Photo Update from RMI...

This is what happens when it starts to rain at an open air service with Lifehouse Church and La Mano of Hope (Hagerstown, MD) as they minister alongside the church in Port Salut, Haiti.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

The team of LifeHouse Church (Hagerstown, MD) members are off to spend 5 days in Port Salute, serving and being served, along with the believers there. It's Reciprocal. One Church. One body. One Lord. #oneanother #rmihaiti

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

La Mano of Hope team from Lifehouse Church has hit the ground in Haiti! We're excited! #rmihaiti

from Reciprocal Ministries International

RMI’s Pilot Agricultural Project is Off to a Good Start

The first training seminar has been held in RMI’s pilot agricultural project.  Our goal is to work collaboratively with the national C3 partner churches and its leaders to introduce farmers to agricultural education and insights in farming their land.  They are going to work in conjunction with the pastor, deacons and community leaders to teach sustainable/renewable agricultural practices on each site where farmers can learn and apply their newly obtained skills to better improve their crop quality and quantity.  They will begin with a group of farmers who in turn will apply the newly acquired skills and knowledge to their own fields.  The national church will be responsible for the land acquisition and maintaining the fields.  The US C3 Partner church will help by resourcing portions of the project.

After testing the soil and examining which crops will thrive in that particular area, they will teach and model the basics of irrigation, prevention of soil erosion, conservation and preservation, composting, crop rotation, crop storage, pest prevention and pesticide usage.  They want to introduce farmers to wise marketing practices and use of supply/demand to boost earnings and basic money management.  Another goal is to build a nursery with plants that will benefit both the farmers as well as provide the opportunity for extra income.

Tomato, green pepper, eggplant, onion, leek, and carrot seeds have been bought for the first plantings.  The farmers involved in the project also received the necessary tools to get them started.  God has already supplied trained agronomists among our own staff.  They will do the weekly training and demonstrations.  The local pastor is so excited about this project that he is planning to put an agriculture course into the curriculum of the 4th, 5th and 6th grade classes in the church’s school.  He wants them to learn to do things the correct way!  This project has quite a bit of potential -- pray with us that it will be successful and the participants will be motivated to put into practice the new things they learn.

Hope for Kidz: It's Picture Time!

Did you know that the Hope for Kidz team here in Haiti is already working hard preparing for the 2018-19 school year? Yes, you read that right: 2018-19 is not a typo! Just last week the team started traveling to various schools to begin taking pictures of every child available to be sponsored for the next school year. The first round of picture taking will continue 4 days a week and last through the end of November.

Why start early for the next school year? While some school locations are close by, many others require hours of travel. Many of you know from experience the kinds of roads we travel to get to your sister church. It’s exhausting work just getting there! One of the main reasons to start early is that it takes time to enter each sponsored student’s new photo as well as update all the student information in our database. We currently have about 3,200 kids in the program, so this takes a lot of time. Taking photos in the fall also gives us an opportunity to check in on each sponsored child and make sure they are attending class. In a few months, the team will head out again for round two of photos, to get students missed the first time around or add new students as US churches request them.

Our HFKz Haiti staff is well prepared as they travel to each school. The travel bin is stocked with all the paperwork necessary to take photos of the right kids for that week, including names, ID numbers and grade levels of each sponsored child, last year’s photos for comparison, and new applications for the US churches that are ready to take on new sponsorships. Once they arrive at the school, they line up the sponsored kids in each grade level and get to work. The team works hard to get the kids to smile or laugh, but it’s not always an easy task! These kids see the opportunity to be sponsored for school as a very serious endeavor.

I think the best part of picture taking time is gifting each sponsored child with their photo from last year! For many of them, it is the only photo they will have of themselves. You can tell by the way they receive and look at the photo that it’s a gift they treasure. As the kids lined up for photos, it struck me that just this simple task of taking pictures brings hope to each child; hope for their future and knowledge that there are others who love and care about them and their education.

