The Hawk Family

Volleyball

2009-07-18T14:39:00.002-04:00

Long Jump

2009-07-17T21:24:00.002-04:00

UNO

2009-07-17T20:59:00.001-04:00

Wrestling

2009-07-17T00:16:00.001-04:00

Anna & Juan

2009-07-17T00:11:00.001-04:00

Fast Soccer

2009-07-16T23:51:00.001-04:00

High Jump

2009-07-16T23:46:00.002-04:00

My Ref!

2009-07-16T23:43:00.001-04:00

Fooseball

2009-07-16T23:38:00.002-04:00

Arm Wrestling

2009-07-16T23:34:00.001-04:00

Rigoberto grabbed the campus title as the strongest man on campus.

Eating Contest

2009-07-16T23:32:00.000-04:00

Glad it's not me.

5K Race

2009-07-16T23:26:00.001-04:00

The boys don't really train for the 5K race. It is unbelievable the strength they have.

Opening Ceremonies

2009-07-16T23:19:00.000-04:00

Opening ceremonies were on Thursday morning. We sang the national hymn, had a minute of silence for our employee who passed away two weeks ago, sang Happy Birthday to the School (and the boys rang the bell 55 times during this same time to celebrate our 55 years), and finally Travis had the opening kick to kick off the day. GREAT DAY!

Scripture Memorization

2009-07-16T23:02:00.001-04:00

The boys were given 5 days to memorize as much scripture as they could from Genesis 39 - 41. There were 103 total verses split how they wanted between 5 members on a team. Each team memorized the same verses to battle it out for a win.

Day of School Drama Contest

2009-07-16T22:53:00.001-04:00

The boys are great at inventing dramas and acting them out. They can be so funny!

Day of School Drawing Contest

2009-07-16T22:39:00.000-04:00

Each team picks two small boys and two big boys to be the team drawers. They then compete to see who can draw the El Sembrador church better.

El Sembrador 55 Years

2009-07-16T22:35:00.001-04:00

We're celebrating the 55th anniversary of El Sembrador. We call this Days of the School because we have 2 1/2 days full of fun events for the boys. We split the boys into 4 teams (blue, red, green, & yellow). It is always a battle to see which team will win. Different staff members are captains. I was the captain of the yellow team this year. It is fun being a team "coach" and encouraging the boys along. Look at all our fun events!

My Beautiful Girls

2009-07-15T23:07:00.001-04:00

Aren't these just the prettiest girls you've ever seen? I must be the luckiest mom in the world. I have two really great kids! Anna gives me a million hugs a day just to tell me how much she loves me. Ally talks to me all day just to remind me how many questions she can squeeze into a day.

Andy & Yuny

2009-07-15T22:58:00.001-04:00

These beautiful gals help me run the hotel. Yuny (pictured left) takes care of all the cleaning. Andy (pictured right) takes care of the cooking. I take care of the scheduling and work closely with both of them for event planning and much more. I love working with these two. We get along great and have become good friends as well.

Soccer Tournament for II Bach (Senior Class)

2009-05-15T21:50:00.001-04:00

I'm (Lori) the "maestra de guia" (otherwise what would be the guidance counselor for the Senior class this year. They are going on a class trip the first weekend of September (well, I guess that means we're going too). We're taking them to the North Coast to stay at a hotel there, take them to the mall (a first for many of them), going to a natural waterfall, ziplining, hiking, and much more. We will do all this in a little over three days. How will we fit it all in? The boys are raising funds to do all this. We're holding soccer tournaments for area schools here at El Sembrador and having food sales during the tournaments. The boys are helping make all the food and then sell it. They're doing a great job so far. I'm so proud of them and their hard work. Once these boys have a goal, there is no stopping them!

Agricultural Mechanics Class

2009-05-11T22:10:00.000-04:00

Travis wanted to do something special for the Agricultural Mechanics teach and his class for all the extra hours they put into fixing broken down equipment. They even worked during many of their break times and after hours. We're happy to have our new mechanic here. He and the boys keep our equipment running smoothly. The boys seem to be learning so much with him as their teacher and really respect him for both his hard work ethic and Christian character. We're thankful for our good employees.

Mother's Day

2009-05-10T21:33:00.001-04:00

Mother's Day is always special at El Sembrador. I love to be "mom" to all these boys on campus. We had a great turn out of Mom's and families this year. We had a great service in the church and the boys were able to give each of their Mother's a gift. A great drama was presented with King Soloman deciding which was the true mother of the baby. We had a meal following with 200+ people for a chicken & rice meal. GREAT MOTHER'S DAY here!

Electrician Needed

2009-02-26T21:23:00.000-05:00

Anyone want to try to figure these wires out? Ha!

A Much Needed Vacation!

