July 31, 2018

Our Air B & B  accommodations in Manteo, NC

We are back in PR after having a great vacation the end of June and the first part of July. Mary got to see her Cape Hatteras lighthouse and the Wright brothers' memorial (childhood wishes). Those moments were nice but we both especially enjoyed being with my sister and brother and their mates. Those times are precious and rather infrequent for us.

Cape Hatteras lighthouse

While in the States we had the privilege to visit with the Northside Christian Church in Walterboro, SC as well as Farragut Christian Church in Knoxville, TN. Both congregations made us feel so welcome. We are grateful for their kindness. It was also nice to see our dear friends John and Marsha Ketchen and share a meal with them. John is president of our mission.

 Since we have come back, after dealing with mundane home-care chores, we have begun to dig into the tasks at hand. Although we have distributed practically all of the hurricane related gifts sent by people and churches from all over, there is still a grant by International Disaster Emergency Service waiting to be disbursed. We have selected two housing projects that received IDES's approval. The first is in process. Although the actual construction is yet to begin, building plans and city permits are close to being finalized. First of all, even before we began drawing up the blueprints, a will had to be written....lots of red tape. The other project is awaiting some legals matters to be resolved related to the property title. As soon as that is taken care of we will begin the second construction project.

Site for a new home to soon begin

Attendance is down after a fine month of June. But, it is summer and people are vacationing all over the place, from the USA to Italy and locally as well.  I talked with two pastors from two different denominations the other day. Both told me their attendance was down as well. Soon things will pick up when school starts in early August. The calendar is being filled with special services and events through October.

Mary and I will be coming to the States in early September. We will be visiting several churches in So. IL, that, like so many churches, have been financial backers for many many years.

On a personal note, while there, we intend to take in a couple of Cardinal baseball games, a gift from our sons and their wives. This will be a FIRST for Mary. And, we will be attending my high school 50th class reunion (Mary made me say the number 😲).

Blessings to each of you.


Johnathan and Mary Reece