If you sponsor a child through RMI’s Hope for Kidz Program, thank you! You are truly changing a child’s life!

Photo Update from RMI...

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

After a "Hurricane Irma hiatus", we're glad to get back to our Haitian proverb posts. Today's Haitian proverb: Avan ou monte bwa, gade si ou ka desann li. Translation: Before you climb a tree, look to see if you can climb down. Meaning: Make sure you know what you’re getting into. Our American proverb, "Look before you leap" has much the same meaning.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Anpil men chay pa lou. (Many hands make light work.) Calvary Bible Fellowship (PA) serving alongside Vieux Bourg and Mouillage Fouquet churches in Haiti one more day this week.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Today, Calvary Bible Fellowship (PA) is learning to tie rebar in preparation for the concrete to be poured at the Mouillage Fouquet church.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

The RMI International Office is open! As you know, Hurricane Irma came ashore in Southwest Florida in Naples before veering eastward. This took it directly over Lehigh Acres, where the RMI International Office is located. Due to its size and path, we knew well in advance and were able to prepare for Irma's arrival. We're thankful that the office building held firm and stayed intact but the office did sustain some damage from water that got into one area. That carpet will need to be replaced as will some of the drywall and baseboards. The area and roads around the office were flooded and we lost water, power, and internet. The water receded after 3 days and the power, water and internet were restored last Friday. The office is now open and operating as normal.

The RMI staff are all safe. Many of the staff homes were surrounded by flood waters but none had water come inside. All lost power and water service for several days. As of this past weekend, all but one home have had water and power restored. Every single staff home has sustained some damage, including trees down, landscaping shredded, screens ripped out, roof and gutter damage, fences down and a whole host of other issues. There is quite a bit of cleanup to care for in putting our homes and communities back in order.

If you would like to help with Hurricane Irma Recovery and want to be assured of the help actually getting to those that need it, please consider donating through RMI. There are thousands of people in the Ft. Myers and Lehigh Acres area that are dealing with the flooding and partial or complete loss of their homes. As a part of our community, RMI is wanting to help out with some of those needs. Would you consider helping RMI help those around us? Donate HERE.

[This is looking down Lee Street. RMI is located about halfway down the block on the left. This was taken 3 days after the hurricane.]

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Ministry takes on many forms today. One group from Calvary Bible Fellowship (PA) is helping to build a church for the people of Mouillage Fouquet.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

The Word of God is powerful in any language! Thank you, Pastor Wayne and Calvary Bible Fellowship (Sinking Spring, PA), for sharing with Vieux Bourg Church this morning.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Calvary Bible Fellowship from Sinking Spring, PA started their morning by loading and delivering goats to their sister church, Vieux Bourg.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Orientation tonight with our first team of the fall. Calvary Bible Fellowship, PA, on their way to Vieux Bourg. Can't wait to see what God is going to do. What's your favorite memory from orientation? #rmihaiti Photo Credit: Marc Fraser

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Team coming on Friday... this means RMI Missionary Lee Nunemaker and the Church Partnership's team are HARD at work preparing. Thanks for ALL you do! #rmihaiti

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

We are grateful that the hurricane doesn't seem to be impacting southern Haiti but our hearts go out to folks in northern Haiti as well as the islands that have already been hit hard. RMI staff continue to prepare their homes and making plans as to whether or not to shelter in place or evacuate. RMI Board Meetings scheduled for Sept.15 has been canceled. If you need to contact RMI please do so at info@RMIbridge.org. We'd all appreciate your continued prayers for us as well as everyone in the path of Hurricane Irma.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

What Other Store Offers So Much?

Want to buy a goat, a case of food, water filters, solar lights or even field garden tools to help a needy family in Haiti?  How about ways to help in Hurricane Matthew rebuilding efforts including seeds for farmers to rebuild their crops?   Do you know where to find the new RMI team T-shirts?

All of this and much more is in the RMI store on our website.  You can find it HERE. 

