Our Current Needs

While regular, general support continues to be our most basic need, there are a few current needs with which we could use some extra help, as well as larger upcoming needs we will have to find funds to address.  Would you pray with us that God will continue to meet our needs, and respond if He leads you to do so? 


Current needs:

• Medications are running about $500 for the men in Casa de Esperanza.  Your regular donation of $25 a month would go a long way towards helping in this area.
• Each weekend, we spend about $60 for transportation to get our men to school in Santa Maria.  This comes to about $250 each month, but we think it's worth the expense.  Do you?
• Gasoline to get to our ministry projects in Santa Maria, San Pedro an Santa Lucia cost about $30 a week.  Can you help keep us on the road?
• Speaking of being on the road, we need to make about $500 for car repairs once again.  The roads here really tear up a vehicle, and ours is no exception.  
• With four guys in school and four women working on developing a business, we need to purchase two computers, one for each house.  These will total about $1000.  Or we would happily accept used laptops which still work.
• Mario Juarez, who has been a companion-caregiver for more than two years has begun studying physical therapy at the university.  We are sponsoring his tuition and supplies which run about $100 a month.  In return, he will work for us one year after graduation for each year we sponsor him.  Those of you who have met Mario know what a great investment this is!

Anticipated future expenses:

• Our current vehicle is a 2001 Mazda MVP which has served us well, but has seen better days and just about come to the end of its road-worthiness.  We anticipate a new vehicle will cost us between $6000-$7000.  With two homes and three ministry sites, this is not a luxury but a necessity, and we need to start saving toward this purchase.  If you would like to donate toward this, just designate that your donation is for a new vehicle, and we'll keep you updated as to how this fund is growing.
• The refrigerator in the men's home is making noises that no machine should be making. It will cost about $700 to replace this.  

Though these seem like large amounts, most of our donations range between $10 and $50 a month.  This may not seem like a lot, but when God puts it all together it adds up.  We appreciate your prayers, encouragement and support.  

We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.

This passage from Proverbs 16:9 describes my weekend.  After a long two weeks of working with North Americans (who I loved to be with), I got home Friday afternoon, changed into my pajamas, and settled down with the expectation that I was not going anywhere until Sunday.  Well, I knew I had to take the truck in for minor maintenance, but that was only to the corner so it didn't really count.

Then, about 5:45, Mario called me from Casa de Esperanza.  Fidel and Moises had encountered a little girl alone in the street in front of the men's house.  She was about 6 years old and appeared to them to have Down Syndrome.  What should they do?

As I was telling him to call the police, I was convicted that I needed to go over to the house.  Mario confirmed this for me when he said he could not find the number for the local police (we rectified this!).  Grumbling somewhat that I just wanted one full day to rest, God brought me up short with the realization that I was complaining about leaving the comfort of my warm cozy house when this scared little girl was sitting shoeless out in the street.

Yes, even missionaries are selfish at times.  Thank goodness we have the Holy Spirit to convict us.   Resolving that situation took the rest of the evening, and I returned home about 10:30 pm, frustrated and discouraged.  Nothing was done to make sure this little one would be safe, though the police who responded were sympathetic and concerned.

 So much for a quiet night at home.  But at least I had all day Saturday to kick back and do what I wanted.

Then, I awoke early Saturday morning to a message from Brenda, our house manager, saying her grandmother had passed away in the night.  As much as I wanted to stay home, I knew I had to be with the family.  Here, in Guatemala, wakes take place in the home, and all the family, friends, and neighbors come to pay their respects.  Food is served and you actually stay for quite a while visiting with those who had come.

Since Brenda's family considers me family, I needed to be there.  As I greeted each of the women in the family, they each clung to me and sobbed.  I had the honor to weep with those who weep many times while I was there.  I don't understand why my particular presence was so comforting, but I believe it was, and I was grateful to be there.  Once in a while, fleeting thoughts of the weekend of rest I was giving up to be there passed through my mind, but quickly left.

As I was settling in to spend the afternoon, Brenda received a call from our guys who were at school in Santa Maria de Jesus.  Their classes had gotten out early, and they had called their driver to come pick them up, but he was in Guatemala City since he wasn't schedule to meet them for at least another hour and a half.  What should they do?

