Jeanne in Honduras

This Blog Ends

2009-12-25T19:56:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas 2009. We left Baxter Institute in Tegucigalpa, Honduras almost 7 months ago. It's hard to believe it's been that long. I had planned to do a final post with photos of our last day on campus. I did post photos on Facebook of the students seeing us off at the airport. But then I got a new computer when I returned to the U.S. and somehow lost all of the pictures from that day. I was so sad. I kept thinking they would somehow magically appear or that they were in some hidden file on the computer that would eventually show up. But they didn't.

So, I put off writing my final blog post and wish I hadn't. You know...those feelings you have right after an event don't ever go away but they kinda fade in intensity. The following will have to do.

June 1, 2009...Steve and I attended the daily devotional at Baxter with those precious students, faculty and staff. The students dedicated part of the devotional to us and sang several songs they knew we loved. It was very touching...sweet...sad...

Then there were lots of hugs, "God Bless You"s, tears and talk of hopefully seeing one another again...of what we had meant to one another. We left that devotional knowing that God was alive and well and lived on the campus of Baxter!

Classes were dismissed for the afternoon and one of the Baxter buses took the students, their families, faculty and staff to the airport to see us off! We felt proud, humbled, sad, happy and very blessed...

Words can't really express what the 5 years at Baxter meant to us. I've said this before, but those who do mission work understand that most of the time they feel they are the ones who are blessed. Steve and I felt we received more than we gave.

Every day we were there we got to see students studying hard to learn how to be better teachers, preachers, leaders in the church. We saw husbands and wives taking classes side by side. We saw students who spent their weekends working with people in local congregations, youth groups, preaching, teaching Bible classes, etc. We saw students' children growing up together on campus and missing the place they called "home" for 4 years after their parents graduated.

Living in an apartment in the single men's dorm, we heard guys singing, praying, yelling, playing, laughing....We heard lots and lots of Spanish! :) We even learned to speak the language (well...I'm sure we butchered it many times, but we tried)!

Every day we were on campus, we were blessed. We felt loved by the student body, faculty and staff. And we loved them, as well as the many, many other wonderful people we met during our 5 years.

So, that last day at the airport...Saying goodbye was difficult. There were lots more hugs, kisses, tears, goodbyes...Then we finally had to go upstairs. Going into the secured area several minutes later, I looked down through the big windows of Toncontin Airport and there were about 10 students grouped together looking up, waiting to see us...waving. I blew kisses to my boys one last time and then we were gone.

We haven't seen these precious students or the faculty members or the staff from Baxter and the JMA Clinic since this time and I do miss their faces!

May God bless those dear ones...
...working for good in Honduras
...teaching eager students how to strengthen the Lord's church in Latin America
...sacrificing much to study for 4 years, many times in a foreign country, so that they might teach Jesus Christ to the lost
...giving of their time and money to mission work in Latin America

May God continue to bless all those at Baxter Institute and JMA Clinic. We love you and miss you and we hope we see you again on this earth. But if not...then in Heaven. You gave us more than you will ever know and we will never, ever forget our Latin American family...

Note: Steve and I are now living in Kentucky, within 1 hour of our 3 children and 5 grandchildren. We will always love and support the people and the work at Baxter and the Clinic. Our life now continues with our family here. I will continue to write on my other blog. This one ends but our love continues.

Trust

2009-07-03T22:10:00.001-07:00

Tonight Steve and I went to Melanie and Jared’s house to celebrate Independence Day a day early. We all sat outside in the gloriously cool night air as the children retreated inside to play. Well…all except for Jack, who was catching fireflies.

He was finally able to hold on to one…maybe because it could no longer fly after being in a small boy’s loving hands for so long. He even named it…He told stories about it…He really wanted to keep it as a pet.

But then he decided to go inside to play with the other kids. Mommy told him he couldn’t take it inside… “No, not even in your pocket.” What to do? There were 8 of us adults outside and he came to me, his Dani, and asked in that sweet Jack voice that I cannot resist, “Dani, would you hold my lightening bug for me?” Of course, I said “Yes”. I took it and he looked up at me and asked, “Dani, you won’t let it go, will you?” “No, Jack, I promise that I will not let go.” And I didn’t.

How to Eat a Mango

2009-05-26T15:11:00.001-07:00

First, this is my second blog post today, so if you haven't already read the one right below...feel free.

------------------------------------------------------------------

I didn't realize I loved mangos until about a year ago. I know...I've lived in Honduras for 5 years now and it took me almost 4 to realize this. One thing, if you've never had a fresh, tree-ripened, luscious mango...well...you just haven't had a mango! We've been getting great ones from neighboring towns (not quite ripe in Tegucigalpa yet) and since I needed to clean out my refrigerator anyway today......

Here's a mango:

Here's a peeled mango:

Here's a nice bowl of cut-up, juicy mango:

...and here's how you're supposed to eat it:

But...honestly (and everyone will tell you this is true...), this is the best way to eat it, because the best part is what's left over on the big seed after you've sliced it.

¡Buen provecho!

Despedidas #2, 3 & 4

2009-05-26T13:46:00.001-07:00

No Borders

Week before last, during our Baxter Seminar, the guys from the Baxter sextet, 'No Borders', came up to me and one of the members, Elmer Huertes from Guatemala, asked (in Spanish, of course), "Sister Jeanne, do you speak Spanish?" I laughed and said, "Sometimes...some days I do and some days I don't!" Then, he asked (and I think he was serious), "Do you today?" I smiled and said, "Yes. Yes, today I speak Spanish." So he continued then with his request. The guys who make up this awesome singing group wanted to know if they could come to our apartment and sing for us...Just for Us! I managed to get out a "Yes! Of course! We would love that!" and so we set it up for Wednesday, May 20.

They arrived in the evening and when I opened the door, I was so impressed...they all had on dress slacks, dress shirts and ties (and not the red ones that they wear as Baxter students! and, the smelled really good, too! It made us feel even more special that they had gone to the trouble of presenting their very best to us.

They sat down and explained that they'd like to have a little devotional with us. They had it all planned out who would be saying the prayers and who would be giving a short message and who would be introducing the songs, etc. The sweetest thing is that they told us, "We don't have silver and gold to give you, but we give you these songs from our heart."

They sang about 6 songs and each of the members (they picked up an extra for this night...so it was actually a "septet"??) said very kind words to us. One thanked me for being his "2nd mom", another was very emotional as he thanked Steve for helping him get home after graduation last year, as he was short funds and had to return home to Cuba or forfeit his visa. He was also emotional as he asked us to continue to pray that his wife and children would get to join him in his 3rd year at Baxter in 2010. So far, he has had to come without them because the Cuban government has not allowed them to leave the country.

This was quite touching to us and the guys even granted me my only request...that I get to sing with them! We sang"Thou O Lord" in English. They also sang (all in Spanish) "Amor Fiel" (our favorite!), "Love One Another", a version of "Auld Lang Syne".

Here they are singing "The Lord Bless You and Keep You" in Spanish.

If you would like to see some of the other songs as they performed them for us click below:

Auld Lang Syne (Spanish)

Amor Fiel (Faithful Love)

Love One Another (Spanish)

Students

Then the next day, Thursday, May 21...The Baxter students had a very special "Despedida" (farewell) for us! We were invited up to the devotional room and when we got there, everyone applauded and on the video screen was a collage of photos of Steve & me.

(Who is that young guy bottom center???) I think Allan has been taking photos from my Facebook album! :)

I don't know who all, but several students also worked very hard to get a slide show together with lots of photos of us throughout our years at Baxter. They brought many memories and also tears...

Many of the students spoke of memories or how they would miss us, etc. This was mixed with video messages from just about every Baxter employee/teacher, along with more of the students AND the CHILDREN! It was so precious!

I will never, ever forget these precious students and the children and all the wonderful people we've been blessed to know in our 5 years on this campus!!!

I Love All of You, Baxter Students and Children!

JMA Clinic

Last Saturday, the employees of the JMA Clinic had a great "Despedida" for us out of the city at the home of Maria Vasquez, the receptionist at the Clinic. Maria lives in a nice, peaceful place and she is quite a gardener! Lots of beautiful flowers at her place...

Maria and her mother, along with so many others from the Clinic, worked so hard to give us this party! They cooked chicken, beef and chorizo (sausage) on the grill and we had a very typical Honduran meal with the meat, rice, beans, hand-made corn tortillas and chismol.

We were given a beautiful plaque and some words of appreciation and love were given to us as the greatest gift by some Clinic employees, including Dra. Xiomara Erazo. Dra. Xiomara and Steve have worked closely together to get the Clinic where it is today and we're going to miss her, as well as all who are dear to our hearts.

This is Maria's House--what a view!

This is me walking to Maria's house (always looking down so I won't fall...again...)

We parked and walked for about a mile to get to her house.

Some of the Women Cooking (Zonia, Arely, Yadira)

Steve Talking After Receiving Our Plaque (that's Dra. Xiomara Erazo on the left)

Sweet Ladies Listening to Steve

(Zonia de Rosas, Social Worker; Mercedes Pacheco, Sewing Teacher; Dra. Fatima Nuñez, Pharmacist; and Maria Vasquez, Receptionist

Packing - Part III "Memories"

2009-05-20T16:31:00.001-07:00

I mentioned in an earlier post that I was pacing myself where the packing is concerned. Every day I go through another closet or drawer or space in our apartment and make a decision. Will I take this with me? Will I leave this in the apartment? Will I give this away? Will I throw this away?

When I look at each item, a flood of emotion comes over me. Sometimes the memory makes me laugh, sometimes it makes me smile, sometimes I cry and sometimes I just have to sit down because all of these emotions hit at once.

Remember those "things" I talked about in Part I of "Packing"? Here are some of those that are "kinda" special to me:

My beautiful painting.

I actually have two. Once I took them off the wall, it just didn't seem the same because I bought those the very first year we were here. I purchased them with money a dear friend gave me right before we left Bowling Green, KY. She said, "Buy something for your home." I always think of her when I see those paintings...

My pot, etc. collection.

The first pot is one of a set of 3 in different sizes, plus the bowl that's the same style...It is just a terra cotta pot that has been decoupaged with torn pieces of cement bags and then shellacked. Neat, huh? Another dear friend bought these pots for me at Valley of the Angels the week of graduation 2004. Then there's another pot I found on my way to Valley of the Angels. There are many more pots! That was sort of my "theme" in decorating in the kitchen. But you'll be glad to know I'm not posting photos of all of them!

