Dominican Missionaries become Haitian Support

As many of you may know, Bud and Karen Simon, David's Parents, are missionaries to the Dominican Republic (DR). They are affiliated with Missionary Ventures International (MVI). Not only do they serve as missionaries but they are also MVI's Field Coordinators for the country.

While they are safe and healthy, as you may imagine, with the earthquake in Haiti, they have been very busy in the last week. In many cases, travel thru the Dominican has been the only, best, and/or most reliable way into Haiti.

Some of what they have done this week:

Karen: Manage their DR ministry responsibilities

Blog information for their friends, family, supporters, etc.

MVI Field Coordination: supplies, volunteers, & travel of MVI's Interventions to Island

Assist Haitian Field Director with Coordination (Infrastructure issues leave him often unreachable)

Fielding Phone Calls from volunteers & those wishing to donate/inquire or plan trips

Coordination with other missionaries, churches, and non-profits to prevent duplication of efforts. They have worked with YWAM, Convoy of Hope, Foursquare Church Denomination, World Vision, and many others this week. Tragedy has magnified the opportunities to bring the Body together to be HIS hands and feet.

Financial Support Raising and planning

Pray for Bud and the Haitian Team

Bud: Travel to Haiti, Leading a team of men, supplies, medications, and donations.

Worked 5 days in Haiti doing medical, search & rescue, evacuation of the dead, comfort the wounded/sick, encourage the mourning, and pray with the people.

Bud returned home to the DR early Wed (today) morning. He will do some work on the truck, re-pack and return to Haiti before the week is out.

WHAT can YOU do?

1. GIVE- Bud and Karen are uniquely positioned to be of a direct, immediate (and long-term), personal help, both to the people of Haiti and the teams of volunteers coming to assist them.

Unfortunately, a natural disaster was not in their budget planning for this year.

You may have already given to Haiti relief efforts and the economy may have hit you hard...I understand, but I suspect, you can give (sacrifice) more. Whether it's a latte ($4), a car payment ($400), or lots more ($4,000-40,000), ALL donations are needed and will go directly to the efforts in Haiti. No donation is too big or too small. Please don't hesitate, just give.

You may click on this link: MVI Donations ****Go down to Secure Online Donations, MAKE sure to select the 5th box, "Other" and type "Simon's- DR"

2. Pray- The people of Haiti need your prayers. The volunteers need your prayers. Bud and Karen need your prayers. The governments of Haiti and the Dominican need your prayers. The UN needs your prayers. The State Department, Homeland Security, Embassy staff, and many others need your prayers. The orphans need your prayers.

3. Read- Bud and Karen's Blog.

Thank you!

Missions Team Reunion

David and I led a Missions Team to the Dominican Republic earlier this year. Our team tries to get together every couple of months to hang out and stay connected. Since Katie McFaddin, one of our teammates, is embarking on an 11-month missions project in August, we wanted to get together one more time and hang out before her departure. So, off to Baltimore and an Orioles Game we went! Dana was thrilled, as she lives in Baltimore and for once, she didn't have to drive to us. :) We missed not having Carol with us, but hopefully she can make it next time.

We sat in the first row in the upper deck, on the First Base Line. The boys got excited about several Pop-Fly Foul Balls but needed to be a few seats further down to have a chance to catch one of the balls that came our direction. Oh well, maybe next time!

***If you click on this picture, you can enlarge for a better view, note that Chad is holding Cooper and if I do say so, Chad did a great job --- he held Cooper for most of the game!

We took all the boys with us to the game even though only Colin went on the Missions Trip. It's not that we don't think Sybella would have enjoyed herself, but it was an afternoon game right in the middle of nap time, naps are important when you are 2 1/2, so we left Sybella with her Granda.

Dominican Republic Trip GROWS into Long-Term Missions

WOW!!!!!

We are so excited to share our friend Katie McFaddin with you. Katie was one of our teammates on the Dominican Republic (DR) Missions Trip in January. God has such big plans for Katie. He used the DR Trip, along with its people, our missions team, and the missionaries we served with to water a seed that He planted in Katie's heart.
I am including part of Katie's newsletter/announcement here. But the short story is that 7 days is GROWING into a YEAR of missionary service through Katie's willingness to listen to God's voice and take action on what God laid on her heart during the recent trip to the DR.

