Relief Work

Let me preface this post by saying that I was gone for most of it (in Manila for appointments for Ben), so Mikayla took almost all the pictures!

Despite the fact that this is supposed to be the hot, dry season, we have been having heavy rains for the past 6 weeks, and there has been a huge problem with flooding in the villages where we work. The people were having trouble finding any work (no one was hiring because of the rain & flooding), and they were out of food so everyone has been very hungry. We had been helping as much as we could out of our own budget, but the needs were just too big for us. Thankfully our company has funds available for situations like this, and we were approved to get some money to provide some rice for the hungry. So this past week has been a busy one (while I was in Manila) buying the rice, transporting it to our home, re-packaging it into family-size portions, and delivering it to some of the villages affected. We are still in the process of doing this, but by the end of this coming week, we should be finished. Altogether, we will have purchased more than 9 TONS of rice, repackaged it into 10 kilo (22 lb) bags for each family, distributed it to about 625 families in about 15 villages. We are so thankful to have the privilege of being on the "distributing" end and able to help our people in this way.

Here are some pictures from the process for the 1st 4 tons of rice.

First, Steve went to Naga (about 1 hr away) to buy the rice (because the flooding has destroyed so much rice in our area, it is very expensive here right now). Then he hired a jeepney to transport it down to our house. Then Steve and a crew of volunteers from local churches pitched in to bring it into the house and re-package it. This Pastor Ezekiel. He has been a great partner in the work here, and we are so blessed to know him. He was a huge help with this relief effort.

Here is one of Mikayla on top of the pile of rice in our dining room. I love the look on her face.

Just chillin'.

Steve said Mikayla and Zach were a HUGE help with everything, and they kept great attitudes despite long hours out delivering and traipsing all over the countryside.

The pile got so high that Mikayla could touch her head to the ceiling!Here is a pic of the crew working to re-package all the rice into 10 K bags for each family. I got a kick out of Zach on the rice in the back. I assumed he was just playing, but Mikayla said that they set up their school work up on top of the rice, and Zach was actually doing school up there! With all the busyness, we have gotten behind on our lessons, so in the midst of all the craziness, Steve and the kids kept up with the bare basics of their lessons!

It was a ton of work (well, 4 tons to be more accurate!), and we were exceedingly thankful for the men and ladies who volunteered their time to help.
This is the son of one of the Agta families in a village where we have a Bible study. When they heard what we were going to do, they asked if they could come help. They said since they can't find any work right now anyway, they might as well volunteer their time. Steve gave them some extra rice as "payment" for their help - and they were shocked to receive anything for their work.
After the rice was packaged into 10 K bags, it was loaded into rice sacks and put in our car. Then they started delivering it to the villages - coming back to re-load between villages.
Unfortunately, we don't have many pics from the deliveries, but here are a few. Steve started by sharing a few words about how much God loves each and every one of them as well as explaining that there are people in the States who gave money to buy them some rice because they want everyone to understand God's love. Then he shared his testimony about how he was saved and how God has been at work in His life. He then encouraged them all to attend the Bible studies that are on-going or will soon be starting up in their village so that they can learn more about God and how he relates to man.
Then they distributed the rice and tried to meet and get to know the people as much as possible, encouraging them to come to the Bible study.
I love the smile on this lady's face. The people were so very thankful for the rice, and we were so thankful to have the opportunity to be able to help in this way.

Please pray for us as this next week will look very much like last week. Ben and I will return to Manila on Monday for another appointment, and Steve and the other 2 will press on with the relief effort (buying yet more rice, re-packaging it and delivering it) as well as trying to keep up/catch up with school.