2019 Summer Global Impact Newsletter

by | Jul 12, 2019 | Global Impact Newsletters

We’ve had hundreds of people serving around the world in 2019. Now it’s time to start preparing for life-change in 2020. While all trips focus on tasks, the greater goal is to connect with people from a different community. By doing so, you enrich each other’s lives. While some trips may seem to only require a certain skill-set (medical or educational, etc.), in reality all skillsets are needed on every team. If you feel called to serve on a particular trip, perhaps it’s because God has something in mind for you that you might not even realize yet?

Sign up today to make a difference in 2020: www.cor.org/trips

South Africa

A group of Resurrection volunteers just returned from South Africa last month! On their first day after arriving in South Africa, the team spent the day serving alongside members from West View Methodist Church, which is our partner church in South Africa, to “bless the school”.  Together, they painted and then pampered the teachers.

 Our team provided a workshop for the Ditshego staff on team building and community development, and counseling training focused on empathy, care, and compassion. The team also participated in art projects, painting, and Bible lessons with the children.

The word Ubuntu means “I am because you are”.  It is a South African word that describes Mooiplaas as the community takes care of each other.  One example is when a young girl lost both of her parents and was orphaned.  The community came together and even though they have very little, they provided a place for her to stay.  Each week a family would take care of her. That is community!

Read more on the blog:  https://globalimpact.blogs.cor.org/category/south-africa/

We have another team headed to South Africa in September.

Visit www.cor.org/southafrica to learn more.

Puerto Rico

Resurrection began sending teams in early 2018 following the devastation of Hurricane Maria in the fall of 2017.  In 2019 we will have 40 total team members from Resurrection serving alongside 80 volunteers from the congregation and community of Hatillo located on the northwest side of the island.  This brings our total volunteers serving in Puerto Rico up to 74.  Many return home with hopes of going back soon!

Most of the work in 2019 has centered around Samuel Culpepper Church where we have painted the fellowship hall, cleaned/organized the nursery, painted a fence, put flooring in the mezzanine, tore down a concrete wall in the sanctuary to create a larger altar area and other cleaning projects.  We’ve also put tile flooring in a parishioner’s home and begun work on one of the local high schools.

As we head into 2020, we will continue the projects already begun and others as they come up.  Working with Pastor Eric Hernandez, his staff and congregation is truly a blessing to us!

Visit www.cor.org/puertorico to learn more.

Malawi

I went to Malawi with enthusiasm to learn about the culture and the people while providing medical treatment. I learned so much by watching the Malawians welcome strangers and share their hope in Christ. They worship Jesus with pure joy and zeal on their faces. Hugo interpreted many of their prayers and sang in Chichewa, the native Malawi language. His prayers for our team were deeply sincere and moving. I understand why the Malawians are referred to as the “warm hearts of Africa”.

After visiting four villages, Dzalak refugee camp, and working alongside Malawian clinicians and visiting ZOE project I feel my eyes have been opened to what really matters in life. This experience puts my life struggles in perspective. The way Malawians remain faithful even with limited resources is incredible to me. Issa, my interpreter at the refugee camp shared his favorite bible verse: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10) This speaks volumes of his hope in a loving God even after spending 20 years displaced in this refugee camp. He touched my heart with his faithfulness.

I will never forget the overwhelming emotions I felt when visiting the ZOE project with the vulnerable children & youth singing praises, holding up welcoming signs in English and cheering for our team. This touching celebration brought me to tears. I have never been celebrated but can only image this is a glimpse of what it must feel like when we return home to our Creator. My life will never be the same from this experience. So grateful I said “yes” to serving and hope to return.

Visit www.cor.org/malawi to learn more.

