Highlights from 2019

Irely Mae is our precious granddaughter.

2019 has been a great year for us!  We are both in good health and enjoying our work in Costa Rica.  In addition, our first grandchild, Irely Mae, was born Thanksgiving Day to our daughter Kelly.  We are saving our pennies for a trip to visit them and the rest of our family in 2020.  

Irely with our daughter, Kelly.

More highlights from 2019:

We both received our permanent residency cards for Costa Rica this year.  We are still citizens of the US. It just makes living in Costa Rica easier with residency cards.

Bridget teaching English.

Bridget attended a course in Costa Rica in May and earned her TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) certificate. Her students are benefiting from her training.

This year the English students logged over 1600 hours in class. That is 10 times the number of hours English students logged in 2015 when Bridget started her first class. 

Reading the Bible in her students’ mother tongue is a regular part of Bridget’s English classes. This year we purposed to read the Bible with our neighbors and visitors and to discuss with them their understanding of God and His principles.  This is the means God used to help Bridget understand she needed Jesus as her Savior and Lord. She was raised Catholic and through studying the Bible she became a Christian as a young adult.

Ready for a picnic lunch on the porch!

My (Paul’s) projects around the mission center have included a new handrail and gate to the river front, fresh paint on all metal roofs, varnish on the exterior of the two main buildings, a picnic table on the front porch, re-plumbing the outside toilet, and regular maintenance. We are both thankful for our employees who work alongside us to keep everything in shape.

The farm at the mission center is flourishing and I have blessed families with coffee, limes, mandarin oranges, caimito (similar to plums), bananas, plantain, yucca and tilapia.

That's a poinsettia blooming behind us and we're standing!

This year we kept track of those who have come through the mission center.  We had 85 overnight visitors for 68 nights and there were 196 day-use visitors to picnic and swim on 18 days. Our most recent visitors were a family out for a drive. The grandmother used to live in this region but had not been here since the mission center was built. She said it was like coming to a park. 

We want to thank the Lord for giving us all we need to live and work in Costa Rica.  We appreciate your interest in our ministry, your prayers, your financial support, your emails, and your words of encouragement. 

Have a blessed Christmas and New Year!

Paul and Bridget