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June 7, 2008
Well we are moved into the new facility, YEAH!!! There are a few things left to finish such as septic tanks and tile. They also need dressers and more beds. We are working at getting a container sent. We will have a fundraiser at Shipwreck Days in Anacortes. If you have anything you want to get rid of let us know.
We have our tickets in hand for the Fall mission trip. I am so excited to see the new compound. I feel like the Lord has said job well done and now I will bless it.
Jeff & Carla are here in the US for their daughters wedding. Both their daughter and our granddaughter are getting married on the same day. So we will see each other after the weddings.
Please continue to pray for funding to continue the building projects. God bless all of you for your prayer and support.
By His Grace,
Joyce
April 1, 2008
This is going to be an exciting month as Jeff and Carla and 32 kids will be moving into the new facility. Both houses will be completed by the middle of the month. The windows are being put in and the rooms are being painted. They will have room for 30 more kids when they get moved.
We are ready to start building the covered laundry facility and we are now fundraising for the next two homes. Our goal on the 10 acres is 20 homes, which will house 400 kids. We will also purchase theadjoining10 acres for phase three to build a pre-school, church and Tech Center.
God bless all of you for your help,
Joyce
January 29, 2008
Please continue to pray for Jeff, Carla and all the children. Kenya is in turmoil not knowing what each day will bring. I talked with Jeff this morning, he was able to get several bags of rice, beans and sugar. He also got baby wipes, diapers, formula and soap. If you want to help let us know.
By His Grace,
Joyce
Jambo Everybody! Here is a newsletter from Carla in Kenya.
How are all of you on the cold side of the globe?I guess you’re not allcold. Afew of you arein Arizona or Mexico, but most of you are fighting the snow and ice thesedays. Iheard EasternWashington gotdumped on prettygood. Sorryto say, I’m glad we don’t have to worry about that here.
Here, it’s starting to cool down abit. Thesun isn’t quite as intense and we’ve had a few smallshowers.Theground is so dry that within an hour of the shower, it has soaked up all the rain and you can’t even tell a drop of water everfell. Ina month or so, it should be raining almost everyday. Thenthe ground will be wet and muddy all the time.
We are continuing on day by day, not really sure what tomorrow brings for thecountry. Everyday there are two kinds of reports on the news: one reporting the places that have calmed down and the other reporting the places where violence haserupted. Theredoesn’t seem to be any immediate end insight.T heyare now having mediated “talks” between the government and theopposition. Buteven if the politicians come to an agreement, will that put to rest all the animosity and hatred which has developed among the common folk?I’m afraid there will be long lasting social issues that won’t go away just because the powers that be have shaken hands in front of the international mediacameras. Iguess only time will tell.
Here in Kesogon we are still living life asusual.Therehave been a few times we have heard rumors that trouble is coming, but so far things have remainedquiet.Eventoday we were told that a gang of three hundred “youths” of a certain tribe has formed to come here to chase (run off) people of a differenttribe.Idon’t know if it’strue. Wejust stay home and try our best to keep to ourselves.
Jeff needs to go toEldoret. Heneeds to pick up his new ID card, renew my driver’s license, renew my visa (I hope he can do that without me there), and a few other things that can’t be taken care of inKitale. Hewas planning to go tomorrow but we just heard that “youths” have destroyed a bridge at a certain village along the road between Kitale and Eldoret so now it’s impossible to passthere. Thereis a back road, so now he’s trying to decide whether to try to go that way.
It’s just so hard to know what to do because there’s no way to know if things will soon be better orworse. Shouldhe make a run for it now because by next week it will be impossible?Or should he wait until next week because by then things will be calm?Should he goto Nairobi toget my work permit?Or should he just renew my visa in Eldoret?I don’tknow! Ifwe don’t get it taken care of will the authorities understand because of the situation?Or will they declare me to be illegal in the country?I don’t know!
Jeff is trying to get the ball rolling again for spring protectionprojects. Ithas been quite a while since we protected aspring. Lastyear we had such a long rainy season that it just put that whole ministry onhold. Nowwe are trying to get it goingagain. It’ssuch a wonderful ministry that helps so many people have access to cleanwater. Weare excited to get started again.