You’ll also find a number of handmade Haitian bags, purses, accessory bags and dish towels from the Domestic Center in Cayes.  If you’ve been to Haiti with RMI you mostly likely have visited the Domestic Center to get a tour and shop at their store.  The quality is amazing.

The literature section has Creole children’s Bibles (perfect for Hope for Kidz sponsors to purchase for their sponsored child for a gift), Life of Jesus booklets as well as supplemental Creole language course books for team training.

In the store you will also find the opportunity to participate in a matching program to help build a Homes for Haiti home.

Explore the store; there’s a wealth of opportunities to “go shopping”.  Some items will be shipped to you directly while many other items will be purchased by you but delivered in Haiti.  What other store can offer that?

Photo Update from RMI...

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Behind the scenes... It takes an army to do what we do. Thanks Josiah Nunemaker for all your IT work! #rmihaiti

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Thank you Naga for your hard work keeping our vehicles running. #rmihaiti #team

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Happening now.... RMI's Annual Pastor's meeting here at our Haiti Office where we listen and share lots of updates, encouragement, Hope for Kidz info, C3 Church Partnership info, and we eat together! #rmihaiti #partnership #collaboration

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Haitian proverb for the week: Bourik chaje pa kanpe. Translation: A loaded donkey doesn’t stand still. Meaning: No rest for the busy. Pray for our Haiti field staff as they are coming back together from their summer travels in the US. The 3 RMI school teachers are setting up their school rooms and school starts very soon. The Thompsons and Nunemakers are back and are busy getting things ready for a full fall and winter schedule. The Suttons return next month in time for the first team of the season. Our appointees, Dawn Shoemaker and the Speel family, are busy and working hard to raise their support so they can get to the field as soon as possible. Pray for them, too! The RMI US staff are also busy running the day to day operations of RMI!

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

This week's Haitian proverb...Anpil men chay pa lou. Translation: Many hands make the load lighter. Meaning: Even though the job may be big and the workload heavy, people can do things more quickly and easily when they work together. If many people cooperate, work that would have otherwise been very heavy for one person becomes light to each participant.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Brighten Someone’s Night

These portable solar-powered lanterns can be purchased through RMI

and delivered to your Sister Church in Haiti. 

$36 a pair - including delivery.

Electricity is scarce in Haiti and nonexistent in most Haitian homes. Children either cannot study at night or they use a candle fueled by kerosene, which is dangerous. Our portable lantern is a reliable lighting source for children to read and study. The lamp weighs only 4 ounces and collapses to one inch thin. It contains a solar charged lithium ion battery; making it a convenient and efficient lighting source - anywhere, anytime, any weather.

Lantern Features: Safe & reliable Waterproof & shatterproof Solar-charged battery Great for reading Offers security lighting You can make brighten someone’s night by donating HERE.

Photo Update from RMI...

from Reciprocal Ministries International

New, Revised Manuals and Team T-shirts!

We’re excited to announce that the new, revised Team Training Manuals and Team Leader’s Manuals have arrived! 

It went through extensive revising, editing, and condensing.  A blank journal to make keeping a record of your trip much easier was added at the end.

The manuals are plastic coil bound, making it much more user friendly…it is easy to lay flat or fold over to study, read and take notes in.  They are much more compact as well.

The Leader’s Manual is now a stand alone unit – it doesn’t contain a Team Manual as it did in the past.  A team leader needs to make sure he orders both for himself.

Other Exciting News…

The Team Leader’s Manual, the Team Training Manuals and the companion devotionals are all now included in a team’s in-country MED (Ministry Enablement Donation) fee.  You do not have to pay for them separately.

Because of these changes we are asking teams to order new leader’s manuals for each team leader.  New team manuals should also be ordered for  every single person on your team even if they’ve been on a previous team. You should order 1 Team Training Manual and 1 devotional for each person as well as 1 Team Leader’s Manual for each leader.  For example, if you have 10 people on your team (including you as a team leader), you should order 10 manuals, 10 devotionals and 1 leader’s manual.  Make sure you order them as soon as possible since it takes time to ship them to you.

