A Grand Entrance

The rain has fallen, and the grass is green again. It certainly looks nicer than the brown lawn we had last month.

We enjoyed hosting the Foothills Youth Group last week. Things look a little different at JRM since they left. We had 4 talented members of this group who gave our entrance a new look.

They also painted a mural on the side of the children's home, as well as a "Welcome" over the front door.  The rest of the group worked hard as well. They built two houses for families in need, volunteered at Blossom Gardens, as well as lots of painting and clean up at JRM. One day was spent going to several schools to have devotions, and visiting the residents of the infirmary.

We enjoyed having them here. We hope they enjoyed their stay here as well. They guys of the group set up a whole bunch of hammocks in the pavilion to sleep in. There were 14 hammocks strung every which way.

Carrie and I, along with Sierra, Jasmine, and Chloe, had the opportunity to go along to Dunns River Falls with the group (our first visit there).

I had the misfortune of losing my bus key as I was climbing the falls. It seemed impossible that it would be found. A worker with goggles started helping me look for it as well. After 15 minutes of searching several pools (and praying), things were looking bleak. He dove several more times, when all at once he had found it. We were quite relieved!

On the drive to Ocho Rios, we came across a place where a semi carrying a load of cement had crashed. It was a lucky day for those who were filling their gunny sacks with free cement.

Two weeks ago we got a new Rottweiler puppy, Queen Isabella (Bella). Ten days later, she was diagnosed with Parvo. We took her to the vet four days in a row for treatment, but in the end she did not survive. It was only two weeks, but we were quite sad to see her go.

Recently we went to the school's Fun Day. There was a bouncy house, trampoline, and train ride. There was food on sale as well. I was a volunteer to help at the event which was to begin at 10. At 1pm the "locomotive" for the train was still being repaired, and the trampoline was still being set up.

Everything was up and running soon after that, and everyone had a good time! One of my favorite Jamaican phrases is "soon come." This means you might be there in 10 minutes, or 10 hours, or 10 days. It seems quite appropriate in many situations.

CDA also put on an event that some of the children attended. The highlight was getting to meet some policemen and firemen, and getting to ride in the fire truck.

This little guy thought he had the world by the tail!

Mark & Karen Smucker (former houseparents) recently came to visit as well. We really enjoyed connecting with them.

Their son Samuel became a hero in our girls eyes when he cleaned and grilled frog legs for them. They were quite tasty!

Jasmine, Sierra, and Chloe recently finished up their dance class for the summer with a recital.

A few weeks ago we noticed a stage being set up in the empty lot across from our gate. There were people milling around all day, then they played music all night. The next afternoon vehicles and people started filling the area. We found out that they were having a funeral. I had heard that funerals can be quite a big party here, but this one was much more subdued.

We also learned about making caramel from condensed milk. We learned that it is a good idea to use a large pot with lots of water in it. If the pot is too small, the water will boil out causing the can of caramel to burn and explode. If you were to try this at home, it might possibly look like this.

We are looking forward to seeing many of you soon! We will be in Ohio from June 23 - July 10. This will be the last update until after we return to Jamaica, so it will likely be a month until you hear from us again. Unless of course, we are privileged to see you in the next few weeks and are able to speak in person.

It is hard to believe that we are approaching one year since moving to Jamaica. God has been faithful, and he has used you to encourage us as well. Your support has been amazing, and we appreciate it more than we can express. We don't know what else to say except "Thank You!" May God bless you for your generosity!

Hope to see you soon!
Kevin

Sign of the week: This billboard was updated recently, and I found the picture on it amusing, since there is no hunting of any kind in Jamaica.

Work Group

The weather is still warm, but the foggy brown haze has left us, and the clear blue skies have returned. It is very dry, and the yard is turning brown, so we are looking forward to rainy season again.

Last week we enjoyed having the New Holland youth group here from South Carolina.

They were eager to work, and enjoyable to host.

The guys built a house in the Mt. Pelier area. The girls did work projects around JRM and helped with the Bible Club at Mt. Pelier. They also spent a day at Blossom Gardens, and the whole group spent one day going to various schools and doing street ministry.

We enjoyed meeting new people and making new friends.

The blessed us in many ways, bringing things for JRM and the children, and arranging a night out for us. We loved it!

Dallas & Judy Overholt were here to help host and lead the group. They did a wonderful job!

Floyd & Ellen Yoder were able to return to Jamaica this past Sunday. We were all excited to see them again, and it is great to have them here!

Recently, the school children had "Career Day." We had a nurse, an artist, and a policeman. The policeman took his job very seriously, and was quiet all the way to school (VERY unusual).