2009-01-05T21:01:00.000-05:00

We were able to go on a family vacation finally. We left Honduras for 4 weeks and went to Florida. We spent a week alone, just the four of us. We were able to get some much needed rest and relaxation. We spent our first week in a condo in Miami watching tv for the first time in forever, Lori read a lot of books, we went to the beach, and had a lot of fun. Then we met Lori's parents in Daytona on the beach. We had a fun time and bought a time share so we can start doing this every year. By the way for those of you looking for a time share.......Wyndhm is really great. My sister and her family then joined us the following week. My parents rented a condo in Orlando and we had some good family time. We stayed up late playing cards and talking plus we were albe to go to Disney World (a gift to all of us from Lori's parents) and Sea World. We were able to play some good practical jokes as well with some lovely pictures, but we'll have to keep it at that. We spent more time with Lori's parents after at another nice Wyndham condo/resort. Fun times!

Jorge Samuel Nuñez

2008-12-04T20:10:00.002-05:00

This is what it is all about folks. This is one of the things that continues to touch our hearts and the reason we want to serve here in Honduras. Read this letter Samuel wrote to his sponsor church:

Lydia of Zion,

Hi! God bless you. May he prosper you in all of your paths, your plans, and protect you. There are my wishes. The reason I write to you is to show my appreciation for your support this past year in preparing me here at Escuela El Sembrador. I appreciate your prayers and I know God put you in my path to be a blessing to me.

Thank you so much for the guitar you gave to me. The truth is this has already been beneficial to me and my classmates and will continue to be. I’ve always asked God to help me get a guitar from my adolescence. Thanks to God and to you, I was able to get one.

I want to tell you a little bit about my life and the dreams I hope to accomplish. I was born in a home where there were great economic, social, and physical difficulties and much more. From the time I was small, I began working and I had big conflicts within my own self because of this. I thought many times that my family was the most desperate of everyone around. My self-esteem was very low and I always felt like a loser. The most difficult thing had to endure was my Mother’s health. She had ulcers on her feet and she has suffered so much. In the middle of it all, she had to be strong to help us to grow up in the midst of her problems. Well, I can’t tell you everything or I would never finish. This small bit part of my life will give you an idea of my growing up years. I don’t tell you all this so you will feel sad for me, but because I want to demonstrate the changes God makes in the human life.

Although their have been issues with our family, I know that God began a good work in us and he will continue until Christ returns. Thanks to God, almost all of my family is serving the Lord and working hard in ministry for Him. My dream since I became a Christian was to serve Him in a special way.

I’ve always dreamed of being a good person. I want to accomplish success in three areas: spiritual success, family success, and social success.

I want to tell you that of the nine of us siblings, there are only two boys and the rest are girls. I didn’t really enjoy growing up with my brother because we are very different.

Right now I have six nephews (all boys!) from the ages of 10 to 17 years old. The good thing about each of them is they all enjoy being at church and they all enjoy music. The most difficult thing for them has been split families. Two of them don’t have fathers, another two of them have fathers but they don’t have any emotional support from them they need, and the other two, although they are economically good, their families are really different because to have had to leave their children and wives (my sisters) to make a good living. One of them lives in the capital city of Tegucigalpa and the other went to Spain.

So, about these six nephews of mine, I enjoy each of them and they are all fighters to be able to continue on in life. My dream is for them and me to form a music team together, uncle and nephews so they can give their all to the Lord. I’ve already talked to them and they are all motivated. I don’t know if this is in the Lord’s plans but I know He will provide. I have more dreams to fulfill but maybe at another time I can share more with you.

I hope you never give up on praying for me and my family and for all the plans for my future.

Brothers and Sisters of the church, thank you for everything!

I hope you will write to me as well because I would like to know more about each of you.

Don’t forget: What God has for your future is even better than what has been in your past.

I wish you a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year in Jesus, our king and savior.

Attentively,

Jorge Samuel Nuñez

Juan Carrasco

2008-12-04T20:00:00.001-05:00

Here is another great letter written by Juan:

Andy & Reatha,

Hi! It is a pleasure and privilege to have this paper and pen to be able to write to you. I am happy and content to know you. You have been a part of the formation of my life. We’ve been able to pass some good moments in the presence of God. My loving sponsors, thank you so much for your incomparable and unconditional support.

When I am with my family I always talk about you and tell them how special you are to me. I admire you both. Aside from your work and your ages, what I admire is how you enjoy life together. This is great. Thank you for expressing this liberty with me.

Thank you for the nice Bible concordance you sent to me for my birthday. The night I got this gift my roommates asked me if Doña Lori had sent food back for them. I said, yes, but not the type you are thinking of. It is the best type of “food” for me, the bread of life. This was one of the biggest surprises I’ve had in my life. I gave the book a hug and said, Thanks FATHER.

The day Doña Lori had sent for me to come to her house for my Christmas gift from you I had just gotten a toenail removed and I had to walk to her house very carefully because it was night time. She said you were willing to let me use the money you had left for my Christmas gift for the expenses I was incurring for our outfits we had to have to wear to the graduation of the other Bible School students. I want to thank you so much for this.

The tools and help you have sent me have continued to help me.

Andy & Reatha, thank you so much for your love and for caring for me.

