Dear friends, supporters, and family,
It had been a busy summer for all of us and ITDP with many activities, visitors,
work teams, and lots of rainy days since June.
First and foremost, we want to thank you, everyone, for your continuous
love, support and prayers for us and our ministries here in Chiang Mai.
Because of your sacrificial giving, our support level is now at 73%. God is
good!
May 2nd Becky said goodbye to her beloved mother. Mom passed away
peacefully with Becky's sisters and brother-in-law at her bedside singing
hymns in Vietnamese. God is our Comforter!
June brought rain, high humidity, and more heat, as usual. A team of 16
members from Mountview Baptist Church, Columbus, OH, braved the rain
and came to work with ITDP for 10 days in a Sgaw Karen village, Ban Mae
Tom Bon. This village now has access to running water and a crop
demonstration center where coffee seedlings and vegetables are being
introduced. Smaller teams of 2, 4, and 5 members from San Diego, CA, and
New Zealand, also came for shorter periods visiting various areas where
ITDP is assisting with village schools and clinics. God is at work!
July kept us quite busy with 2 special visitors, our 2 college children, Richard
and Melanie. Richard spent 6+ weeks traveling with Mike and staff to
villages as part of his internship requirement for graduation. Unable to get off
work for long, Melanie enjoyed her 3 weeks in Chiang Mai, ate nothing but
Thai food, visited her favorite "high school hang outs" with some of her
friends who also came for the summer. We celebrated our 27th wedding
anniversary on July 7th. God is love!
August came with more rain and flooding in many parts of the country. Mike
and ITDP staff took as many trips as the weather would allow to villages
that needed assistance. After Richard and Melanie had gone back to California
the house once again became quiet and half empty with just 2 boys. Robert was actually excited that school was starting on August 15th, so was Becky! God is grace! (Flood pictures below)
[To see these photos, click here to go to Mike’s profile page. Click on Resources & Links, then click on “Mann’s September News” to open the pdf of this journal with photos.]
These are some of the highlights of our ministries and ITDP activities:
1. The construction for a second school funded by Starbucks will be completed in
October and be ready for new students in November. A teacher is already hired.
She is currently in training at a Thai elementary school in Mae Cham near
Chiang Mai and will move to the village school once it opens in November.
2. A plan to expand the Agriculture program at the Lahu Christian Hostel in
Mae Suay, Chiang Rai province. This program aims to introduce new crops and
ag training to students at the hostel with emphasis that the produce will be
mainly for their consumption. Later on these crops will be available for village
extension and surrounding farmers' fields.
3. The Education and Social Development Project is working tirelessly with
government officials in Om Koi district as we are planning to add 6th grade to
Ma Oh Jo next school year. We also are in dialogue with a company in Chiang
Mai to develop a topographic map of Ma Oh Jo area.
4. On-going trips to many of the coffee villagers encouraging the farmers to
improve their coffee production in quality and quantity for this coming harvest
season.
5. The Water Resource and Sanitation Project continues to add numbers of
villages that are receiving new water systems. It is now at 260+ and counting!
We are surveying new villages for work teams that will be coming in November,
December, 2011. Two more teams have already committed to come in January
and February 2012.
Prayer requests:
1. For God's protection when we travel to/ from villages, for drier weather and
sturdy bridges going into remote areas.
2. That farmers will not lose much of their crops (rice, coffee, vegetables)
Due to the rain and floods. (See flood pictures below)
3.That funds for our personal support will increase by 17% so we will reach the
required amount and can stay on the field until next June when we are due to return
tothe US for Home Assignment.
4.That funds for ITDP will also be sufficient in order to keep all 4 projects
sustainable.
Here is an unedited excerpt of what Ryan wrote on Mike's birthday card:
“Everyone likes dads coffee in USA and dads coffee here. Everyone likes it and
comes in Lanna cafe. I like it when everyone in the world come to see my dads
coffee and I will come to get some coffee to make my dad happy. I will get my
dad some coffee for him he like his coffee black not like mom put sugar in her
coffee every morning. Some day I will become the man just like my dad and
work with coffee that is the best coffee in the world. Love, your son Ryan.”
May God bless you and keep you.