Please discard the previous manuals you have used since they are no longer in use. 

RMI firmly believes that in order to have a successful, life transforming short term trip to Haiti, the team must have comprehensive preparation beforehand.  These manuals and devotionals, as well as the supplemental one-time materials (the Pimsleur Creole language course, the Creole-English dictionary and the Creole-English phrasebook, all 3 of which are purchased separately and should stay as the property of your church for subsequent teams to use) are the resources that you need in order to go through this preparation and orientation time.

More Exciting News…

Team T-shirts are now available! 

And 1 T-shirt per person is now a part of a team’s in-country MED fee!

Ordering for these shirts should be done through the team leader.  The form can be found HERE.

Additional T-shirts can be bought in our store on the RMI website, www.RMIbridge.org (there’s a store button on the home page).

The green is great for group identity in an airport.  The gray is a light gray and just as nice.

We know you’ll enjoy the new manuals…and this is the first time RMI has provided team T-shirts!  It’s also the first time these things are included in a team’s in-country MED fee.  All good changes that will enhance your trip experience! 

Photo Update from RMI...

This morning Rob Thompson shared, "Singing and Praying with the RMI team this morning. We made it through together by God's grace." So happy to see them back home!

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

The Thompsons made it home!

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

News Flash! The Thompson family is returning to Haiti today!! God has done great things in their lives and we're so thankful that they are now going home. Earlier this morning Rob wrote, "Haiti here we come! Kids woke up doing the 'today we see Jersey (our dog) dance!' After 14 months, we are thrilled to be going home!"

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

Haitian proverb of the week: Di m kisa our renmen, ma di ou ki moun ou ye. Translation: Tell me what you love, and I’ll tell you who you are. Meaning: What you are interested in says a lot about who you are.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

RMI's growth spurt in continuing! We’d like to introduce you to Jeff and Christina Speel. They live in Absecon, New Jersey where they have served at Beacon Evangelical Free Church in Galloway, NJ since 2010. They love pouring themselves into the lives of teen and college students as Director of Student Ministries. In addition to caring for their two children, Elle (4 years old) and Hutz (1-year-old), Christina helps out in various ministries of the church. They have both been to Haiti for short-term trips, but cannot wait for the opportunity to return and serve full-time in whatever capacity is needed. Jeff and Christina are official RMI appointees and currently raising support to go to Haiti full-time. Their arrival date depends on when they are able to get all of their monthly support needs (besides salary, this includes health and medi-vac insurance, taxes, social security, a Board mandated 401k and a modest business account) as well as their one-time needs (household set-up costs, shipping their goods, their flights, visa costs, transportation needs, and many other expenses). Pray for them as they begin their support raising. They are needed in Haiti as soon as possible. If you would like to be a part of their ministry, you can do this online at http://ift.tt/2gFklbP. You can contact them at jeff.speel@rmibridge.org or christina.speel@rmibridge.org to arrange for them to speak at your church or small group.

from Reciprocal Ministries International

RMI’s Growth Spurt is Continuing

We’d like to introduce you to Jeff and Christina Speel.  They live in Absecon, New Jersey where they have served at Beacon Evangelical Free Church in Galloway, NJ since 2010.  They love pouring themselves into the lives of teen and college students as Director of Student Ministries.

In addition to caring for their two children, Elle (4 years old) and Hutz (1-year-old), Christina helps out in various ministries of the church.  They have both been to Haiti for short-term trips, but cannot wait for the opportunity to return and serve full-time in whatever capacity is needed.

Jeff and Christina are official RMI appointees and currently raising support to go to Haiti full-time.  Their arrival date depends on when they are able to get all of their monthly support needs (besides salary, this includes health and medi-vac insurance, taxes, social security, a Board mandated 401k and a modest business account among other things) as well as their one-time needs (household set-up costs, shipping their goods, their flights, visa costs, transportation needs, and many other expenses).

