So Long, Sweet Summer...

Well, the end has come. Today is our very last day in Harmons. I'm still not sure that I even realize that as I type this post. Just the other day, Rachel and I were talking about going home. Rachel said, "this is our way of life now, this is our home." And that is so true. No longer will we be waking up to the sound of roosters, barking dogs, and annoying parrots. No longer will we run downstairs to see Fridgie dancing and smiling and acting crazy. We won't get to hug Mama Gloria everyday. We will no longer go on our walks around Harmons and visit our favorite friends. We won't be in Jamaica. It's so strange to think about leaving this life, this home we've become accustomed to. But today we say our final goodbyes. Today, leaving becomes real...

If I tried to sum up my summer experience in one last blog post, I would not do it justice. There are too many things I am still processing and learning that I would love to share with all of you. I sit here in the office as it rains outside, trying to find the last words. I desire a post that is incredibly meaty and that will capture my summer in a few paragraphs, but it's just not possible.

Quite possibly the most beautiful thing about coming to Harmons is that everyone's experience is different. Whether you've spent a week here, read about Harmons on the internet, or spent your entire summer here, you remember different things, you experience different things. My stories and my experiences are completely different from Debo's and from David's. The things I learned and am still learning are completely different from Chris, Colt, and Phil. Rachel and I will cherish different memories and remember different people. That's what is incredible! God brought us all here for different reasons. He taught us all different things.

I want to thank all of you for an incredible summer! Thank you for reading about us, supporting us, and praying for us. We could not have made it without you! Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we return home to the states.


So long, sweet summer...

Lacy

Happy Birthday Birdie!

Today was a really special day during our visit to the Infirmary. In March, I met a woman who lives in the Infirmary named Birdie. Birdie is old and blind and wonderful. She grew up in Jamaica, and she is half Jamaican and have Native American. She always wears a dress with her hair in braided pigtails, covered up by a yellow do-rag. Birdie is very special to me. Every week this summer, I have gone to visit her. We have spent hours and hours just talking, laughing, reading her favorite Psalms, and singing her favorite songs. She has shown me so much about faith and true trust in Christ. As I sit with her during my weekly visits, I am blown away as she depends on the Lord for every provision in her life. The way she lives now in a place that is so absent of physical love is in every way a reflection of her love for Christ. The way she awaits heaven is incredible; singing about it and praying about it like a party with Jesus is coming tomorrow! As you can see, this woman has deeply moved my heart this summer. I am so thankful to have her in my life!

Today we celebrated Birdie's birthday! Her birthday is actually next week on August 15th. But since we will not be here next week, we decided to celebrate today. We greeted Birdie as usual, with a big hug and then sat down to be with her. We sang her "Happy Birthday" and gave her her favorite sweeties (or candy), peppermints! She even sang her birthday song along with us, so excited to be celebrating a week early! We're not really sure how old Birdie is. She doesn't remember the year she was born and there is no record of her birth at the Infirmary. From the way she looks, I would guess Birdie to be somewhere in her eighties (possibly nineties). For the rest of our visit today, we sang with her and read her favorite Psalms, 27 and 62. (If I were you, I'd look that up right now and read about the exact conditions of Birdie's life!) Today was a beautiful day and I just thought I would share it with you...

I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord...
Psalm 27:13-14

Only a few more days,

Lacy

Interested in Summer Staff?

Many of you might be interested in our Summer Staff Program. Maybe you have either visited Harmons this year or you have read about it this summer. However, here is some information about Summer Staff that you might like to know.

Each year, Won By One To Jamaica hires qualified college students that commit to 12 weeks of work in Harmons for the summer. Summer staffers primarily invest in relationships with Jamaicans in Harmons and with the American team members who come down to serve.

Each summer staffer is assigned a job for the summer including: Spiritual Formation Leader (Phil and David), Worship Leader (David), Store Manager (me!), Hospitality Coordinator (Rachel), Work Site Coordinator (Chris and Colt), and the Community Outreach Coordinator (Debo). These different positions make up all the work that is done here in the summer.

To be eligible for summer staff, you must be at least 1 year out of high school, have experienced at least 1 week of mission work here in Harmons, your finished application and 3 references must be received, and you must complete a personal interview.

You have been reading all summer long about the different experiences we are having and really what the "meat" of being on summer staff is all about. From my own experience, I can tell you that this will most likely be one of the most challenging and stretching summers of your life. I can also tell you that without a doubt, it was one of the best decisions I ever made to commit to 12 weeks in Harmons. This summer was difficult, messy, hot and sweaty, and hard. But at the same time, it was absolutely beautiful. I grew more this summer than I ever have in a 3-month period. I learned more. I experienced love in a way that doesn't exist in the comfort and ease of life in the States. I experienced the front lines of spiritual battles. I became broken for this world. I saw God in people, in places, in experiences. And I was stretched so thin and was run so ragged that I lost myself so that Christ could be the one living in and through me.

If you have ever thought about doing summer staff, I urge you to pray, think, and talk about it. It is never too early to start preparing yourself for next summer! If you would like more information about summer staff, please visit www.wonbyonetojamaica.com. Or if you would like to ask anyone of us any specific questions about our summer here, please send us a message on facebook and I'm sure we will reply!

One Love,

Lacy

Our Last Week in Harmons...

Good morning readers! Lacy here again. Phil and I got back to Harmons last night from our week at Young Life camp. I must say, it is great to be back with our team and back in Jamaica. We are at home again in Harmons! This week we have a very large group with us, combined of 2 different churches. We have Noland Road Baptist Church here from Independence, Missouri, as well as Westside Baptist Church from Jacksonville, Florida. There is a total of 45 team members here this week, occupying every single bed in the Harmony House! Neither church has been here before, so this week will be a new and great experience for everyone. We are excited to see the work God has planned for this week...

It is also our last week here in Harmons. The summer staff will all return home this Monday, August 13th. It is a bittersweet time this week, as we will be saying goodbye to all our friends and family here in Harmons, as well as looking forward to going home to our friends and family there. We will be spending each evening this week debriefing from our summer. We will be processing our experience as well as preparing mentally, emotionally, and spiritually as we go back home to the states. This will be a very difficult week for all of us, so please keep us in your prayers. Thanks so much! Check back again soon!!!

One Love,

Lacy

P.S. - check out all our new videos! They are really great!

Staff Bio #7 (Seven, biblically complete. Coincidence? I think not.)

Well the time has come for the next staff bio, oh wait... the LAST staff bio. I heard from a source on the inside that Lacy purposefully decided that I would be last. Well, you've waited all summer, I'm sure, so here it is...


Name: David Andrew Cover, II
Jamaican Pet Name: Scratch
Age: 21
Hometown: Columbia, Missouri
High School: Rock Bridge High School
College: University of Missouri - Columbia
Major: Classical Humanities (the study of Greek/Roman culture)
Activities: reading the Bible through osmosis (placing the Bible on my head open to a page), quiet times, loving people, encouraging people, going with the flow
Interests: The Bible, people, Love
Favorite Color: blue
Favorite Team: Our team, the team of everyone working together!
Favorite Book: The Bible
Favorite TV Show: Desperate Housewives
Favorite Foods: chicken of any sort
Favorite Jamaican food: turns out, they have lots of chicken here
Favorite Music: John Mayer, Maroon 5, Rascal Flatts
Biggest Dreams: To go to Peralandra
Job in Jamaica: Official Encourager, Co-Leader of large group meetings (with Phil)
Biggest thing I’ve learned lately: That if you’re the last staff bio to be posted then you should send a message to Lacy to say I will not be taken for granted as the chaff to be gleaned by the peasants! If you want the serious me then go to the place where serious relationships are made…facebook.

