Dear Friends,
Thank you so much for all of your support over the last 9 months of my time in
the United States. I have re-connected with old friends and made many new
ones. I've also found that many people believe in the work we are doing
in La Romana and are so willing to encourage and partner with us in this
endeavor. If you have given to this ministry in the last year, please
know that your ongoing financial support continues to make the ministry in La
Romana possible. Please consider giving generously in the coming months!
Throughout the last year as I've traveled around the country and spoken with a
large number of people, I have come to realize that many of the dreams that
began the work in La Romana are coming true. I've met with churches and
individuals who helped Jean Luc Phanord begin work on the Good Samaritan
Hospital or grow the medical work in the batey communities. I've met with
universities who started sending groups of students years ago and now are
expanding their programs to include education and training components.
And I've met with individuals who have prayed for this mission for years...many
years before I even joined the team that continues to work in La Romana.
What I've come to see in all of these meetings is that
finally, the dreams are coming true! Many years of hard work and prayers
(not to mention, many bags of cement!) have led us to today.
This year a CT scanner was installed in the Good
Samaritan Hospital. This was a project that Moises (the hospital
administrator) and I began discussing almost 5 years ago.
We opened a physical therapy department that is
thriving and overflowing with patients but was only a wish of mine just a few
short months ago.
We are now working in over 100 villages every year
whereas only 10 years ago we were working in only about 15 villages.
This next year we will have almost 50 teams coming to join
us in La Romana but when I started in 2000, we had less than 20 teams committed
to helping.
Universities and foundations are joining with us to
meet the needs of our community because they have seen our integrity over the
years and believe that partnering with us can further the services we are able
to offer.
We are seeing the health of people living in La Romana
and the surrounding villages begin to change because of the many programs offered
by the hospital and the teams that are helping to manage and support them.
The Good Samaritan Hospital is beginning to work on
the third floor because we are running out of space for all of the patients and
physicians that are utilizing our services.
A new emergency room is nearly completed and plans are
being made to renovate the operating room and add a blood bank to the hospital.
So many projects that were only dreams over 10 years
ago are coming to fruition before our eyes. There is still so much to be
done and with your help we will continue to see project after project completed
as we meet the needs of those around us. Thank you for your generosity of
time, energy, sweat and finances that have made this more than just a
dream. I pray that you and your family feel the blessing of this project
in your lives as we begin a new year full of promise and hope for those in La
Romana.
Shared Blessings
As we approach the new year, think about the ways that you have been blessed during the last year, even during hard times. Let us remember that there are many people around the world who have gone through great suffering this year. Your donation to International Ministries helps missionaries around the world meet those needs. Please help as you are able.
Blessings
in 2009
My time in the US this year has flown by and I've been blessed by so many
amazing happenings in my life. I'd like to share those with you and
share, also, my gratitude that you have encouraged me through each of them!
- Graduated from the University of Missouri with a Master's in Nursing (May)
- Passed Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Certification exam (August)
- Safe travels throughout the US
- New churches, individuals and groups interested in partnering with La Romana ministry
- Financial goals met for 2008-9 fiscal year (ended in October 2009)
- Promise of continued financial support for 2009-10 fiscal year!
- Contact made with many educational institutions including Yale, UMass, University of Missouri and Columbia University for future partnerships in medical work in La Romana.
- Made a trip to Walt Disney World with my family (June)
- Spent Thanksgiving with my family and will spend Christmas with them as well
- Enjoyed a wonderful time in La Romana for the first fund-raising event for social service programs at the Good Samaritan Hospital
- Kobe (my dog) was returned safe to my home after going missing for a few hours
Once again, thank you for all of your support this year and for your continued interest in the work in La Romana. Please let me know how I can answers your questions regarding our work in the future.
Sincerely,
Kristy Engel
International Ministries