Pray for them as they begin their support raising.  They are needed in Haiti as soon as possible.  If you would like to be a part of their ministry, you can do this online at HERE  You can contact them at jeff.speel@rmibridge.org or christina.speel@rmibridge.org to arrange for them to speak at your church or small group.

Photo Update from RMI...

A Haitian proverb for the week: Avan ou monte bwa, gade si ou ka desann li. Translation: Before you climb a tree, look to see if you can climb down. Meaning: Make sure you know what you’re getting into. A wise word for all of us!

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Pillowcase Dresses–a Project Idea for Ladies

Pillowcase dresses - A fun and easy idea to get gals of all ages in your church involved in doing something for your C3 partner church! They are simple and don't take an experienced seamstress to create. Here are some samples of pillowcase dresses that were recently made for little girls in Haiti. It's easy to find patterns online (search "pillowcase dress pattern" in either Pinterest or in your internet search bar). You can collect pillowcases (preferably pretty designs and/or bright colors) in standard and king sizes, obtain fabric pieces for the ruffles, print the instructions and you're good to go. Make some samples for folks to see. Prepackage them in Ziploc bags, and have ladies sign up to take them home to make or perhaps have an old fashioned sewing bee to make the dresses as a group.

The dresses are intended for young girls, approximately 3-8 years old. Contact the RMI field at partnerships.haiti@rmibridge.org to find out how many little girls they estimate there are in the church so you have an idea of how many you would need. Always add 15 or 20 more to the number just in case you need extras.

They would need to taken down to your C3 partner the next time you visit them - so plan ahead...and be creative! (They can be mailed to your C3 partner church, too. Contact the Haiti field to find out the best way to go about this and the costs involved.)

We'd love to see pictures of your creations.

The RMI Family is Growing!

We are excited to introduce you to the newest additions to our RMI family…

Joslynn Stakes - 2017-18 School Teacher

Joslynn is serving with RMI for the 2017-2018 school year where she will teach 6th-7th grades at Cite Lumiere Christian School. She taught 5th-12th grade Health and PE for 5 years at Highland Baptist Christian School in Louisiana, her native state. She has visited her sister church Petit Trou through RMI four times.  It was during these trips that God laid it on her heart to serve in Haiti as a teacher.

Janae Stork - 2017-18 School Teacher

Janae has been living in Les Cayes since March 2015 and spends her summers with her family in Illinois. She plans to move up to high school with her students at Cite Lumiere Christian School (CLCS) this coming 2017-18 school year. She has previously taught language arts in 2nd and 7th grades in 2015-16 school year. Janae also taught 5th and 6th grade language arts for half of the school year while being the main 8th grade teacher during the 2016-17 school year at CLCS.  She is looking forward to spending time in the Sister Church communities as her school schedule allows and joining teams on weekends when they are near the Les Cayes area.

They join another RMI teacher…

Courtney Westcott - 2017-18 School Teacher

Courtney is a native of New Jersey, and has previously served in Les Cayes, Haiti during the 2014-15 school year where she taught First Grade at the Cite Lumiere Christian School.  She is looking forward to returning to Haiti for the 2017-18 school year where she will teach her former students as they transition to Third Grade.  Courtney also accompanies teams out to their Sister Churches when possible.

Josylnn succinctly explains the importance of school teachers in the lives of missionaries.  She shared, “On my first visit to Haiti where I learned of Cite Lumiere Christian School and its importance to RMI, I thought of Aaron holding up Moses’ arms during a battle and how he was critical to the victory even though he was a background player.”  It’s a great analogy.  These gals’ ministries directly affect the Rob Thompson and Lee Nunemaker families as well as several other missionary families.

They are currently raising their support and are asking for your prayers as they need their funds to come in quickly since they need to be in Haiti to start classes at the end of August!  You can donate to their support HERE.

Photo Update from RMI...

from Reciprocal Ministries International

Photo Update from RMI...

from Reciprocal Ministries International