The error of abiding in pride

I wanted to share some things I’ve been learning with you guys. I’ve been learning how selfish I am. And I’m not talking about the selfish in the sense, “Oh I have so much and these people have so little,” though that is something that we should all think about. No, I’ve been hit with how selfish I am in my very nature; my time, my words, my thoughts, my prayers, my expectations. Living in community really reveals how I/we are so used to being able to do what we want and suddenly that is exposed when the person next to you also has their own idea of what they wanted to do at that moment (for instance use the internet. I usually solve this by barking repeatedly at them until they leave out of fright or disdain) This is probably very similar to when you first marry someone and find you now have two people competing over who gets to… fill in the blank (though here I’m going to show my wisdom beyond my years and say that barking will not behoove you in this particular case).

The exposing of my selfish nature in everything I do caused me to look inward at they why. This summer I’ve thought a lot about what it means to bear fruit. I thought about what would counter selfishness, or what would a person look like who was battling selfishness. Would he be patient? Kind? Loving? Gentle? Self-controlled? My conclusion was a resounding “Yes!” and that lead me to the next question, how do I bear fruit? Here I think John 15 sheds light on how to bear fruit, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit…” Though this passage is quite familiar, it is good to really hear what it is saying. What is my role as the branch? Surely I cannot produce the fruit, I can only bear it. In the words of Bob George, I must “maintain a dependent receiving attitude…” the same attitude that Christ displayed for 33 years (Classic Christianity). I cannot produce the Christian life; that can only come from the vine, from Christ living inside me. Last year I got burned out because I was doing everything (college ministry, my church’s worship team, my fraternity, etc) and abiding in nothing but my actions to produce the fruit.

Cornelius Plantinga, Jr. comments in his book, Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be, that pride is the root of all sin and that sin in its very definition is a disturbance of shalom, or peace. How true that was for me when I saw that my selfishness stemmed from my pride. How my selfishness did not make me gentle, did not make me patient, did not make me loving, and how that disturbs the shalom of the staff team and the summer. If I am going to be humble (if I am going to contribute to shalom), I cannot live like I am the one who just needs to do the right thing, I won’t be able to, I haven’t been able to. I need to completely abide in Christ, in his truth, and live knowing that it is him living inside me that will allow me to bear much fruit. This is just one of the many things that God has taught me this summer. Those who have been down here this summer have had a chance to discuss a lot of this in the evening discussions that Phil and I have led and I think it is important to see that we are free to simply abide in him because of his grace.

On a different note, I defeated blogspot and new videos will now be posted to the right.

-David

Goodbye CCC. Hello FBC

We said farewell to Christ Community Church today and hours later picked up First Baptist Church of Denton in Texas. Though this group of 25 is smaller than last week’s 42, they will still build two houses, two foundations, open 3 store days, and, I’m sure, haul their fair share of marl. We’re excited to see FBC’s week unfold.


As Lacy said, she and Phil left on Saturday morning for Young Life camp and it hasn’t been the same without them. The rest of the staff was talking about this yesterday as we were attempting to take naps in our hotel room in Ocho Rios at the “luxurious” Silver Seas Hotel. We couldn’t quite put our fingers on it at first but something was different; the team was happier and gelling a lot better with each other. Then it hit us, no Phil and Lacy.

I’m kidding, that is absolutely not true. We quickly found the difference of not having two members of our staff as we had to fill in the cracks so to speak in their absence. We eagerly await their return at the end of this week.

Videos are coming. Unfortunately I’m fighting with blogspot right now to show the latest video but it is being foolishly stubborn. Until I can overcome this insolent electronic enemy I advise you check out my facebook (David Andrew Cover) or just type “Summer Staff VideoCast” in at youtube for the latest videos. Alright, more to come this week.

-David

The arrival of the container...

This week we have been working on a very special project, unloading the container!!! We had a 40-ft. container (about the size of a tractor-trailer) arrive last Saturday. This was our second container, for we had a first container come from Lee's Summit, MO in March. This container came from Pennsylvania, where many different people donated all kinds of items to go inside. It took about 2 months to fill the container in PA before sending it down here. We received boxes and boxes of clothes and shoes, tens of thousands of dollars worth of medical supplies, about 15 bikes that will be given to the workers who live outside of the community and need to ride to work, furniture for Mark and Emily's apartment, and even a fork-lift! All 40 feet of the container was packed to its limit and shipped overseas. As far as a timeline goes, to send a container here it takes about a day to drive it to a port, 2 days to load the container onto the ship, 3 days for it to sail from the US to Jamaica, and about 2 weeks from when it lands on the island until it gets delivered to Harmons. And now that it is here, we are unpacking it! We have about 18 pallets of stuff stacked all the way to the ceiling that we are going through and sorting this week. Our store is more full than it has ever been and we will have an over-abundance of clothes and shoes for the next couple months. We have tons of medical stuff, all of which will be put to use once our new clinic is finished. As you can imagine, this is a HUGE job this week, especially as we try and do it on top of everything else we normally work on in a week. It has been exciting to see everything in action though, knowing that in less than 2 months time, all of it will be given away to this wonderful community who needs it.

Just to let you know, I will be gone for the next week. Therefore, the other summer staffers will be taking over and writing the blogs. I hope you are looking forward to some different voices on here. Also, be checking in soon for some new videos. The camera was broken but is now up and running again. I know David has some sweet ideas in mind, so new videos should be up soon!

One Love,

Lacy

Maybe our definition of "mighty" is not the same as God's

Dear Readers,

David Cover here, I asked Lacy if I could post on the blog to tell a story that many of you have been a part of. Those of you who have been to Jamaica have shared the experience of going to the May Pen Infirmary (some may know it as the Poor House), an experience that reminds me of the limit of language when I’m faced with describing it. In short the Infirmary is a government run facility (which means it’s the first to get funding pulled) where people are left to live out there lives in desolate conditions (picture one of the worst nursing homes in the U.S. and multiply that by ten). Each week we go to the Infirmary with the teams and every person who goes there will say they went in expecting to go and minister to the broken but found that it was themselves who were ministered to by men and women there. Phil once said that he has come to view the Infirmary as “a holy place” and I feel that to be true. God is in the Infirmary. There is a picture of total dependence on Christ and the promise of Heaven that is easily hidden in our every day lives but is exposed when we are hit with a sight of total depravity.

In my experience there, I have been hit by different things at different times but none stand out to me as much as my friendship with a woman named Pearl. Pearl does not belong in the Infirmary. Bed ridden by Multiple Sclerosis and a host of medical issues, Pearl was withering away physically, but completely in tact mentally. Perhaps that’s why it was so pleasant to visit with her on our trips there. And perhaps why it was also so incredibly miserable. Many residents of the Infirmary do not realize their situation. Unaware of their surroundings, unable to carry on cohesive conversations, mentally challenged or unstable, they don’t understand that no one else can care for them, that this is the rest of their lives. Pearl, on the other hand, was educated, and sharp. She’d been a veterinarian. She’d been adopted. She’d been an only child. And that’s why she was in the Infirmary… with her parents dead, there was no one left to care for her as she battled MS. But Pearl told us again and again that she had no regrets about her circumstance, that circumstance doesn’t change who God is, that God is good and God is faithful. “I thank Him for my life – yes, even my life here.”

