It was a beautiful two months at New Beginnings Children's Center this year. Arriving in Kenya during the potential threats of violence that were taking place on the Kenya coast and also in Nairobi, things were just a bit tense when I arrived. Once out of Nairobi and on our way to New Beginnings, the peace of Kenya once again engulfed me.
We first stopped at the annual Music Festival in hopes of seeing some of our children perform. I arrived just in time to see them perform their religious song and they did it beautifully. It is such a thrill for the children to be able to attend these Music Festivals. Not only do they get to compete in the arts but for some children this could be their first exposure to another area of Kenya. Often it is the first time they have ridden in a vehicle or seen a tarmac road. This widens their world view as well as giving them an opportunity to compete.
The next few weeks were busy weeks as I prepared for the mission team to arrive. Since the mission houses were not yet complete, it meant working to see them completed in a short time, all while our Project Coordinator for the center was off on leave to be with his fiance who was ill. The mission houses were completed and New Beginnings now has four mission houses on the compound.
The team arrived during the flurry of activity in Kenya known as Saba Saba (7/7). This was to be a day of demonstrations against the government in Kenya. Although everyone feared that violence would break out and escalate because of the political climate,we praise God that the demonstrations remained peaceful and our team arrived in Kenya without incident.
The mission team spent 10 days at New Beginnings being a total blessing to the children and the community. There were so many meetings with groups who wanted to meet the team that I was concerned that the team would not have enough time to do all they wanted to do. As it turned out the area that the team did not have time to do was mostly with construction help. However the team did leave some assets behind to get some projects finished even if they were not able to work on them themselves.
The team also spent lots of time with the children doing Bible School and Teen Time, which has become very popular with the many teens who call New Beginnings home. They also made visits to the widows in the community and on Kiwa island, where we have gone to visit since 2011 and are now requested to return each year.
Our Annual Soccer (Football) Tournament has now grown to include Volleyball and several of our missionaries joined in with both games. More and more teams are joining the tournament and it has become a day full of excitment. There is talk of making this into an annual New Beginnings Celebration Day in the coming years.
One of the biggest highlights for the mission team was the day that 76 children were baptized and three babies dedicated by Pastor Josh. It was a blessing as the list kept growing that day with so many making a decision to be baptized.
Josh assisted by Cody perform the baptisms.
Immediately after the team departed, I was on my own again as our Project Coordinator requested time off to return home and get married. It was with great joy that we welcomed Caroline as she returned to New Beginnings with Vincent. The children soon gave her the name of Mama Watoto (Mother of Children) since our Project Coordinator, Vincent, is known to the children as Baba Watoto (Father of Children).
It was a great joy to see the growth that is taking place at New Beginnings, not only with the children and the compound but within our own staff. To see some of them growing in wisdom of how to do their own jobs more effectively for the sake of the children and New Beginnings, was one of the things that blessed me most.
Meetings with local groups and local officials proved that New Beginnings has found its place and support within the local community and beyond. New Beginnings is valued by the local education officers and children's officers. The local officials and local police are now very supportive of our project and work with us in many ways. Even other organizations are now coming behind New Beginnings as World Vision is showing support and wants to work hand-in-hand with New Beginnings. They have committed supply a better means of water for the center within the next few months.
God is doing so much to bless the work that is taking place at New Beginnings and my prayer is that He is also blessing each of you who give to New Beginnings financially and in prayer. Your support is making a difference in the lives of the children and we can now begin to see that it is starting to transform a community that many people thought was hopeless.
"Behold I will do a New Thing!" Isaiah 43: 19
September, October, & November 2014: For the next three months we will take Christmas donations for OPERATION CHRISTMAS SHOES for the children of New Beginnings Children's Center. Our goal is to collect $25 for each child, enough so that each will receive a new school uniform, shoes, and socks to start their new school year in January. (Approx $25 per child X 140 children = $3,500) Please consider a special gift to the children and make their Christmas a little brighter because you gave.
All donations should be sent to our headquarters at this address.
