Alex

We were blessed this past week with the arrival of Aline and Alisson´s younger brother, Alex. He and his younger brother, Mateus had been separated from Aline and Alisson several months ago and our hope has been to reunite the four siblings. He had been at the government orphanage and was attending a daycare when some family members took him. His grandmother was caring for him and agreed to let him come to CLM if she could have visitation rights with all of them. Aline cried when she saw him and realized they were together again. Pray for Alex´s adjustment to our family, as well as for Aline, Alisson, and Mateus.

David

After serving with us for six months, David returned to Hungary yesterday. From helping with baths to maintenance to transporting kids, he has been available from early morning to late night since he arrived in January. He has been a true example of a servant's heart and will be dearly missed. We pray that God will lead him back to Brazil soon.

Patrick

Patrick stayed with Maggie and Mocha while we were in the states and was a tremendous blessing to the kids and other missionaries during our absence. It's hard to believe that he is already coming up on his three month mark and will need to renew his tourist visa for the last few weeks of his stay with us. He has been a great asset to CLM and has been such an encouragement to us. Tomorrow he is leaving for a quick visit to Iguacu Falls with Viktoria, Jenny and Greg...please pray for a safe trip and a wonderful experience for all of them.

Marcelo

The day after we arrived back in Brazil, Marcelo left with his new mom! She had actually come only a few days before to meet him for the first time but since he was already released for adoption, the process moved extremely fast. The quick farewell was difficult on the family, especially the boys who had become good friends with Marcelo in the short time he was with us. Please pray for him as he adjusts to his new home.

One More Week

It is hard to believe that we only have one more week in the states before returning to Brazil. We have had a wonderful visit with friends and family and are now needing to focus on some "business" type things of filing our tax return, getting an FBI background check for our permanent visa, renewing my teaching license, and of course, last-minute shopping and packing.

Lots of things have been happening at CLM in our absence and we have been struggling to live between our two worlds. Altair ran away again but this time, no one has been able to find him. Aline, Francielle, Lucas, Rita, and Gisieli have begun having visits with their mother after not seeing her for more than five years. Mariane's mother and father have come forward after a year and would like her to return to live with them. Maria has been invited to work on a nearby horse farm, helping to groom and bathe the horses, and Elaine, our oldest in the home, left CLM this week to live with a friend.

If that isn't enough to make your head spin, after we return, here are a few changes that will happen with our staff: Bethany and Juan will be leaving on furlough, David, Edit, and Fabio will be returning to Hungary, Meghan and Joacir will be returning to Canada, and Lobinho and Joanna will be going to Turvo to stay while Aninha and Luis take a much-needed vacation. This will leave Mary Gibson, Viktoria and us with the direct care of our 32 children! We need your prayers! Fortunately, Patrick will stay with us until the end of July and two other short-termers, Jenny and Greg from Illinois, will be at Turvo during this time.

Thank you so much for continuing to pray for us during our time in the states, as well as for our CLM family in Brazil.

Back in Ohio

We arrived at El Campesino on Thursday after 26 hours of traveling...a long way to go for fajitas and chimichangas but well worth it! After visiting friends in Canton this week, we will be spending time with our family in Mansfield and Cincinnati, then returning to speak at First Friends on June 14th. We look forward to seeing you there! Blessings!

A Missionary's Work is Never Done!

Pizzaria Bona Bonnye

Tonight, we took our devotions' group to their favorite pizzaria to celebrate their first 50 memory verses. Each week, they have had a chance to memorize a different scripture about a trait of a Godly man...after tonight, we may have to have a lesson on gluttony! :) Everyone left satisfied and we praise God for His protection as we travelled. Please continue to pray that the Holy Spirit continues to work in the hearts of each of these young men.

Bem Vindo Jake and Amanda!

We praise God for the calling of Jake and Amanda as full-time missionaries to CLM! Jake has served at Entre Rios and Turvo as a single and is now returning with his wife, who also served here three separate times on short-term trips. They will be living for several months in Guarapuava to study Portuguese, become accustomed to Brazilian culture, and familiarize themselves with the city. Please pray for God's protection and blessing on this special couple as they continue to seek His perfect plan for their lives.