I remember the first time I met her, I was spending the whole of the day at the Infirmary and I had been frustrated by interactions with incoherent men and women too broken to even interact and I wandered up to Pearl’s room at the advice of a friend. I sat down and started talking to her and was immediately hit by her presence. Pearl was full of wit and humor and patience. We began to talk about her life and she told me of all the dreams that she had when she was young and the struggle of disappointment at not being able to do those things. I was hit by her vulnerability and was listening in tears. Pearl’s faith was sound and her desire to live out her faith was equal to her belief in God’s plan. But on this day she told me that she was having a tough morning, the pains of her diseases were flaring and she was feeling despair at being left to lie in bed “wasting away.” She said she was struggling with being mad at God for putting her here when she wanted to go and serve him; to spread his Love even. She said she was praying for relief when I walked around the corner into her room. She said as she watched me listen to her story and saw how I was hit by her life she was reminded that God was using her to spread his Love. That since she was unable to go to people, he was bringing people to her, as every week a team came and every week someone’s life was hit by her story and her dependence on God.

I wanted to tell all of you that Pearl passed away early this week. Sorrow and sadness are appropriate (Jesus wept when Lazarus died) but I will admit I am filled with joy that she has gone Home. Pearl lived a life abiding in Christ, that’s all she could do, living in dependence and receiving everything from him. How reassuring it is to know that God will say “well done my good and faithful servant” to a woman who spent her life lying in a bed just the same as he would say to a person who devoted his life to serving the poor. I always think God is going to use important people. You know, the mighty people to reflect Jesus. In this case, He used a crippled lady hidden away in the middle of Jamaica to impact the lives of countless Americans. What hope that brings for the rest of us to see God’s power and providence. Thank you, Pearl.


I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!
Job 19: 25-27

It's Hot and Sweaty

Hello friends! Here I am sitting in the office at 8:00 at night, sweating... I've got to say, it's absolutely fabulous! We had a long and hard work day today with our new team from Christ Community Church in Leawood, KS. Christ Community Church has been coming to Harmons for several years, so it is a neat privilege to have them here again.

Staff Bio #6

Name: Rachel Schomaker
Jamaican Pet Name: Paj

Age: 20

Hometown: Lee’s Summit, MO

High School: Lee’s Summit High School

College: Mizzou

Major: Finance

Activities: Bicycling, Bonfire-ing, Snorkeling, Cooking

Interests: Reading, Coffee, Organizing, Trying to Paint, Horseback Riding

Favorite Color: Red

Favorite Book: Life of Pi, Irresistible Revolution

Favorite TV Show: Prison Break, The Office

Favorite Foods: Sushi and Chipotle

Favorite Jamaican food: Pork Pit

Favorite Music: just about anything

Biggest Dreams: to do something remarkable with my life, I just haven’t figured out what that would be yet

Job in Jamaica: Hospitality and helping in the store

Biggest thing I’ve learned lately: That God is in control and I am not. Not to try and make my own plan, but to trust in His.

That's all for tonight! Be sure to check back frequently this week because I am going to be posting more than normal, just because the summer is winding down and there is lots of neat stuff to write about that is going on in Harmons!

One Love,

Lacy

Bring on the rain!

Sorry for the delay! We have been without electricity and internet for the past couple days. It has been an incredible week once again! We were fortunate to have 4 days of rain this week! Though it might not sound too exciting, rain in Jamaica is a huge blessing. Before Wednesday of this week, it hadn't rained for over 7 weeks in Harmons! As you can imagine, this is amazing for the community of Harmons. There is no running water or underwater plumbing system in Jamaica, therefore Jamaicans have to get their water elsewhere. Most families collect rain water off their roof, having water run down a slanted piece of zinc into a big water basin or cistern. For laundry, many families just use rain water that they collect in a big concrete well. They either fish water out of it with a bucket, or the well has a spicket on the side where they can get water. If it hasn't rained in a while, the water company in Jamaica will come to Harmons where they will fill up 2 huge water tanks (1 at each end of Harmons). When the water trucks come, you will see ladies lined up at the tanks, ready to fill their 5-gallon bucket and carry it back home on their head. At home in the states, water is probably the one thing that is most taken for granted. And in Jamaica, it is the one thing that Jamaicans are most thankful for. So thank God for the rain! Bring it on!!!

The summer is quickly winding down. I know I can speak for all of the Summer Staff when I say that I can't believe we will be returning home in 3 weeks. Harmons has become our home for the past 2 months and has shaped each of us and taught each of us more than we could have ever imagined. We have experienced things here that couldn't happen elsewhere. We have learned things here that no where else could teach us. God has stretched us here in ways that only His glory could shine through. The next few weeks will be amazing, and God will continue to do His work. We will say farewell to Carmel Baptist on Monday, and pick up our next team, from Christ Community Church in Leawood, KS. I know that some of you use this blog to know what's going on here in Harmons and to pray for us in any way we need. We would love for you all to pray for our last 3 weeks. Pray that we would not start to shut down. Pray that having 3 weeks left would be motivation to get out in the community and really give it our all. Pray for our strength and our health. (There is usually someone on our staff that is sick and we are all frequently exhausted!)


God bless,

Lacy

Welcome Carmel Baptist and Colt Baxter!

Welp, this is our 8th week here and our 6th team. This week we have a group here from Carmel Baptist Church in Matthews, North Carolina. There are 29 people here and all of them are new to Harmons! We are very excited to have them here this week. Today was orientation and our first workday! Here is a picture of Carmel Baptist from the tour this morning:
Also arriving this week is our 7th Summer Staffer. Colt Baxter moved in yesterday! He was unable to come the first half of the summer because he was doing his clinical rotation for vet school. Colt will be in charge of the work sites along with Chris DiVietro. He is on summer staff and we are so excited to have him here for the rest of the summer!
Staff Bio #5

Name: Colt Baxter
Age: 24
Hometown: Imperial, Missouri
High School: Seckman Sr. High
College: Mizzou (University of Missouri) –College of Veterinary Medicine
Major: Veterinary Medicine
Activities: Horse back riding, rock climbing, mountain biking, school, Army reserves, catching up on sleep
Interests: Veterinary Medicine and the above mentioned list
Favorite Colors: forest green and maroon
Favorite Team: STL Cardinals
Favorite Book: The Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Favorite TV Show: Man vs. Wild, Myth Busters
Favorite Foods: anything but canned spinach and artichokes
Favorite Jamaican Food: Gloria’s potato salad
Favorite Music: Country
Biggest Dreams: getting out of school and starting a family
Job in Jamaica: Work Site Coordinator
Biggest thing I’ve learned lately: how to correct for a torn cranial cruciate ligament in a dog

One Love,

Lacy

About the week...

Well here we are at the end of another week. This week flew by! Loudoun Valley did an incredible amount of work this week! They built 2 houses, made a foundation for a new house, dug a pit for sewage, and gave about 55 families new clothes! It was an awesome week and so I decided to ask a few of the team members to write a little bit about their week. Here is what they had to say...