Honduras

This year we have 8 teams serving in Honduras in one of our two partnering communities: Obraje or Ciudad España. Six have gone and returned with 2 more heading out this weekend (including RezLife!). One of our bloggers wrote: “We are so grateful for the ways that our team was blessed by the Honduran people this week, our global brothers and sisters. There are countless stories and experiences, expressions of team work, love and communication, sometimes even without words. We are called to live a life like Christ, to help those in need, to build relationships with people outside the city limits of Kansas City. Our partnership in Honduras is strong and impactful and necessary for not only the Hondurans, but the Missourians (and Kansans) as well. We learned this week that we are all “Americans” and we most certainly are. We will treasure the time we had in this beautiful country with these beautiful people. “

“Missions is something so meaningful, you can’t measure it in Dollars or Lempira, English or Spanish, bananas or plantains. It is an experience like no other, all are encouraged to step up, sign up and spread the love of God around the world, outside the borders of comfort and home.”

Where will you serve in 2020?

Student Sponsor Program in Ciudad España

It is our dream to sponsor students with financial need at Juan Wesley K-12 through university allowing them to get better jobs to help their families and community. We currently have 62 sponsors sponsoring 112 students K-12 and 32 university students for a total of 144 students. Our first university graduate since the program began is due to graduate this September with her degree in Administration and Educational Management and will soon be looking for a job! Our sponsors send and receive letters twice a year to their students, and if they are on a mission team, they are able to meet their students and family members over lunch. The excitement and joy of meeting and spending time together this summer has been amazing! For more information about the sponsor program, contact cheryl.mcmorris@hotmail.com or go to cor.org/honduras and scroll to the bottom of the page.

Visit www.cor.org/honduras to learn more.

Haiti

Deciding to go to a country like Haiti on a mission trip is an exciting, yet daunting decision to make. Going to a country I’d never been to before with a history such as Haiti’s was not a decision I took lightly. However, the passion of the volunteers, who had traveled there before, gave me the confidence to decide that this was the right decision for me.

After making the decision to go – the next decision was – what will I do? What could I do? This was a CHE trip – an educational partnership with people who live in Haiti. It was suggested that I teach a micro-enterprise class and we were given good CHE guidelines and materials to help us prepare. But there were still so many questions and unknowns. We had to just trust that God would lead the process and we prepared ourselves as much as we could.

The first ‘class’ that we led was a most interesting and surprising experience. Most of the participants were young and middle-aged adults. I was impressed on how well they were dressed. It rather surprised me that these people, without many resources, dressed in what was probably their nicest clothes to meet with us. It showed to me the respect and importance learning was to them. They were so eager to learn and participated in the group discussions with much enthusiasm. I learned that the main concept behind CHE was not so much to teach, but to introduce ideas and then ask questions, leading the participants to discover answers for themselves. It was a blessing to watch them participate with such eagerness as they discovered new ideas and discussed them with each other.

After reflecting on my experience upon my return, I was struck by how concerned I was before the trip on the unknown aspects of what exactly I would be doing, and how easily the process flowed with the Haitians grateful and hungry for knowledge and our team efforts. They were so receptive and open to work with our team, it confirmed that sometimes we don’t need to worry about the unknown and just trust the process. They were warm and grateful hosts. In addition, their trust in God inspired me as I observed some of the challenges they faced and yet their faith was so strong. As we left each community, I felt I was leaving friends and I knew that someday I would come back to renew these friendships and forge new ones.

Visit www.cor.org/haiti to learn more.

Costa Rica

Costa Rica is a wonderful place for multi-generational teams to serve together since the trips are for ages 10 and up. A team just returned a few weeks ago. Here is a snippet from their last day serving: “Today was our last day at VBC and it was truly an amazing day!!! Each day was filled from morning until night, and today was no exception. Half of us started the day at the Cocori church where we continued to paint the beams with the Rustoleum paint. Pastor Barnabas shared his testimony with the team: he is 24 years old and was assigned to this church three years ago, he has a huge heart to serve the community and has the passion and drive to make things happen. The community is turning around, many of the homes that had previously been used as drug homes are being demolished and many more people are coming to church.” You can read more about our teams serving in Costa Rica on the blog.

Visit www.cor.org/costarica to learn more.