This plate holds a sweet memory of David & Maggie's wedding. They gave it to us the night of their rehearsal dinner. Their wedding was 1 week before we left to go to Guatemala for language school and then on to Honduras. The plate says: "pero yo y mi casa serviremos a Jehová" Joshua 24:15 (but as me and my household, we will serve the Lord). I've had it displayed, along with my pots and a very sweet plate that another friend sent my first month here that she painted herself. It says, "Friends are God's Way of Taking Care of Us." Isn't that sweet?

Keepsakes/Cards:

Our students have brought us many gifts from their countries over the years: dolls, more pots!, small table cloths, coffee cups, key chains, etc., etc. I have already packed these so I can't show you. But each of these items hold memories and special feelings for those students.

And the cards! Oh, the cards! Our student wives have made me so many beautiful cards. Some of them must have taken literally hours to make. Intricate scrolled flowers (see bookmark example below) and shadow painting, etc. I will treasure each one! Many of these I've already packed or taken home on previous trips, but above are a couple of pictures.

I'm not nearly finished packing...but I think this is the end of my "Packing" posts. However, never fear...I still have a few posts in me before we leave in 12 days!

Despedida

2009-05-18T12:47:00.000-07:00

In Spanish, the word "Despedida" is used to describe a "going away party". The word actually means "goodbye", "farewell", "sending off"...

On Saturday night, we had one here on campus and it was attended by all of our students, as well as most of the faculty and staff from Baxter and the JMA Clinic. Bob Young, chairman of the board of directors of Association Amicus was there also and presented us individually with beautiful plaques. We each said a few words of thanks, which surprised me that I could actually do that.

Most of the students stood and gave us words of thanks, encouragement, etc. That was extremely emotional for us. Afterwards, there were lots of hugs and kisses and tears. One student said he would miss Steve's jokes and my cakes! :)

I was going to post a couple of pictures but the only ones we actually took were of us each receiving our plaques. Those were just too pitiful so I'm not going to post them.

"No Borders" performed and, of course, that was so wonderful, yet emotional.

When I get sad about leaving these people here who I love so dearly, I remember 5 little faces...Madeline, Noah, Jack, Luke and Georgia Grace. Those faces, along with God's help, will get me through this tough time.

What I Will Miss -- What I Will Not Miss...

2009-05-15T22:42:00.001-07:00

I was going to put pictures on this post of the things/people I would miss. But if you don't have high speed internet, it takes forever to load, so... If you want to see some photos of what I will miss, go to this page.

More than one person has asked me recently what I will miss most about being at Baxter. I've also been questioned as to what I will "not" miss.

The answer in a nutshell follows (these aren't in any particular order of importance and I KNOW I will leave out tons of things I will miss.) But here goes.

I Will Miss...

Friends we have made at Baxter and the JMA Clinic
Friends who are also missionaries in Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Working with all the Las Damas de Baxter groups
Going grocery shopping (and pretty much everywhere) with Steve
Living on campus -- I love our little apartment!
Walking to church (well, except for the time I broke my foot walking to church!)
Hearing the guys singing as they pass by my door on the way to class
Getting hugs and kisses from the students' children
Baking cakes with the student wives
Playing funny games at baby showers
Fresh, tree-ripened mangos
Hugs and encouraging words from the students
Sitting in my living room and listening to the hard rain outside (it's doing it right now!)
BIG hugs from Pacheco
Devotionals with the women on Wednesdays
Having Thanksgiving Dinner at our apartment
Cheap Celebrex
Hearing Maria singing praise songs while she works
Almost perfect weather
Listening to the Baxter Chorus sing
Our huge shower
Having the VCOM med. students over for dinner
$200 crowns and root canals (I know...I can't believe I said I'd miss root canals either!)
Long talks through my office window with Gloria
Everything about Graduation!
Having the 4th year students over for dinner at our apartment
Going to El Patio with groups
Having a special "Despedida" (saying goodbye) luncheon with the graduating women
Hearing stories of how students came to be at Baxter
Hermana Chon's fried chicken
Watching a single Baxter student holding a married couple's baby during devotional
Flipping over to a local t.v. channel and seeing one of our guys preaching!
The gorgeous orange flowered trees and purple bougainvillea all over campus
Hearing the guys yell, "Futbol!" after classes on Friday
Going for an occasional dinner at La Cumbre, the beautiful restaurant on top of the mountain outside of Tegucigalpa
I already miss my friend, Rudis, who moved away from Tegucigalpa 2 years ago
Baleadas!
One of our student's children running up to me saying, "Hermana! Hermana!"

I Will Not Miss...

Missing birthdays of my children and grandchildren
That crazy bird outside our living room window that sounds like an alien invasion taking place
Looking at pictures of little Jack when he was a baby and realizing I didn't know him at that stage
Traffic in Tegucigalpa on Friday night!
Traffic in Tegucigalpa any time or day of the week!
Leaving Bowling Green at 3:00 a.m. to get to the airport
Arriving at the Nashville airport at midnight and not getting home until 2 a.m. or later
Saying goodbye to family and friends in the U.S.
Saying goodbye to family and friends in Honduras
All the uneven surfaces you have to walk on
Extremely loud music in the stores and restaurants
The many, many, many steps on Baxter campus!
Rarely getting a straight answer from a store employee when you ask about a product
Watered-down paint
Those loud buses going up the hill by the apartment

Packing - Part II "Aging Gracefully?"

2009-05-15T09:56:00.001-07:00

Well, I don't know how "gracefully" I'm doing it, but I'm definitely aging. I decided to pack a crate of things, mostly souvenirs and gifts people have given us from their countries over these 5 years...but also some clothes, with LOTS of bubble wrap!

I have hurt ever since!

I figured out pretty quickly that I need to *pace myself*. I'm like that with almost anything I really want or need to do. I just jump in and go all obsessive over it! I do it with quilting or reading or making a budget (Steve, I put that one in for you!) But, really...this packing thing is hard. Actually, it's not so much the actual "packing" as the being on my feet for long periods of time.

Leaving the subject of packing...I have never minded growing older. Never cared who knew my age. Still don't! (I'm 58, in case you wanted to know) I have always loved older people and wanted to grow old gracefully and be a sweet "old lady". :) I kinda like my gray hair (truthfully, I only highlight it to give it more body...honest!) and I love the respect you get when you're older, like people helping you get your carryon out of the overhead bin on the plane. I love that! I usually don't even have to ask...I just start to get it and some nice gentleman says, "Here, let me help you". Nice.

I loved my 40's, am absolutely adoring my 50's and look forward to my 60's. The thing is: My Body Is NOT Cooperating!

So, packing reminds me not only of the fact that I have too much stuff, but also that I'm not getting any younger. One of Steve's favorite sayings is "Getting old ain't for sissies!" Oh, how true...But, I wouldn't go back to my 20's for a million dollars...maybe for a day or two just to play with my kiddos, but not permanently. So, I'm stuck with this body and I do plan to get it into better shape when I get settled. Yep, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it!

Packing - Part 1 "Stuff"

2009-05-13T10:39:00.001-07:00

Stuff! Stuff!! And More Stuff!!! Every time I've ever moved in my married life, I've had to deal with STUFF! We moved to Bowling Green, KY in 1989 (20 years ago) and put several big boxes of STUFF in the attic. Please don't judge me, but some of those boxes were marked, "Garage Sale STUFF"! Why?! Guess what? It's still in the attic in our house in Bowling Green, KY.

When we moved to Tegucigalpa, Honduras in 2004 we didn't bring a lot of STUFF with us. But, over the years, and many trips back and forth from here to there, we have managed to accumulate lots of STUFF! Books, notebooks, souvenirs from Latin America, gifts from students from their own countries, clothes, decor for the house, small appliances to make life easier and more fun such as my wonderful Cuisinart ice cream maker, coffee grinder, Crock Pot, FoodSaver, etc., etc....

So, you get the picture, right? What to do with this STUFF? Much of it we will take back to the U.S. with us, some STUFF is just, well, trash and will be tossed, and some items will be given away to whoever might want them. Like I said, many things we will leave in the apartment for our next president and his wife.

Why do we collect all this STUFF? Does it make us feel more secure or successful? Does it fill a void? Is it really necessary?

God tells us in Matt. 6:25: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?"

Luke 12:15: "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."

I don't think of myself as being greedy...I feel like I also have a giving spirit...but I realize I need to watch out for the STUFF in my life and not let it bog me down.

Okay, I will be going to deal with the STUFF in the apartment now. And as I do, I'm going to be thinking about so many thousands here in Honduras who live every day of their lives WITHOUT THE STUFF!

May God bless you who are reading this and help us all to realize what is important in life. You don't have to move to figure that out!

The Nortons introduced in devotional at Baxter

2009-05-12T10:02:00.001-07:00

We are so thankful to have Howard and Jane Norton on campus for several days. Today Steve introduced them in our morning devotional at Baxter and presented them with personalized Association Amicus yearly planners. The students, faculty and staff are already finding out what a wonderful couple they are.

Three More Weeks

2009-05-11T15:06:00.001-07:00

Jeanne's Travels

I arrived back in Honduras on Saturday, May 9, after spending some time in the U.S. for the birth of our new granddaughter, Georgia Grace White! She is David and Maggie's first child and we are completely in love with her! I also spent several days with my daddy who had hip replacement surgery back in November and hasn't been doing very well.

But now I'm back in Tegucigalpa and there is so much to do! Today is Monday and exactly 3 weeks from today, we will be heading back to Kentucky.

The Nortons

Today, Howard and Jane Norton arrived on campus. I had met Howard once before at Harding University but this was my first time meeting Jane. I just have to say...I.Love.Her! She is such a positive lady and in just the short time we spent together this afternoon, I already know that the people of Honduras are just going to love her, too! And Howard, of course...he's also a wonderful person.

Jane's 2nd language is Portuguese but she is certainly not afraid to speak Spanish and is doing a great job already! I'm very impressed with her positive attitude and desire to be here with her husband to do God's work at Baxter and the Clinic. I look forward to this next week and a half or so that we have to get to know each other better. I feel a sense of relief knowing firsthand what a special "first lady" Baxter will have in Jane! God is truly answering prayers.