"There is only one thing about Jamaica that keeps me coming back and that is the people. Their attitude towards life is always positive. They are surrounded by stress and bad situations and somehow find a way to look past them and appreciate the good things that are going on. I love Jamaica for its wonderful people!" – Nathan Milam

"This week I learned that God is love and mercy. He is not an overbearing God who wants to punish us." – Sage Hawn

"At the infirmary I was talking with a man and he asked me to read Psalm 27 and Psalm 109. I asked him why he wanted to read these chapters and he said they were his. I had a hard time reading the Psalms because I felt like I was reading his story to him. I was struck by how the bible is the story of our lives now! Before the trip I was thinking about the gospel and John 3:16. The part that struck me was “for God so loved the world…” It was my theme for the week. I am always surprised by God’s love. It never works the way I expect, yet it is definitely visible." – Nathan Hollenbach

"I love Jamaica because of so many things! I love the loving, joyful, caring, faithful and considerate people, the beautiful weather, the fruit, the families, the children, bag juice, and the friendliness! I love Jamrock!!!" – Tatum Maddux

"I always enjoy seeing my old Jamaican friends and catching up. I also loved to see the new students step out of their comfort zones and interact with the Jamaicans." – Kevin Hayba

"My favorite part of this week was getting to know the Jamaicans and learning from them about their History and about Harmons. I also loved when they took our group to a water hole after some hard work. It was the clearest water I’ve ever seen and we were able to swim in it and have a good time." – Rachel Zoetis

From just a handful of the team, you can see that this was a great week! We're off to Ocho Rios in the morning and we will be back on Monday with our next group.

Until then,

Lacy

Welcome Mark and Emily!

Like I said earlier in the week, Won By One To Jamaica just added two new staff members, Mark and Emily Boespflug. They arrived on Monday with Loudoun Valley, and I wanted to dedicate a post to introduce you to them and let you know what they are all about.

Mark and Emily have been married for 15 months. They met at Geneva College in Pennsylvania and graduated together in 2005. Mark has two degrees, one in philosophy and one in music, and Emily has a degree in human services. After they got married in 2006, they moved to a cabin in Colorado in the mountains.

Emily first experienced Jamaica in December of 2002, when she came on a trip with her school over Christmas break. After that trip, Emily fell in love with the community of Harmons and ended up spending three summers in a row here on summer staff! Mark first came to Harmons during Spring break of 2005, when he and Emily led a trip together. Since then God has given them a huge heart for the Jamaican people and now they are living here!

Mark and Emily will be living here for 2 years (if not longer!) Though they have gained the title, “missionary couple,” they will just be living their life here. One of my favorite definitions of “missions” is “living life in another place,” and that is exactly what they’ll be doing here in Harmons. During their time here, they will have several different roles, all of which focus on Jamaicans. They will be engaging with Jamaicans on emotional and spiritual levels, really pushing and pursuing Jamaicans to strengthen their life with Christ. They will also be overseeing the school sponsorship program that Won By One To Jamaica has. School here is about $40 a month so Won By One To Jamaica set up a program in which Americans can sponsor children to go to school. They will be checking up on over 60 families here, making sure the children are doing well in school. Another unique thing that Mark and Emily get to do is show the community of Harmons what a loving and biblical marriage should be. Marriage is very uncommon in Jamaica so this will be an awesome way to show a community what a love and marriage that honors Christ looks like. As you can see, Mark and Emily are going to do amazing things here in Harmons!

While visiting with Mark and Emily this afternoon, I asked them what they were most worried about and what they thought they would miss the most from home. Mark is most worried about getting some kind of jungle rash, and Emily is worried about driving. (Driving in Jamaica is CRAZY!) Mark said he will miss the Colorado mountains and wildlife more than anything, and Emily will miss having clean feet!

So there you go! I hope you now know a little more about Mark and Emily and what they are doing here! We are very glad to have them on staff and super excited to spend the rest of the summer with them!

One Love,

Lacy

Staff Bio #4

(Chris on his 22nd birthday, last week!)

Name: Christopher DiVietro
Jamaican Pet Name: Beast

Age: 22

Hometown: Wenonah, New Jersey

High School: Bishop Eustace Prep

College: Allegheny College (Graduated this May)

Major: Double major in Neuroscience and Religious Studies

Activities: Ran decathlon for the track team, Fellowship of Christian Athletes

Interests: Reading; anything that allows me to live out Psalm 46:10 à “Be still and know that I am God...”

Favorite Color: Red

Favorite Team: Philadelphia Eagles

Favorite Book: Anything by Soren Kierkegaard

Favorite TV Show: Anything on Discovery, History, or HGTV

Favorite Foods: Sushi

Favorite Jamaican Food: Saltfish and Ackee, Peanut Porridge

Favorite Music: Christian Metal, Country

Biggest Dreams: Have a family

Job in Jamaica: Worksite Coordinator

Biggest thing I’ve learned lately: I’ve been reminded of just how faithful God is. In Him we truly do live and move and have our being.

Welcome Loudoun Valley!

Today our 5th team arrived! We have 39 people here from Loudoun Valley High School in Purcellville, Virginia (a school in the suburbs of Washington, DC). This is a different group, simply because they are not a church or a youth group, but a group of students from a public high school! This is Loudoun Valley's 5th year to Jamaica and the majority of their team has been to Harmons before. Loudoun Valley is known for their hard work. (For example, out of the 39 people here, 9 are getting up in the morning to go running!) Every year they come with serving attitudes, ready to get a ton of work done for the community of Harmons. Loudoun Valley has contributed in a couple of neat ways: One, their cross country team sponsors 3 runners from Harmons. They provide running shoes and other equipment, etc. And two, they came up with the idea to start raising money for a computer lab at the Harmons All Age School, in which Won By One To Jamaica built this past year. We are very excited to work with them and serve with them this week!

Also arriving today was the Medical Coordinator for Won By One To Jamaica, Leslie Drover. Leslie (see picture below) is a nurse in Los Angelas and has been on staff here for a little over a year. Leslie organizes several medical trips throughout the year. Please click here for more information. Leslie is a graduate from the University of Missouri, which is how she first experienced Harmons. She has been coming to Harmons frequently since her first trip in the Spring of 2002. Last year, Leslie was able to pursue two of her greatest passions - nursing and the Jamaican people - by joining the staff of Won By One To Jamaica. We are extremely glad to have her here this week!

That's all for tonight!

One Love,

Lacy

Retreat Week

As you know, this past week was our summer staff retreat. After we said goodbye to our last group from Conroe, TX, we began a week of rest and rejuvenation. We were joined by Josh and Erin Shaffer, and their 3 children, Lane, Ty, and Aisha, as well as Jim Newberry, his wife Tina, and their 2 daughters, Mallory and Bailey. Jim is our spiritual mentor for the summer. He is the one who led our pre-Jamaica retreat as well. This week he served us through meetings and one on one discussions and evaluations of how our summer has been going. One thing that Jim has taught us is to adopt an attitude of intensity. He says that we should either be partaking in intense engagement or intense withdraw, modeled after Jesus himself. This summer is pretty much all intense engagement, so this past week was our intense withdraw. We were able to rest and relax, process a little bit of what we have been experiencing, and evaluate ourselves to kind of map out and plan the rest of our time here in Harmons. Each of us summer staffers spent a lot of time by ourselves, praying, journaling, reading, and just replenishing. We had a wonderful week! We returned to the Harmony House last night and are spending the next few days cleaning, getting the house ready, and finishing the apartment for our new missionary couple that moves in Monday! (More on this later...) Now we are exactly halfway done with the summer. And yes, this is a little hard to believe. Thank you for praying for our retreat!