My biggest wish I have for my life is to become a Christian author and write books. Please help me to pray to God about this and that He will give me strength.

May God bless you today and always.

With love and care,

Juan Carrasco

Tranlating Letters

2008-12-04T17:05:00.001-05:00

Today I've been working hard to get letters stuffed to send to the states with some men who are leaving this weekend. I'm stuffing letters from the Christmas party as well as 150 sponsorship letters. There were several letters which had to be translated still and I worked on those as well. Two of them just touched my heart and I had to share them with you. Take a look at these two young men's words.

ITESH Graduation

2008-11-28T23:00:00.000-05:00

This is the fifth and last graduation for us for the year. We had three students going to the Instituto Tecnico El Sembrador Horeb school this year. They were: Alfredo Santos Euceda, Jose Israel Otero, and Jose Misael Baca. We were asked by Israel to walk with him as his parents for the graduation, which was a beautiful honor. Both Alfredo and Israel asked us if we would be "padrinos" for them. So, we walked with them and signed as their witnesses. Alfredo was given the honor of leading the class in the national hymn because of his good grade on the test. Israel was given the outstanding Christian character award. These boys continue to make us proud. They are both currently making decisions as to what they will do next. Alfredo is looking for work and Israel is trying to decide between the airforce and university.

High School Graduation

2008-11-26T23:07:00.000-05:00

This was our first year to go through high school graduation here on campus. The focus was always on getting the boys through 9th grade and vocational school. We felt a sense of pride to watch our boys receive their diplomas. Travis and I were asked to be the "padrinos de la clases" (the class parents) and sit at the head table at the graduation. We put on a dinner for 175 people afterward. Everything went great.

Bible School Students

2008-11-15T22:14:00.001-05:00

To say thanks to the Bible School students for putting on such an awesome campamento, we had a special lunch for them and then had a special time with them afterwards to give them each a devotional and then we played "Robber". It is the game where each person gets a number and they pick a gift in that order. I had fifteen gifts on the floor and they could take a gift from the floor or steal from someone who had already opened a gift they wanted. They had so much fun stealing gifts from eachother.

Campamento 2008

2008-11-14T22:35:00.001-05:00

This year was the second annual youth camp held here on campus. The Bible School students and director organized the entire event from the music team to lead the songs, activities, services, etc. They even got both dorms ready to house everyone. We had 175 in total with youth, leaders, etc. It is always fun for me on the hospitality side to try and plan the right amount of help in the kitchen, enough food, etc. when we don't have a clue how many will come. But, it always works out. This was a great spiritual time for everyone involved. We're so proud of our Bible School students and their dedication.

Industrial Mechanics Graduates

2008-11-09T23:45:00.001-05:00

Agricultural Mechanics Graduates

2008-11-09T23:39:00.002-05:00

Woodworking Graduates

2008-11-09T23:34:00.001-05:00

Woodcarving Graduates

2008-11-09T23:28:00.000-05:00

9th Grade Graduates

2008-11-09T23:21:00.002-05:00

Bible School Graduation

2008-11-09T20:46:00.000-05:00

The Bible School graduation was today too. We had three students graduating from the Bible Institute and many more graduating from the intensive courses program. It is great to see these outstanding students accomplishing this and be ready to pastor in our Holiness churches.

Vocational and 9th Grade Graduation

2008-11-09T11:09:00.001-05:00

We held our graduation today for 9th grade and vocational students. After much hard work by the students all year long in their areas, they were able to walk proudly today and recieve their diplomas. Their success is our success!

Ally Helps Mommy

2008-11-09T08:08:00.002-05:00

Ally helps me get the gifts ready before the graduation. Isn't she a sweetie?

Testimony Night

2008-11-05T23:53:00.002-05:00

Testimony night is when all the graduates get time to share words about changes they've made in their lives, thanks to different ones who helped them get to that point, etc. It is always my favorite time, to hear what each graduate has to share.

Special Little Friends

2008-11-03T18:04:00.002-05:00

Lixy is just one of those precious little ones close to our hearts.

A New Baby on Campus

2008-10-24T19:03:00.002-04:00

Our head counselor and his wife just moved to campus this year and they had their third baby on October 23rd. He is a welcomed addition to campus and to the Salgado family. Luis and Patti already have two little girls so a little boy is extra special for them.

El Sembrador Students Growing in the Lord!

2008-10-19T17:00:00.002-04:00

We count it a privilege to serve teh Lord at El Sembrador. We have boys who are yearning to find the place where they belong. When they make that decision in their life to turn it all over to Him, it thrills our souls. Today was our baptismal service in the morning. We watched thirteen profess their faith in front of the entire campus. Praise the Lord! Eleven of these were students, one an employee's daughter, and the other a worker in a home on campus.

Volleyball Tournament

2008-10-13T17:45:00.003-04:00

We've had volleyball tournaments this month. I even formed a team of ladies. We were out of our minds to go up against all these Honduran teenagers, but we had a blast (and we didn't lose all of our games). Pictured are the first and second place teams.