I said to someone not long ago that I hoped I would have the same peace in leaving as I had in coming to Honduras. If you have read my first post on this blog, you know how God showed me in record time that He was on control and that He was the one who had made the decision for us to go to Honduras to work as missionaries. I had such peace in knowing that He would equip me with everything I needed to do His will. But I felt leaving maybe wasn't going to be so clear. Thanks be to God for His guidance in this. I do feel that this is the time for us to leave and am so thankful that He has raised up this fine couple, Howard and Jane, to continue His work here at Baxter and the Clinic.

Baxter Seminar

The annual Baxter Seminar will be held this week, May 13-16, on the campus of Baxter Institute. "El Apocalipsis" (The Book of Revelation) will be the theme. Dr. Steve Austin of Texas Gulf Coast Bible Institute will be the keynote speaker. (See brochure in Spanish)

Leaving is Hard...

2009-04-25T07:31:00.000-07:00

For those of you who occasionally visit this blog to see what's going on in my life in Honduras...I apologize for the fact that I haven't written anything lately. During the past year, I have spent more time than normal in the U.S. due to having 2 new grandchilden and my 83-year-old daddy having hip replacement surgery. During this time, I just wasn't into blogging. Wonderful things have continued to happen at Baxter Institute and the JMA Clinic and I know many have read our newsletters, visited the website (www.baxterinstitute.edu) and even made trips to Honduras to see first-hand the work being done.

I assume that the majority of you reading this know that Steve and I decided last year to return home sometime this year and that a search committee of the board of directors has been looking for Steve's replacement as president of Association Amicus. We made a 5-year commitment in 2004 when we began our work and wanted to honor that commitment. However, we were also willing to stay a little longer (until December 2009) if that was necessary.

Last week our board of directors announced, through a press release, that a wonderful man, Howard Norton, will be the next president and will begin those duties, along with his wife, Jane, on June 1, 2009.

So, Steve and I will be leaving Tegucigalpa to return to Bowling Green, KY on June 1. But we're not just leaving a city. We are leaving our dear friends. We are leaving our precious students. We are leaving family.

And we're not just returning to a city. We are returning to our dear friends. We are returning to our children and grandchildren. We are returning to family.

We wish we could have both...our friends and family in Honduras and in the U.S....all in one place. But that will only happen in Heaven.

Leaving is going to be one of the hardest things we've ever done. But we believe that we are leaving the work in good hands and trust that God is going to continue to grow the great works of Baxter Institute and JMA Clinic as He sees fit in the future.

I am hoping to write another post or two on this blog before closing it out. I will be spending some time with my daddy in Florida next week and then will return to Honduras on May 9 and join Steve in our last month at Baxter.

God bless you!

Valentine's Day Dinner

2009-02-19T07:36:00.001-08:00

Every year, I think, since we've been here (and probably every year before), the married students on campus have planned and executed a special dinner on Valentine's Day. As is true for all parties here, there was a devotional, lots of games and food! I really don't have a photo that does the decorations justice, but just know that it was beautiful!

Here are a few pictures from the special night.

Decorations (you can see my reflection in the window taking the picture).

Diana & Carmen playing a word guessing game.

Three couples describe what their spouse is wearing.

The guys sang a very romantic song to their wives. The words are on the screen behind them, and Steve didn't know the words, so he kept having to turn around to see them. Very romantic, honey! :)

The women preparing to give their husbands gifts of chocolate.

Individual Table Decor-- These were very cute with a little "flag circle" from the couples' home country.

Graduation at Baxter 2008

2008-12-26T13:03:00.000-08:00

I thought you might like to see some photos taken during the week of graduation.

BAXTER CHORUS

LUIS NAVARRETE & FERNANDO OSPINA paying tribute to their classmate, Jorge Luis Quiroz Marrufo", who was killed in an accident (along with his mother) in January 2009. This year's graduation was dedicated to Jorge.

PRAYER FOR GRADUATES

"NO BORDERS" SING AT THURSDAY NIGHT DINNER FOR GRADUATES

You can see and hear "No Borders" on YouTube by clicking on the links below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZasXGQXphpo&feature=channel_page
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYD_H341N7s&feature=channel_page
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k6ucCKn7uQ&feature=channel_page
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pz_k0Pil70&feature=channel_page
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICYVjXB6v-Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEyt2OUD8Vc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P47C7X8EZrA&feature=related

PRESENT & PAST BAXTER GRADUATES

GRADUATING WOMEN RECEIVING GIFTS

MARY FLAKE DE FLORES (former 1st lady of Honduras) & STEVE WHITEat 30th Year in Honduras Celebration

SEBASTIAN JIMINEZ with LORENE HOWELL & LYNN GRAY at Picacho park

DEVOTIONAL AT HOTEL CLARION SUNDAY NIGHT

CHILDREN'S PARTY ON THURSDAY

My First Post Revisited

2008-12-17T21:13:00.000-08:00

I was talking to our preacher tonight at church and gave him a very edited version of "My Story". I thought since it was the first post I wrote last year on my blog, that some of you may not have read it. So, if you are interested in how God gave me peace about moving to Honduras, here it is:

How It All Began...or..."A 180 in Under 24 Hours"

"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." (Proverbs 19:21) NIV

Tuesday, April 6, 2004. That's the day it began for me. I loved my life in Bowling Green. Our children were almost all grown. Philip was still living at home, working and attending the university. Steve was a college professor. I had my own drapery business and was having a pretty good year. Our oldest son, David, was engaged and was working and living only an hour from our home. Melanie, our oldest child and only daughter, was also about an hour away. She was married with 2 children, Madeline and Noah, and was pregnant with her third child, Jack. We saw our grandchildren every week and, because of owning my own business, my time was very flexible and I was able to run down to see them whenever I needed some "Dani" (grandmother) time. We were involved in our church and just really loved the way our lives were going. We were comfortable...

On that day, Tuesday, April 6, 2004, around 9:30 p.m., my world as I had known it changed. My dear husband turned off the t.v. and said he needed to talk to me. Oh my goodness...I could not imagine what was so important that Steve would turn off the t.v. before telling me. Then he dropped the b.omb. He began to tell me that he had been thinking about something for several months...He had prayed a lot about it...He believed God had tried to lead him many times before in his life and he had not listened...He felt God was leading him now... "What?!, I was thinking...What is is he trying to say?" Looking back now, I knew was he was going to say. Over the years, I had seen it coming.

I'm going to back up a bit...First of all, Steve's father lived in Guatemala for 40 years, so Steve's first trips to Central America occurred when he was only a boy. Almost as soon as we moved to Bowling Green in 1988, he became chairman of the missions committee and began traveling to Choluteca, Honduras and working closely with the missionaries our church supported there. He also began leading mission trips to different countries in Central America. His love for the people and frustration at not being able to communicate well led him to take several college Spanish classes over the next few years. Then, in the summer of 1998, the night before he was to return home, Steve had to have emergency surgery in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. At this time, I actually got my first passport (flew to New Orleans and got an emergency one in half a day!) and made my first trip to Honduras. After that, I went on several trips to Honduras and one to Costa Rica. Steve says it was worth having to have surgery in a 3rd world country just to get his wife to join him on some of his mission trips and finally see why he loved the people so much!

During the time he was in the hospital, he met for the first time, Calvin, who was president of Baxter Institute, and his wife, Linda. Not long after this, Steve was asked to join the board of directors. We began a special friendship with Calvin and Linda, a love for the students at Baxter and a deep admiration for what this preacher training school was accomplishing in Tegucigalpa and the world!

So, that's the background. Maybe you can see why I knew what Steve was going to say that night in April 2004. However, after our first grandchild was born, I really did not think he would ever ask me to consider doing it...

"I believe God wants us to consider moving to Honduras. I think I want to apply for the job as president of Baxter Institute." The only two words I could get out came out in the form of a question..."You're kidding?" I kept repeating it. I felt tears well in my eyes. I could not talk. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I'm a little ashamed of this now, but there were only two thoughts that filled my mind as I was listening to this man pour our his heart..."There is no way I can do this" and "How am I going to get out of it without appearing to be a terrible wife and Christian?"

Steve continued to talk about how he believed God had led him to this moment...how he didn't want to say "no" to God's plan again...how he, too, loved our life as it was and that he would totally understand if this was not something I felt I could do right now. He just wanted me to consider it, pray about it and we'd talk about it again later.

I went to bed then and cried for a while. I prayed...sort of...I can really identify with the scripture in Romans 8:26: "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." I honestly didn't know what to pray for. I wasn't ready to pray for God's will to be done because deep down, I think I already knew what it was and I wasn't ready to submit. Thankfully, God allowed me to sleep peacefully.

The next morning I went in to the church building, where I worked one day a week. My sweet friend, Jaquatta, who was the church secretary at that time was the first person I told. I knew Steve didn't want me really talking about this because he had not applied for the job yet and didn't even know if he would or...even if he applied, he didn't know that he would get the job. But...I HAD to tell someone!

I told J. all about it, including the news she didn't know yet...our daughter was expecting our 3rd grandchild in October! I just poured it all out as I cried and I really expected her to say something like, "Oh, Jeanne...you can't go to Honduras...you can't leave your grandbabies!" Well, guess what? That's not even close to what she said. She came around her desk, got down on her knees in front of me, took my hands and said, "I want to pray". Wow! What a prayer...I have never felt so humbled...to hear someone talking to God about what a blessing I could be and how much faith she had in me and how she knew God had planned this for my life, etc., etc.

That was the moment that, for the first time, I felt like maybe it was actually a possibility...very small possibility...that I COULD do this. That day was Wednesday and that night, instead of going to my ladies class at church, I pulled aside two other dear friends, Teresa and Ruth, and said, "You aren't going to class tonight...I've got to talk to you!" These two ladies went into an empty office with me and there I told them about Steve's desire to work in Honduras. I also admitted all my fears and doubts: I didn't know if I could leave my children and grandchildren...I didn't know 10 words of Spanish...I was not a leader...I had a business that was doing well...and...I didn't know if I even wanted to do this. They were both encouraging...they both prayed for me; basically that God would lead us where he wanted us to go and that we would be willing to follow. Then Teresa looked me in the eye and said something that I will never forget. She said, "Jeanne, if this is God's plan for you, He will equip you with EVERYTHING you need to follow him!" Whoa.

