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ARMS OF JESUS MINISTRY From Corinne Ellsworth with the Arms of Jesus Mission in Guatemala: Today a bench was dedicated in Rev Bonnie’s memory. I am sure she would be pleased to know she is providing a respite from work, a quiet place to rest, pray or contemplate outside the chapel. As a former teacher she would be proud to be remembered on a school campus with hundreds of children. I can imagine her arms thrown wide to embrace the little ones hugging her. It was a special dedication with Melva and I sharing Rev Bonnie’s story during a devotional session with teachers this am. The Arms of Jesus Children’s Guatemala Mission dates have been advanced by a week: May 05-17, 2023. While in Guatemala in addition to building small homes for indigenous Mayan families, team members (including Corrine & Melva from Hillcrest UC) will be distributing food hampers & shoes, working with children and seniors, meeting with sponsor children, etc., etc. If you wish to sponsor a child, Corinne and Melva can meet with the child on site and bring back a first hand report. $40/ month permits a child to attend school, receive shoes, a school uniform and school supplies, have access to social workers to support the family, access to a nurse and dentist at the school, a meal each day school is open and a food hamper during holiday periods. Sponsorship is a unique opportunity to show the love of Jesus to a child in need while also meeting an important need in their life: education. You can sponsor a child for $40.00 a month or $480 a year … just $1.32 per day. Here are some photos (a few including Corinne) from the building of Hillcrest House for a family during the last mission in 2019. |
GUATEMALA MISSION 2019
Through the efforts of Corinne Ellsworth building homes in Parramos, Guatemala has become a special outreach effort of Hillcrest UC. She has made 4 trips there as a volunteer, where she helped build three small homes ($2300 each, one in 2019 totally funded by Hillcrest donors) and helped train teachers. These projects are managed by the Arms of Jesus Mission based in Ontario which ministers to Mayan people living in rural areas of Guatemala and Haiti where there is much poverty. Four PEI Islanders, two from our congregation, were ready to return to Guatemala in 2020 just before Covid cancelled such plans. We at Hillcrest anticipate continuing to help this program when it can begin again. House Building Arms of Jesus seek out families in poor communities who are in need of a home. These families often live in shelters built with cornstalk or aluminum siding, which are built on a dirt floor with little protection from the elements. Through donations, they are able to provide a modest home made of drywall that is built on a concrete floor. In 2011, they built 63 homes for needy families |