Back up twenty years.  Mid-1990s CRWRC did a visioning exercise with the church; highest on the desired list was a Christian School. The next year I came as leadership development missionary; neither agency does schools, so the hope went nowhere…except to the church’s and my memory.  As a product of and supporter of the concept of Christian Schools, and seeing the great potential for good in that setting, the possibility of obtaining land – this precise lot, since the church lot while deep is not wide enough for a school – has been in my mind and prayers with every visit I have made over the last twenty years since retirement.

The El Salvador churches have maintained that prayerful vision.  Area children do not have any options other than the local public grade school; for high school they have to travel by public bus to the capitol, San Salvador.  Costs, danger, and other factors mean that many will not get further education. Hence this local option for multiple reasons.

Currently there is a project planned called My New Family, but the real hope is for funding to form a Christian Vocational/Trade School in Huizucar.

Many supporters have asked and prayed about when and how this can come about.  The “vacant lot” is purchased and waiting… 

Let’s build together: “Despise not the day of small beginnings” is the saying.  What follows below is background story to the vision and lot purchase; see if interested.

October 2018 – If you didn’t see the mention in the letter on the first page, then this intro: on my trip now this month I plan to talk through options for this project that has been on hold for two years.  If you want to build an anonymous donor building, get in touch with me!  I’d love to tell the folk there of something that would be a HUGE encouragement to them; while once they made an estimate of $110,000, I would say that number should be doubled now!  Anyone with a quarter million dollars?!  

(Mid – 2016) This is exciting, and an answer to many prayers!  On May 18, Pastor Joaquin Ordonez phoned with news; the vacant lot (the only one on the entire square block) right next to the Huizucar Church is available!  The lady representing the inheriting family came to him with the “first right of refusal ” for the church to buy the land.

Now let me back up twenty years.  Mid-1990s CRWRC did a visioning exercise with the church; highest on the desired list was a Christian School. The next year I came as church development missionary; neither agency does schools, so the hope went nowhere…except to the church’s and my memory.  As a product of and supporter of the concept of Christian Schools, and seeing the great potential for good in that setting, the possibility of obtaining land – that precise lot, since the church lot while deep is not wide enough for a school – has been in my mind and prayers with every visit I have made over the last ten years since retirement.

On his visit to Michigan in 2001 Pastor Joaquin and I already visited the office of WorldWide Christian Schools.  The challenge that agency gave at the time was “show that you can start a school, if even on the church benches, and we will consider assisting.”  With neither land nor funds to begin, and I no longer in the country, that did not happen.  NOW looks like the time something may come of this; I have given the pastor my word to help raise money for the purchase: $30.000!  Already the same person who donated for the Santa Tecla reconstruction after the earthquake has agreed to meet a matching amount.

[September update: they dropped the price to $28,000 and the pastor still awaits answer to the counter offer of $25,000.  And we have $3,300 toward the matching gift!You can give that a boost!)

So the campaign is ON!  … UPDATE: CAMPAIGN CLOSED, FULLY FUNDED AND THE LOT WAS PURCHASED.  FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF A SCHOOL IS ON HOLD UNTIL SUCH TIME AS THINGS LOOK MORE FEASIBLE TO PROCEED; YOU MAY PLEASE PRAY ABOUT/FOR THAT.   

These are children from Huizucar; Sunday School and visitors.  This picture is a couple years old; some of the young ones are now finishing grade school, and some in the back row have gone on to high school in the city…IF they can afford the bus and the lunch, and IF the parents allow them to travel on dangerous buses.  So some of these are candidates to attend the local Christian Vocational School that is being planned.