From Katie's Newsletter: I’ve shared with many that while I was on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic in January, 2009 that I felt called to serve on a long-term mission assignment, but I had no idea exactly what, where, when or how… After prayer and getting advice from other Christian friends, I interviewed for the World Race with Adventures in Missions. The World Race is a mission assignment to serve Christ in 11 countries in 11 months with a team of 50 young adults. In February, I found out that I was accepted to run the race!
…and then I developed a “Jonah-syndrome” and went back to the chaos of work and comforts of life in Washington, D.C. I’m grateful that God puts us back in our place because as of April 17, I was spewed out of the belly of the whale, or in other words, RIFFED along with a large chunk of my former co-workers due to major budget cuts.
I’m so grateful that God is in control and He’s working through me, calling me to be His hands, feet, mouth and heart in all parts of the world. I’m ready to go, serve, teach, and to be used by Him!

Katie's race will begin in August 2009 and will include the following locations: Cambodia, Egypt, Ireland, Israel, Jordan, Kenya, Romania, Thailand, Uganda, Vietnam and another country in Africa to be decided later.
If you are able, please consider supporting Katie. Prayers are always essential but consider financial support too. Katie will need to raise approximately $14,000 in the short-term just to embark on the journey and will need some additional support over the coming year. You can make a one time contribution or commit to monthly support. I assure it, it will not only be worth it but your contributions will have eternal value.

I am amazed at Katie's spirit, heart, and her willingness (in her words) to spend the year: ministering to the poor, sharing God’s love to widows and orphans, building community, growth, discipleship, and being a part of God's work all over the world. My greatest desire is to allow God to use me outside of my comfort zone and serve for His glory. During this trip, I will have the opportunity to pray for and minister to people who need to hear of salvation through Jesus Christ.

**Links to Katie's blog and support page are included.

Beard

David didn't shave while we were on the Mission Trip to the Dominican Republic. He said something about limited running water, the water always being cold, and "not having to." But I can tell you that by the time we got home, he was MORE than ready to shave. He held off until Monday morning (and work) to shave. So, we got one last picture of all this facial hair. David and I will celebrate 12 years of marriage this year and I had never seen this much hair on his face before-- probably never again!! :)

Final Notes

Very sad to see this come to a close. Let’s be honest, it’s in the high 70’s and back home in DC it is in the 30’s…would you want it to end?

On a more serious note, it has been fantastic to have 3 generations of men in the mission field at the same time and working together (My father, me, and my son).

The team has gotten close and spent every day together, we have been able to spread the love of Christ and in just one short week we were able to:
- reach out to over 300 people with medical needs,
- engage, love, and share Jesus with hundreds of kids,
- see over a hundred families prayed for, and
- encourage and serve local leaders and missionaries who are on the frontlines daily.

Thats Old

We had a chance to do some filming down in the ‘Colonial District’ this afternoon, which was a special treat. We met several local shop owners and I saw firsthand how missionaries are appreciated by the Dominican people and also the depth of relationships that have been built by those serving to reach Dominican’s for Jesus.

It was wild to film in the courtyard of THE OLDEST CHURCH in the Western Hemisphere started by Diego Columbus---son of Christopher Columbus---who set the first stone of the cathedral in 1514. All of this history is so interesting and then I looked over my shoulder and see the Hard Rock Café only 100yards away on the opposite side of the courtyard.

The stark contract between the history and traditional was a perfect reflection of the entire country, ‘diametrically opposing opposites’. Extreme poverty on one side and on the other is the poorest of the poor.

I AM HERE

One of the team members pointed out something written on the wall of many of the homes in the community we visited. “Territoio de Dios” …in English…”God is Here” or “God walks here”. This is a clear demonstration of the cultural influence in the community; but I love that you can see this on so many homes.

Would you write this on the side of your house?

In Deuteronomy 6:4-9 we are given instruction on how we should handle scripture and one of the instructions is to write it on your door frame. Without going too ‘Old Testament’ on you…how many of the 10 ways described in Deuteronomy do you live out?

The team has truly become like family and we have really come together as one in the body. It is nothing short of miraculous all the things that have happened over the last 6 days.

Extreme Makeover – DR Style!

I watched that show several times and some of the episodes are pretty moving. But today we went in and cleaned and painted the home for a woman who has given everything she has to the community and I will tell you that I was brought to tears.

Elmi has lived for the last 15 years in Sabana Perdida (The Lost Delta) which is a section of Northeast Santo Domingo that exists right beside the Rio Ozama. The Ozama River flooded terribly in November of 2007 and tens of thousands of homes were simply

washed away in the 30 foot high flooding.

This past year Hurricane Ivan pounded the shores again and water rose to the roof of her home. Still she stays because this is home and this is where she feels called to serve. Words cannot fully describe the conditions and environment.

Over the last year missionaries have brought supplies to Elmi and she has NEVER accepted any of it for her personal use. She gives everything away and today to see her face and feel her joy as we served her and were able to bless this amazing leader in the community…it was powerful!