Check back on Monday,

Lacy

I want to change the world...

I've been debating writing this post, for I know it will be a controversy for many. This week I recklessly read the book, Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne. Shane is a passionate, fuming, beautiful, wretched, and broken person with a strong desire to seek out Christ's heart and the literal way we are to follow Christ. Shane grew up in a "normal Christian" home and church, which he found to be incredibly un-fulfilling. In college, Shane explored his desire to "be Jesus with skin on" and went with his friends to downtown Philadelphia to do night life with the homeless there. The more time he spent in the "dangerous places" in Philly, the more he experienced real life and real love. He has continued to live his life in the pursuit of Christ. He has lived with Mother Teresa in Calcutta, loving on the lepers and hanging out with the little Indian kids there. He has gone to Iraq several times during the midst of war to love on the citizens there. Shane has also started a community in Philly, called the Simple Way (http://www.thesimpleway.org/). The Simple Way is a house and a home, a family and a community. They house the homeless, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and simply love each other.

Now I am not writing this post to glorify Shane's work or even to admire his pursuit after Christ, rather, I am blown away by his argument for a world in need of a new revolution, a world that revolves around love and community. I think all of us believe in and even desire a "changed world", but I feel that we are just sitting here, waiting for something to happen. Please know that I am just as guilty of this as anyone, but that I do desire a changed world, sooner than later. We see movies like "Crash" and "Hotel Rwanda" that expose us to the ugliness of our world. We join movements like The ONE Campaign, or read about things like the UN Millennium Development Goals that inform us of global poverty. We read books, hear from speakers, listen to sermons, etc. These things are great and do an okay job of making us aware of our world crisis, but it still seems that most of us fail to live out our dream world, the world that Christ calls us to create.

In Shane's book, he describes our world as "independent and materialistic", while we ought to rely on "interdependence and sacrificial sharing". His constant argument is that if we are focused on loving one another, then provisions will be met, harmony will echo, and our world will soon be changed. One thing I have realized is how much the community of Harmons reflects this idea of harmony and love. Experiencing a week down here, (let alone an entire summer), we are given a glimpse of true community. We see for perhaps the first time true love and true relationships that are based solely on love for our neighbor. We are able to provide for those who have little and love them as Jesus loves us all. I know this is getting lengthy, but I urge you to find and consider what Christ has literally called us to for this world. He is a God of love; a God who loves the righteous and a God who loves the wretched.

"Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."
Ephesians 5:1-2



This will be my last post for a while. We will be gone all next week. Please keep the staff in your prayers as we retreat and rest for a week...


One Love,
Lace

Funny story from the infirmary-

Hello friends! So I was planning on writing all about the stuff that has been going on in my mind about what it means to fully live the gospel and follow Jesus. However, a funny thing happened during our trip to the infirmary today, so I will write about it instead...

Some of you know what the infirmary is, and some of you don't. The government of Jamaica funds one infirmary in each parish in Jamaica, so there are 14 in all. We visit the Clarendon Infirmary, which is about 40 minutes from Harmons. The infirmary is kind of like a nursing home, however, it has the worst conditions I have seen in my life. Some of the people are healthy and "normal" (as bad as I hate to use the word.) Others are deformed and lifeless. Every week, Won By One To Jamaica takes an hour-long visit to go and love on our brothers and sisters that live there.

It's very interesting being on summer staff and visitng this place every single week. Sometimes it is a horror, while other times I have a great time just laughing and singing with my friends there. I feel a great sense of satan in that place, but I also feel more Jesus than I've ever felt in my life. While talking to the lonely, the dying, the sick, and the rejects of society, I am able to see Jesus in their eyes. These people have a holy nature about them, literally depending on Christ for provision in every area of their life. They have been stripped of every worldly thing (even relationships and physical love), that their only way to hope and have joy is to fall madly in love with the Lord.

Today as I was making my last trip around the men's ward, I went over to a man named Brown. He was hunched over his bed and looked to be feeling ill. I asked him how he was doing and he told me he was "not too good," and pointed to the bowl at his feet. He said his stomach was hurting him. I was with Phil and so Phil asked him if we could pray for him, because we didn't have any medicine so prayer was all we had to help. He said sure. As Phil began to pray, he asked Phil to pull up his shirt. Phil pulled up the shirt off his back and revealed very dry and scratched up skin. As soon as his shirt was up, Brown said, "Scratch it!" Phil and I both laughed. All he wanted was a back scratch! I thought it was so funny, and so neat. He was in an incredible amount of pain, but all he wanted was someone to scratch his back! I loved it...

The greatest part about getting to go to the infirmary week after week is that every week God reveals something new. Everytime I go, God teaches me something different. Sometimes I am mad, sometimes all I can do is question God, sometimes I am overwhelmed with the most genuine sense of joy, and times like this remind me that we are all people, brothers and sisters together. Today the Lord made me realize how much alike we really are with these people. All Brown wanted was a back scratch! He and I have a lot more in common than I thought!

Well, that's it for today. Maybe I'll try to write my "good post", as I called it, sometime in the next couple days. My advice to you, go scratch someones back!

Take care!

Lacy

Staff Bio #3

Name: Phil the Thrill Stroessner
Jamaican Pet Name: Tip, the Rat
Age: 21
Hometown: Missouri’s very own capital, Jefferson City… home of Central Dairy ice cream
High School: Helias Crusaders
College: Mizzou
Major: International Studies
Activities: Young Life, soon to be Granny’s House, Eating, Praying, Intramural Sports
Interests: Food, Oak Island, God, Historical Context behind Scripture, my wonderful girlfriend
Favorite Color: the color of the bouncy balls that look like the sunset
Favorite Team: M-I-Z…Z-O-U!!!!
Favorite Book: Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe, Song of Songs, Psalms, the Gospels, the Bible, On the Road by Jack Kerouac
Favorite TV Show: Man vs. Wild, Myth Busters, The Bugs and Daffy Show
Favorite Foods: My mom and dad’s home cooking… usually fried and/or barbecued!
Favorite Jamaican food: The Pork Pit (jerk pork, rice and peas)… go there if you ever visit Montego Bay
Favorite Music: everything… except Pop-Country… which is not real country... or real music for that matter
Biggest Dreams: Start an orphanage/school or start a mission in the States
Job in Jamaica: Lead the evening and morning meetings with David Cover
Biggest thing I’ve learned lately: Jesus did not come to burden us with His radical teachings. Instead, He has come to set us free and give us a life to the full. This is not an idealistic dream. This is truth. I do not come to Jamaica in order to be a Christian. I do not serve and love others at home to be a Christian. I already am a Christian! Instead, I do these things for the “least of His people” because Christ is living within me. I no longer feel disappointed that I can never do enough to please Him. I feel overwhelmed with joy and the freedom of Christ because I have allowed Him to more fully live in me and through me!

That's it for the day! Check back for a post tomorrow. I'm working on something good!

One Love,
Lacy

Expectations, Fears, Hopes, and Dreams

We're back at the Harmony House and ready for week 4! Our new team from Conroe First Baptist Church in Conroe, TX arrived today. (See picture below). Only two of the team members for this week have been to Harmons before. Therefore, this week is a new week for almost everyone. No matter how many times you have experienced this place, there are always expectations you have, fears and things you are nervous about, as well as dreams and hopes for the week. I asked Haley Roberts, a senior from Conroe to tell us about what she is thinking right now at the beginning of the week.