Friday, November 7, 2014 will be our Annual Benefit Dinner in York, PA at Four Points by Sheraton, 1650 Toronita Street. Cost is $35 per person. Consider sponsoring a table for $280 and help us reach our goal of $5000 towards the start of our new permanent structures for our Early Childhood Development (ECD) classrooms. We will have a special guest speaker and guest performer. Please mark your calenders for this special event.
All proceeds from the dinner will go towards the building fund of New Beginnings Children's Center. We need to build three classrooms for our ECD: Baby class, Nursery, and Pre-Unit. Currently 50 children in the Baby Class and Nursery share a small over crowded classroom that is made of sheet metal and is beginning to lose its foundation. Let's work together to see this goal achieved and to bless the youngest children.
Current ECD Classroom
As the Summer Expedition comes to a close, the January Team is just preparing for their time at New Beginnings Children's Center. Now is the perfect time to join the Winter Expedition and get ready to GO!!
Spend your days serving the children of New Beginnings and the community. When you sign up for a mission trip with Shalom Christian Missions, training is provided to prepare you for the adventure that God has planned for you. Don't delay, apply today!!
Please visit our missions page for dates and more information.
The sooner you are ticketed the better airfare pricing.
We are very blessed to have three missionaries remaining at New Beginnings this year. Cody, Lynnea, and Christa will be a triple blessing for the children of New Beginnings. Cody is busy helping at the children's center with inventory control in several areas. Lynnea will be serving in the primary school teaching English, while Christa will serve in the secondary school teaching Biology and Chemistry. Everyone is excited to have these three remain to serve the children. Please keep them in prayer as they adjust and dig into their new lives at New Beginnings.
The primary and secondary schools are currently on break and will resume for their final semester of 2014 on September 3. The children worked very hard this past semester with great improvement in many of their scores. New Beginnings Christian School has become known as the school to beat among the other schools in the area. What a blessing your prayers are making for our children and teachers.
Pamela was the highest scoring child in the primary school!
Consider becoming a 'New Beginnings Defender of Education'
We are praying for more people to become involved in helping with the costs of education for the children. This is an extreme need right now! We need to increase our teachers' salaries to above the poverty level. With the incoming president last year, prices of everything have been on the increase within the nation. This is not helping those who live far below the poverty level in this rural area. We also need to purchase more books and other supplies for our students. We cannot do this based on the tuition we are charging since our goal is to continue to keep our schools affordable for the people who live in great poverty within this community. Please join us in praying for people to join us in this effort.
Donor Defender If you choose to donate $20-$50 each month to our education fund, you can provide an increase for 1-2 teachers.
Patron Defender If you give $51-$99 each month to our education fund, you provide for 3-4 teachers to receive a raise and more supplies such as books to be purchased for a classroom.
Champion Defender If you can donate $100 or more each month to our education fund, you provide a raise for 5 teachers plus additional supplies. Please consider helping us in this very critical way.
Every person who becomes a 'New Beginnings Defender of Education' will have their name placed on a plaque that will be on display at New Beginnings Christian School. Our current goal is to have $1000 in donations for our education fund each month to supply our teachers with a fair wage above the poverty level in Kenya and to buy the needed classrooms supplies for the school. This is vital for the education of the children in this remote part of the world.
If you are a teacher or just care about seeing children in a very remote, poor area of the world have a chance at a better life, consider becoming involved as a 'Defender of Education'...'for the love of a child'!
Praise God! The two new mission houses were finished just in time for the team's arrival in July. We are so grateful to those who gave to see this accomplished.
With the team's help we were able to get some smaller projects out of the way. The boys' bath house floor was cemented. The dining hall floor had the finish coat of cement put in place. This makes both the bath house and dining hall much easier to keep clean.
The mission team left behind the funds to finish the roof on the three secondary classrooms. Unfortunately when we had the contractor come for an estimate, he told us that we needed to do some support work on the walls before we could place a roof on them. They were built too weak to hold the roof. So, after a week's worth of concrete work we were still able to purchase all the supplies for the roof but will need a some additional money to hire the fundi (contractor) to do the roof. Somehow things just never go as planned but progress is being made.