Andy's New Guitar

2008-10-10T17:38:00.001-04:00

Today is Andy's birthday. His sponsors, Ted & Donna Gastier, purchased him a guitar for his birthday/Christmas present. Andy knew something was at our house for him so he came VERY EARLY, first thing in the morning so we could wish him a Happy Birthday and so he could get the gift he had been waiting on. What a surprise for him.

Visit to LaPaz

2008-10-02T16:46:00.001-04:00

I like to go to the village of LaPaz to visit and pray with different families. The kids wouldn't let me leave without playing "pato pato ganzo" otherwise known as duck duck goose. I had group members with me which made the game even more interesting as their Spanish words of "plato, gato, among others came out instead of pato. The kids enjoyed chasing us and laughing at the funny North Americans I brought with me.

Ramon & Bessy are About Ready to have the BABY!

2008-09-29T17:32:00.002-04:00

Diane and I went to the hospital in Juticalpa to be there for Ramon and Bessy, but she most likely won't have the baby until tomorrow. Ramon is an x-student. For those of you who remember the bad accident in November of 2006, Ramon is the one who was thrown from the pick-up truck bed.

Day of the Pastor

2008-09-07T22:16:00.000-04:00

To celebrate Day of the Pastor, the ladies on campus sang the hymn Stand Up for Jesus (in Spanish of course). We sounded pretty good.

Boy's Birthday Party

2008-09-05T22:26:00.003-04:00

We celebrated the boys having birthdays in July, August, and September tonight. It was a fun time. Diane Johnson, a missionary volunteer (Anna & Ally's school teacher), found a neat idea in a magazine. So, we took t-shirts, got them wet, and then froze them in a large freezer (putting wax paper in between each one). We had five boys volunteer to come forward to see who could open the frozen shirt first and put it on. Each boy got to keep the t-shirt and the winner won another t-shirt. There was singing, cake, and a bottle of pop for all the boys, workers, and children of course. Each boy got a bag of goodies including a toothbrush, toothpaste, candy, and a hat. Then they came to our house after the party to get their real gift, a shirt. Some chose El Sembrador shirts and others chose polo shirts. We are always in need of shirts for prizes for the boys. If you ever find a good deal and would like to donate some, the most popular sizes are large youth (14/16), xl youth (16/18), and small adult.

Pizza & Uno Afterwards!

2008-09-03T23:33:00.000-04:00

After we finished our event at the retirement home we took the boys out for pizza and played uno while we waited. They shared the entire time about the stories that each of the men had; where they had worked, where they lived, how many children they had, etc. It was great hearing how involved they got in their lives. They decided they want to do this again. The boys are already trying to get jeans the men can fit into size 30 and 32 as well as sombreros to take them as this is what the men told our boys they would really like. We're excited to see them get so involved in others lives. They definitely learned the lesson about serving others. Praise the Lord!!!!

The Charamuska

2008-09-03T23:09:00.000-04:00

A charamuska is a popsicle in a bag. We brought these to the retirement home to share with the men we were visiting. There was one man who didn't want to talk with any of our students. He thought he was too good to talk to a room full of teenagers and sing with us. He sat off to the side. Miguel Angel, one of our students, took him a charamuska. When he did, the man instantly made friends with him and it was finally okay that we were there to visit.

Retirement Home

2008-09-03T22:51:00.001-04:00

The boys enjoyed talking to each of the members of the home more than anything. They made us so proud the way they interacted with the men.

Discipleship Class Spending Time at the Retirement Home

2008-09-03T22:34:00.001-04:00

The men at the home enjoyed the singing!

Discipleship Class Visits the Retirement Home

2008-09-03T20:42:00.000-04:00

Before our discipleship class went to the retirement home, I prepped them about making sure to spend time with each member of the home. Our class of fifteen students made us so proud as they shared and listened.

Discipleship Class: Can you Serve Others?

2008-09-02T21:11:00.000-04:00

When I spoke with our discipleship class about serving others, although active in participation in class, they didn't think they were old enough to be able to serve others. By the end of the class period, they had changed their minds about service to others and we decided to go to the old folks home in Catacamas and "SERVE". It is rare in Honudras to have family members in a facility as the majority of people are taken care of by family members in their homes once they can't get along on their own. The city of Catacamas opened this center in 2005. Some of the boys came to our house the night before we went to help me make cookies. They had a great time.

Class Trip Spiritual Times

2008-08-29T22:30:00.004-04:00

Each night we had a nice time of spiritual enrichment. One night it was in our hotel room where all gathered around beds, on the floor, etc. One night it was in the bus. Our final spiritual time was around a camp fire on the beach. Each night there was a devotional speaker and each night different boys shared their testimonies. When we were on the bus, Alexander, who was living on the streets of Tegucigalpa shared his powerful testimony about how after his mom left their family and his father began to live with a different woman. This woman's children made him and his siblings beg for money on the streets and then give it to them. After doing this for a while they decided it would be better to live on the streets and keep the money for themselves than to have to bring it home to them. The Lord brought him out of this lifestyle and he is now graduating this year from El Sembrador. Praise the Lord! Rigoberto shared the night on the beach about the anger he had inside of himself when he came to El Sembrador and the bad relationship he had with his father at the time. He told us of how he got hooked to drugs. He accepted the Lord at the end of the school year last year and is now about to graduate. He has matured so much in his Christian walk. He is still quick to anger but continues to grow spiritually every day. We praise the Lord for the spiritual times on the trip.