I, personally, had never felt, in all my Christian walk with God, that He was "calling" me to do something in particular. Now, I'm not saying that He hadn't called me before. I'm just saying if He had, then I must not have been listening. But at that moment, Wednesday, April 7, 2004, at approximately 8 p.m., I KNEW that we were moving to Honduras. Do you realize that God totally and completely changed my heart in less than 24 hours? He is truly amazing! I give Him all the credit, honor, glory...I sometimes say that I made the decision that night to do mission work in Honduras, but that isn't really true. The decision was made long before that night and it was made by the creator of the universe...not by me! I merely submitted to His will and to His decision. And He has blessed me abundantly...

(Added December 17, 2009):

I have to add that one of the biggest blessings God has given me is the blessing of peace in being able to leave my children and grandchildren. I cannot wait each time I am able to come home to see them but...I do not cry when it is time to leave. I am always (with maybe one exception) ready to go back to Honduras when it is time. I thank God for this blessing! When people ask me how I can do that, I say, "Jeanne White could never do that! It is totally God!"

The verse at the top of this post has a special meaning to me. Although I don't usually use the New Living Translation, I like the way it words this verse:

"You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail."

Our Fifth Baxter Graduation

2008-12-12T19:54:00.001-08:00

Today is Sunday, December 7, 2008. Steve and I now have 5 graduations under our belt since we've been here at Baxter Institute. That's really hard to believe.

I cannot even begin to describe the way I feel about these students and their dedication to learning all they can to better prepare themselves to preach the gospel of Christ. Well, I guess I CAN begin because that's just what I'm doing now.

Beginning in September of this year, we began having our graduating students to our home for dinner. We started doing this the first year we were at Baxter and have continued it each year. If my count is correct, so far we have had 43 single students and 22 families to dinner. Was it a lot of work? Yes. Was it worth it? DEFINITELY!

This year we sat around our table and shared memories, dreams and plans for the future with:

The Alonso family, the Juvenal Jiménez family, the Sebastian Jiménez family, the Navarrete family, Ricardo Borda, Cristian Corrales, Saúl Espinal, Joel Mendoza, Alberto Mendoza, Walter Osorio, Fernando Ospina and Luis Tojín. (See Photos) Also, Glen Hall, Jeremias Santos and Sergio Mendoza (See Photos).

On Saturday, December 6, these students graduated from Baxter Institute. Some will go back to their home countries; some will go to other countries; some will work with teams; some will work alone. I will miss them.

Day of the Child Party on Campus

2008-10-11T11:34:00.001-07:00

Día de los Niños or Children's Day was on the calendar for September 10. The student moms on campus decided to wait until Steve and I returned from the U.S. to celebrate so we did that this past week on Tuesday.

A funny side note about this is: I was asked to bake 2 chocolate cakes for the occasion. I marked the date correctly on my calendar for Tuesday, October 7 at 3 p.m. But for some reason, when Tuesday, September 30 rolled around, I thought, "Oh, I need to make the cakes today!" So, I stayed home after lunch and did just that. I called Steve to find out where the party was so I'd know where to take them. He asked his secretary, Ruth, and she said, "The party is next week!"

Unfortunately, I'm losing my mind. Fortunately, the Baxter employees, as well as the single guys and the kitchen staff really enjoyed the cakes!

So, back to the children's party. It was great! This is an incredibly special day for the children here. They look forward to it all year long. I think the party itself must have lasted about 3 hours and, believe me, those 3 hours were packed full of funny songs, serious songs, a devotional, several prayers, games (crazy games!) eating hotdogs, chips, cake and jello, running around, opening presents, demolishing the piñata and CLOWNS!

Sinay Medina "Sigua", Gabriel Castillo and Allan Sánchez were the 3 clowns and they were non-stop funny, silly, crazy for about 2 hours! Some of the kids were scared of them...and some even cried and ran away. They all did a good job trying to get all the kids to play, but Allan, in particular, was just awesome with the kids. He would go over to them, one at a time, and say, "It's me. It's Uncle Allan. It's okay, come play with us". He succeeded with several of them.

Enough with the words. Here are photos:

The Children!

Elena & Erika Derek & Sandra Douglas

Elena, Valeria, Santiago Mia doesn't like clowns!

Allan the Clown Siney the Clown

Gabriel the Clown with Daysi & Douglas Children Singing

Getting Candy from Piñata Happy Clowns--Happy Kids

Clowns! Kids Waiting Patiently for Gifts

Johnathan hitting the Piñata Devotional with Juvenal

Project Honduras Conference

2008-10-08T14:38:00.001-07:00

Last week, Steve and I, along with our clinic doctor, Dra. Xiomara Erazo, went to Copán Ruinas, Honduras for a great conference put together by ProjectHonduras.com Several years ago, some insightful people had the idea to use the Internet as a networking tool for organizations, churches, mission programs, and other non-government organizations, to be able to see what others were doing, share ideas and maybe even get together on projects. An annual conference grew from this 8 years ago and it is held in Copán. Steve went last year. It is very interesting to hear of the works other people are doing.

After each 15-30 minute presentation, people were encouraged to ask questions or make comments concerning this particular presentation. Sometimes, people would just say something encouraging, sometimes they would ask how they could start "such and such" project in their community, sometimes they ask for additional information, etc. The first afternoon, a young man stood, presumably to make a comment or ask a question and said, "I came to Honduras to work for a year and my plans fell through. If anyone needs me, I want to work...and I speak Spanish!" There was applause...there were shouts...there was laughing...there were many "Wows". On the last day of the conference, a young woman did pretty much the same thing. She wanted to work with the group, "Students Helping Honduras" and asked how she could do that. She was visiting from the U.S. and was ready to go to work! I don't even know their names, but I bet they are going to make a difference in Honduras and the world!

For the first time in the 8 years the conference has been taking place, a diplomat was present. The new U.S. Ambassador to Honduras, Hugo Llorens, was invited and he came! He has just begun his 3-year appointment as Ambassador and seems like a very nice, down-to-earth man. The photo I took of Ambassador Llorens didn't turn out well. This photo is from the Internet, taken right after he moved to Honduras.

The town of Copán Ruinas is so quaint. It reminded me a little of Antigua, Guatemala because of the cobblestone streets. These are photos of the view from our hotel window.

We have had a LOT of rain lately in Honduras! I love it! I love seeing it, walking in it, hearing it...Rain is good. We need water to fill the pilas, etc. But sometimes I forget about the less than positive consequences of all this rain. On our way to Copán, I took some pictures of the scenery. Here is a very muddy road. We also passed areas where the roads were washed out and literally only enough highway was left for one vehicle at a time to pass. I evidently didn't take a picture of this.

We saw lots of animals on the road. Once we had to stop for a while for a whole herd of cattle.

Look at this beautiful scene from our window. If you only visit Tegucigalpa when you're in Honduras, you might not realize how beautiful this country really is!

Weekend Getaway

2008-08-20T14:28:00.001-07:00

Steve and I have lived in Honduras now for a little over 4 years and, apart from our incredible trips to Roatan (3 to be exact), we really haven't taken any vacations here, just for fun.

Well, that changed last weekend! We spent the weekend in La Ceiba, Honduras at a pretty hotel called Hotel Canadien right on the Caribbean. It was a peaceful, relaxing weekend that we needed.

I'm not actually a huge outdoor person...okay, I'm not an outdoor person, and normally not a beach person either. But, I absolutely LOVED this beach and spent most of the day either swimming in the ocean or reading in the shade, within yards of the water. That third one was supposed to be a sunset but it was too cloudy. It was taken from the top of the hotel at the Restaurante Mirador where we had some great seafood!

This is what I call a "facebook shot" (meaning I took the photo). Steve calls this his "Chandler Bing" smile...

Unfortunately, getting to the beach, which is located in Sambo Creek, took 6 1/2 hours due to a tractor-trailer wreck and bridge work...but it was definitely worth it! Just wish we had been able to stay an extra day.

If you've been to Honduras, you know that people drive crazy! Even on the curvy, mountainous roads, people will pass slow-moving vehicles (or even fast-moving ones) without a clue as to what they will meet around the curve! Another thing I find interesting/annoying is that when traffic is backed up for whatever reason, cars will get out of line, using the oncoming lane to see how much farther they can get ahead. Sometimes drivers will make 3 lanes when there should only be 1! This is the case in the photo here. Now, what do you suppose they think they will do if they meet a (another) semi coming around that curve???

As we were caught in one of the traffic jams, we noticed a van in front of us with a Harding University sticker on the back! We thought it might have been someone who had gone to Harding on a Walton Scholarship and probably we would not have known them. But since that is where we both graduated from, it was neat!

By the way, the hotel is for sale if anyone is interested! The owners are in their 70's and are tired...I think one of our rich friends (do we have any of those?) should buy it and we can all spend a month or so there every year...

Back in Honduras

2008-08-18T10:01:00.001-07:00

After a very long visit in the U.S., I am now back in Honduras! I am so very thankful that I had the 3 months to spend with family and, in particular, helping Melanie and Jared with the kiddos after baby Luke was born. Not that they couldn't have handled things just fine themselves, but I know how hard it was with 3, so I'm sure 4 is even harder. Actually, I KNOW 4 is harder! I loved helping out with daily things at their house and I loved keeping the 3 older grandchildren at our house in Bowling Green. I also thoroughly enjoyed all the time I got to spend with David & Maggie and with Philip and Sarah. I might add that David and Maggie are expecting their 1st baby in March!!! HOORAY!!!

But, now I'm here with Steve and am happy to be back because 2 months (I'm subtracting the time Steve spent in the U.S. when Luke was born) is too long to be separated! I was welcomed on campus by the students and everyone with open arms. I especially felt very loved when some of the women came over to our apartment on Saturday evening with flowers that one of our women, Raquel, had arranged.

The women have started having a special devotional time together (apart from the Wednesday morning one we always have) on Tuesday evenings. So, last Tuesday evening, I was presented with a beautiful hand-made card signed by all the student wives! How can I not feel welcome and happy to be back?

Although I just spent 3 months away, Steve has been working here very hard and needs a little break. So, after devotional this morning (Friday) we are going to drive to La Ceiba, Honduras and spend a couple of nights. It's 115 miles from Tegucigalpa and is on the Caribbean. Since driving in Honduras is a little different than in the U.S. (no interstate highways), it will take us several hours to get there, so we'll only have 1 complete day to spend relaxing. But, I'm really looking forward to it and will post pictures later. We are really excited about getting to worship at a church where one of our Baxter graduates, Luis Sánchez, works and lives with his wife, Schalee, and their 2 daughters.