Buildingcontinues. Nowthat there have been a few set-backs because of the chaos in the country, we are contemplating moving before everything isfinished. Wehave been discussing what we can live without and what work will be possible to do while livingthere. Wemight move before the floor tiles are installed because right now it’s impossible to get tiles because there are no shipments coming infrom Nairobi. Itwill be a pain to tile after we have moved, but maybe if we do one room at a time….I suppose we can live without electricity for a while…. Painting definitely needs to be done before we move…. Septic can wait since we have a good outhouse….
Here at home, things are fine.Everyone is healthy.The kids are back in the swing of school and Jeff and I are sorting out who is doing what.After he was on his own for two months and then I was on my own for the same amount of time, we have had to kind of re-establish who is now doing what.I hardly ever leave the house.Things just go better that way.That’s why this letter is late; I just didn’t feel like I should leave things on autopilot today.Jeff is trying to work out internet here at home (another thing that requires a trip to Eldoret).I hope he gets it worked out!Then I can send the letter from home and not worry about putting things on autopilot.Last year I was leaving home to teach two Bible studies.Now I only teach one and everyone just comes here.I also went to town twice per week to keep up with correspondence with all of you.You might have noticed I’m lacking in that area these days.Please know that it’s not for lack of wanting to communicate.I just need to be around home to ensure that everything runs smoothly.Pray that I’m able to get internet here.It would really make a difference!
I guess that’s about it for this week.Please continue to pray for our protection, for wisdom, discernment, provision, etc.Also pray forKenya.The whole country is suffering.None the less, God is good all the time!
Love, Carla and Jeff
Ps.Jeff didn’t go to Eldoret.There are no public transport vehicles running because of insecurity so he decided to wait.An opposition MP (like a congressman) was murdered last night inNairobiso that could also spark a fresh outbreak of violence.May God helpKenya!
January 2008
Time has sure flown by. We missed a newsletter for two months. So much has been happening. Right now, Kenya is in turmoil and our missionaries and the children have been in danger. Things seem to be getting better. Jeff had to cancel his plane back home on Dec. 31st.because the country was shut down.He is now scheduled to leave in Jan. The word from Carla is that everything is ok right now. Food and gasoline are hard to get. Prices have skyrockted in all areas. People are dying from starvation in some areas. There are hundreds of thousands of people who have been burned out of their homes. We are asking for prayer and any other kind of help you can do. With Jeff and Carla there and other families that we personally know, we have been getting phone calls telling us of what is going on. We pray for God's protection for the whole country and to bring peace back to what was once a very peaceful country.
The good news is that when Jeff gets back, they will be moving to the new facility.....God willing! We will be sure and put that on the newsletter as soon as we know.
Joyce
September/October2007
We are all getting excited here as Carla Picicci will be flying in on the 17th of Sept. to see the birth of her two new gandbabies. She will be home for a couple of months and is really excited to meet with our donors and friends. We would like to set up a visiting and speaking schedule the first part of November. If you would like to be a part of this, contact Joyce at 360-293-2992.
We are working on the funding to fill the Chidren's Home with beds, blankets, dishes, you name it. If you would like to be a part of helping to furnish the Home, build the water tank, put in septics, or build the veranda between the buildings, you may donate on-line through PayPal, or send a check to Rehema and let us know where you would like your money to go. It will go wherever you tell us 100%. God is so awesome! For those of you who have been helping all along, we say Thank You. For without your help, we would not be where we are today!!!!
We will keep you posted to when the Home will be opened and will try and have pictures.
God Bless all of you for your prayers.
Joyce Panzero
Aug. 2007
Things have really been moving since the last newsletter. The Children's Home is being built and the expected completion date is the end of Oct. We are so excited as there are children waiting to have a home. Then the second building will be started. Thanks to many of you for your generous donations, the Children's Home is coming to reality.
On a sad note, our Mark Steven passed away. He had been declining in health for a couple of weeks. His little body just couldn't handle it any more and he went to be with Jesus. He was four years old. There are pictures of him on another page. He is going to be missed. But, thank you Father for taking him with you. Only you know what he was suffering and what the future had in store for him.
Ron and my lives have changed with his mom coming to live with us with Alzheimers. Only one of us can leave at a time. So, one of us will be in Africa to celebrate the opening of the new Children's Home while the other watches mom. Then the other one will go over in Feb.