Class Trip Meal Times

2008-08-28T19:12:00.001-04:00

There were a wide variety of meals during the trip. We ate at mall food courts, nice restaurants, cheap restaurants, and had breakfast in our rooms with food we brought. The boys enjoyed the variety.

Singing Time on the Bus

2008-08-28T19:09:00.003-04:00

We enjoyed our time singing on the bus. The boys taught me a song that went a little like this.......on Noah's ark every one sings, everyone sings, on Noah's ark everyone sings, and ________(person's name on the trip) sings like this. The person who's name is called has to begin singing a song and then the whole group joins in. We all enjoyed this very much.

Enjoying Time on the Beach

2008-08-27T19:04:00.002-04:00

We can't lie...........we enjoyed the relaxing time on the beach as well. It was a pleasure to take these students on this class trip. They enjoyed soccer on the beach, covering each other up with sand (you would have thought they were children the way they enjoyed doing this), the ocean, etc.

More Lansatilla Photos

2008-08-27T18:47:00.003-04:00

More pictures of the students while visiting the Lansatilla National Park.

The Senior Class Visit to Lansatilla National Park

2008-08-27T18:26:00.003-04:00

The boys really enjoyed learning about the different plants, trees, etc. at the Lansatilla National Park.

Class Trip 2008

2008-08-27T17:34:00.000-04:00

Although there have been graduations for over 50 years at El Sembrador, this year marks the first high school graduation ever. In the beginning years of El Sembrador there was 6th grade graduations, then there were vocational graduations after the vocational school was opened, then the studies went as far as 9th grade. This year, El Sembrador has taken the studies to a new level and will graduate the first class of high school graduates. We're so proud of the accomplishments this group of boys have made.
We took our graduating Seniors on a class trip this year. It was both educational as well as fun. They each had to participate in many fundraisers from the beginning of the year through August. They were able to accomplish their goal and enjoy their time. They were able to see the waterfalls at Lago Yajoa, visit a national park called Lansatilla in the city of Tela, visit three different malls (in the cities of San Pedro Sula, El Progresso, and Tegucigalpa). The fun part for the students was being able to be at the ocean and pools where we stayed on the North Coast. The students were able to see many parts of their country for the first time. For many it was the first time at the ocean, first time on an escalator at the mall, and the first time to go to the North Coast.

My Brother-in-Law, Jeff Luedtke

2008-08-09T17:55:00.000-04:00

Jeff has been pastoring for thirteen years at the same church. He is the youth and assistant pastor at Westview Wesleyan. He just graduated today with his Masters in Christian Leadership. My sister is a professor at Indiana Wesleyan University and is going to be beginning her PHD in phsycology. We're proud of them and our niece and nephew. It is hard to be away from our family.

Blue Team Wins the Title

2008-07-26T10:38:00.000-04:00

The blue team won the entire competition, red team came in second place, yellow in third, and green in fourth.

We LOVE our Visitors!

2008-07-25T10:23:00.001-04:00

My parents led a work team to Honduras and some of my girlfriends came. This was a fun time for us. I even talked them into running the 5K race with the boys. We all made it. Anna and Ally sure had fun having grandma and grandpa here with us for 5 weeks.

Arm Wrestling

2008-07-25T10:16:00.001-04:00

The arm wrestling competition is underway. Everyone circles around to see who is the strongest on campus.

Red Team Has the Victory in Softball

2008-07-25T01:39:00.000-04:00

Since Lori is so passionate about softball, the red team win was a HUGE victory. The boys lifted her up to show how happy they were with her support.

Day of the School

2008-07-23T00:49:00.001-04:00

Here at El Sembrador, in July, we celebrate the anniversary of the school by dividing the students into four teams and celebrating through three days of sports, Bible trivia, scripture memorization, dramas, drawings, and more. It is a fun time for students and staff alike.

4th of July

2008-07-04T01:22:00.002-04:00

Today Lori invited the missionaries over for a bbq. She made chicken and steak shiska-bobs and augratin potatoes. Each of the missionaries brought a dish to pass. We had a fun time celebrating our independence. In the evening hours we made some loud noises. The boys didn't know the missionaries could be such trouble makers.