Our girls were excited to finish up their schoolwork this week. Unfortunately, that also means that Tammie will be leaving us soon. This week was her last time to teach at the Mt. Pelier Bible Club. She has done a great job of leading out with that program. Thanks Tammie!

Emma continues to keep us busy. She loves to get her own snacks (especially when she is not allowed to),

Or getting into Mom's things, or emptying Dad's wallet, or dumping drawers, or... you name it!
Her infectious smile makes is hard to be upset for very long.

We recently found a baby hummingbird that couldn't fly very well yet. The kids were all intrigued with it.

One thing that can fly though is the aunties when they see a mouse! :)

We have made travel plans to spend a few weeks in the States. We are hoping to see some of you then! We are looking forward to it! Thanks for your interest in what is happening in Jamaica. We couldn't do it without your financial support and prayers, so Thank You again!

I don't have a sign this week, but I do have a picture of a toilet. A toilet whose lid won't close because the counter top is too low. I guess that's one way to get the men to stop leaving the seat up.

Have a blessed week!
Kevin

Bakin' Jamaican

The sky has been hazy, and the temperatures have been hot! The hot, dry weather has been part of the conversation for most of the month of April. The temperatures have been in the mid-upper 80s with high humidity, but there is another contributing factor. A local newspaper is reporting that the haze we see is actually dust particles from sand storms in the Sahara Desert. This dust raises the heat index as well. Unfortunately, they are predicting for it to get worse before it gets better. You can read the article here. Several of us have been coughing recently, so we now have something to blame.

Floyd & Ellen Yoder are still in the US. Floyd had a pacemaker installed, and is waiting for a doctors clearance to travel again. I think they are eager to be back in Jamaica again, and we will be excited to have them here again.

We had some visitors in April as well. Rose's sister Krystle, and three of her friends spent a week here in the early part of the month. Becca's parents, Ruben & Laura Graber; and her two brothers, Josiah & Justin, were here for a week. Our girls enjoyed having someone new to play with, and we enjoyed getting to know the family better.

Joe & Ellen Shetler from Indiana also came for several days. Currently we are hosting Melinda Martin and her friend Dinamarie from Illinois. Melinda served as an auntie at JRM several years ago, and they have been helping at Blossom Gardens as well with the children here. We enjoy meeting a variety of people here!

Sheri spent about 2 weeks in the US for vacation. We were all together again for a week then Nicki left for her vacation. We are starting to make plans to be back in Ohio for about 2 weeks in June/July. We talk about going "home" for vacation, but in many ways Jamaica feels like home to us. We have been blessed with friends here in Jamaica, and a tremendous team at JRM!

The girls are excited about finishing school soon. They still have several weeks left before they will be done. We are sad however, that this means that Tammie will be leaving us soon.

Last Friday was sports day for the JRM school children. Every school has a sports day in the spring. Most of the activities were variations of racing. Sometimes they would run to one end, figure out a math problem, then run back. They had all the children divided into 3 teams, and they would get points according to how they finished. The most amusing part of the day was when they had the parents race. In the end the yellow team was the winners.

Last Friday evening, some of our friends hosted the simulcast of David Platt's "Secret Church." It is a 6 hour bible study patterned after what the underground church does when they meet. They cram as much into the time slot as possible. The phrase "drinking from a fire hydrant" is quite appropriate. The subject was focused on issues in our culture such as abortion, poverty, orphans, and same sex marriage. It actually lasted 7 hours, but it was well worth it.

We are just starting to enjoy fresh mangoes again. They are slowly starting to ripen. We are getting about a dozen per week. Once they are in full season, we will have more than we know what to do with.

Jamaica Relief Ministries is now officially licensed by the Child Development Agency of Jamaica as a group home. We received our 3 year license this week. The application process was started in 2011/2012, and now it is finally official!

Please join us in prayer for Sierra. She has been sick for over a week. She has a lingering cough, and has had a fever as well. We did take her to the doctor who says it is a viral thing.

Also pray for us as we have a work group coming to JRM next week. We will be hosting 28 people here. In preparation for that, we are adding a few more showers and toilets to the pavilion. If you enjoy camping, you may want to book a stay in our new accommodations!

Thank you so much for your prayers, support, and interest in our lives and what happens at JRM! We really appreciate it!

Sign of the week:
Poverty is a serious problem here, and I don't want to make light of it, but several things struck me about this sign at the post office.  First of all, it seemed a little politically incorrect to say "registered poor persons." Secondly, illiteracy is a large problem, and is a great contributor to poverty, so I wonder how many poor people would even be able to register, let alone read this sign. On the other hand, I really don't know much about the Jamaican welfare system, so maybe none of this applies.