stories
What’s in your basement?
Kevin says the basement he grew up in was scary until he was in eighth grade! Filled with large boxes, dark shadowy areas, relics from ancient Japan, and maybe even a few ghosts or monsters! Maybe your basement is the same or maybe it holds treasures you’ve forgotten about.
God works in miraculous ways. One day, this past July while in the States, I went to pick up a donation of baby clothes to bring back to Colombia for a missionary to use in a refugee shelter. Upon arrival, I mentioned that after I left their home I was going to stop by a craft store and pick up children’s crafts to do with a mission team that was coming the following week. The woman, KB, invited the boys and I to her basement! There, were tubs, boxes, and so many craft items, many of them brand-new! So many that we packed two full suitcases of blocks, magnet activities, stickers, crafts, more stickers, paper, and crafting kits - everything we needed for the mission trip. Karen’s “teacher brain”was at work as her and KB looked through every box and bag in the basement rooms! She had kept those things from VBS, Sunday school projects, but saw how else those could be used in hearing the needs that we shared with her. What a blessing it was for the children and the mission team to use all the donated items that week. Last week, I passed the boxes on to another missionary to use for the next month at the shelter. Those boxes and suitcase of activities will be used and passed more times than we can imagine, sowing the seeds of the Gospel!
God’s timing!
The Saturday morning after Northside Baptist Church had left just the day before, Karen sent Benjamin to the store to pick up something she needed to make breakfast. When Benjamin returned with the groceries, he ran inside so excited but first apologized it took him so long. With excitement in his voice, he said, “Mom! As I was leaving the local store I was walking to my scooter and I had to say excuse me to a lady standing in my way. The lady turned and said, “Hello! Good morning Benjamin. I looked up and it was the lady Mr. Jim and I had witnessed to that Wednesday!” It was incredible that Benjamin had another encounter with the woman and we pray for more of those moments as we see God working in our little community of Cedritos, Bogota, Colombia.
Back 2 School Bash
When Northside Baptist Church contacted us and said they wanted to help support what we do with the VBS offering their children had raised, we were honored and our minds began thinking of how it could best be used.
First we began at the beginning with our job. As Logistics Cordinators, we support the missionaries on the field. Karen’s mind, with her mother’s heart, went straight to the missionary kids!
Second, with tears in her eyes, she had a zoom call with the Children’s Director and Associate Pastor to explain what was on her heart, the missionaries’ kids (or as they’re also called, TCKs/Third Culture Kids).
TCK’s seem to just “go with the flow”, but do they really?! Many TCKs have moved countries and schools so many times. They pack just two suitcases and have to leave their favorite things behind, like Mr. Moosey or that favorite Lego set because it just cannot fit into the suitcase. Birthday parties are always with new friends but who are also now their family because family is so far away.
Karen asked all the missionary parents to help fill out a “These are a few of my favorite things “ form and well, Northside got to shopping!
Seventeen TCK’s attended a Back to School Bash that Karen and others put together with food, games, a book swap, and time together just playing outside. At the end, Karen was able to share that kids in Indianapolis, Indiana have been learning about Colombia, praying for them, and also giving their change each day of VBS so our TCKs could have a few of their favorite things.
The excitement in the room on the Monday before school started was LOUD! Seeing happy kids sitting in a circle while they opened their individual bags of goodies and letters from Hoosier kids and adults was fantastic. Chick-fil-a sauce, candy, soccer balls and Legos were some of the biggest hits because they are either not available or just too expensive to buy in Colombia)!
What a blessing Northside Baptist Church and VBS participates have been to the TCK’s in Colombia.
Please be praying for our missionaries’ kids in Colombia that are serving alongside their parents!
Teaching Together
We laugh when we tell the story of how we ended up teaching every Saturday (our only day off) 8 am-12pm. Kevin decided we needed to stay after church one Sunday for what we thought were announcements. It was and because we did, the Pastor volunteered us to teach a children’s activity the following Saturday, so Kevin said yes. As I am continuing to learn Spanish, I understood a great deal but in the car, I asked Kevin to fill me in. Well, he did! What we didn’t know, is what a great blessing it was to not only teach the ten young students the Bible and English every Saturday morning, but what a blessing it was to see our kids teaching, participating, and serving. We always hear parents talk about how proud they are of their child’s achievements in sports and academics but don’t forget to recognize the acts of service they do.
Serving the Mission Behind the Mission
The job that we have is important when living overseas! What does a Logistics Service Coordinator do? That is a great question. Imagine going inside a bank to deposit a check. If you’re old enough to remember, you might shudder and think, “That’s why we have a drive-through…” If you’re not, you may be thinking, “I just use my phone, grandpa. Here let me show you…” Kevin had to go to the bank to update his address and get a new ATM card for the account he has had for 7 years. After 4 different visits each lasting three hours, he finally updated his address!! His ATM card was another battle for another day! Our mission is to share the Gospel with those around us, some are focused on different groups of people like the Indigenous or urban areas like the universities. Daily, they spend time sharing their faith, preaching the Gospel, and getting to know those around them. Now imagine, if each of our missionaries, had to go inside a bank, get their drivers license, or renew their visa paperwork, but each of those tasks required research in a different language and culture, waiting in line not just a few minutes but hours over several days. They would have an opportunity with those waiting in line, but it wouldn’t be strategic or a good use of their time. This is where Logistics comes in – Kevin works hard with his team to keep the missionaries on task by taking on these types of activities, so the Gospel continues to be shared where God has called missionaries…not necessarily the bank or the DMV, but the college campuses, the indigenous communities, and throughout Colombia.
Too much Spanish
A most recently story is that currently the boys are going to an English speaking school in Colombia. Andrew received a note home from his teacher that said, he was speaking too much SPANISH in class today. We are proud of our boy’s Spanish level that they have. We have enjoyed seeing them run and play with Spanish speaking children daily. They can order their own food and enjoy life here because of their Spanish knowledge.
Saying goodbye
Saying goodbye was harder than I thought as a mom. We knew we were only going to be in Mexico for a year or less so making deep friendships could or could not happen. I honestly was only thinking about our friendships. Yes, it was hard saying goodbye to the others who we knew for three months prior. Yes, it was hard saying goodbye to my language partner Edith who sold Mary Kay from her car outside the boy’s school. The hardest goodbyes were seen as my children had to say goodbye once again to friends, teachers, and a school they loved. I worked diligently to make cupcakes for their last day, a scrapbook of their year so all their friends could sign it, and we let them stay until the last minute to say goodbye to friends and teachers. They truly were blessed in their Mexican school with an excellent director, teachers, office staff, and friends. As the only Americans in their school, they were invited to more birthday parties then I can count, and the parents were always willing to help and assist me when trying to understand more about what was expected for a Science Project. The boys made friends and became more fluent in Spanish, yes, more than mom!
Welcomed In
A family from our church, invited us over for lunch after the service. Church runs from 11 am until 2 pm and usually a nap follows. We put aside our expectations not knowing how long we would be expected to stay, and going along for the ride. We decided that we would make no plans for afterwards and just enjoy our new-found friends’ hospitality. Lunch was delicious with homemade fettuccine Alfredo, carnitas with hot corn tortillas, and chicharrones (Mexican pork rinds). Benjamin loved the chicharrones while Andrew had thirds for the carnitas! We laughed through lunch, practicing Spanish, telling stories, and hearing about how the family came to be in Puebla. It was a great and delicious way to start off our time!