A roof is needed on the three classrooms behind the mission houses.
| Donated | Still Needed | Total Cost | |
| $1,500 | $0 | Fencing & Temporary Gate plus additional fence for new parcel | $1,500 |
| $2,300 | $2,700 | Gutters & Water Holding Tanks | $5,000 |
| $5,000 | $0 | MIssionary House Renovations | $5,000 |
| $2,000 | $500 | Classrooms | $2,500 |
| $0 | $5,000 | Two final missionary houses | $5,000 |
| $10,500 | $8,200 | $19,000 |
$8,200 still needed - Praise God for your generous donations!
Early Childhood Development Classrooms (3)
Finish Secondary Classrooms for Form 3 and Form 4
Permanent Dining Hall/Kitchen
Small Medical Clinic
Permanent Boys Dorm I
Syprose is 9 years old. Her mother is a widow who has also donated land to New Beginnings. Syprose is in grade 2 and excels in English and Kiswahili. With the wonderful grades she is getting, it is no surprise that Syrose wants to become a teacher one day.
She is praying for a sponsor so that she may come to live at New Beginnings with her big brother and to ensure that she can continue her education. Please pray for Syprose to continue to do well in her studies. Pray for her to find a sponsor.
The rains have come to Nyasoti but at the wrong time. While we praise God for the rains, this should be a dry month for the weather in Nyasoti. The rains are making it difficult to harvest the corn crop. They depend on the corn to be dry when they harvest and rain at this time can jeopardize an already poor crop.
Corn is one of the staple foods in Nyasoti because they use it to make the ugali (a type of bread made of corn flour). Many people planted cash crops of sunflowers this growing season. While this helps with expenses it does not supply the area with the needed corn. Please pray for the food supply in this area of the world. Pray for next season to be more productive.
Eric is 12 years old and lives in Kenya. His father is deceased and his mother struggles to care for his needs. Eric needs a sponsor!
By sponsoring Eric or another child for $38 a month, you will provide food, clothing, shelter, medical care and an education.
100% of all sponsor donations go to help the children.
Visit our Sponsorship page.
Jescar is 15 and is an emergency case at New Beginnings. She came to live at New Beginnings after having her life threatened by domestic violence. Her mother has since fled the area. Jescar needs help!
By sponsoring Jescar or another child for $38 a month, you will provide food, clothing, shelter, medical care and an education.
100% of all sponsor donations go to help the children.
Visit our Sponsorship page.
Polycap is 10 years old. He is a total orphan who lives with his grandmother, an elderly widow. She struggles to provide for him. Can you help Polycap?
By sponsoring Polycap or another child for $38 a month, you will provide food, clothing, shelter, medical care and an education.
100% of all sponsor donations go to help the children.
Visit our Sponsorship page.
Shalom Christian Missions is a 501(c)3 non-profit,
dedicated to serving children in need throughout the world.
All donations are tax deductible.
A & R Rental Center - York, PA
Bon-Ton Dept Stores - York, PA
Flying Feet - York, PA
Freedom Wireless - York, PA
H & R Block - USA
Imagineered Signs - York, PA
This Little Light of Mine - York, PA
Ann Downing Ministries - Hendersonville, TN
Christ American Baptist Church Youth - Spring Grove, PA
Provident Presbyterian Church C.R.E.W. Youth Ministry - York, PA
Eagle Christian Ministries - York, PA
Elisha's Home and Ministries - Montrose, PA
First Baptist Church - Smithville, TX
First Evangelical Lutheran Church Youth - Chambersburg, PA
First United Church of Christ - Schuykill Haven, PA
Harvest Chapel - Abbottstown, PA
Hope For Women - Tempe, AZ
The Worship Center - Lancaster, PA
May God bless you as you pray and give to help the children!
Donations may be made through paypal or you may send your donation to:
Shalom Christian Missions
1255 Mill Creek Rd
York, PA 17404
(717) 586-6945
These two children are at the top of our list of children needing sponsors. Click one of their pictures to read more about them.
Meet more children in need