You want me to do what? Go West!

Today we headed west of the capital city Santo Domingo to a rural compo – Norte de San Cristobal. We spent the day doing medical outreach and after our initial concerns about running out of medicine, we were able to see more people with less chaos in the same amount of time. God blessed this day on so many levels:

- Over 140 were seen by the physicians and given prescriptions…and I don’t think anyone got out of there without being prayed for.

- The neighbor open his garage to us and we had over 75 children at one point all piled into the garage coloring, laughing, playing, and seeing the love of Jesus.

- We were able to work with Pastora Daisy Mena and gave her DVD’s, CD’s, and other materials for her youth ministry as well as all kinds of sporting equipment.

At one point Colin got hit with a ball and so I took him for a walk. After several minutes I noticed more and more children following Colin and I. As we headed west down a road the kids pointed out an area with ‘shin high’ weeds. They told us it was their ‘baseball’ field, to which my ‘inside’ voice said, “You want me to do what? Play baseball in that!”. A few minutes later we broke out some tennis balls and bats. There so many kids wanting to play…I think it shows how God takes one bad thing and turns it around to His glory.

It also showed me how grateful these children were for a few tennis balls, a bat, and a very crude baseball field. Pastora Daisy has an incredible church that has some remarkable young men

 being mentored and who will change the face of that community over the next 10 years.

It Snowed in the Caribbean Today

How else does one describe white droplets in the sky? This morning while on the roof we saw “snow” according to our Dominican friend; what he was describing and seeing was actually fog but it gave us all a good laugh. Abner is a close friend and wonderful doctor who has an incredible story. This morning he gave us all a good chuckle to start the morning.

Don't worry about us...the day ended up sunny and low 80's!

God in the Little Things

Here in the Dominican Republic, serving the people is EASY. There are so many in need that you can't go more than a few feet to find something to do, say, pray about, or provide. It is miraculous in so many ways to be able to touch the people if only for a moment. A hug, a prayer, a smile, some medicine, a helping hand, any of these can touch in a profound way. Then, we get to allow God to potentially turn that moment into a touch for a lifetime or a at a minimum, the first step in an individual understanding His Love. I say all that, because I have been surprised at the things that emotionally 'shake me up' while we are with the people. I was expecting to be overwhelmed by the needs and the people. I was expecting God to work in me and the people we are serving with. I was expecting God to move me over what He would accomplish in my son while we were here. What I was not expecting, was to have the littlest details be the things that just brought me to my knees so to speak. To see how God is in EVERY little detail here is amazing!

As part of our daily planning, we divide up the items (sports equipment, bible stories for kids, toys, personal care items, bibles, medicines, etc) that we want to use in each of our days in ministry. I can't say that I pray specifically each morning about what and how to do this, we just cover each day and the efforts we will make with prayer. Yesterday, we decided to take 20 lollipops with us to give out at various times during the day. We interacted with SO many children; from the city streets to the baseball field, to the community center, to the Bible Study, there were well over 100. But, when we arrived at the orphanage (see post The Victory- La Victoria), amazingly, we had not passed out any lollipops. We pulled the lollipops out of the bag and shoved them in our pockets. I was definitely concerned that we would have a fearfully inadequate number and not be able to pass out a thing, or at the very least, have to leave out the older kids. We began playing with the girls, holding girls, hugging, passing out stickers, and taking a tour, I asked the director about how many girls were at the orphanage at that moment. She answered without skipping a beat that with girls at school or at other activities that there were 20 girls present at that moment. I was elated, overwhelmed, and in tears; I was a wreck. God is so good! He knew what we had and when it would be used. He had it planned far in advance of us. AMAZING!

You may be reading this and find it silly but I am in awe of God for moments such as these. God is in the midst of every aspect of our lives and nothing, including the number of lollipops in our pockets, is too little for Him to use for His glory.

Barrio or Bust!

First...let me give a shout out to Katie's Mom and wish her a Happy Birthday! Nice to hear you are following our adventure here in the DR. I made sure to grab a pic of Katie to post today just for you :-)

Today we headed to a ‘barrio’ – Las Palmas de Herrera. Barrio’s are neighborhoods in outer rim of the city and this particular one is a lower income community. We were doing a medical outreach to the community, working alongside Pastora Micaela Casado who pastors a small but growing church.

The doors opened around 10am and people came from all over to be seen by the physicians. At the end of the day:
- Over 135 Dominicans were seen and give medication,

- 15-20 nutritional consults,

- Handed out half a dozen bibles and many other materials for the children,

- And over 100 people were prayed with.

