Christmas

As stated before, we were given some donations this year for the children that we work with. We decided to spread the giving out, instead of giving everything at once and overwhelming the children. We actually started the giving at the end of November, which you can in the post "Christmas in November?" below! (you can click on the pictures to enlarge them for a better view!)

This is a tag that Lee made up, and put on all the presents that we gave the children! It says: "Merry Christmas" - "May all your dreams come true and may you never stop dreaming about the great things" - "May you have great surprises...and much peace..."








Not only were we able to give the children each a toy, but we also made a gift bag with a fruit cake (they are better here!), a box of chocolate, a stocking of hard candy, and a chocolate milk!

These are photos of the many toys, candy, fruit cakes, bags of marbles, etc. that we gave the children for Christmas. As you can see, there are backpacks as well. We plan to fill the backpacks with school supplies and give them to the children in February when they return to school!

Mr and Mrs. Claus? I don't think so! We are just his helpers! Here, I am making the sacks out of wrapping paper, and Lee is filling them, as well as wrapping other presents!

A table full of presents at the camp, and some of the children waiting to get their presents!









Some of the children were traveling, so some of their family members picked up their presents for them.

The children at the camp love to pray! When we ask who will lead a prayer, almost all of the boys raise their hands.

Here, one of the boys said the prayer, and thanked God for the people in the US who love them, and help them! He also asked that God would bless the people in the US!

Ricardo, one of the Brasilians who helps us with the children, gave a short devotional on the meaning of Christmas. The children were very patient in waiting for their gifts!

We have a list of all the children that we work with and their ages, so we tried to buy a toy that would suit their age.

Here, Lee is reading off the list, and I am helping her to hand out the gifts!

Of course the children were excited about their presents, but most of them waited until they got home to open them. However, some of the children did open their gift bags!

The parents of 6 of the children we work with did not show up to get their children's presents, so we loaded a sack with the gifts, and walked to their house!

Here, the mother of the 6 children is very happy to receive the presents for them!

Here are some of our Brasilian friends who help with the children. Gilmar, his sister Marcia, and Ricardo. I do not remember the name of the guy with the mustache!!

A few months ago when Lee and I were visiting the camp, the mother of a neighbor teenager came running into the camp needing help because her daughter was having a seizure. Lee and I loaded the girl and her mother into our car and took them to the hosptial several miles away.

Over the months, the mother has contiuned to call Lee with updates on her daughter, who has been diagnosed with epilepsy. When we were at the camp giving out the presents, we visited, and the family had made us this cake to show their appreciation!

It was nice because on that night, Lee and I were cooking for several of our single Brasilian friends, and this was our desert!

God is Great, ALL of the time!!