Ok, first let me preface this by saying that HOLY COW, the bus ride to Harmons from the airport was the craziest I've ever been on! Just when you think the road can't get any narrower... it does! Oh, and if you are ever driving in Jamaica on a road that appears to be one way, beware! It is a two-way road! The people here drive ten times crazier than NYC taxi cab drivers! I really feared for my life more than a few times!

Anyway, on a more serious note, I am so excited to be here in Harmons. I expect to become closer with Christ and also regain a proper gratitude for how blessed America is. This week, I want the Jamaican people to see who Jesus is through us and learn about His grace. I would love it if God would bring forth a specific person that I could minister to personally.

I must admit, I'm a little afraid of the dirt here... I don't mind working hard and sweating, but all of this dirt bothers me a little bit - especially because we only get two-minute showers! I'm one of those people who likes to be clean, so I'm out of my comfort zone a little here. Another fear of mine is that my team will leave on Monday without truly making an impact or without being changed themselves. I don't want this to be just a fun trip where we got to dance and hang around with new people. I want us all to realize the real opportunity we have to make a difference.

An accomplishment I want to make would be to share my faith and testimony with many people, and maybe even lead a few to Christ. An even bigger accomplishment, however, would be that my faith would be shared without words. I want to be Jesus to these people and demonstrate God's grace to them by working with them and helping them along spiritually, emotionally, and physically. I hope that wherever our church's mission team goes, everyone we come into contact with will notice something different about us and want to know more about the everlasting God that we serve.

--- Haley Roberts, FBC Conroe

That's all for tonight!

Lacy

The Rule of Life

This summer, we have been studying the basics of Christianity. We have been emphasizing the importance of having a rock solid foundation to build your life on. Without solid Christian beliefs and knowledge about our Christian faith, the Christian life will without doubt become boring and unfulfilling. So many Christians today find themselves burnt-out or stagnant, wondering why the 'life to the full' has left them dry and hungry. To our surprise, we are finding that so many Christians have forgotten the incredible fact that Christ is presently living inside of them. We have been reading Classic Christianity, by Bob George. His insights have been incredibly helpful as we wrestle with truth about basic fundamental Christian beliefs. One thing that has stuck out to me is that so many people do the "Christian things" (i.e. go to church, read the bible, reach out to the homeless, come to Jamaica) because they are trying to please God and earn a little bit more of His acceptance. Yet we all know that Christ loves us each the same and that His love is endless. Since we are no longer under the law but under grace (see Romans 6), we should now set ourselves to a higher standard. We should now strive to allow Christ to live in us as fully as possible. If we live for any other reason, our faith is not based on grace and love and life in Christ, but on good works or what others think of us. I could go on and on about our nightly discussions and what we are experiencing and learning together, but today I want to focus on one thing that will help us to have a dependent, receiving heart for the Lord to use in our daily lives.

This summer, the summer staff has created and committed to our rule of life. We have six things that we will strive to do each day or week (depending on the rule) that will enhance our relationship with Christ and allow Christ to move in us and live in us. We understand fully that these six things are not to be done for any other reason than to serve the Lord. Here is our rule of life, divided into three different categories...

The Inner Life
- Journal Regularly
- Spend one hour per week in solitude
The Communal Life (this applies to summer staff only)
- Participate in a weekly happy/crappy session (This is basically a weekly discussion about how we are living with each other)
- Serve a staff member daily
The Outer Life
- Engage a team member in a significant conversation daily
- Engage a Jamaican on an emotional level daily

As you can see, these six rules really stretch us each day, but allow us to be intentionally filled with Christ's love and live in Christ with each other and the people we are ministering to this summer. I would like to challenge EACH OF YOU to create and commit to your very own rule of life. It may be something very small, or you may want to go big with your rule. Regardless, I urge you to make your rule of life something that will help you to have a dependent, receiving heart for Christ's love and life to be overflowing in you...

In Christ Alone,
Lacy

Facts You Should Know About Jamaica...

Lately I've discovered that many Americans know very little about the country of Jamaica. Even people who have been here multiple times don't know basic facts about the country. So, here is a little bit of Jamaican trivia for you! I'll have more facts about Harmons and Won By One To Jamaica later!!!

Country Name: Jamaica
Capital City: Kingston
Population: 3 million in Jamaica (2.5 live in or around Kingston, another 2 million Jamaicans live in Canada, Great Britain, and US)
Official Language: English
Slang Language: Patois
Motto: "Out of many, one people."
Discovery: Columbus discovered it in 1494 (It was first settled by the Spanish, but later ruled by the British until it gained independence)
Independence: 1962
Type of Government: Parliamentary Democracy
Prime Minister: Portia Simpson
Area: 4,244 square miles
Land Size: 141 miles from East to West; less than 50 miles from North to South
Location: Caribbean, West Indies, South of Cuba, and West of Haiti
14 Parishes: Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester (where we are), Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland
Geography: Humid, tropical weather, jungle, and mountainous regions
National Holiday: Independence Day (August 6th)
National Flower: Lignum Vitae tree
National Bird: Doctor Bird
National Fruit: Ackee
National Tree: Blue Mahoe
National Dish: Ackee and Saltfish
Popular Sports: Cricket, Football (soccer), and net-ball
Jamaican Music: Reggae

Welp, that's it for tonight...

--- Lacy

Staff Bio #2

Name: Jonathan Joseph DiBenedetto
Jamaican Pet Name: Nappy

Age: 21

Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio

High School: Milford High School

College: Geneva College

Major: Student Ministries

Activities: Hockey

Interests: sports, snowboarding, college ministry

Favorite Color: Red

Favorite Team: Philadelphia Flyers

Favorite Book: Chronicles of Narnia

Favorite TV Show: Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

Favorite Food: Pizza

Favorite Jamaican food: Beef and gravy

Favorite Music: Punk

Biggest Dreams: Write a book

Job in Jamaica: Courtyard time, Coffee

Biggest thing I’ve learned lately: God is just as present and at work in the United States as He is in Jamaica or anywhere else in the world.

Week 2: Complete! Week 3: Beginning!

Week two is complete. We had a an incredibly busy week! Two houses were built, a foundation was made for a new house, lots of marl was hauled, the schools were visited, and about 60 families were able to shop. It was an incredible week! We said goodbye to our friends from Deerbrook Covenant Church, Christ Community Church, and Western PA this morning! Shortly after, we picked up our team for this week, Abundant Life Baptist Church from Lee's Summit, MO. (See picture below!)

Last week we had a brother and sister that were able to share this experience together. Devon Russel, a 17 year-old Senior from Lee's Summit, MO was here for her second trip. Her brother, Reed Russel, an 18 year-old high school graduate, was here as well. Each of these siblings had a very unique and challenging week and I wanted to share it with you. I asked each of them to write about what they learned this week...

My week here in Harmons was an awesome experience this year. Because I have traveled to Jamaica one time before, the mysteries and surprises of the week were not as eye popping as they were a year ago. Rather than having the anticipation of experiencing each day for the first time, I was able to focus on developing relationships with Jamaicans rather than focusing on my insecurities of being in a new place. This mindset proved to be very beneficial in understanding what the Lord was trying to teach me about His heart this week.

I came into this week with the prayer that God would capture my heart and give me a burning desire to know more about Him. Phil and Dave (the meeting guys) led our team to understand truth in waiting on the Lord to bestow His peace and joy upon us. For a year, I had been wanting the joy I found in Harmons last year, but that joy didn't last. I learned this week that I shouldn't be working for the gifts of God, but rather have a receiving attitude that I might allow Christ to fill me up and live through me.

