Quick Update ~ ~ ~

We have 2 work crews here right now. One from New York and one from Michigan. We have been impressed with both crews! They have such servants' hearts and are so generous! Tuesday, the MI crew took us out to see "Prince Caspian," the movie. And the New York crew helped pay for a tank for Mike's iguanas. We have had a lot of fun with them. These crews have been working really hard and getting a lot done!

We are getting settled into our new apartment. It is feeling more like a home to us than our old apartment did because we can actually unpack. For the first time in over 4 months we actually have a livingroom, a kitchen with cupboards, and a real laundry room (verses a washer sitting on bricks outside the back door). Plus, we have a "green room" which is a room that is open to the sky (no ceiling or screen or anything). Mike built me a ladder so that I can climb up on the roof. It is really nice! This new apartment has been a blessing to us!

Also, Mike has now acquired 2 baby iguanas that were found on camp property. (We normally don't find iguanas at camp but there must be a nest.) So now we need to learn all about iguanas because, of course, Mike is keeping them as pets!

And lastly, about 2 weeks ago, the camp was broken into and robbed. The robbers managed to get into 3 supply rooms. They also tried to get into the kitchen but were unable. They stole some supplies, copper wiring, and more. As upsetting as that was, we praise God because it could have been worse! (The picture below shows the boarded-up windows on one of the rooms that was broken into.)

Changes

This week has brought some changes for us. On Monday, we were informed that Megin will be taking over ALL of the camp's finances. The camp secretary will no longer do any of the finances. In addition, Megin is supposed to try to streamline the financial system in order to make it more efficient and less time consuming. This new job will be done along side Megin's current responsibilities of working with the work crews.
*Please pray that Megin will be able to balance working with both the finances and the work crews without becoming overwhelmed as the work crews already consume a lot of time! Also, pray that Megin will have wisdom in how to streamline the system.

Then on Tuesday, we were told that we could move into a different apartment. As much as we like our current apartment, it is too small to live in long-term. We have now lived there for 4 months and have not yet been able to completely unpack because there is no place to put our stuff. By moving into this other apartment, we will have much more room. However, we have to move by Friday because a small work crew is coming and needs to stay in the smaller apartment. So we spent Tuesday and Wednesday cleaning, repairing, and painting the "new" apartment and then moved into it today (Thursday). It was a lot of work and pretty tiring but we did it! We are definitely nowhere close to being "settled" though and still have a lot of unpacking and organizing to do.
*Please pray that we will be able to get unpacked and settled fairly quickly. Pray that this apartment will be a blessing to us and others.

We would really appreciate your prayers because we already have a lot of adjustments to make (being newly married, living in a new culture and area, learning a new language, learning a new job, etc) that sometimes even the smallest changes can make things hard. Thank you!

Work Updates

Here are pictures of some of the projects that we have done with the work crews.....




We built an entrance onto the existing Chapel. This entrance allows us to have more security in the chapel. These are the "before" and the "not quite done but almost" pictures.





We expanded the mini-chapel in order for it to be able to hold more people and serve as a second meeting place or chapel. We had to tear down all but one of the existing walls and rebuild them. We tore out grass in front of the building and laid a new floor. We laid new sidewalks all the way around the building. And we will also have to expand the roof onto the new section and put in the windows. The picture below shows the new walls and expansion (without the roof).

Prayer Requests

~ Please pray for us as we begin our busy summer season (July and August will be the busiest)!

~ Pray that we will have renewed energy, patience, and enthusiasm for each new crew that comes.

~ Hurricane season started May 1 and continues through Dec 1.

~ Pray that we will be able to impact the lives of those that we work with.

~ Pray for our relationships.

~ Pray that God will protect and bless our marriage.

~ Pray that God will guide us in what we should do in the future.

Thank you for your love, support, and prayers! You all mean a lot to us and we appreciate your part in our lives!

Love, Mike and Megin