Mike, Becky and family
It had been a busy summer for all of us and ITDP with many activities, visitors,
work teams, and lots of rainy days since June.
First and foremost, we want to thank you, everyone, for your continuous
love, support and prayers for us and our ministries here in Chiang Mai.
Because of your sacrificial giving, our support level is now at 73%. God is
good!
May 2nd Becky said goodbye to her beloved mother. Mom passed away
peacefully with Becky's sisters and brother-in-law at her bedside singing
hymns in Vietnamese. God is our Comforter!
June brought rain, high humidity, and more heat, as usual. A team of 16
members from Mountview Baptist Church, Columbus, OH, braved the rain
and came to work with ITDP for 10 days in a Sgaw Karen village, Ban Mae
Tom Bon. This village now has access to running water and a crop
demonstration center where coffee seedlings and vegetables are being
introduced. Smaller teams of 2, 4, and 5 members from San Diego, CA, and
New Zealand, also came for shorter periods visiting various areas where
ITDP is assisting with village schools and clinics. God is at work!
July kept us quite busy with 2 special visitors, our 2 college children, Richard
and Melanie. Richard spent 6+ weeks traveling with Mike and staff to
villages as part of his internship requirement for graduation. Unable to get off
work for long, Melanie enjoyed her 3 weeks in Chiang Mai, ate nothing but
Thai food, visited her favorite "high school hang outs" with some of her
friends who also came for the summer. We celebrated our 27th wedding
anniversary on July 7th. God is love!
August came with more rain and flooding in many parts of the country. Mike
and ITDP staff took as many trips as the weather would allow to villages
that needed assistance. After Richard and Melanie had gone back to California
the house once again became quiet and half empty with just 2 boys. Robert was actually excited that school was starting on August 15th, so was Becky! God is grace! (Flood pictures below)
[To see these photos, click here to go to Mike’s profile page. Click on Resources & Links, then click on “Mann’s September News” to open the pdf of this journal with photos.]
These are some of the highlights of our ministries and ITDP activities:
1. The construction for a second school funded by Starbucks will be completed in
October and be ready for new students in November. A teacher is already hired.
She is currently in training at a Thai elementary school in Mae Cham near
Chiang Mai and will move to the village school once it opens in November.
2. A plan to expand the Agriculture program at the Lahu Christian Hostel in
Mae Suay, Chiang Rai province. This program aims to introduce new crops and
ag training to students at the hostel with emphasis that the produce will be
mainly for their consumption. Later on these crops will be available for village
extension and surrounding farmers' fields.
3. The Education and Social Development Project is working tirelessly with
government officials in Om Koi district as we are planning to add 6th grade to
Ma Oh Jo next school year. We also are in dialogue with a company in Chiang
Mai to develop a topographic map of Ma Oh Jo area.
4. On-going trips to many of the coffee villagers encouraging the farmers to
improve their coffee production in quality and quantity for this coming harvest
season.
5. The Water Resource and Sanitation Project continues to add numbers of
villages that are receiving new water systems. It is now at 260+ and counting!
We are surveying new villages for work teams that will be coming in November,
December, 2011. Two more teams have already committed to come in January
and February 2012.
Prayer requests:
1. For God's protection when we travel to/ from villages, for drier weather and
sturdy bridges going into remote areas.
2. That farmers will not lose much of their crops (rice, coffee, vegetables)
Due to the rain and floods. (See flood pictures below)
3.That funds for our personal support will increase by 17% so we will reach the
required amount and can stay on the field until next June when we are due to return
tothe US for Home Assignment.
4.That funds for ITDP will also be sufficient in order to keep all 4 projects
sustainable.
Here is an unedited excerpt of what Ryan wrote on Mike's birthday card:
“Everyone likes dads coffee in USA and dads coffee here. Everyone likes it and
comes in Lanna cafe. I like it when everyone in the world come to see my dads
coffee and I will come to get some coffee to make my dad happy. I will get my
dad some coffee for him he like his coffee black not like mom put sugar in her
coffee every morning. Some day I will become the man just like my dad and
work with coffee that is the best coffee in the world. Love, your son Ryan.”
May God bless you and keep you.
Mike, Becky and family