The shirt off my back…

Haven’t we all heard or used this cliché? Today I witnessed such poverty that I literally wanted to give children “the shirt off my back”. I wanted to empty my suitcase and come back to the states with nothing! The ‘poor’ in the United States are more likely to enjoy certain amenities than many of the middle class in Western Europe – things like air conditioning, red meat, etc. So when someone compares the ‘middle class of the US’ to a single room home in the fields of the DR…we are ridiculously wealthy.

After a hardy Dominican style lunch, we headed into one of the more remote villages where a small bible study has been started. One of our team members Carol Casco shared with mothers some general hygiene and health practices to help avoid sickness and disease. This led into Bible teaching, praise and worship, and then the children decided to bless our team with a song and sign language. People kept coming up and at one point there where close to 30 adults (mostly mothers) and just as many kids.

A few of the team members took the kids off onto the dirt roads and pulled out baseball bats and tennis balls. It was so fun watching Colin (10 years-old) engage with these kids and lead them in activities. After several hours of catch and miniature baseball games, it was time to head back to the mission house.

Another great day!

The Victory – La Victoria

When Dominican’s mention the town of La Victoria it is fraught with images of torture, pain and suffering because for decades the prison was the only thing there. Only 14 miles outside of the capital city (it was about a 45 minute commute) kind of like driving down I-66 in Virginia only with more potholes! La Victoria is still home to one of the countries larger prisons; however, Gregg & Mercy Tucker have created a way to be in the market place, have meaning and relevance, and be able to talk about Jesus.

We spent part of the morning at the “Communication Center – La Esperanza” which means The Hope. The Tucker’s helped establish this internet café which also is used to teach English and allow people to meet. This business is doing well and being sustained in the community in order to reach people with the message of Christ.

After spending time there, we walked the streets of La Victoria where we met so many children and then headed over to an orphanage. Mallory who started this tiny second floor orphanage took in 2 kids over a year ago and today has more than 20 girls between the ages of 5 and 15 living there! James 1:27 “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” When you see the crowed living conditions and yet such joy in these girls hearts and on their faces…you know they are experience the love of Christ. We spent time handing out toys and just loving on these young women. These kids just wanted to crawl up on your lap and be hugged. I can see how Jesus got angry when the disciples tried to push the children away and Jesus said, “Let them come to me for the Kingdom of God belong to these”. I find the next comment in the Bible VERY insightful and a glance into who Jesus was. The scriptures then says, “he placed his hands on each of them”. Children need to be loved and they feel that through the simple and gentle touch.

Arrival in Country

We gathered around 5am at Reagan National with the wind blowing and the temperature around 20 degrees. This team of people coming from the financial community, healthcare industry, and government has a unique make-up, to include a pregnant mother (6 months along) and a 10-year-old. Without taking anything away from each member of this team, we all come from different backgrounds and I think it demonstrates that God doesn’t call the equipped…He equips those who are called.

We landed in the capital city of Santo Domingo and I have to admit that the 80 degree weather has been awesome as we embark on this journey. Our first day was more administrative in nature but necessary preparation as we will have a packed week. We brought over a hundred pounds of sports equipment, pharmaceuticals, and teaching materials. Bud and Karen Simon (yes…my parents) who we will be working alongside gave us a run down on all the areas where we will be spending time this week.

Our hosts Greg and Melynda Burge have opened their home referred to locally as the “The Mission House.” Just hearing their story as how they and their 3 kids came to the Dominican Republic (DR) was powerful. They have a beautiful home and we spent time on the roof of the home team building just before the sunset.

The team took advantage of a relaxed evening of spending time with each other, the missionaries, and our hosts to continue to ‘gel’ as a team as we prepare to serve the people of this beautiful and yet impoverished country.

Mission Trip

Well, the days are counting down quickly, we are leaving early Sunday morning (Jan 18th) for our mission trip.

For those who aren't aware: David and I will be leading a team to the Dominican Republic (DR) for one of National Community Church’s A1:8 mission trips.
We are very busy getting everything prepared for the trip. We have spent this week getting items together to take to the people we will be working with, things like sports equipment, medications, toys, and household items. The entire team is also finalizing plans to be away from work, school, and "normal" life for a week.

We will work very diligently to keep you all informed of how our days are spent; our internet service in the DR may be limited but we hope to be able to blog at least every other day.
We would love to have prayer partners in each of you; please make it a priority to pray for us daily until we return.