Of course, I went to get them, and took them back to San Pedro.  You can't imagine what a process it is to load four men who cannot walk, and then load four wheelchairs (two of them heavy electric chairs) into a pick up.  Mario and Dani, our companion-caregivers who were with the guys, did so smoothly and without complaint.  When I thanked them, their response was that they were happy to be there.  We drove home, and they did the entire process in reverse.  This transport took at least and hour and a half, and was hard work for them.  And they laughed and joke the whole time with the guys, showing patience and care as they lifted each one of them from the car and put them into their wheelchairs.

Once again, God brought me up short with the example of the selfless service of these two young men to their companions who needed their help.  They had gotten up at 4:30 am to get the men ready to leave for school, and here, at 2:30 pm they still had not had lunch.  And they served with joy.

And I realized, how in the course of the day, God had taken away any resentment I had of my day being interrupted and replaced it with the joy of being right where He wanted me to be.  I got to bring Jesus into difficult and painful situations, as well as just provide everyday care for the men I love.



Finally, this morning, God made sure I didn't miss the point.  Pastor Luis preached on the feeding of the 5000, but with a very different slant.  In the context of the "big story" he pointed our that just before this, the disciples had just returned from being sent out two by two to minister as Jesus had taught them.  They returned to Him full of exciting stories of the miracles they had experience, and Jesus was taking them to a place to rest, alone with him and away from the crowds.

Imagine how they felt when they got to the other side of the lake, and once again a multitude was waiting for them.  The people were interrupting their time with Jesus.  Couldn't He just send them away?  Couldn't they just this once have time alone with Him?  Was this desire to have a break the motivation for their concern that they did not have enough food for the people?

He contrasted his with Jesus reaction.  He welcomed them.  Mark said he was filled with compassion for them.  And, as far as his disciples, He pushed them to feel this compassion also, saying "You give them something to eat."  He taught them to use the paltry resources at hand and surrender them to God.   To allow God to use their inability to show His infinite ability.  And all received what they needed, and their was just enough left over so that each of the disciples could receive one basket of food to feed themselves.

And so it is with our God.  He may ask us to give up what we have, what we planned to use for ourselves, to meet the needs of others.  But he always provides just enough to meet our needs, too.

So it is with my weekend.  I did not get the rest I had planned, but I feel refreshed enough to face another week.

Afternote:  Once again Sunday night, the little girl with Down Syndrome appeared alone outside our door.  Once again I went over and the police were called. Though they tried to involve the Guatemalan version of Child Protective Services, she was once again returned to her mother.  I am dealing with anger and frustration, but know this is God's issue to resolve. 

I am happy that she knows that our home is a safe place to come to but praying for guidance as to what to do if this happens again. 

I am learning to be careful when I pray, "God break my heart for what breaks yours," because He does just that.  Please keep Maria in your prayers.

Partnering with Reason to Hope

In June, 2010, Pat Duff move to Guatemala with a passion to serve the poor and disabled in this Central American Country.  Since that time, she has founded Reason to Hope, Inc. and now employs a staff of six full-time and two part-time Guatemalan employees.

With all the “worthy causes” competing for donations, especially at this time of year, it’s hard to know how to direct your giving where it will be used effectively and efficiently. 

God has called us to care for a group of people that is often forgotten and frequently neglected or rejected.  Those with physical, emotional or cognitive limitations who live in Guatemala.  As an American, it is often difficult to understand the challenges and even abuse those who are different face in this country.  The government provides no assistance to them or their families.  The churches don’t know how to respond to them.  Their neighbors wish they would live somewhere else.

I could share story after story about my friends with disabilities that would break your heart and hopefully anger you.  The disturbing thing is that, for these friends of mine, this is their daily life living in a country where they truly are the “least of these.”  They are an unreached and unwanted people group in every sense of the word.  God has charged our ministry to reach them, value them, then go a step further and care for them.  To do this we need your help.

It's as simple as that.  

If you give to Reason to Hope, this chart shows how we are using your donations.

To meet the various needs we found among the disabled in Guatemala we developed different strategies which we use in our ministry:

COMMUNITY LIVING

Our new Assisted Living Home
for women with disabilities
on the outskirts of Antigua

Can you help us name our new home?

