I have always been slightly amazed at the apparent relaxed/bold attitude some people have when asking for money or other handouts. There are people in this world that seem to have no issue asking for discounts or freebies (which probably is a wonderful quality if they are the head of a non-profit organization!) Me on the other hand? I get nervous just standing in line at a customer service desk trying to return something I bought that was already broken or missing parts when I opened it up! For some reason I feel guilty asking for my money back even though the product was damaged before I got to use it. What if my honor is questioned and the employees don’t believe that it was already broken before I used it? I don’t take money for granted, and while we strive to live frugally, I also want to live honestly and with integrity. I have been brought up to believe that money is something to be earned, not just handed out. Now don’t get me wrong, we have utilized things like food stamps and discounted school lunches when possible. Mostly because we were living off of only Gabe’s income so that I could stay at home with the kids. While one could argue that maybe I should have been working as well so that we wouldn’t need that kind of assistance, both Gabe and I would argue that I was working extremely hard…I just wasn’t getting paid for my work!
Fast forward to our current situation. Gabe and I are BOTH unemployed as far as getting a regular paycheck goes. But we are both working very hard. Our only payment, so to speak, is the financial gifts that people give us. We are so very grateful for our financial supporters who are making this experience possible. So writing this post makes me feel nervous, just as if I am standing in front of a customer service line, hoping that my integrity won’t be questioned. I don’t want anyone to think that we are just asking for handouts. But the truth is, we could really use more financial donors. This month we are living on just over $800. Last month, it was closer to $600. We have been taking money out of our meager savings to make it through the past months, but we can’t keep doing that. What happens if our house in Trout Lake needs repairs? What if something happens and we need to make an emergency trip back to the states? Even if neither of those things happen, we will need our savings for when we leave Mexico and head back to Trout Lake, as we will likely have a month or two where we will be back before Gabe’s paychecks from the school would start up again. We trust that God will provide for us, but also recognize that we need to make our financial position known so that others have the opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus by helping meet our needs.
While living expenses here in Mexico are certainly cheaper, we still have expenses. We still have bills back in the states. Gabe is taking some online classes this year to fulfill his continuing education requirements so that he can renew his teacher’s license. The kids are wearing out their jeans and shoes. We are needing to buy groceries (yes, we can eat most meals in the cafeteria, but we still need to provide snacks for the kids for school and honestly, the cafeteria food isn’t always very healthy and so we are trying to cook more at home). We need to buy our own toiletries such as toilet paper, toothpaste, shampoo, laundry soap, etc. Shay’s ADHD medication costs us about $100 a month (it would be more, but she has actually stopped taking her afternoon pill and we are substituting coffee instead). Gas is very expensive here and we try to make it through a whole month on one tank of gas (which costs about $100 or more a month). The kids have all seen the dentist here and I have at least three of them which really need to be treated by the orthodontist here. One of them has an overbite that is so extreme that her lips don’t even naturally come together and so her mouth is always slightly open. And while we try to stay healthy, there are always things that are going to come up. Such as this last week when we discovered that one of our own children had intestinal parasites and so we had to treat the entire family for it.
We feel that our work here is important. Gabe is working hard at the school. For those of you who have had kids in his class, that should come as no surprise. He works hard to inspire and teach the kids placed under him. And as one of the few males that the orphanage kids have constant contact with (and the only male teacher in the school), his role there is very important. Even if they don’t have him as their teacher, and even if language barriers don’t allow for much conversation, Gabe’s presence at the school allows them to see what a positive male role model looks like. As for me, on a weekly basis I am reading with at least 11 kids at the school one-on-one, hanging out with 4 special needs kids, and hanging out with 3 toddlers and 6 babies. All of that is on top of the time Gabe and I are investing into our own children. And since Gabe and I both want to get to a point where we can speak Spanish at a conversational level to better interact with people here, we are getting up most weekdays at 5:15 in the morning to study Spanish. Yes, we are working hard. (Here are a few pictures of some of the kids Gabe and I spend time with on a weekly basis.)
So it is with a humble attitude that I plead with our friends and family for more financial support. If you can support us on a monthly basis, no matter how small, that would be wonderful. But even one-time gifts would be appreciated. Our promise to you is that we will be wise with the money given to us. We aren’t here to take a long, elaborate vacation with other people’s money. Don’t let my facebook photos fool you. While we do go to the beach rather frequently, it is because it is a cheap way for us to rest and recharge (our favorite beach is only a 15 minute drive away and so doesn’t cost us anything but a small amount of gas for our vehicle). You can be assured that the money donated to us is simply used to meet basic needs and not extravagant wants. If we ever have excess money, our plan is to find a way to use it in a way to bless the ministry here. So please consider becoming one of our financial donors. And if you do, please send us a note so that we can properly thank you! Here is a link to the website where you can make online donations. (If you prefer to send a check, send me a message and I will get you the information you need to mail it in.)
Thank you to those of you who have already blessed us with financial gifts. We are so grateful to you! We couldn’t do this without you!