Specific things that you can pray for are:
God’s preparation before us and that we be used in the best way possible for His Glory
Travel Protection- Jan 18-24
The team members: Chad, Katie, Carol, Dana, David, Colin, and Myself
The missionaries we will be working with: Bud and Karen
The people we will be ministering to: 3 medical mission days, 2 days of Vacation Bible School/Community Outreach, and 1 day of service to Dominican Ministry workers (painting and minor house repairs)
Health Protection for All, but particularly our Baby (I will be 26 weeks pregnant during the trip)
The kids we are leaving here: Colin is going with us but Connor and Sybella will be staying home and for part of the time will be in different places…the kids have been away from us before but not also separated from each other at the same time.

Thanks to each of you for your support and prayers!
Blessings,
Sharon

Raising Support!

As David posted in an earlier blog, we are officially heading to the Dominican Republic (DR) as part of the A1:8 Project (http://www.aoneeight.org/). In partnership with NCC and Salt & Light Ministries...David and I will be leading a team to the DR January 17-24, 2009! David and I have decided to take Colin with us on the trip as well. He is 10-years-old now and continues to learn the importance of living out his faith with action; we would like to broaden his perspective to the needs of people internationally who are often not blessed with the comforts of life in the United States.
We would like you to partner with us to make this mission trip possible.
Yes, we need your prayers but we also need your financial support. The cost of the trip is $1500 per person. Those costs break down as follows (approximately): 1/3 travel, 1/3 room, board, & transportation in the DR, and 1/3 directly to Projects and Needs in the DR.
I am sure that you can do the math. We need to raise $4500 to make this mission trip a reality. (see the bottom of this post for how to make a Tax-Deductible donation.)

Our mission in the DR will involve education, hygiene/health teaching, and sharing the love of Jesus. Part of our work will be in the community of El Valle. El Valle is a town in the mountains NE of Santo Domingo. We will be working with several missionaries at the "Center for Aid to Children". The goal of the center is to meet the spiritual and physical needs of children.
Many of the community children are 'orphaned' by the economics of the country. In the DR, schooling is expensive and not run by the government; many parents can not afford to send their kids to school. Parents often leave early in the morning and travel to a larger town to find work or food. They don't return until late at night. Their children would otherwise be roaming the streets, but the center takes them in and provides for them. The center provides these kids with a school, meals, medical aid, and a safe, supervised environment with hope in Jesus Christ. The center is currently serving 42 children. The Center for Aid to Children along with the community hospital (also run by these missionaries) has the desire and ability to win an entire community for Christ. We are blessed to unite with them to bring the love of Jesus to this area.

Donations:
Make checks payable to National Community Church. In the Memo line, please write "Simon-DR Trip." A Tax Receipt will be mailed out in January to all whose checks are received by Dec 27th.
Mail checks to:
3873 Chain Bridge Rd.
Fairfax, VA 22030

*If your employer provides for matching donations, the EIN number for NCC is 52-2016840, please make sure to notify us about the matching donation so that we can link it to the DR Trip.
**Any funds raised beyond the required $4500 will go directly to projects and needs in the DR.
We appreciate both your financial and prayer support!

In the City

While I was in Atlanta several weeks ago this song just hit me hard. With so much going on in our nation, people struggling economically, and the fear that exists in society...I just couldn't help but to be over powered by the hope that is expressed in this song. 

My heart goes out in faith, hope, and love for:

DC, Seattle, Santa Domingo, and all the other great cities across the globe. 

Lots of planning

Well we are officially heading to the Dominican Republic (DR) as part of the A1:8 Project (http://www.aoneeight.org/). In partnership with NCC and Salt & Light Ministries...Sharon and I will be leading a team to the DR in January of 2009!

We are meeting to discuss the details and inform people of how they can join us in the DR. Sharon and I will be at Ebz Coffeehouse in downtown DC Saturday night (Oct 25) at 7:30pm and then Sunday (the 26th) at 12:00pm in the Food Court at Ballston Common Mall.

More to follow...

Quick Notes and Consistent Hurricanes

Just wanted to leave a few quick insights, catch-up on a busy weekend and mention a few points. I have not blogged for a week now and I think it facebook and twitter’s fault :-)

However, my folks (Karen and Bud Simon) are really starting to update their blog and fight now it is more important than ever. Gustav did not start in New Orleans, Hanna did not magically appear along the Carolina’s, and Ike didn’t rise up out of the Florida coast line. They all started somewhere off the western coast of Africa and headed west. One of their favorite ‘rest stops’ along the way has been the D.R. (Dominican Republic); my folks have been down there in full time ministry now for 4 years and while tropical storms and hurricanes are not new…this season has not really let up.

We are looking to put a team together and head down there in early 2009 (January or February)…in the meantime we are also looking at ways to help the support the work and efforts of those on the ground day after day.

http://simonsalt.blogspot.com/