Later...

The Joy Continues for this "Dani"

2008-08-05T07:09:00.000-07:00

I am going to have another grandbaby, Lord willing, in April. Read my other blog...

http://mygrandkidsdani.blogspot.com/2008/08/my-son-is-going-to-be-daddy.html

Do You Receive Our Newsletter?

2008-08-05T05:53:00.000-07:00

If not...

Read the July 2008 Association Amicus Newsletter

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Blogs are Down All Over the Place!

2008-08-02T06:41:00.000-07:00

If you have been trying to get on my site since last night, there is a good chance that you couldn’t get on my site and a WHOLE lot of others.

According to this article, it is a Sitemeter glitch that is causing sites all over the internet to stop loading and get the error message “IE cannot load this page. Operation aborted”

If you have a blog that is experiencing the same problems, simply remove your Sitemeter widget and it should be back to normal!

My Ticket is Bought!

2008-07-30T22:50:00.000-07:00

I will be returning to Tegucigalpa on August 9. I have thoroughly enjoyed the time I've spent with all my grandchildren, but especially the new baby Luke, and my children. But, I miss my man and am ready to get back to see everyone there at Baxter and the Clinic.

Yikes! I have to speak Spanish after not for some time...I always get nervous, but I'm sure it will be okay.

Hopefully, I will write more on this blog when I return.

Toncontin Airport Reopens!

2008-07-15T04:08:00.000-07:00

It has been more than 7 weeks since Toncontin Airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras closed after a TACA plane went off the runway and crashed into a busy street, killing 5 people and injuring many others.

Although it opened afterwards to small planes, it seemed that it may never again open for large planes...the kind of planes that get us from the U.S. to Honduras. But Sunday, July 13, 2008, a Boeing 737-700 operated by Panama's Copa Airlines landed to the cheers of airport employees.

Monday, Steve was able to land on Continental at Toncontin Airport, after returning from a trip to Memorial Road Church of Christ in Edmond, Oklahoma. He said there were cheers then, too. They were greeted with food, wine ("no"...just in case you wondered), music, etc.. The people there are so excited! And so are we!!!

According to news reports, Continental will fly to Tegucigalpa 3 times per week, beginning July 14 and American will resume flights on August 1. One source I read said that Continental will resume daily flights also on August 1.

Summer, of course, is very busy with mission groups coming to Honduras. We have had many at Baxter and the Clinic this summer and, bless their hearts, they have been rerouted to San Pedro Sula where they had to take a bus or other vehicle to Tegucigalpa, which is almost a 4-hour trip. They were already tired from having to get up early to be at the airport.

Thank you for coming even though it was more expensive and very inconvenient!

Some groups will be able to land in Tegucigalpa this summer and we are thankful for that. We are happy to know that soon no one will have to be rerouted to San Pedro Sula.

But, remember...it is Honduras and things can change again. We don't think they will, but you never know. You just have to go with the flow and as a missionary friend in Honduras, Terri, says, "It is what it is!"

Thanks also to Amber, Marco Antonio, Pacheco and others who have made that trip time after time to SPS to pick up those coming in.

But most of all we thank God for answered prayers! We know that He and He alone is in control.

Welcome Baby Derek Cana!

2008-06-22T20:26:00.001-07:00

Derek Cana was born on June 3, 2008 to 2nd year Baxter students, Byron & Sandra Cana. His big brother is Diego.

I'm a Dani again!

2008-06-09T19:33:00.001-07:00

On Friday, June 6, our new grandson, Luke Wesley Smalling, was born in Nashville, Tennessee! If you are interested, you can see my posts and photos on my other blog: www.mygrandkidsdani.blogspot.com.

Our first grandchild, Maddy, started calling me "Dani" when she learned to talk instead of "Granna", which is what I had planned to be called. I'll always be "Dani"!

Cakes on Campus

2008-06-09T19:07:00.000-07:00

One of our first year students really wanted his wife to learn to make cakes. He had sampled two cakes that I had made...one was at the Valentine's Dinner for the married students at Baxter and the other was at the welcome lunch that Las Damas de Baxter of Tegucigalpa had for the first-year students earlier this year.

This is (l-r) Carmen with her daughters, Mayra & Erika; Glenda, me and Diana.

Each lady made 2 small cakes...one was chocolate with butter-cream frosting and the other was pineapple with cream cheese frosting. We discussed techniques, measurements, substitutions, etc. It was a fun time together. We laughed a lot...most of the mistakes that were made were mine and they got a kick out of that.

This is Carmen teaching her daughter, Mayra, who also enjoys cooking.

Glenda making her chocolate cake. It was her husband, Hugo, who encouraged me to do the class. I think he likes cake!

Diana is mixing her frosting.

Little Erika drawing

A Visit to the Presidential Palace

2008-05-13T15:44:00.001-07:00

Clementina Suarez, a famous Honduras poet who was murdered in her own home in 1991 was honored yesterday here in Tegucigalpa at the Presidential Palace. Evidently, she was quite a character and has been described using words such as "bohemian and unconventional". We were invited because Steve is a member of the Rotary Club here and evidently they helped sponsor this event. Steve didn't take any pictures of me to prove I was there last night, but I promise I was.

It was "just lovely" and I did meet some very nice people. I also had ceviche...Yum!

Here is our "esteemed" President of Honduras, José Manuel Zelaya Rosales or "Mel" as he is called, greeting members of the Suarez family. El presidente is the nice-looking man in the center with the big smile and mustache.

I won't comment on how he is doing as the president...

Sorry, Steve's picture of the outside of the palace didn't turn out very well but here it is anyway.

"El Casa Presidencial"

Everything I need to know, I learned from Noah's Ark

2008-05-06T08:30:00.001-07:00

A friend sent this to me and I just love it!!! Thanks, Elaine...

ONE: Don't miss the boat.

TWO: Remember that we are all in the same boat.

THREE: Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark.

FOUR: Stay fit. When you're 60 years old, Someone may ask you to do something really big.

FIVE: Don't listen to critics; Just get on with the job that needs to be done.

SIX: Build your future on high ground.

SEVEN: For safety's sake, travel in pairs.

EIGHT: Speed isn't always an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs.

NINE: When you're stressed, float awhile.

TEN: Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs; The Titanic by professionals.

ELEVEN: No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow waiting.

The Beautiful Baxter Campus

2008-05-05T12:05:00.001-07:00

I just walked around the other day taking pictures. This is where I live...

This is the guys' dorm where we live. The window on the left side, bottom floor is our living room.

This photo was taken from a hill. The building in the front is the dorm; the one farthest away is the main building/offices/cafeteria, etc.

(The dorm now has a new roof which looks much nicer)

The beautiful bougainvilla on campus near the clinic.

Tall rose bush

Lots of pretty flower beds all over campus:

This is the driveway/walkway from campus to the clinic

I'm the One Who's Blessed (Part II)

2008-05-02T11:34:00.001-07:00

Meeting Some Wonderful Women I just wanted to add two women I've met since living in Honduras who have impacted my life. There are many others; I don't want to leave anyone out, so this part may continue in another blog someday.

Nurse Erin "Christina" Keckley

I can't remember exactly when I met Erin but I think it was our first week living in Honduras, the week of Edwin Goodwin's funeral. We became friends later when she was working at JMA Clinic. In total, I'm not sure how much time Erin has actually spent living and working in Honduras, but I do know that she spent most of the year here in 2007 in addition to several years when she would spend 3 or 4 months at a time.

Some of the things we experienced together were: a week studying Spanish in Antigua, Guatemala; going to the gym (that didn't last long); doing a Beth Moore bible study on Daniel; going to Yolanda's for the famous $7.50 massage: talking a lot and venting some, too.

Erin's work at the Clinic was very much appreciated and we miss her a bunch! She definitely has a heart for people of Honduras.

Oh -- her middle name is Christine but most of the people here call her Christina.

Annabelle Lawrence

Annabelle took over as president of Las Damas de Baxter in Nashville after Kate Howard passed away several years ago. Annabelle is married to Neil and they have not missed coming to Baxter's graduation here in Tegucigalpa for I don't know how many years. Last year, Annabelle and Neil were named "Friends of Baxter", along with Jim and Helen Costello.

Not only has Annabelle worked tirelessly for many years to raise money for Baxter Institute and JMA Clinic, but she is my friend. She is always there to say something positive or give me a pat on the back or just to listen when I am down. I don't know if she knows how much I admire her and appreciate her and love her. (Maybe now she does...)

I'm the one who's blessed (Part I)

2008-04-21T15:41:00.001-07:00

People say, "Oh, what a blessing you are to the people of Honduras!" Well, I think most of us who have done mission work would say that what we receive far outweighs what we give.

Here are some of the blessings I've received during the 3 1/2 years we've been here:

Watching little children at Baxter grow and change What a blessing to know and love these children...how sad to see them leave when their parents graduate. These are just a few of the precious faces I will always remember.

Joseline

2004 2007

Astrid

2004 2007

Cielo

2005 2007

Mia

2006 2008

Meeting Some Wonderful People This is in addition to all the incredible students, faculty and staff at Baxter and the Clinic.

Nancy Moon González

Steve met Nancy a long time ago when they were both on mission trips to Honduras, but I only technically met her in 2004 when we began working in Tegucigalpa. Nancy became a full-time missionary in Choluteca, Honduras after graduating from Lipscomb University. She married Manuel González, '05 Baxter graduate, in 2001 and they continued their mission work together in his hometown of Guatemala City, Guatemala. This summer, they will move to Ft.Worth, Texas to begin an Hispanic ministry at the Iglesia de Cristo Rosemont along with 3 other graduates from Baxter.

Baky & Billie Baker

Have done mission work off and on in Honduras for many years.

Amber Foster

Missionary to Honduras, serving women and children and leading mission groups.

Laura Speaks de Pérez

Came to Honduras on a short-term mission about the time Steve and I came. She is married to former Baxter student, Beto Pérez from Guatemala, living in La Esperanza, Honduras, where they are missionaries.

Sarah Coggins

Encouraged by a special young lady who she claims as her granddaughter, Sarah came to Baxter one graduation and then spent time the following year working at the Clinic. She also does mission work in Taiwan.