Thank you all for all your prayers and support. Without you none of this would be possible. We hope that some of you will get a heart for Africa and go with us on one of our trips. You will always be blessed by it. God is so awesome.
If you have any questions, please write to us. We would love to see how God is working in your lives. Be Blessed all of you.
Joyce
May 2007
I have decided to leave Aprils newsletter below so anyone missing reading that one can catch up on what has been going on.
The building has begun on the new property. They will be putting up four pole buildings. We have enough money to complete one of them. We decided to go ahead and do all four so when the money came in, we would be ready to finish putting up the walls on the other three.The first building will be full. The children are already waiting to move in. It has been so exciting to watch God at work. If you think that you cannot help and that it would be too expensive, I can't impress upon you how important anything you donate will help. Ten dollars goes a long ways. If enough people would just send ten dollars, it would add up so fast and the buildings would be up and ready to move in children.
We have been collecting good used children's clothing. We will be sending the sizes that are needed with the group that is going in June. We are still in need of boys clothing from sizesix up to twelve. We have plenty of baby things right now.If you have any of those sizes, you can contact JackieRice at 360-333-7330, cell, or email at jlange2b@verizon.net.Your donations are all tax deductible. Edward Wanambisi is now back in Africa. He is all done with his schooling and is ready to start his work at ECCO Gardens. We are eager to see him put his education into practice. He will be having a team going there this summer. We are anticipating good things and congratulating him on the fine work he has started. We are looking forward to seeinghim put his knowledge to good use.Good work Edward!
We are going to set up a fundraising booth during the Arts and Crafts Festival on Aug. 3, 4, and 5. It will be at 1117 Third St, corner of 3rd and N, in Anacortes, WA. We will have African items for sale. Linda Lieghtfuss, the artist who painted the picture of Rehema, Mercyin the Cornfield, will be there. Please stop by and say hello. We will have pictures of what we are doing in Africa there.
Mark Steven is getting better every day. He is trying to hold his head up on his own. Praise the Lord for what he has done for this little boy. Jeff has been sick. Hehas typhoid and the mumps. Please pray that he gets better soon. We need you Jeff! Both you and Carla are doing some awesome work there. God is truly working through you both.
Thanks everyone for your support. Without you, we could not do what we are doing. God Bless you all.
Hugs,
Joyce
April 2007   Benny and Dennis Thomas
Greetings, Jambo!
The Children's Home is really getting crowded.There are now 17 people living in Jeff and Carla's house. The newest addition is Thomas....what a cutie! He was six days old when he arrived. He was born at the hospital. His mother gave a phony ID to the hospital and then after giving birth, disappeared. This is very common with newborns being abondoned.A week before that, Benny and Dennis arrived.They are both four and very active. It is so sad that so many need homes. If only we had more room.
I am here in Anacortes working on getting funding so we can get more than one house at a time opened up. Jeff found and purchased 10 acres with an option to buy 10 more. We are hoping to buy the other 10 acres within the year. Jeff and Carla have already fenced the land and are now having 50,000 bricks made so they can begin to build. We have raised enough to build one home. We will move everyone over to that house as soon as it is done.
Mark Steven is out of the hospital and gaining strength. Carla is doing physical therapy with him to gain strength in his muscles. He was so malnourished that he had no use of his muscles. He seems to enjoy the therapy. The neighbors where he was found said he used to walk, talk and run. Now all he does is look up at you with eyes that long to communicate.
We have a small team going in June to help with the building project. We are planning to return to Kenya in the Fall. We have Ron's mom living with us now, so we will have someone stay with her while we are gone. The Lord has given us a command,to take care of widows, and orphans. We have lost our brother-in-law, twoson-in-laws, and a father in the last four years. We never thought that it would be our own family. We ask that the Lord take care of the rest of our family.
We will be updating our website over the next few weeks, so check in later.
If you would like to support our ministry, you can donate online on the donation page. To support a child, it is $50 a month. This covers medical, food, clothing, housing, school and house parents. But, even $10 a month would help with so many things. It is a blessing whatever you do, and we will send you a tax donation.
Thank you and God Bless and watch over you all.
Hugs,
Joyce
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