How many shoeboxes has your agency filled? Have you met your goal? Shoebox collection week is November 16-23. All shoeboxes must be turned in to your local collection center during that week. Please join us in reaching our goal of 2000 boxes! Completing a shoebox for a needy child is easy and fun! If you have any questions, feel free to contact Emily McNay at emily.mcnay@twentysixtwelve.org, or check the Samaritan’s Purse website – http://www.samaritanspurse.org. Also, if you would like to join us at the Operation Christmas Child warehouse in Denver, Colorado from December 8-12, please let us know. We would love to have you!
One week from today, a small team will head back to Belize. The Palliative Care Association of Belize, still in the beginning stages, requested some training for pastors and volunteers regarding grief and bereavement. Rick & Beckie Hinze, and Bob and Margaret Gentry will provide this training. We ask that you would partner with us in prayer.
Pray that the attendees will be responsive to the material presented, and that the presenters would present with accuracy and confidence. Pray for the patients and that the caregivers would be knowledgable and effective. Pray for this country as these precious few embark on the journey toward excellent hospice care.
The trip to New Orleans was wonderful. 15 participants went with us, representing 8 agencies. We were split into 2 groups, and worked on 2 families’ homes. Both groups were at the “mudding” & sanding stage of construction. The work was hard, but not unbearable. It was such a joy to know that these families would be able to finally move into homes after 4 years of instability and heartache. We are told the homes will be complete in approximately 3-4 weeks. In addition to our work, we learned a great deal about the people of New Orleans, and the great need of the people there. It is estimated the city will not be back to the way it was before the storm until 2027. We hope to continue to partner with them in this process.
The Whole Team!
This year, many of our agencies have used a portion of their budgets on providing backpacks and school supplies to need children in their community. One of those agencies is Pampa. Last week, they purchased 10 backpacks and loads of supplies to fill them. Below is a picture of their assembly party. Some schools in the area will give them out as they see fit. Providing supplies is a wonderful way to help children succeed in school, so they can succeed in life. Thanks to all who gave of their time and participated!
The house of a Lubbock employee, Krista Moreno, was destroyed in a fire recently. The agency decided to have a luncheon to raise money to help her and her family with some of their many expenses. The luncheon raised nearly a thousand dollars, which was presented to Krista on Friday. Sometimes serving means taking care of our own.
It’s off to Africa they go!
The team boarded their first plane this morning around 11:30. They will arrive in Johannesburg about 24 hours later. Friday they will journey to Bulembu, Swaziland, where they will serve all next week.
THE TEAM! (Marcie Jenkins, Beckie Hinze, Debbie Bryson, Maria Torres, & Bob Gentry)
The Send off Team at the airport.
The 5 adventurous travelers will return July 21st from their trip. We can’t wait to hear the stories!
As you may have heard, there was an earthquake near Central America this morning. Belize City, were our group did most of our work and met most of our friends felt the quake, but is not suffering from much damage. Further south, however, many homes have been damaged. Our friend Kenny, who works for The Word at Work, is traveling down there to help out. His mother’s home, which used to be on stilts, no longer is. Please pray for all the people affected by this earthquake.
Also, a Belizean oil company is discussing this morning whether or not it help The Word at Work by covering their many shipping expenses. This would be a huge blessing to their ministry in Belize, as they send medical and building supplies down there often, and it is very costly. Please pray for that decision making process.
Our plate is full here at Twenty-six:Twelve over the next few months. We will be taking a team to Bulembu in Swaziland, Africa from July 8-21. I am already beginning to pound my favorite motto into their heads: “Blessed are the flexible, for they shall bend and not break.” Beckie 2:11
Also in July we will be taking a team to Lost Canyon Young Life Camp in Arizona where we will be providing child care to teen moms who will be attending the camp – having fun and hearing the gospel. Those that went last year had so much fun and were able to love on these teenage girls and model parenting that many had never seen. The dates for this trip is July 18th – July 25th.
Then to top it all off we are planning one of our biggest projects ever – partnering with Habitat for Humanity in St. Bernard Parish of New Orleans. We will be helping to finish out more homes for those stranded folks who are still living in FEMA housing. We hope to draw in some of our men who love to sling a hammer or some paint – and don’t mind teaching others who don’t know how!