Library Dedication

After our Sunday morning children's service, we dedicated our Kathy Larson Memorial Library. I have spent the last few weeks buying new books and collecting old ones that had been scattered around the house. We also were very blessed by a donation from our Portuguese teacher of about 150 books for our teenagers. Aline and I spent the day shopping last week and bought a couch, loveseat, bean bag chair and rug while Mike was building the bookshelf, painting the room, and preparing the wood floor. (I think I had the better of those two jobs!) It was wonderful to see the kids so excited about books! We would like to buy a floor lamp and some wall hangings, as well as a plaque for the door in recognition of the donation in Kathy's honor. I will post more pictures as we continue to add shelves and more books to this special addition to CLM. A huge thank you to everyone at First Friends who helped to make this possible!

Fun Day at CLM

Each year, we are blessed by a family here in the colony that chooses a special day to come and celebrate what God is doing in the lives of our children. Yesterday, they literally transformed CLM into a carnival! For about 8 hours, the kids played on a huge inflatable slide, jumped on trampolines, and took turns trying to ride a mechanical bull. The family also prepared a delicious meal of chicken, pork, and beef so it didn't take much to convince our kids to take a short break for lunch. However, as soon as we were done eating, they were all begging to go back to play some more. Throughout the afternoon, there was cotton candy, popsicles and lollipops...that kept them going full-throttle until dark when we dragged them inside for baths! Check out our flickr page for more fun pictures! We praise God for the generosity of this family, as well as His constant provision and blessing.

Ride 'em Mike!

Here's proof that a Nikon D50 has the capability of taking three pictures in less than a second!

Welcome Patrick!

We are thrilled that Patrick has arrived and will be serving with us until the end of July. He is from Ohio and is a friend of Nate who served with us last year. He is a very talented young man and has already offered to give soccer and guitar lessons...and as you can see, is hoping to give bull-riding lessons soon! :) It is obvious that he loves kids and has been eager to help out in any way he can. Please pray for God to do an amazing work in and through his life during the next three months.

Jesus Ressuscitou! Jesus Has Risen!

We had a perfect day to celebrate Easter this year at CLM...starting at 5:30am, making pancakes for around 60+ people! The kids were up and at 'em at 6am (well, most of them) and there was non-stop action from there. After our passion play and breakfast, the kids enjoyed searching for eggs, playing parachute games, and of course, enjoying their new playground and sports area! The kids loved the First Friends practice jerseys and were on the court all day, playing soccer or basketball. After lunch, each received a special Easter basket from the judge in Guarapuava...as you can imagine, no one was hungry at dinner but fortunately the sugar high kept them awake through our evening service! :) We pray that you also had a blessed Easter, celebrating the resurrection of our Savior. Blessings!

Alisson and Aline

Meet our new kids! They are just as sweet as they look in these pictures! We don't know much about them except that they have two little brothers and they had run away from the government group home. They arrived on Monday and have quickly blended into the family. Please pray that they will feel the love of Jesus in our home and that they will be quickly reunited with their siblings.

Out with the Old...In with the New!

Donei and Maria took the old playground down before the team arrived and today the First Friends team put the finishing touches on the new playground! To say the least, the kids were excited! :) A huge thank you to all who generously donated to this project in Kathy Larson's memory and to the team who has worked so hard during the past 10 days to make this happen.

It's Finished!

With the help of the First Friends' team, the lines were painted on the court this past week and the backboards and soccer goals were painted and secured. It was awesome to see everyone from toddlers to teenagers on the court, playing basketball, handball, soccer and rollerblading this past Sunday afternoon. The First Friends' team bought chips and pop to celebrate and it was hard to get the kids to take a break to eat their snack! We are blessed beyond measure by everyone who has given money or physically helped to make this possible. Thank you!

Kathy Larson Memorial Library

Yesterday was exactly one year since Kathy went to be with the Lord and it was a wonderful time to share about the Memorial Library that will be started in her honor by those who loved her at First Friends. We had a beautiful time of sharing about the impact that Kathy had on each of us, followed by a time of prayer, praising God for her life and His divine providence. The team has also received money to build a playground here at Entre Rios, as well as another in Turvo in her memory. These are just a few of the books that were purchased this week. I will post more pictures when the books are shelved and the playground is finished. Thank you so much for your generosity!

First Friends Team

Chuck, Karen, Jim, Todd, Judy, Steve, Tammy, and Steph have jumped right into life at CLM! The new playground is well underway, the lines on the sports court have been painted, lots of clothes have been folded, and our kids are loving all the extra hugs and attention. Each team member brought about a 100 pounds of tools, playground and sports equipment, toys, candy, and birthday gifts for the kids--their generosity has been such a blessing. Please pray for each as they serve with us and share Jesus' love with each of our children.