Casa de Esperanza, an Assisted Living Home

for men with disabilities
located in San Pedro Las Huertas
outside Antigua Guatemala

EDUCATION

Pat serves on the Administrative Team

of New Life School in Santa Maria de Jesus.

She offers teaching training and consultation services

based on her 30+ years experience teaching special education.

Reason to Hope also provides scholarships 

to those with special needs and 

those training to work with 

the disabled 

VOCATIONAL TRAINING

& JOB COACHING

Fidel has started his own small recycling business and
"employs" Moises and Roberto to help with the things he
can't do independently.

Additionally, we are forming partnerships with other
NGO's in Guatemala to further our residents
job opportunities.

FAMILY SUPPORT

Through nutritional support and
educational scholarships
we help families prevent disabilities and
care for their children with special needs
in their own homes.

These ministries are made possible through the donations of our financial partners. One hundred percent of all funds received do directly to the mission field.  We receive no support or assistance from the Guatemalan government or social services to serve these special individuals.


If you would like to join us in serving the least of these, you can send a donation to:

Reason to Hope, Inc.

P. O. Box 284

Elkhorn, NE 68022

or donate on-line at

ReasontoHope.org

Reason to Hope, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization, and all donations are tax deductible.

Opening Doors, January 2019

Soon to open women's house
We need a name
Any suggestions?

While it has been a desire of mine for many years now to have a community home for women with special needs, the timing never seemed right. It seems the home has taken on a life of its own now that God has given us the go ahead.

It has been scary to look at opening another home when our income just covers what we need for the men's home.  However, when we started the men's home, we didn't have the funding for it, and God has been faithful as we have been obedient.  We trust Him to do the same as we open our doors to women.

I knew two of our graduates from New Life School needed a home in which they could continue to develop their potential.  While both of these young women have families in Santa Maria who care for them, they needed a safer environment than their families could provide.  They had been on my heart for months, and my move to a house in Panorama, just outside Antigua, seemed to be a step in being able to care for them.

The actual events leading to opening this home began when Elsa, my landlady, offered me the house across the driveway from my home, at a more than reasonable rent, considering our location close to Antigua.  We had talked about my desire to open a women's home, and I had heard that she had "plans" for the house which would be come available in November.  I put a fleece out to God that if she brought it up, I would move forward.  She did and I have.

When I talked to both of the young women and their families, they immediately said they were interested in living with us.

Petronila has spina bifida and is in a wheelchair.  She is completely independent in self-care and wants to start a small business since she has graduated from high school.  Our location will give her the opportunity to do this.

Griselda has Down Syndrome and, while she can care for herself, needs supervision and help with decision making.  Having only begun to speak about a year and a half ago, she needs continued education and speech therapy. 

Both of them excited to move in and begin their new adventure.

Leah West, a young missionary from Tennesee who works with Building Guate, had been living in the house with the missionaries who had rented it previously.  She has agreed to stay on to help the women transition to "city" living.  Oh, yes, it just so happens that she has a degree in special education! Her main focus will continue to be serving with Building Guate, and she hopes to involve Griselda in serving there also.

With these first three residents, we were ready to begin.  God confirmed this decision with a gift from a friend of our ministry to help us set up and furnish the house.  We were on our way.

As I looked at 2019, it seemed once again my workload would be increasing significantly with the need to be hands-on in my oversight of the new home.  I felt a burdened by this new responsibility, but was ready to take on the challenge.  Last week I discovered why I had felt burdened by this.  It was not my challenge to take up!

At dinner on Christmas Eve, Marilyn Salazar, the daughter of our house manager at Casa de Esperanza, surprised me by saying she wanted to come and live at the women's house and help out.  She has agreed to manage the daily running of the house, including meal preparation and helping Griselda and Petronila as needed.  Her previous work at a home for girls with special needs makes her uniquely qualified for this role.  She initially offered to work as a volunteer, but, considering the responsibilities she is willing to assume, I believe we need to give her a small stipend in return for her service.  She will be moving in January 8th to help set up the house.

Completing the group who will live at the home is Flor Raxjal, the daughter of our principal at New Life School.  Flor is studying preschool teaching and will be doing her practicum in the Antigua area.  She lives about two and a half hours from here, so will be with us during the week to make her studies a bit easier this year.