Rudis Benegas

I know...Rudis was a Baxter employee, but he has moved to his home town and no longer works with us. I have to mention Rudis because for the first 2 years we lived in Tegucigalpa, he drove me everywhere I went! It was not uncommon to see us in one of the grocery stores with Rudis picking up an unknown fruit (unknown to me) and saying, "Try this, Jeanne". He was my best friend during those 2 years and I miss him and his precious family a lot.

Jarrod & Ally Brown

Jared and Ally have done mission work in Choluteca and San Marcos, Honduras for several years. They are an awesome couple who love the children and people of Honduras so much. Their work at Mission Lazarus, which Jarrod founded in 1999, is inspiring. They have 2 precious children, Sol and Levi.

Dr. Benny & Nita McDaniel

Dr. Benny is an optometrist who has been coming to Honduras for I don't know how many years to give free eye care to the underprivileged. I know that at least for the past few years, he has made 2 trips per year (one in the summer and one at Thanksgiving) to work at JMA Clinic and also the Neil Howard Clinic. What great servants!

Note: We have had the privilege of meeting many others and I will do another post one day with more of these special people

To be continued...

Las Damas de Baxter Dinner at Maple Hill Church of Christ

2008-04-21T11:18:00.001-07:00

The "Ladies of Baxter" from the Nashville, TN area have been having fundraisers for many years now. In the past, they did all the work of preparing food for the big dinners which were held twice a year. A few years ago, Brentwood Hills Church of Christ took over the planning and preparation of the fall dinner and Maple Hill Church of Christ the spring dinner.

Saturday, April 12, was our spring dinner at Maple Hill in Lebanon, TN. We had a wonderful dinner which was cooked by Ms. Lounita and the teens from the church served us! They were very attentive. Over $3,000 was raised for the Kate Howard Memorial Scholarship which provides scholarships for Baxter students.

Here are some pictures from that night.

Here are some special guests, Dr. Henry Farrar and his wife, Grace. They were missionaries for many years in Africa. Dr. Farrar started the African Christian Hospital. Read about them here and here. What a blessing to spend time with such giants in the mission field!

Spring means mission work in Honduras

2008-03-20T12:07:00.000-07:00

Around 180 people are working with us in some way during March 14-25. Many are staying on campus and they are all working for the people of Honduras, trying to make their lives better. They are here to help the Honduran people by providing medical clinics, building new houses, painting and repairing items, playing with and teaching children, in addition to some work they will actually do on Baxter's campus and at the JMA Clinic.

Dudley Chancey and Norm Easter have a group of 60, Johnsie Henderson has a group of 12, Ashley Williamson has 6 people and Steve Davidson has two groups totaling 105 people. In April a group of 25 medical students and doctors from VCOM (Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine)will be going out of the city to do a mobile medical clinic. This group will be led by Dr. Joe Cacciopo.

This, of course, only touches the surface of the work that will be done in the country of Honduras during March and April. Thousands of high school and university students all over the U.S. are opting for "Alternative Spring Breaks" and hundreds will be in Honduras.

I was sitting in the airport a week ago in Tegucigalpa, waiting for my flight to Miami and then Nashville. I heard a man from Kentucky talking with his mission group about the experiences during the past week, working at an orphanage in Honduras -- a little girl born with a hearing problem whose mother thought she was constantly ignoring her and poured lye in her ears to teach her a lesson -- the little smiling girl whose mother rented her out to men had to have surgery to repair her little body -- the two children they found living under a bridge because they could not find their parents. This group consisted of young and old, wearing their yellow Mission Honduras t-shirts. It was nice to see them and hear them talking with each other about the awesome things that happened during the week of their mission week.

On my trip to Miami, I sat next to a couple of university students from Virginia who had come down with several others to do humanitarian work in Honduras during their spring break. I asked her if they received college credit for this and she said, "Oh no...we just wanted to do something for someone else."

God bless each and every one of them!

The López Family

2008-03-13T09:23:00.000-07:00

There are so many special people at Baxter Institute in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Each of our students has sacrificed in some way or another to be able to spend 4 years of his life learning how to better preach, teach and/or evangelize. Those who came from far away have given up jobs, being near family and friends and often selling their worldly possessions in order to get here. We should be impressed by these students and look to them as examples.

There is one family, in particular, who should be revered not only for the things they gave up to come, but also because of the sacrifices they make every day that they are students at Baxter.

The López family, Oscar and Judiela, along with their 2 precious daughters, Judiela, age 7, and Elena, age 3, are special people. They came here in 2006 from El Salvador. (The photo to the left was taken in 2006.) Oscar was a graphic designer in his country and after he and his wife were baptized on the same day, he decided to get more Biblical training and take advantage of the opportunities that Baxter affords. Judiela, the mom, is handicapped and cannot walk. She uses crutches to travel short distances and she has both a wheelchair and a hand-operated 3-wheel “bike” that someone made for her to travel longer distances. You will see her with her crutches going up the steps to class or from her apartment to her bike or from class to class. You might see her being pushed in her wheelchair from her apartment to the steps leading up to the classrooms or perhaps she will be riding her bike, pedaling by using the strength of her hands and arms.

Sometimes little Elena is riding with her on her bike or wheelchair. Usually her husband, Oscar, is pushing her when she’s in the wheelchair but sometimes you will see other students gladly taking on this responsibility. No matter what method of transportation Judiela uses, it is difficult. If you’ve ever been in Honduras, you know that the streets, as well as the paths on campus, are rocky and definitely not smooth and easy to manage on foot, much less in a wheelchair or on a bike or with crutches.

But the most touching sight that any of us here at Baxter have seen in a long time is when Oscar carries Judiela up the 60 steps to devotional every day! This man always has a smile on his face. While some wives have trouble getting their husbands to take out the trash, Oscar shoulders many of the household chores that Judiela either cannot do or finds extremely difficult to do. Oscar and Judiela are a very devoted couple! Everyone of us would benefit from just watching how they interact with each other. I believe Oscar not only shows his devotion to his wife through his actions and his ever-constant smile, but also his devotion to his heavenly father.

Oscar López adores his wife. You can see that in his smile as he carries her. Judiela López adores her husband. You can see that in her eyes and the way she looks up at him. What awesome examples!
(The photo to the left was taken at the Valentine's Dinner on campus February 14, 2008.)

Back to 2007 Graduation...

2008-02-22T15:14:00.000-08:00

I'm going backwards again.

Since we came to Baxter in 2004, each year before our graduation festivities begin I have a luncheon for the graduating women. We have this luncheon at a nice restaurant and each of the women gets her chance to share what her 4 years at Baxter has meant and also to tell her "sisters" what they have meant to her. It's a very fun and special time. I have photos from last year's luncheon, which makes me very happy because I downloaded those photos before losing my camera after graduation.

Here are our 7 beautiful women who, interestingly enough, are from 7 different countries!

Brenda from Nicaragua

Carla from Honduras

Jeaneth from Ecuador

Lesbia from Guatemala

Megan from the U.S.

Ruth from Venezuela

Sara from the Dominican Republic

All 7 beautiful ladies!

Updated Information

2008-01-13T12:59:00.001-08:00

One of our 4th year (2008) students from Peru, Jorge Luis Quiroz, was killed, along with his mother, in a bus accident in his country. I don't have a lot of details yet, but Jorge was preparing to go to Venezuela for his 6-month internship (P.A.M.) before returning to Baxter to finish classes in July.

Please pray for Jorge's family and for his friends at Baxter who are all grieving this young man's death.

Update: Jorge Quiroz, 21-year-old Baxter student, was killed on January 10, 2008, when a bus in which he was riding was pushed into the Utcubamba River in the Department of Amazonas, Peru, due to a rock/mudslide. Jorge’s mother, Irma, died in this bus accident as well.

Jorge was on his way to Barquisimeto, Venezuela where he was to complete his 6-month P.A.M. assignment. We hope you will keep Jorge’s family in your prayers as they deal with the tragic loss of two family members.

My Surgery

2008-01-13T12:59:00.000-08:00

Well, I had a laparascopic hysterectomy on Friday, Jan. 11 and slept in my own bed that same night! How incredible is that??? I am so thankful that I have done so well. God is good and his prayer warriors are awesome. Thanks to all who prayed for this surgery.

I cannot believe how good I feel! Seriously, I have hardly experienced any pain at all...just a little when I move around or cough. I am so thankful for this. I have to keep reminding myself that I just had major surgery and need to take it easy.

Steve will probably go back to Honduras around the 26th of January and I will most likely follow the next week. My doctor says that recovery time for this operation (done laparascopically) is about 2 weeks! But since I'll be going back Honduras, I am going to stay here an extra week just to make sure everything is okay.

We have had a great visit with family and friends here and I will miss them so much when I go back. But, it will also be nice getting back to meet the new students who will arrive the end of this month.

Again, thank you for your prayers for my surgery. I just don't think it could have gone any better than it did. God is good!!!

I Don't Feel Like a Missionary

2007-12-26T00:09:00.000-08:00

When I was a young girl living in El Dorado, Arkansas, I dreamed of becoming a missionary to Africa. I really don’t remember why. Then later I changed the location to “the Holy Lands” and began to look up names for my future children from the Bible…Eve, Miriam, David and Paul were my favorites at the time. I ended up using only “David”. I always said I’d marry a preacher.

That was a long, long time ago and those were the thoughts and dreams of a young girl who just wanted to be a good, Christian girl. After I got to be older, I really didn’t think much about being a missionary or preacher’s wife.

After 29 years of marriage to an accounting professor/CPA, I finally realized my childhood dream. Only…I don’t feel like a missionary. In those days when I was a girl, my idea of a missionary (and actually I still sort of feel this way) was a person who sacrificed all the comforts of home, left family and friends to go to a far away place where he or she would live a very difficult life…maybe even a dangerous one…with few, if any, amenities. Missionaries were supposed to be preachers and preachers’ wives. Missionaries would sell most of their belongings, pack up the rest in barrels to be shipped to a distant land where they would have no telephone; they would live in a hut or something comparable; they would have very limited foods with which to prepare meals; they would rarely be able to call home and letters might take weeks to arrive from loved ones in the U.S. Oh, and there certainly wouldn’t be email or instant messenger!