Our Market Burned

2008-05-23T02:54:00.001-04:00

On Wednesday evening, May 21st, our local market burned in the evening hours, close to 10PM. Days before there was a dispute about a truck which had pulled some wires lose. An electrician was called but those who it affected didn't want to pay the $11 bill for the new cable and electricians fees. The electrician then disconnected his work. Officials say this was the area of the source of the fire. Out of the close to 330 booths in the maret area, 141 were damaged. This has been the talk of town since Thursday morning. Our city is mourning over the large loss as this affected 141 station owners and all of their workers and families. This will affect their current income and future income. One market station owner alone lost 1,200 sacks of corn, all of it was burned. This sadness has brought forth a lot of sadness. This is when our local church will be able to reach out to those who have lost. Please keep the city of Catacamas in your prayers.

Jerry & Sherri's Farewell Party

2008-05-22T01:35:00.002-04:00

Jerry & Sherri Murphy had been serving in La Esperanza (at another station in Honduras). They shared with us in January they were feeling led to come to El Sembrador for their next term of service. Since they were leaving the field in June of 2008, they came out for their last five months to see how they could fit in at El Sembrador. I think God has showed them how. They have helped us so much. They work hard, have a lot of love, and best of all a lot of spunk. They've been a wonderful addition to campus! They are now packing up to head back to the States to raise funds. We're praying God multiplies quickly so they can get back by the next school year in January of 2009. Sherri has taught Anna for the last four months and Anna just finished the second grade. She has been a huge help to Lori with the sponsorship program and will be taking it over when she returns next year. Jerry has been working with our group projects and helping with the sports program. They will be MISSED dearly over the next several months. The boys have fallen in love with them too. Lori and Amy Helt (a volunteer) worked hard at organizing a special party for them. All of the campus ladies helped us cut fruit all afternoon so we could offer everyone a fruit cup for a refreshment following the party. The farewell party began with fun songs, then a special reflection from one of our Bible school students from La Esperanza. Travis shared special words about how they've been a wonderful asset to campus and how they will be missed. Lori had to share the funny stories about the "trouble and fun" Sherri has brought to campus. The boys and employees laughed hard as they heard the stories of Sherri hiding Travis' truck on him when he left it running and when she stole (hid) our educational directors bike on him. The employees and boys were invited to share special memories and goodbye messages with Jerry & Sherri. Many passed forward and their housekeeper even surprised them with a spontaneous song. It was so special. Please pray for Jerry & Sherri as they return to the states and spend time with their family, home church, and support team.

Horeb Mother's Day

2008-05-16T01:18:00.002-04:00

We have a second high school on campus which is run by the Central Church in town. They use our facilities each day and bus in 170 youth, boys and girls. We have eight internal boys who attend their school (and all eight are graduating this year). The majority of this group of boys have been with us since 2004, so they have been at El Sembrador as long as we have. They each hold such a special place in our hearts. Their school's Mother's Day event was at the central church in town. We took them in as we had in March for the Father's Day event. But, we didn't know the special events in store. When it was Alfredo's turn to take the stage, he asked Lori to come up and represent the eight boys as their mom. He said she has been the mother to these boys all these years and has been the one there to help them with homework and whatever other needs they have and gave her three roses from them. Then, when Osmel took the stage, he called his mom to the stage too. He asked Lori to come up as she has been his second mom. She was the class elect mom for the year and was given a wonderful gift from the class of thirty-two students. They gave her Victoria Secret lotion and perfume. The class all went together to pay for this special gift. It was a special night when they all hugged her to show her how much they love her and what a special mom she is. HOW CAN SHE NOT JUST MELT WITH THESE SPECIAL GUYS????????? We took them out to eat afterward and had a great time.

Zip Line

2008-05-15T01:04:00.001-04:00

When teams come, if they sponsor a student, we allow them to take their sponsor student with them on our outing. Since our team this week was smaller and time allowed, Lori had fun zip lining and horse back riding with two of the boys.

Mother's Day Lunch

2008-05-11T00:44:00.003-04:00

After the morning service, the boys invited their families to join us in the boys dining room for lunch. It is a pleasure to be able to get to know the boys families more and fun for the boys to get to know each other's families.

Mother's Day

2008-05-11T00:25:00.003-04:00

May 11th is the biggest holiday of the year in Honduras. Hondurans take appreciating Mother's seriously on Mother's Day. Church was very special today. The Bible school students put on a beautiful skit about Solomon deciding who was the "real" mother of the baby. The Bible School girls did a great job playing their part, it almost felt real. Rigoberto did a great job being King Solomon. Anna was asked to be in the acronym Moms (Mamas). She memorized the "M". She does such a wonderful job with her Spanish and makes us so proud. Each year the school purchases a special gift for the boys to give to their mother's. This year Lori, with the help of her friend Lixa, chose to have tortilla basket linens made. They lined the alter for the boys to come and get for their moms. Needless to say, Lori ended up with quite a few as she is Mom to many boys on campus. The boys cards and special gifts mean the world. Mother's Day is always a special one with so many precious sons.

Josias' Birthday

2008-05-08T00:10:00.001-04:00

We don't lack children's birthday parties on campus. This is the second one is just a couple weeks time. Josias is the son of our nurse and teacher/counselor on campus. He just turned one year old. His birthday was May 6th and it was celebrated on May 8th. Anna was chosen to be in one of the games. She had to put funny teeth in, along with her good friend Katy and two other little boys. They had to put funny, ugly teeth in and say God is good. The children love to attend birthday parties, especially when a piñata is involved.