Our kitchen is equipped

So, God has provided a full house. Again, we will have able-bodied women as well as those with special needs living in community and sharing life together.  I get to be part of this new endeavor, and still maintain my personal living space.  Only our God could so perfectly orchestrate this new beginning.

But we still need beds and furniture

We estimate our monthly expenses to be as follows:

Rent and maintenance:  $675

Electricity $75

Food  $300

Phone and internet $50

Stipend for volunteer $150

Personal needs of two permanent residents $100

You can see that this will increase our monthly budget by about $1400.  If you would like to become a part of giving these women a change to live independently and develop their potential, we welcome your one time donation or monthly gift.

You can donate on-line or send a check to:

Reason to Hope, Inc.

PO Box 284

Elkhorn, NE 68022.

We appreciate your gift of any amount, and all donations are tax-deductible.

Giving Tuesday 2018, Reason #1 to Suppport Reason to Hope--JUST DO IT! But only if God leads you to. . .

One of the most difficult parts of being a missionary, for me, is asking for financial support.  I have disliked it so much that my first plan was to wait until I reached retirement age and support our ministry using my retirement funds.  As you can see, that didn't work out so well, and eight plus years later I realize that was the height of arrogance and disobedience.  God has led me to be a faith-based missionary not because He needs for me to raise funds, but because I need to raise the funds for our ministry to remind myself, daily, that this is HIS ministry and we are literally and totally dependent on Him for our survival.

It is in this obedience and dependence that I am writing about Giving Tuesday.  For me, it is unfortunate that we need to designate one day of the year to remind us that we are responsible for more than our own happiness and survival. This should be part of our DNA as believers, and we have been told by no one other than Jesus Himself that what we do for the least of these we do for Him. The Bible often speaks of the responsibility of those who love God to love their neighbor, concretely and practically.

I am writing about giving not because we need money (though we do) but because, as believers, we need to be givers.  Where we invest our money and our time is a good indicator of what is important to our heart.  Giving is a concrete expression of our awareness that all we have is a gift from God.  No matter that we have worked hard to "earn" it--He has provided our jobs, our skills and our strength to be able to do so.  We need to give as much as the needy need to receive.

James 1: 27

So whenever (notice I didn't say "if" because I believe, for a Christ follower it is a given) God prompts you to share your riches--JUST DO IT!  You may not think of yourself as rich, but if you are reading this on a computer or smart phone, you are among the world's richest people.

It doesn't matter how much you give, it may not even matter to whom you give, but GIVE.  Give as He has given to you. Give as He directs you.  Don't be led by emotional appeals which pull on your heart strings, but be led by obedience to His prompting.

Don't be held back by the fear that if you give you will not have enough.  This is one of the ways we have been "contaminated by the world" which seeks to block His still small voice.

If He is moving your heart to give--

The foreigner, fatherless and widows are identified specifically as those in need. Widows and orphans were those who, in Jesus' time, were unable to provide for their own needs, and were dependent on others to survive.  Even in this day and age there are people such as these. I believe that the disabled, especially in poverty-stricken countries, are definitely included among those about whom the Bible speaks.

It is for this reason that I am inviting you to partner with Reason to Hope this year to care for those who, because of their disabilities and abandonment by their families, are not able to care for themselves.  These folks come to us believing we are their hope, and we lead them to find the true hope which comes from Christ alone, even as we provide for their physical, emotional, and psychological needs.

So I am asking you to stop, pray, and listen to God in this moment.  Is he stirring your heart to provide for the financial needs of the poor and disabled in Guatemala who are being served by Reason to Hope?  If you feel God moving in your heart to partner with our ministry--JUST DO IT!

DONATE NOW

If you feel God moving you to share your riches with another ministry--JUST DO IT!

Whatever God is telling you--JUST DO IT!

And, after you hear from our Father, and after you step out in obedience to His leading, I'd love to hear what you were led to do.  You can copy this image and email it to me.

I promise I will pray His abundant blessings over your donation to whatever ministry you support, and ask Him to bless you more abudantly than you can ask or imagine.

Now, go and JUST DO IT!