May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.

May we shout for joy over your victory and lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the LORD grant all your requests. 

Psalm 20:4-5

In our July 24, 2020, newsletter we wrote: 

 As we look to the future, we pray that the ministries of the Community Center can be expanded.  We have dreams!  We believe God is going to do a new thing at the Community Center.  Come dream with us as we seek to create:

*a gathering place for the elderly who live in the surrounding community.

*a playground in the yet-to-be-purchased land around the Community Center building.

*a community garden.

Now let’s jump forward four years to October 2024 and see what God has done.

*a gathering place for the elderly who live in the surrounding community.

We are so excited to share that the “senior center” is becoming a reality at the community center!!  We have an outdoor space with picnic tables, a kitchen in which to prepare healthy lunches, and a director of programming ++ for those who come!  We also have a nurse, a chef, and kitchen helpers lined up and ready to start.  We are waiting to have some legal paperwork approved, but our hope is to begin offering senior services at the end of this month (October 2024).  Each senior adult will pay a small fee which will help cover a portion of the expenses needed to run this ministry; and after a year of existence, the government will help cover our operating expenses. The “gathering place for the elderly” known as Mi Roca y Mi Fortaleza: Cuidado Diurno para Adultos Mayores (My Rock and My Fortress: Daily Care for the Elderly) will be open Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m., and we covet your prayers for those God sends our way soon.  GOD IS GOOD!

++The director of programming is a young adult woman named Kinvely who is a member of one of Ketly’s many discipleship groups.  Over the years, the hand of God has moved in participants’ lives through these various classes, and Kinvely has felt God’s call for this work of ministering to senior citizens.   II Timothy 2: 21 says: Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. (ESV)  Kinvely is just one example of the many who have been prepared to become vessels of God’s work in La Romana.  I (Ketly) will continue to disciple Kinvely, and, just as I serve as a chaplain at Good Samaritan Hospital, I will also serve at Mi Roca y Mi Fortaleza: Cuidado Diurno para Adultos Mayores

*a playground in the yet-to-be-purchased land around the Community Center building.

Well, part of this is a reality, but part of the plan changed due to the pandemic.  We were able to purchase the land several years ago, and this is where the new kitchen and covered patio with picnic tables for the seniors is located.  Praise God!  However, an after-school program is no longer needed at the Community Center because the local school system has expanded its services to children.  The schools now offer lunches and after-school childcare for those in need. 

                                                                                                                       *a community garden.

This is gradually becoming a reality.  Banana trees have been planted and are growing well, but growing a garden wasn’t really viable when all the construction was going on. We hope in the near future we will be able to have raised garden beds around the property where our seniors can participate in God’s creation by growing some of the produce that can be used for the lunches.

Again, we quote Psalm 20.:5 “We shout for joy over your (God’s) victory and lift up our banners in the name of our God.”

In other exciting news at the Community Center, in early August the second floor was filled to capacity with a gathering of Haitian women (pastors, pastor’s wives, leaders of various ministries).  We eagerly heard presentations and testimony from representatives of the global organization AWMI (Association of Women in Ministry International) based out of Massachusetts.  Wow!  What an outpouring of God’s Spirit as over 125 women gathered to discuss ways to build community and support one another in ministry.  This organization holds online prayer meetings and trainings held in Haitian Creole that are available to the international community of women in ministry. What a blessing!

Please pray with us for:

* all the seniors who will come to the Community Center.

*  Kinvely and others who will work with and serve the seniors.

* Ketly as she continues chaplaincy at the hospital. 

* Ketly as she disciples women and teenagers.

* Vital as he continues working with the Haitian community at the Community Center.