Hey everyone!! I just want to update you on all that's going on down here:

 

What I Am Doing: Right now our team is just getting set up and settling down at our home base which is called UCSA. It is a community base of missionary organizations in JBay. We are in cabin type housing and we have been having a lot of fun getting to know each other. Right now, we have been hopping from place to place because other missionaries have been coming in. This weekend our whole team actually ventured into "the Bush" which was a camp in a river valley near Port Elizabeth. It was absolutely GORGEOUS, but really, really cold. The stars were breath taking at night =] Now that we are back at UCSA, we are finally settled in.. but not for long. There is another camp that UCSA is hosting and we will be helping with starting this Wednesday.  MINISTRY: Today we just were placed at our separate ministries in town. I am going to be working at a Worhsip center called Victory 4 All. It is a school and day care center that houses very poor kids in the community. The kids have been sponsored by others financially and this ministry is VERY organized. It should be interesting to see how this goes. More on that later... I don't know very much about it yet! Please pray for this ministry!!

 

How I am Feeling: CRAZY!! To be honest, this was nothing that I expected it would be. I tried not to have expectations but that's near impossible. It's actually been really cold, (especially at the Bush) so that was a surprise. I guess I just feel underprepared in that sense. But I feel that I am being blessed daily by the people on my team and leaders. They are all AMAZING people. I feel at home when I am with them, which is ALL the time. We are not allowed to go anywhere without having at least a group of three for safety. 

 

Things I find Interesting: Most people here speak English. Most signs are in English. It has been a blessing actually. It almost feels like I am still in America sometimes. Jeffrey's Bay is beautiful. The beach is just lovely-the water is so blue!! It's a really crazy set up. When you first enter there are beautiful homes, but the further you go, it seems, the poorer it gets. I will be working in the township, which is what we call the area where the blacks live. (And by the way, over here it is okay to call people by their race, "black" or "colored" or "white." The townships are mostly where the blacks and coloreds live. So, as you can see, there is a huge gap between the rich and poor, and between the whites and black.s Most blacks and coloreds speak Xhosa, and whites speak Afrikaans. Most all of them speak English and the majority are trilingual. There are actually 11 official languages in SA, but these are the predominant three in JBay.

 

Prayer: Please pray for our team! Pray that we continue to be united and supportive in all of our ministries. Pray for financial support for not only me but for the whole team. If anyone is able to send ministry supplies (crafts/clothes/etc) please email me and we can figure something out. Also please pray for strength agains the enemy. Pray that the Lord would keep our team safe and build us up in faith. Thank you so much for your prayers!! 

 

The Address here is

PO Box 921

Jeffreys Bay 6330

(just put my name on the first line)

 

Once again, thank you for your support. I love and miss you all!!