Catecismo Biblico 2009

Catecismo Biblico is the name that we have given the group of children at the camp. Catecismo Biblico means "Biblical religious instruction." As you can see, this is our logo! We were extremely blessed with donations from the U.S. in 2008! We were sent financial donations, as well as toys, coloring books, watches, candy, sandals, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and many more things for the children!

Most of the things were given with the intent of Christmas for the children. However, as I said before, we were extemely blessed, so we continue to spread the kindness and generousity from these donations!


We had one church from Alabama who made these bags for the children at the camp. As you can see, there are toys, candy, books, crayons, etc.!


From the donations that we received, we bought the children backpacks and filled them with school supplies!



The backpacks were filled with notebooks, drawing paper, rulers, pens, pencils, colored pencils, water bottles, etc.!
Not only have we been blessed with donations for the children, but we have also been blessed by others who want to be a part of the work that God is doing with these children! Miguel and Edneia, with their 2 children, have asked to help, and we welcome them with open arms!

Before we get started with any activity, there is always a prayer led by one of the boys! When asked to lead a prayer, all of the boys raise their hands!

Lee had the idea of showing the children a dvd while we prepared the gifts and snacks for the children. As you can see, they are watching Chicken Little!

As the movie was winding down, we started calling the children to come line up for their gifts! Lee and I took turns calling out their names, and presenting them with their backpacks! They were very exited to get their backpacks and school supplies because a lot of them are not able to afford these things.













As an extra surprise, we put the gift bags from the Alabama church in the children's backpacks! That way, when they opened their backpacks, they saw much needed school supplies, and some things for having fun!

We asked the children for a photo showing the gift bags, and then asked them to turn around and show their backpacks! They were very happy to do so!







Not all of the children received backpacks. We purchased the backpacks and school supplies before Christmas while they were on sale. They were for the 30 children we worked with in 2008. Now the list has grown to 48 children!
We had a church in Florida who sent the children some sandals, shampoos, toothpastes, etc., so we made the new children a gift bag with these things!

As you can see, the children were excited about these things, and were eager to show their gift bags and sandals to the others!









Since this is a small community, the children tend to take care of each other. If some of the children are not present when we call their names, the others always tell us where the absent children are! So some of the children ran to tell those who did not show up that we had backpacks for them!

God blessed us with a great day of joy and happiness, both for the children and ourselves!

Our joy comes from seeing the excitement in the children's faces, not only because of the gifts, but because they know that God loves them, and has provided them people here and in the U.S. who love and care for them!

They thank God for both you and us in their prayers!

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!!