Honduras Labor Day

2008-05-06T00:00:00.002-04:00

Labor Day in Honduras is on May 1st. Travis and I wanted to thank all of our Honduran staff and missionary staff by inviting them to lunch to show appreciation for all they do. I hired three ladies to help me put the event on. Everyone was very appreciative. We thank God for the employees He has given us to work with.

Fast Soccer Tournament

2008-05-01T23:50:00.002-04:00

Since there was one free week after the soccer season ended, Travis wanted to put on a fast soccer tournament and allowed the boys to pick their own teams. After one week of battling it down to the final two teams, I made a prize for the top two teams. They received a cake, 3-Liter bottle of coke, cups, and ice. They were able to enjoy it together as a team directly afterward. They had bragging rights tonight.

West Virginia Team Puts on VBS

2008-04-29T20:51:00.000-04:00

We had a group of twenty-five come from West Virginia. The pastor of the church, John Strimer, passed out note cards each containing a name of one of our students. The congregation was instructed to pray for this boy for months as the team was preparing to come to El Sembrador. The twenty-five team members that came were showing us their boys names and wanted to meet them the first day they were here to tell them they had been praying for them. It was amazing to see what names the team had as they had the names of the boys who are more prone to get into trouble. It seemed as though God had a purpose in all of that. It's amazing what happened in some of these boys lives when they were literally embraced with hugs, hearing how they had been praying for their lives before they even knew them.

This West Virginia team worked on our boys dormitory that is being remodeled, organized our MK (missionary kid) library, stocked the boys toiletry and clothes room, and put on a VBS on campus with all the staff children as well as in the near village of LaPaz. These are some pictures of the team working in LaPaz with the children and the children with the puppets they made.

Campus Shots

2008-04-25T23:50:00.002-04:00

These are some campus shots of the boys. Each and every one are special to us.

Pictured Above:
In the white tank top with shirt over his shoulder: Wilfredo is in our discipleship class. He is from the island of Roatan. He is a real nice boy and we've already seen big changes in his life since coming.

In the red shirt sitting in the hammock: Jose Lorenzo comes from the Mosquitia. He is a first year student and currently learning carpentry. He says he really likes it here at El Sembrador and is grateful for the opportunity to study.

Soccer Tournaments

2008-04-24T23:32:00.000-04:00

Travis and Jerry began the sports program at the beginning of March and have continued it through today. There was a GREAT turn out as 101 boys signed up to be on a team. There were a total of 10 teams with ten on each team. Tonight was the final game having the two finalists play eachother. It came down to pentalty shots to determine the winner as they had a tie game. It was intense but exciting. T-Shirts were given to the first place team (noting champions) and t-shirts were also given to the second place team (without the word champions). The boys enjoy their soccer and they enjoy winning even more.

Fourteen at Alter

2008-04-20T23:23:00.000-04:00

Tonight was a special night. Rigoberto, a second year Bible School student, brought the message tonight. He is a real leader on campus and the students really respect him. He challenged the boys in a special way tonight and fourteen were at the alter, some to make first time commitments and others to renew their decisions with the Lord. PRAISE THE LORD!

Jeramias' Birthday Party

2008-04-20T21:30:00.001-04:00

Today we spent the afternoon at our business directors home celebrating their son's second birthday. He is a cute little guy and he sure enjoyed his piñata. Allison was a little shy to hit the piñata in front of everyone, but when the candy spilled she got over the shyness quickly. Anna enjoyed both hitting the piñata and going after the candy.

Alexander's Dad

2008-04-20T02:40:00.000-04:00

We received word Thursday (April 17th) that Alexander's dad was in the hospital and not doing well. Since Kent was on his way into Tegucigalpa, he was able to get him there quickly. Alexander was able to spend many hours with his dad that night. He passed away the next day. April 18th we received word Alexander’s dad was in the hospital in the capital city and was doing very poorly. We sent him in and he was able to spend many hours visiting with him in the hospital. The next day, April 19th, Alexander’s dad passed away. Alexander had been a part of a street kids ministry. We took the other two students from the same ministry in with us the next morning for the funeral. As Pastor Jorge Pinto shared on the street in front of the home where the body was being shown, and then again as he shared at the graveside service, he repeatedly asked the viewers if they were ready to meet their maker, if everything in their lives was where it should be, and if they would go to heaven if they passed away. Please pray for Alexander as the coming days will be difficult ones. Alexander turned twenty-one today and has already returned to the school. His father died of a lung infection at the young age of forty-nine. Where do you stand with the Lord today? Are you ready to meet your maker?

