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Mobilizing CAM - Interested in short term trips??
Karin Rountree, short-term coordinator and campus rep for CAM, recently visited the Mexico field. If you are interested in short-term missions, she's the gal! Contact her at krountree@caminternational.orgif you would like to know more about a short-term trip!
Wondering what she's eating??? It's called a Salchica Snax! It's basically a Vienna sausage in a wrapper with salsa...a favorite among the kids in Mexico. While visiting a grocery store with our family, our kids told her it was disgusting, but had never tried it. She insisted we couldn't say it was disgusting unless we had tried it. We all had to take a bite after that! And we confirmed our suspicions!
Easter Sunday
HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!
Sunday Service in Mexico was amazing! We attended church together with about eight other churches in the area at our CAM Camp in Amaelco. Praise God...two people came to know the Lord at this service!
After church, we stopped to get some nieves (Mexican ice cream).
Nuevo Nacimiento Retreat
Our church, Nuevo Nacimiento, recently took a 2-day retreat to Hidalgo, Mexico where we worshipped, played, ate, and relaxed! It was a beautiful time together!
Spiritual Emphasis Camp
During Semana Santa (Holy Week), the CAM missionary kids had the privilege of attending a spiritual emphasis camp at CAM's Koinonia camp in Amaelco. They had a great week of spiritual renewal. Thanks to all who helped put this together!
A short visit to Texas
We made a quick trip to Texas mid-March. While there, Brent preached at Grace Bible Church in La Vernia (our sending church) and did a super job! Caleb and Haley did the special music. Haley sang the song she wrote (see previous blog for sampling) and Caleb accompanied with the guitar. It was amazing!
Sweet Memories with Gampy and Rara
Le'Ann's parents (Riney & Karen Jordan aka "Gampy & Rara) visited Quertaro in March. Here are some highlights from the trip!
Making new friends with Leti, Carla, Carlos, Adriana. This precious family touched their hearts. They bought Le'Ann's mom flowers and gave them some chocolate.
Discovering Guanajuato- such a delightful city!
Le'Ann finally found some toilet paper in Guanajuato! One of her prouder moments!
Eating delicious quesadillas at Leti and Carlos's home/business.
The market in Quertaro...always an experience!
Singing praise and worship with Haley
Le'Ann's dad is a motivational speaker and speaks all over the US to school districts, hospitals, and other organizations. He taught the homeschool speech class while they were here.
For more information about having him speak at your organization, click here!
Annie's 12th Birthday
The Downs' women know how to celebrate birthdays! We celebrate for about a month. Here are some pictures from Annie's Birthday Month.
Celebrating with the Buhler Girls - They had a sleep-over and made t-shirts.
New shoes! We celebrated with Annie's grandparents while they were here in Quertaro.
Family Celebration - We ate out at a Japanese restaurant.
Some of our Mexican friends had a surprise birthday party for Annie and Kathryn (who also celebrated her birthday recently). The girls helped cook quesadillas and had a great time together!
ESL Classes Continue to be Successful
The ESL (English as a Second Language) classes continue to be a success in our community center in Quertaro. We currently have about 40 students with hopes of more growth. Le'Ann teaches the children, Haley teaches a youth, and Brent teaches the adults. Le'Ann's parents visited in March and the adult classes were able to interview them in English. It was great to how much the students have learned over a few months. Brent is also teaching at a local business next door to the church. He has about 10 adult students in this class. Please pray that God will continue to use this ministry as a form of outreach. If you are interested in sponsoring a scholarship for a student that can't afford classes, please contact us at bdowns@caminternational.org. The classes cost the students about $15 a month for 8 classes per month. These costs cover expenses of copies and supplies. Thank you for your prayers in this ministry.
El Dia del Amor y la Amistad - February 2009
This year for Valentine's Day (El Dia del Amor y la Amistad) our church's youth group decided to have a romantic dinner for the couples of the church. The kids sold tickets, decorated, prepared a delicious meal, and served the food! It was a beautiful evening!
Fellowship & Future Stars ???
One thing we love about being in Mexico is fellowship with our Mexican friends. We recently had our friends Jose Luis and Estrella along with their kids (Pablo, Jasmine, and Nicole) over to have comida with us. We had a great time! The guys played chess, the ladies visited, and the kids played "Lips" (Wii's karoke game)...that is until the adultsinterfered!
Haley's first invitation to a Quince Ao
In February, Haley was invited to a
Quince Ao by one of the neighbor girls across the street from us. Haley had a wonderful time and looked beautiful.
Team Taco
CAM has recently undergone some restructuring. In the past, we operated in circuits. Now, we are operating in transformation teams. The purpose of these teams are to help each missionary grow as disciples in order to better disciple others. If you are in a cell group at your church, this is very similar to what we are doing. The CAM buzz word/expression is
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