I live in a city of over 1,000,000 people. We have 3 huge malls like the ones we find in the U.S. We have stores comparable to Super Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club. We have tons of fast food restaurants, plus Tony Roma’s, TGIFriday’s, Applebee’s and now a Chili’s. There are very few food items I have not been able to find. I am able to travel home every 3 months or so and spend time with family and friends. I have a laptop and Internet, plus an internet phone in my husband’s office on which I can call anywhere in the U.S. direct for a small monthly fee. We live in a safe environment in a 2-bedroom apartment with hot water and a washer and dryer…and an air-conditioner in our bedroom! This is NOT how I pictured a missionary living back in the 1960’s!

But, you know what? I am a missionary…My husband is not a preacher…he’s an administrator who sometimes teach a math class. I don’t teach Bible classes…I write a newsletter and keep up our website. We are missionaries… We are not suffering and we are not persecuted. Yes, we are away from our friends in the U.S. and our precious children and grandchildren, but many people who live in the U.S. don’t get to see their family as often as we do. The people of Honduras have been very good to us and have accepted us as a brother and sister – not as outsiders. Maybe we’re a little atypical, but our main goal is to spread the gospel of Christ to the world. We are being used as God’s instruments. We’re not special…we’re just normal, everyday people trying to live each day as we hope God wants us to live. We didn’t set out almost 33 years ago to live in a third-world country. The only way we might be different than anyone else is that when God showed us that He had a plan for us which involved living out of our comfort zone, we said, “Okay”. We didn’t make a decision to do this…but we believe that God made the decision a long time ago and in His time, He revealed His plan to us. We just followed.

I don’t think a person has to leave his or her family or country to be a missionary. We all live or work or socialize with someone who doesn’t know Jesus. Those of you who talk to your neighbor about how awesome God is or share some neat way that God has blessed you or has answered a prayer…those of you who ask your hair stylist or your waitress or your co-worker if they have a church home…those of you who have bought groceries for the woman you see with her 3 children at Wal-Mart who is putting things back because she realizes she doesn’t have the money to pay for them, and when she asks “Why?”, you answer, “Because it’s what Jesus would do”… YOU, too, are a missionary!

Oh…you don’t “feel” like a missionary? Hum…neither do I. But I don’t think it really matters how we “feel”, do you? What matters is that we each are doing what God is calling us to do. I continue to pray all the time that God will keep leading me and that I will keep following…whatever and wherever that is.

Heading to the U.S.

2007-12-15T11:45:00.000-08:00

Graduation is over...Roatan was great...my receipts for graduation are turned in...A lot of my online Christmas shopping is done...and now...

We're headed to see Grandbabies!

Graduation was a great week, even though we lost our brother, Gerardo Flores. This photo was taken on his last birthday at the home of Chad and Shelly Hedgepath. I wish I could find one with his big, huge smile, but we will never forget it...we don't need a photo...

We had around 60 visitors from the U.S. participating in our graduation festivities. Also, many friends and relatives, along with some Baxter graduates from years past, were on campus. It was a hard week, physically and emotionally, but we hope that God was glorified. Back to Gerardo...I have thought about the fact that he died in the middle of graduation week when so many people from the U.S. and several countries in Latin America were here. Most of these people knew and loved Gerardo and probably would not have been able to come to Tegucigalpa to pay their respects had it not been for the fact they were already here. God works in mysterious ways...

I really want to post photos of graduation but, unfortunately, it appears we have lost our digital camera! The day our U.S. guests left to go home, we also left Tegucigalpa with two dear friends from Bowling Green, Mike and Martha Ellen, for a little vacation in Roatan. We were packing like crazy people...throwing stuff in suitcases and bags and I remember having our camera and my phone charger in my hands...but neither made it to Roatan. Now that we are back, I have searched our apartment, my office and even the van that took us to the airport but they are nowhere to be found. It makes me sad because all of the graduation photos we took were on that camera! I noticed the last few I took that it was almost completely full and realized I needed to upload them to my computer.

Anyone reading this who would like to send me some of your photos, I'd appreciate it.

We will leave tomorrow, Sunday, December 16, for Nashville and then drive on home to Bowling Green. We stayed this long here so that we could attend 2 weddings...last night was the civil ceremony at La Cumbre of Carlos Abraham Carbajal & Karla Moncada. Tonight is the combined civil and religious ceremonies of Carlos Rivera (who graduated from Baxter in 2006) and Idalmi. Steve has known this Carlos since he was a little boy living in Choluteca, Honduras. He's very special to us.

Well, I'm shutting down my computer, packing it up and heading for our apartment to pack for our trip tomorrow. We will be back here, Lord willing, at the end of January to welcome new single students, as well as new families, here for their first year at Baxter.

It has been a great year and I will be posting highlights of 2007 in January of 2008.

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY 2008 TO EVERYONE!

The week of Baxter Graduation -- Losing Gerardo

2007-12-14T13:33:00.000-08:00

What a week! On Wednesday, December 5, our visitors from the U.S. began arriving to Tegucigalpa to help us celebrate another graduation of Baxter students. It was a fun, crazy, busy and sad week. On Friday while I was taking a group of people to visit two local congregations, I received a call from Steve telling me that Gerardo Flores had died. I couldn't believe it! Our precious Gerardo had been in the hospital several times this year due to a chronic illness and had suffered a lot of pain during this past year. As hard as it is to lose those we love, we are sure that Gerardo is in a better place...free of pain. Praise God!

Gerardo was a 35-year-old man who had only been married to his Sandra for less than 10 years (I think). He had worked at Baxter Institute for about 10 years and was the Director of P.A.M., Admissions and mission groups on campus. He was a hard worker and had a smile as big as life. And his laugh....well, no one in the whole world had a laugh like Gerardo's!

This man will be missed. I know that for me personally, the full impact of his loss has not set in yet. I think next year as we begin a new school year without our Gerardo, then I will begin to feel his loss even more. I will miss his coming by my office and talking with me. We always started our conversations in Spanish because Gerardo knew that I needed to practice. But if the conversation lasted more than a few minutes, which it did many times, then we'd switch to English so that I could better express myself. His English was much better than my Spanish!

Gerardo, I will see you one day in Heaven, my brother. I long for that day...

Gerardo Antonio Flores

2007-12-11T11:07:00.000-08:00

Gerardo Antonio Flores

It is with great sadness and celebration that we announce the passing to the next life of Gerardo Antonio Flores. Gerardo has suffered for many years with a chronic illness that finally took him from us, but we know he is now with Jesus in a better place where there is no pain.

Gerardo was loved by everyone who visited Baxter and the Clinic. His laugh was unique and infectious. We are blessed to have had him working here for 10 years. Words cannot express the feelings we have of sorrow for the family and this good brother will be missed by all.

Gerardo preached at the La Vega church just 2 weeks ago and he worked hard on Wednesday, December 5 when the group from the U.S. arrived for graduation. He went into the hospital that night and the next day received a transfusion which usually helps him recover his strength. This time it did not work and at around 1:30 pm on Friday, December 7, 2007, the angels rejoiced that one of the saved came home to be with the Lord.

We rejoice with the angels and we mourn with his wife Sandra at our loss. Please keep Sandra and the rest of the family in your prayers. At this writing, plans are going forth to have a memorial today, Sunday, December 9, 2007 at the amphitheater at Baxter Institute with burial to follow in a cemetery just north of the city of Tegucigalpa.

Our Lord has risen and so has our brother Gerardo!

If you would like to make a memorial gift to Baxter Institute, please mark you checks as such. If you would like to help the family with hospital expenses and funeral expenses, mark you checks for Gerardo Flores and send to:

Westover Hills church of Christ

8332 Mesa Drive

Austin, TX 78759

Steve White

My First Week in Honduras July 2004

2007-11-13T12:35:00.000-08:00

July 17, 2004, Steve and I left Antigua, Guatemala and arrived in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. We had the maximum amount of luggage that the airline would allow and when we arrived at our apartment, I was excited to unpack and find a place for everything.

This is a photo taken from up on the mountain of the Baxter campus. The
building in the foreground is the single guys' dorm (where we live) and the
buildings at the top of the picture are the admin. building where the offices
and classrooms are and the cafeteria. It's a beautiful campus!

Our apartment is a furnished, 2-bedroom, 1 bath apartment and is very nice! The thing I liked best about our apartment was that it was pretty bare and we were able to basically start over...without all the junk we had accumulated in our 29 years of marriage. We kept our house in Bowling Green, Kentucky and just brought things back to Honduras with us as we needed or had room in our luggage for them.

In the 3 1/2 years that we have lived in the apartment, I have made bedding for both beds, curtain & shower curtain for bathroom, curtains for one bedroom, slipcovers for a couch and chair in the living room and a stand-alone pantry & paint in the kitchen (with the help of the Hilltoppers for Christ from Bowling Green, KY).

On Monday, July 19, 2004, Steve and I walked from our apartment to the main building to officially begin our work at Baxter! I was excited but also very nervous... The thing that scared me the most, of course, was having to speak Spanish! We got to the office and, because I wasn't really an "employee", I didn't expect to have an office. Steve has a large office and had offered to let me set up a computer in there to do whatever it was I might need to do.

As soon as we arrived, Noé Pérez (V.P. of Baxter) and Armando Pacheco (Maintenance Supervisor) began to introduce us to everyone (Steve already knew lots of people) and showed me "my office"! It was actually a small cubicle with neither window nor door, but to me it was wonderful...especially since it was next to a precious sister, Carmen, who quickly made me feel right at home. I found out later that some of the women had searched through the unused desks on campus and found the one they wanted for me, cleaned it up and had it ready when I arrived.

Before long, someone was bringing me a old computer and finally I was connected to the world! First thing I did, of course, was to check my email and send messages to family and friends.

Because I didn't have a "defined" job or role...(I said from the beginning my job was going keeping my husband sane!), I quickly found myself bored and not knowing what to do. My new friend, Carmen (they call her "Carmencita" here, which is an endearing way of saying her name) must have noticed this because on my second day, she brought me a paper written by her boss, Luis Garcia (who teaches Bible) that was very old and needed to be completely retyped. I was happy to have something useful to do. Of course...it was in Spanish. My Spanish isn't great now but it's 100 times better than it was then. Typing in a foreign language is very tedious...you don't know how to spell anything...and all those accent marks! I had to figure out how to type those...I wasn't used to a Spanish-configured keyboard. But I got it done and they seemed pleased....So...now what?