Gwen's Dad

2008-04-09T02:33:00.001-04:00

Our English teacher volunteer, Gwen Kirby, came this year knowing her dad had been diagnosed with cancer in November 2007. She received word in March that he wasn't responding to treatments and they wanted her to come home in April. Her plane ticket was changed to April 11th and she planned to spend the rest of 2008 with her mom and dad in Virginia. On April 8th we had a going away party for Gwen and prayed over her. Her brother made it home from Iraq the evening of the 8th. On April 9th Gwen received word her dad had passed that morning. Please pray for Gwen, her mom, her brother, and sister. The coming days will be very hard for them.

The Bamboo Restaurant

2008-03-29T02:20:00.001-04:00

Once the tournament was set, the boys began to build a special bamboo restaurant and the roof was made of palm leaves. This set a beautiful atmosphere for the tournament. Loud music played as the food was sold and the game was enjoyed. The boys did a great job of organizing and we made money for their class trip.

The Tournament

2008-03-29T02:03:00.002-04:00

The attraction for the money making event was the soccer game. Three teams played. El Sembrador (in green) won the championship trophy.

Making the Food

2008-03-28T01:55:00.000-04:00

There are twenty-four high school seniors this year. They've asked me to help them accomplish their dream of having a class trip this year. I've been working hard with them on many different projects. One of the things we're doing to raise funds is holding school soccer tournaments here on campus once a month. They worked hard at making a mini-restaurant for the event. Here is them in action making the food.

Honduras Father's Day

2008-03-19T22:50:00.000-04:00

Honduras has Father's Day in March. For Father's Day, campus staff with their children had a little event to celebrate the occasion. One of the Bible School students worked with the children on a "PADRE" (DAD) acronym and each child had a part to go with their letter. Anna made us proud while she held the "R" and said her part in Spanish. They sang a song to them too. We had a Honduran pot luck, everyone bringing their own special dish to pass. At the end each child was able to put shaving cream on their dad and shave it off with a plastic spoon. Anna had too much fun with this one. Pictured below, Lilian Paman helps shave her husband as her children were too little to do it.

Visiting More Families

2008-03-18T01:45:00.002-04:00

When we visited Campamento, we were able to visit with four families. Pictured you will see two boys who are in our discipleship class. Daniel Gustavo is pictured with his parents. Jose Miguel's mom left him and his dad when he was small. His father passed away a few years ago. He now lives with his grandparents. He is pictured with his grandpa.

Visit To Emanuel

2008-03-18T01:31:00.003-04:00

Our students are on their one week Easter Vacation week. We have been visiting families of students today. In these pictures we were visiting three students at an orphanage in Guaimaca. Pictured is Ally, Anna, and Gwen. Gwen came along with us. She is a volunteer who my kids have adopted as an aunt. She is a GREAT volunteer, teaching English, updating brochures, and making wonderful relationships with our students.

Who Says Work Can't Be Fun?

2008-03-08T01:22:00.002-05:00

We have fun while we work!!!!!!!!!

The Roof

2008-03-08T01:09:00.001-05:00

The group paints the metal perlins for the dorm roof. What a process. Look from start to finish.

Lixy Daniela

2008-03-07T19:46:00.002-05:00

Every so often we get to watch Lixy Daniela when her mom needs a babysitter. Anna and Ally really enjoy being "baby-sitters".

We Do Allow Break Times

2008-03-07T00:50:00.002-05:00

Although our teams give 100% and work hard, we do have break times through the day too.

Time to Pour New Cement

2008-03-07T00:36:00.002-05:00

It is time to pour new cement. Honduran staff, our students, and group members work together to accomplish the goal.

Eddy - French Work Team 2008

2008-03-06T00:19:00.001-05:00

The Eddy/French team has been an annual work team who began coming down in February of 2005. We connected with them right away and they've been coming back every year since (except they skipped our furlough year of 2007). They've majority of the team is the original group from 2005, but they continue to pick up a few more each year. This year in 2008 we are focusing on remodeling our older boys' dorm. This team was able to help out with many aspects. Here is the team working on new concrete.

Allison's Birthday

2008-03-05T19:32:00.003-05:00

Allison is four years old today. We let her choose a restaurant to go to celebrate her birthday and also let her choose a friend to go along. She chose Scarlet to come along (our group cook's daughter) and she wanted to go to Talapias La Pita because they have a trampoline. She wanted to "jump" for her birthday. What a fun time. Mommy and Daddy even got to jump with the three girls.

Group Bonds With The Boys

2008-03-02T23:39:00.001-05:00

We encourage the visiting work groups to bond with the boys. Look at how this group just connected. They worked on the dorm during the day and played at night. GREAT EXAMPLES! Pictured: Manuel plays the guitar for the group on the front of the group center stairs, group member talks to boys on the fast soccer court bleachers, and group plays UNO with the boys in the group center.

Work Team Visits Village of LaPaz

2008-03-01T23:05:00.003-05:00

We like to take our work teams to a near village, LaPaz, so they can see an idea of what types of homes our boys come from. On this particular visit Lori brought along a tub of shoes for the children. Pictured above: Mary holds Ally and a bird, a typical "store" in the village where they can make small purchases, and Lori leads the group in This is the Day (group sings in English while Lori and the villagers sing in Spanish).