--- Devon Russel

After taking an easy stroll up the slope of my faith for the past 17 years, I came face to face with a cliff. Growing up in the church, my hand had always been held throughout my life as a Christian. When I reached the cliff, which symbolizes the transition from my fake faith to my real faith, I slowing started to lose interest in the pursuit of my relationship with God. An impasse. I had drifted too far from the expectations of the Christian faith that I looked back and viewed my life in the church in a whole new perspective. I realized I was living a lie and I was tired of it. I began to question many of the accepted beliefs we as Christians posses. I looked past the cliches and started to become honest with myself. It was refreshing...

Because of these realizations, I had lost all motivation to practice my faith or pursue that relationship with God. Through the meetings led by Phil and David, I reached a conclusion. I lacked motivation because I had no idea how to take that first step up the cliff. If you don't know how to take the first step, you're not going to take it. Our discussions made it clear what this first step will be, to know that I am fully accepted by Christ and to allow Him to to fill me up and use me as He wants me. I feel like I am back on track and I feel a peace that everything is as it should be.

--- Reed Russel

That's all for now! Have a great night and check back soon!

--- Lacy

Jesus tends to rock my world...

So yesterday was a really hard day, but maybe one of the best days I’ve had yet. I was helping a lady named Annetta Reid in the store. She was talking very softly and I could tell she wasn’t well. She apologized for being out of it and went on to tell me that she had been in a car accident the day before. I asked her more about it and found that she had gotten in a car wreck on her way to shop at our store on Thursday. She was in a taxi when it hit a pothole, flipped and rolled, leaving a huge gash in her head. She had a towel on her head and asked me if I wanted to see it. I said yes, as she revealed a huge (probably 4-5 inches) gash in her skull that was no less than an inch deep. It looked as if it had just happened because it wasn’t cleaned or dressed or anything, so I asked if she had been to the hospital. She told me she had gone to the hospital right after it happened but they only gave her a shot, paid no attention to the gash in her skull, and told her to come back the next morning. When she returned in the morning, the doctor was not there, so they told her to come back around noon. In the meantime, she came to shop since she missed her chance Thursday due to the accident. I was so lucky to shop with her because I don’t know if she would have gotten the help she needed otherwise. After she told me about the accident and after I saw her wound, I gave her some pain medication and went inside to get Phil. Phil and I took her around to the side of the house where no one was looking and began to clean and dress her head. Before Phil poured peroxide on her, I told her it would hurt very badly, so if she wanted to hold my hand, I would be there for her. She took my hand and as Phil began to pour, she squeezed tighter and tighter and the look on her face was terrifying! I knew it had to hurt terribly. Phil blew on the gash to ease the stinging. After he cleaned it, we worked together to bandage her head and wrap her up in gauze. I then gave her a huge bottle of extra strength Tylenol and told her to get to the hospital as soon as she possibly could. I told her if they turned her away a third time to come back and I would get her the help she needed. After we were finished, I carried her suitcase and walked her up the road to catch a taxi. She didn’t come back last night so I’m hoping that she ended up seeing a doctor. I’m positive she needed tons of stitches, and probably lots of real pain medication and not just Tylenol. This was probably the worst and best part of my week, simply because I felt like I was doing this “changing the world thing” for the very first time. I knew that I was actually making a difference and that I had true compassion and true love for this woman, simply because she is a sister of mine and because she needed the help. It was as if Jesus was there the entire time, because I honestly had no idea what I was doing, but what needed to be done got accomplished. Annetta was a HUGE reminder of why I am here, - to love people who need love, to help people who need help, and to be Jesus to people who need to see Jesus in their lives.

Please keep Annetta in your prayers...

---Lacy

Serving Opportunities!

Many of you are probably wondering what exactly it is that we do here in Harmons. Therefore, I'm going to give you a tiny run-down of all our serving opportunities we have throughout the week...

The House: Every week a team is here, they will build 1-2 houses, depending on the size of the team. This week, since we have a larger team, they are building 2 houses in Porus, which is a city near Harmons. There is quite a process that goes into building, including building the foundation, putting up walls, adding layers of concrete, topping it with a zinc roof, etc. At the end of each week, the team will have a dedication ceremony where they will present the house to its new family. It is a very meaningful event and we will have a video of a dedication ceremony coming later!

The Store: The store is opened up 2-3 days a week, where Jamaicans from Harmons and surrounding areas can come to shop. Every team member that comes to Harmons brings 100 pounds of donations with them, and it is all stocked in the store. Jamaicans can shop for everything from clothes and shoes to school supplies and diapers. Check out our newest VideoCast for an in-depth description of how the store works!
Click Here For Video!

Hauling Marl: Marl (pronounced "mall") is a gravel/sand-like substance that is used for building things such as foundations, concrete, etc. Because many Jamaicans live up in the bush, marl must be carried up the hill where no vehicle can venture. Using burlap sacs, a pile of marl is hauled by an assembly line from the bottom of a hill to the top. It is a very grueling job, but it provides a necessity for many.

The School: Some team members get the crazy privilege of visiting either the St. Jago School or the Harmons All-Age School. School runs from September to July. When team members visit the schools, they often find themselves being a jungle-gym for the kids and even teaching the class. This is a very unique opportunity and the Jamaican children absolutely love to see the "whities" (as they call them) come to their school.

I hope that gives you a better picture of what we are doing here and what our days actually entail! Each of these opportunities contribute to the ministry of Won By One To Jamaica and provide so much for this small community of Harmons...

Lacy

Staff Bio #1

Over the next several weeks, I will be doing a biography on each of our staff members, just so you get a better idea of who we are and what we are doing down here. For starters, I'll introduce myself!

Name: Lacy Donaldson
Age: 20
Hometown: Independence, MO
High School: William Chrisman
College: University of Missouri (Go TIGERS!)
Major: Secondary Education – English
Activities: Young Life and Jamaica
Interests: dancing, autumn, singing, writing music, traveling, roller coasters, camping, fishing, sarcasm, wiener dogs, poetry, reading books you can’t put down, taking pictures, surprises, road trips, love letters, and changing the world…
Favorite Color: Pink
Favorite Team: Mizzou Tigers and KC Royals
Favorite Book: A Severe Mercy, The Barbarian Way, and Catcher in the Rye
Favorite TV Show: Seinfeld
Favorite Foods: Orange soda, jalapeno chips, anything chocolate, and Chipotle
Favorite Jamaican food: it’s a tie between juicy patties or jerk chicken
Favorite Music: anything I can sing or dance to
Biggest Dreams: marrying the man of my dreams and having beautiful children, teaching high school English, singing in Nashville, starting a church, adopting a baby, doing mission work in a foreign country, writing for an international journal, and retiring to a big mountain farm house…
Job in Jamaica: I’m in charge of the store! Every week the store is open 2-3 days and I am in charge of stocking it, running it, etc. (You’ll learn more about the store and how it works later!) I’m also in charge of Ladies’ Night and writing this blog!
Biggest thing you’ve learned lately: I’ve learned about how HUGE the power of Christ is IN ME. I feel like I’ve always belittled who I am in Christ. But He is alive in ME and He is HUGE and at work!!! My life is no longer mine, but His! It is incredible…

That's it for now! Be sure to check back tomorrow for another entry...