My desire was to work with the women on campus (some of our students are married and their wives also take classes). But my limited Spanish wasn't helping me with this. I had several ideas of things I could do but had no idea where to start...I often thought...and said..."I'm not Linda Henry!" (Linda, if you're reading this...you had some big shoes to fill, woman...and I'm not talking about the size of your feet!)

I can't remember exactly what day it was...maybe Thursday or Friday of that first week...but I was really frustrated. I started having those doubts that Satan likes to put into your head and was feeling very “inadequate”! I didn’t doubt being here…I just doubted my role and my abilities. About that time, Carmen walked by my desk and, as she always did, said hello and asked how I was doing. I said I was fine, but then….my lip started quivering and tears began to roll down my cheeks. I had not intended to do this! And I didn’t know how to explain myself. I could barely say, “Good morning, how are you” in Spanish, let alone describe my deepest feelings of inadequacy. Carmen could easily have left it alone and walked away, but she didn’t. She stood there and patiently waited for me to explain myself. And I did…I still don’t know how. I’m sure I must have sounded like a two-year-old as I searched for the most simple words in Spanish (because they were the only ones I knew) to describe my complicated feelings. But she understood. I had made my first friend in Honduras! Isn't she beautiful!?

God had to remind me again of his words:

"May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back
from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” Hebrews 13:20-21

Language School-June/July '04

2007-11-05T08:47:00.000-08:00

Steve and I arrived in Antigua, Guatemala on Saturday, June 26, 2004, for 3 weeks of language school. This was the beginning of my Spanish study. It was a wonderful experience in Latin American culture, as well as the Spanish language. Three weeks was not nearly enough but it gave me a "jump start" and I treasure the time we spent in that beautiful city. Below are a few photos from our time there.

My teacher, Brenda, at our school. I had one-on-one instruction for 6 hours per day, 5 days per week.

Lydia, Steve's teacher

Agua Volcano, as seen at night from our hotel room.

Church at San Felipe, a "suburb" of Antigua

Our favorite restaurant, Doña Luisa's

Typical street in Antigua, with volcano in
background

June 26, 2004 - Steve and I left for Language School

2007-10-29T13:32:00.000-07:00

All of our children and grandchildren (at that time) were at the airport in Nashville to see us off. Steve and I left on Saturday, June 26, 2004 to spend 3 weeks in Antigua, Guatemala at language school, before beginning our work in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

AIRPORT PHOTOS:

Our son, David, giving his mommy a little kiss while I was watching Maddy and Noah do gymnastic stunts in the airport.

Sweet little Noah at the airport.

Holding my Maddy shortly before we left. I looked a little sad. It was hard leaving family, but I was excited about this new adventure in our lives.

Sarah, Philip, Maddy, Melanie, Maggie, Jared and Noah at the airport

How It All Began...or..."A 180 in Under 24 Hours"

2007-10-27T14:04:00.000-07:00

"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." (Proverbs 19:21) NIV

Tuesday, April 6, 2004. That's the day it began for me. I loved my life in Bowling Green. Our children were almost all grown. Philip was still living at home, working and attending the university. Steve was a college professor. I had my own drapery business and was having a pretty good year. Our oldest son, David, was engaged and was working and living only an hour from our home. Melanie, our oldest child and only daughter, was also about an hour away. She was married with 2 children, Madeline and Noah, and was pregnant with her third child, Jack. We saw our grandchildren every week and, because of owning my own business, my time was very flexible and I was able to run down to see them whenever I needed some "Dani" (grandmother) time. We were involved in our church and just really loved the way our lives were going. We were comfortable...

On that day, Tuesday, April 4, 2004, around 9:30 p.m., my world as I had known it changed. My dear husband turned off the t.v. and said he needed to talk to me. Oh my goodness...I could not imagine what was so important that Steve would turn off the t.v. before telling me. Then he dropped the b.omb. He began to tell me that he had been thinking about something for several months...He had prayed a lot about it...He believed God had tried to lead him many times before in his life and he had not listened...He felt God was leading him now... "What?!, I was thinking...What is is he trying to say?" Looking back now, I knew was he was going to say. Over the years, I had seen it coming.

I'm going to back up a bit...First of all, Steve's father lived in Guatemala for 40 years, so Steve's first trips to Central America occured when he was only a boy. Almost as soon as we moved to Bowling Green in 1988, he became chairman of the missions committee and began traveling to Choluteca, Honduras and working closely with the missionaries our church supported there. He also began leading mission trips to different countries in Central America. His love for the people and frustration at not being able to communicate well led him to take several college Spanish classes over the next few years. Then, in the summer of 1998, the night before he was to return home, Steve had to have emergency surgery in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. At this time, I actually got my first passport (flew to New Orleans and got an emergency one in half a day!) and made my first trip to Honduras. After that, I went on several trips to Honduras and one to Costa Rica. Steve says it was worth having to have surgery in a 3rd world country just to get his wife to join him on some of his mission trips and finally see why he loved the people so much!

During the time he was in the hospital, he met for the first time, Calvin, who was president of Baxter Institute, and his wife, Linda. Not long after this, Steve was asked to join the board of directors. We began a special friendship with Calvin and Linda, a love for the students at Baxter and a deep admiration for what this preacher training school was accomplishing in Tegucigalpa and the world!

So, that's the background. Maybe you can see why I knew what Steve was going to say that night in April 2004. However, after our first grandchild was born, I really did not think he would ever ask me to consider doing it...

"I believe God wants us to consider moving to Honduras. I think I want to apply for the job as president of Baxter Institute." The only two words I could get out came out in the form of a question..."You're kidding?" I kept repeating it. I felt tears well in my eyes. I could not talk. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I'm a little ashamed of this now, but there were only two thoughts that filled my mind as I was listening to this man pour our his heart..."There is no way I can do this" and "How am I going to get out of it without appearing to be a terrible wife and Christian?"

Steve continued to talk about how he believed God had led him to this moment...how he didn't want to say "no" to God's plan again...how he, too, loved our life as it was and that he would totally understand if this was not something I felt I could do right now. He just wanted me to consider it, pray about it and we'd talk about it again later.

I went to bed then and cried for a while. I prayed...sort of...I can really identify with the scripture in Romans 8:26: "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." I honestly didn't know what to pray for. I wasn't ready to pray for God's will to be done because deep down, I think I already knew what it was and I wasn't ready to submit. Thankfully, God allowed me to sleep peacefully.

The next morning I went in to the church building, where I worked one day a week. My sweet friend, Jaquatta, who was the church secretary at that time was the first person I told. I knew Steve didn't want me really talking about this because he had not applied for the job yet and didn't even know if he would or...even if he applied, he didn't know that he would get the job. But...I HAD to tell someone!

I told J. all about it, including the news she didn't know yet...our daughter was expecting our 3rd grandchild in October! I just poured it all out as I cried and I really expected her to say something like, "Oh, Jeanne...you can't go to Honduras...you can't leave your grandbabies!" Well, guess what? That's not even close to what she said. She came around her desk, got down on her knees in front of me, took my hands and said, "I want to pray". Wow! What a prayer...I have never felt so humbled...to hear someone talking to God about what a blessing I could be and how much faith she had in me and how she knew God had planned this for my life, etc., etc.

That was the moment that, for the first time, I felt like maybe it was actually a possibility...very small possibility...that I COULD do this. That day was Wednesday and that night, instead of going to my ladies class at church, I pulled aside two other dear friends, Teresa and Ruth, and said, "You aren't going to class tonight...I've got to talk to you!" These two ladies went into an empty office with me and there I told them about Steve's desire to work in Honduras. I also admitted all my fears and doubts: I didn't know if I could leave my children and grandchildren...I didn't know 10 words of Spanish...I was not a leader...I had a business that was doing well...and...I didn't know if I even wanted to do this. They were both encouraging...they both prayed for me; basically that God would lead us where he wanted us to go and that we would be willing to follow. Then Teresa looked me in the eye and said something that I will never forget. She said, "Jeanne, if this is God's plan for you, He will equip you with EVERYTHING you need to follow him!" Whoa.

I, personally, had never felt, in all my Christian walk with God, that He was "calling" me to do something in particular. Now, I'm not saying that He hadn't called me before. I'm just saying if He had, then I must not have been listening. But at that moment, Wednesday, April 5, 2004, at approximately 8 p.m., I KNEW that we were moving to Honduras. Do you realize that God totally and completely changed my heart in less than 24 hours? He is truly amazing! I give Him all the credit, honor, glory...I sometimes say that I made the decision that night to do mission work in Honduras, but that isn't really true. The decision was made long before that night and it was made by the creater of the universe...not by me! I merely submitted to His will and to His decision. And He has blessed me abundantly...

The verse at the top of this post has special meaning to me. Although I don't usually use the New Living Translation, I like the way it words this verse:

"You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail."

Jeanne in Honduras

This Blog Ends

Trust

How to Eat a Mango

Despedidas #2, 3 & 4

Packing - Part III "Memories"

Despedida

What I Will Miss -- What I Will *Not* Miss...

Packing - Part II "Aging Gracefully?"

Packing - Part 1 "Stuff"

The Nortons introduced in devotional at Baxter

Three More Weeks

Leaving is Hard...

Valentine's Day Dinner

Graduation at Baxter 2008

My First Post Revisited

How It All Began...or..."A 180 in Under 24 Hours"

Our Fifth Baxter Graduation

Day of the Child Party on Campus

Project Honduras Conference

Weekend Getaway

Back in Honduras

The Joy Continues for this "Dani"

Do You Receive Our Newsletter?

Blogs are Down All Over the Place!

My Ticket is Bought!

Toncontin Airport Reopens!

Welcome Baby Derek Cana!

I'm a Dani again!

Cakes on Campus

A Visit to the Presidential Palace

Everything I need to know, I learned from Noah's Ark

The Beautiful Baxter Campus

I'm the One Who's Blessed (Part II)

I'm the one who's blessed (Part I)

To be continued...

Las Damas de Baxter Dinner at Maple Hill Church of Christ

Spring means mission work in Honduras

The López Family

Back to 2007 Graduation...

Updated Information

My Surgery

I Don't Feel Like a Missionary

Heading to the U.S.

The week of Baxter Graduation -- Losing Gerardo

Gerardo Antonio Flores

My First Week in Honduras July 2004

Language School-June/July '04

June 26, 2004 - Steve and I left for Language School

How It All Began...or..."A 180 in Under 24 Hours"

What I Will Miss -- What I Will Not Miss...