Call the 26:12 office if you want more info – or email us at beckie.hinze@fms-regional.com
In honor of National Volunteer Week, we would like to thank everyone who has volunteered with Twenty-Six: Twelve. From participating in our trips, to serving in your community, we want you to know that volunteering your time is appreciated! Specifically, we would like to thank our Most Valuable Volunteers for their tremendous help, as you are a crucial part of what Twenty-Six: Twelve does.
I told you that my desire was that we don’t just put “band aids” on the people that we come in contact with – but we develop long term meaningful relationships – well, after our trip to Belize we have been able to make a difference in the life of a little 7 year old boy, Moises. Below are some words from 26:12 in Amarillo. Moises fell out of the back of a pick up truck several months ago – Tim Tam and the Word at Work has worked diligently to help save this little boy’s life. Our staff stepped in in the midst of a huge blizzard to be surrogate moms for this precious little one. I put the ‘posts’ in chronological order – with the greatest news at the end!
From Tim Tam: “Tears of joy shower down today all over Belize City and beyond.
It started when my wife called and gave me the word that Baptist Saint Anthony Hospital in Amarillo Texas has agreed to receive Moises as their patient. It took me a while to stop crying so I could begin to share the good news with others. Our God once again hears the prayers of his children and brings hope to the hopeless. A network of caring people, friends connecting with friends all over the United States nonstop, thousands of emails, everyone striving to secure help for this little guy who refused to die.
Perhaps on Thursday, at least by Friday, a private jet will arrive in Belize to transport Moises, his mother and his Dr. to Texas even faster than a commercial airline. BSA Hospital in Amarillo is fully equipped to handle the case.
Early this evening I went to the hospital to share the good news with Moises and his mother. Unbelievable joy has pushed away all the sorrow in their rooms. And Moises is showing new energy and great improvement. Only days before, one of the nurses from Accolade Home Health Care (www.accoladehomecare.com) secured the TPN that was desperately needed to get nutrition into his body. Cars from distant cities drove through the night to hand off the medicine to a mission team from boulder Colorado bound for Belize who then rushed it to the hospital at the moment they arrived. The results were almost immediate. Tonight we noticed that the sores on his scalp and arms were now healing. There is new life in his eyes. But here is what blew my mind…… Perhaps you remember from the last alert we sent out that Moises spoke of a Angelic visitations, a man dressed in white who was helping him. Here we had come to the hospital to tell them they were about to go to the United States, and his mother shared that he already knew it. She awoke in the night to find Moises sitting in the chair next to the bed. He has not been out of his bed for many weeks. The “man who had been helping him” told him that he needed to get ready to go. Moises got out of bed while his mother slept. He bathed himself with wet wipes and put lotion on his skin. He put Vaseline in his hair and combed it and then sat in the chair ready to go. She didn’t know what to think of it other than that she was glad he was gaining strength and, though it little bit shaky, was able to walk around.”
Then tragically, his mom didn’t get to go with him initially to the states. There was a problem with her visa at the airport. So our ladies in Amarillo stepped in and became surrogate moms for a couple of days.
From Amy Chapman: “The storm is just getting here, but they have closed the roads north out of Amarillo, and west out of Amarillo already. It was only dusting snow when I was driving in, but it was VERY hard to drive because of the high winds making it white. Moses is getting excellent care… Iike he’s the only pt here. He loves the gifts 26:12 bought him, but especially the slinky!! It is constant activity with doctors in and out. Will give update when things slow down. “
From Tiffany Heizer, our administrator in our Amarillo office: “I just spent about 5 hours with him. He is very precious and a brave little boy. We played with play dough, colored, watched Dora—that is his favorite. He got out of bed and drove a Hummer up and down the hall then we played in the toy room. He is of course very frail and weak. As I carried him back to his room, because he was too tired to get back in the hummer or walk, I just about melted. I am so blessed to have 2 little boys who are healthy. We are blessed to live in a country where our children don’t have to lie in a hospital bed for months like he has not knowing when or even if you are going to get the surgery needed to repair your injury.
Beckie, thank you so much for passing his story on to us so we could share in this wonderful time for him and his family. “
From Lisa Tam: “Moises’ mom is here. And all are happy. The willingness of the Accolade folks to set aside personal schedules at the last minute, and in the midst of blizzard conditions, was truly a gift of grace.”
From Tiffany H. “His mom got here about 8:30… he had pain meds a little before so when she walked in he just laid there but smiled from ear to ear…She kissed him all over his face and was so happy to see him. I let Lisa and Beth know to please call us for any needs they have, mom was very excited about seeing the snow and having some warmer clothes there. So there is one little happy boy and his momma tonight.”
