February 2007
"So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter. May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word." 2 Thes 2: 15-17 NIV
God continues to bless the Children’s Home as we go into the New Year. At Christmas the Home was given 50 frozen Turkeys. They gave away several to poor families and have been eating turkey for a month. When Ron visited in January they still had 10 turkeys left in the freezer. The children do not complain that they have turkey once again. They are always thrilled to have food and give thanks to the Lord for what He has provided. Praise God for the generosity of His people.
One of the needs we have is transportation now that we have two properties and one is out of town. The roads to the farm are very primitive with many rocks, pot holes and mud when it rains. We have really needed one good sturdy pick up truck for traveling this road. In the city we also needed a smaller truck so that we would not have to use the van every time we had to run an errand. Thanks to a generous donation from a faithful partner we were able to purchase two good used pick ups for the work. Both of them have campers so that we can haul a lot of children or any other material we need to move. With the work teams we have scheduled for this summer we will need to transport a lot of materials out to the farm for construction. These trucks will be a great blessing as we continue to expand the work.
Francisco - - - Abraham
We finally have hot water installed at the farm and that is a great blessing. Once a week, Chella our directors wife, was heating water on the stove for Saturday night baths for the children. Now the children can have a hot bath before going to school each day.
This hot water heater only heats the water when it is turned on. That saves gas.
In March our first work team will be coming down and we will be building showers for the children. Of course, then we will need two more hot water heaters one for the boys dorm and one for the girls. Our current bathroom is a one room outdoor type. We do not have running water there so you have to flush the toilet with a bucket of water. In the summer the children bathe there with a bucket of water, but when we install the new bathrooms and showers all that will change.
The children will be so happy to have modern facilities just like they left when they moved out from the city.
The children love the little cat that wandered onto the property one day starving and in need of love. Now the kitty (gata) does not lack for love or food.
Taking care of the animals is a good character building experience for the children and they seem to enjoy it immensely.
They love the wheel barrows too. Races are always fun and winners are not important.
Thank you for your prayers and support. Ron & Bernadette Gartner
25th Anniversary Year
Ron and Bernadette Gartner
Your Evangelists to the world.
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About Refuge Ministries and the Gartners
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Click Here for Ron & Bernadette's 2005 report from their trip to Africa.
