relationships deepen during these work projects. It’s a week of discovery as students and adults alike see what God has for them through the relationships He is developing. This happens with the Dominicans & Haitians, but also between each other within the team, and most importantly, between them and the Lord! Below are a few testimonies from that week.
Ethan and friend, Ashley, with his new sponsor child, Emil
“I saw how God is using Mission Emanuel to impact others and also experienced God’s love myself through the people there. Upon arrival at Cielo and experiencing the compassion of the people there, I made the decision to continually support God’s purpose of investing in these families by financially sponsoring a child. One of the tremendous things about sponsoring a child through Mission Emanuel is the opportunity to meet your child and share with the family the partnership you are entering into with them and their child. I got to meet Emil, my sponsor child, a shy 3-year-old boy that didn’t know how to interact or what to think about these new Americans, but after five minutes of interacting with him he was fully embracing me and engaging with me. The opportunity to meet Emil allowed me to see that he has a strong family foundation and how incredible the partnership between Mission Emanuel, Emil’s family, and myself will be not only for them but for myself as well.”
Ethan Blankespoor
Sarah with a friend at VBS
“One thing that has truly impacted me is working on the worksite. We get the cool chance to help build houses for people that we know. The work is not easy and we get to come alongside people to help them build. The best part of building the house is when we get to dedicate it. Getting to help the family move furniture and move into the house is so cool to see. It warms your heart knowing that one more family has a home and that you got to be a part of building it.”
Sarah Thor
“Since the very first year I attended a short-term mission trip to the Dominican Republic, I couldn’t stay away. Working, serving, and loving through Mission Emanuel is a huge passion of my heart. This year God showed me the power of love during my visit at the leprosarium. I walked over to a woman named Florinda in a wheelchair, who was all alone. As she saw me, she immediately held one of my hands between what she had left of hers. I went to hug her, and she began laughing and kissing my face. My only thought was that I couldn’t believe how much love this woman offered to me considering the horrible disease she experienced and the condition she was in. In these short moments, I was overwhelmed by the way she was recklessly loving me. I thank God for my experience with her because He reminded me that His love is more powerful than anything.”
Lydia Rittmeyer
15th Annual Women’s Trip
Following the Rockford trip, we hosted our 15th Annual Women’s Trip. Twenty-five women age 17 to 70+ from California, Wisconsin, and North Carolina taught Bible classes and craft projects to the Women’s Cooperative and a large group of community women, delivered bags of food along with Bibles and prayer for families in need, completed a home makeover, and hosted the Mission Emanuel staff banquet for more than 80 staff and teachers of the Mission and Nazaret school. Every year, the women comment, “This is the best year ever.” And it is absolutely true.
This year, the group was especially excited to learn that the Women’s Cooperative hosted their own mission week last April inviting 100 women to share their own experience. The Co-Op ladies used their sales profits to put on classes, complete a home makeover for a woman whose home was in disrepair, and deliver food packages to families. The Dominican women were so excited to share with the American group about how they have been inspired to change their own community through sharing God’s love.
If you are interested in joining us next year, email trips@missionemanuel.org for more information. Save the date: January 12-19, 2019!