Joyfully His,

Lacy

The Internet Was Down

Hello friends! Sorry for the delay. The internet has been down at the Harmony House so we haven’t been able to post any blog entries. We said goodbye to our first group from Olathe Bible Church this morning. Their lives were deeply impacted during their short stay here in Jamaica. They had an incredible week and went home changed.

I asked some of the group members questions about their experience here in Harmons and here is what they had to say:

What is the one thing you learned this week?

One thing that I learned is that we should be thankful to go to school and have a good education. When we went to the school, I realized that the teachers don’t really care what the kids do during class and it’s so loud in the classrooms that you can’t even think. – Kaitlyn

What was your most meaningful experience this week?

This whole week was filled with many meaningful experiences. One of the highest on the list was the trip to the infirmary. I loved it when we sat down to read to a lady named Louise, when another lady named Patricia came up to us. She said to kiss her friend Louise because, “she loves kisses!” Then we all sang songs together. When we began to read scripture, Louise began to repeat each verse. When we had to go she thanked us, as Patricia walked us to the bus. It was a very humbling and meaningful experience. – Michele

What was the one thing that made your week here different from a week at home?

There were many things that were different, such as: being in the jungle and having stars at night, having Christian friends all around me for encouragement, spending time discussing God everyday in a group, and reading to people at the infirmary. – Colton

What is one thing you will do when you go home to remind yourself of your week here in Harmons?

It was a big surprise to come back this year and see how close the bauxite mining had moved to the house and the community in Harmons. When I return home, every time I use aluminum, I am going to pray for Harmons and the people I’ve met there. – Sam

This evening, our second group arrived! (See picture above) We have a fairly large group this week, comprised of a group from Deerbrook Covenant Church in Lee’s Summit, MO, a group from Christ Community Church in Leawood, KS, and two girls from Geneva College in Pennsylvania. I will update this as soon as I can, so look for more entries and new photos! Be sure to look for our newest videocast , it will be coming soon!

One Love,

Lacy

Matilda's Story...

This afternoon, I spent some time with my friend, Matilda. I went to her house and just talked with her about her life. Here's her story...

77 year-old Matilda Morrant was born on June 23rd, 1930. Matilda was born here in Harmons and has lived here ever since. She was the oldest of 4, and the only girl in the family. Her favorite thing when she was little was all the fruit that grew in Harmons. When Matilda was 29 years old, she married the love of her life. They shared 44 years together, until he died in 2003. The two of them had 12 children, 5 which died in their infancy, and 7 who are still around today. Matilda is a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother of many.


During Matilda's adult years, she worked as a midwife, delivering several babies in the community of Harmons. Her husband had a hard and laborious job as a sugar cane cutter, and was the bread-winner for their entire family. Along with her midwifery job, Matilda watched several babies and children during the day.



Now that Matilda is older and without her husband, she lives with her family. During the day, Matilda takes care of her great-grandson while his mother goes to work. Throughout the week, Matilda volunteers as the secretary at her church, where she takes the minutes of meetings, goes to town to do business, etc. Matilda has a real servant's heart.

Some facts about Matilda:
-she has never been to school
-she has never seen a movie
-she likes to watch the news at night
-she enjoys cooking, cleaning, and doing laundry
-her favorite food is chicken soup or banana porridge that she eats when she is sick

At the end of my talk with Matilda today, I asked her if someone wrote a book about her life, what would she want everyone to know about her? This is what she said:

"I would want everyone to know about my lifestyle here in Harmons..."




One Love,

Lacy

First Team, First Full Day, First Flouring

Our first team, Olathe Bible Church (see picture above), arrived last night in Montego Bay. After traveling to Harmons, unpacking suitcases full of donations, and settling into the Harmony House, we all went to bed so that we would be fully energized and ready for our first day in Harmons. This morning the team went through orientation where they learned a little more about Won By One To Jamaica, the culture and religion of Jamaica, the community of Harmons, and more of what this week will look like. Afterwards, we went on a walking tour of Harmons and saw how people live back in the bush. Many people's eyes were opened to the reality of hard life here in Harmons.

At our courtyard time tonight, we shared ice cream with Jamaicans while dancing the night away to music played by the Harmony House's very own DJ, Blackmouth. We were also happy to celebrate the birthday of one of our very own staff members, Rachel Schomaker, who turned 20 today! A very fun tradition in Jamaica is "flouring"! Every time someone has a birthday, they must be floured by someone sneaking up on them and throwing flour on their head. This has been done in Jamaica for several years and it is a funny way to make the birthday boy or girl look a little older! I hope the picture below will make you laugh!

That's about it for tonight!

Check out the 2nd VideoCast - it's guaranteed to make you laugh...


Good night,


Lacy

2 days to go...

Yesterday we had a change of pace. We were privileged to spend the day with the Jamaican staff of Won By One To Jamaica (see picture above). We gathered for several hours where we introduced ourselves to the Jamaican staff, had a meeting about expectations for the summer, and shared a wonderfully prepared Jamaican lunch. Through a gospel presentation by Henry Shaffer (Founder and President of Won By One To Jamaica), the Jamaican workers were able to see and hear what this organization is all about. It was truly a great day and being able to spend time with our Jamaican friends really made each of us more excited about swinging things into full gear.

We eagerly await our first group, Olathe Bible Church. They arrive on Monday, June 4th, just two days from now. We all know that in two days, life will change dramatically. We will pick up the pace and get this summer started. We will be able to see transformation taking place in the lives and hearts of both Jamaicans and Americans. We will see the community of Harmons as they gather around to engage with the Americans who come to serve. We will see houses being built, marl being carried, new clothes being worn, and needs being met. We will see how just one conversation can cultivate a lifelong relationship. We will see the huge change that can take place in just one week of service, selflessness, and love. But most importantly, we will begin to see a tiny glimpse of what God is doing in Harmons...

In Christ Alone,

Lacy

We're Here!

The summer staff arrived in Harmons on Monday, May 28th. This year, we have 6 summer staffers - Phil Stroessner, (our only returner) from the University of Missouri, Rachel Schomaker from the University of Missouri, Jonathan DiBenedetto from Geneva College, David Cover from the University of Missouri, Christopher DiVietro from Allegheny College, and myself, Lacy Donaldson, also from the University of Missouri. Colt Baxter, from the University of Missouri, will be joining us for the last half of the summer. Our short few days together have given us proof that this summer will be incredible.

Last weekend we spent 3 days at a camp outside Kansas City, on a retreat to prepare ourselves for the summer. We were fortunate to have Jim Newberry (Youth Pastor at Christ Community Church in Leawood, KS) lead us through the weekend and get us mentally and spiritually geared up for what lies ahead. We spent the weekend in solitude with God, studying John 15, reading several books, and doing some fun, team-building activities to grow closer to one another. This retreat was a huge help and really got us as ready as we could have been for this summer.

Now that we are here, things have gotten a little more real. We have spent the past few days getting the Harmony House ready, planning things for the summer, figuring out our individual jobs, and preparing for our first team that comes on Monday, June 4th! Although we are already here, most of us still face this feeling of the unknown. We are eager to know what life will be like here in Harmons once the ball gets rolling. We are excited to feel at home here. For me, this feeling of the unknown is a very unique place that God can use our vulnerability to mold us, shape us, teach us, and get us ready for this incredible adventure!

Be sure to check out our videocast on the right!!!

One love,

Lacy