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Raising the Roof
The roofs over both
dormitory rooms
and both
caregivers rooms are up!
They start
each morning at 7:00 am and work until 10:00 am when they take ten minutes
for a rice cake and tea break and another thirty minutes for Bible study.
It’s back to work at 10:40 am until noon when they get one and a half hours
for lunch. They are then back at it at 1:30 pm until 4:30 pm.
Their days are spent climbing rickety handmade, cypress pole
ladders. They work in bare feet as they scamper (yes, believe it
or not, they scamper) over rafters more than ten foot above the ground.
Their tools are muscle power, hammers, nails, and one drill that runs off
of a car battery. They sing like a chain gang while they work, but
they’ve done a wonderful job.
The roof
is up over both the boys’ and girls’ dormitory rooms and also over both
caregivers’ rooms. The inner walls of the common room, kitchen, storeroom,
and bathrooms are being raised before the cathedral type roof will be raised
over the center section of Phase I of Betikara.
So, what
do we have? We have two completed, lovely, large and spacious, airy,
bright rooms. The walls are hewn stone inside and out. There
are no glass windows, but secure metal shutters cover the windows.
Skylights in the roof provide a wonderfully bright look to these dorm rooms
that will hold twenty children each. We have two completed caregivers
rooms patterned after the same style as the children’s rooms and will give
the caregivers a room of their own for the first time in Betikara history.
The house is looking great for the lambs!
Children’s School Reports
The lambs
just finished a series of tests in school and have received report cards.
Three of the lambs placed in the top ten of their class. Hoorah for:
Elisoa 1/37, Valerie 5/41, and Princy 10/44.
Four others
received good marks and congratulations from both teachers and staff of
Betikara: Jean Louis, Elisa, Arnaud, Toky.
The following
students improved their marks compared to their marks on the last grading
period but still need prayers for even better progress in school:
Prisca, Elimine, Hermine, Tsiry, Andry, Sedera, and Robert.
The seven
lambs who are still preparing for the test to pass from elementary school
into Junior High need the most prayers of all. They are struggling
and need God’s help. They are: Prisca, Hermine,
Clara,
Fetra,
Yosly, Tsiry and Jean Marc.
Goodbye to Irma (hopefully temporarily)
None of the
Betikara folks was happy to say goodbye to Irma, our volunteer who came
in January and worked directly with the lambs for three months, adding
her own unique talents and spirit to Betikara. We didn’t want to
let her go. BUT! We are hoping and praying that Irma will return
to us in August, as she has tentatively planned, and spend a year or more
this time. Please pray for Irma’s return to us. Thank you.
Sandy still serving
As former volunteers
can also testify, working here alone as a volunteer is not the easiest
thing to do in life. I’m sure Sandy is also feeling that stress,
but Sandy is forging on with the Betikara lambs, touching their lives in
her special way. She has scrubbed floors and walls, swept, dusted,
and swept some more, spent countless hours drawing, exercising, reading,
and playing with the children, and she does it all with a wonderful attitude
of service and with a joy-filled spirit. Thank you, Sandy!
Phase II Matching Grant
With God’s abundant
blessings we went over the top, and the Matching $28,000.00 has already
been given to Betikara to match every dollar that you gave! Thank
you all so much. Special thanks to our anonymous matching donor for letting
the Savior use him to help some very special children.
Work on Phase
II will begin as soon as Phase I is completed.
In Memory
The Betikara
folks hold a special place in their hearts for the people whose lives are
honored through special donations given in memory of a loved one.
This month we would like to honor the memories of:
Jerry Peurifsy
Michael Clay
Irene Williams (Barry’s grandmother)
A Very Special “In Memory”
This month and
for every month since January 2003, Betikara has been grieving with Doyle
and Barbara Kee (parents of Daniel Kee and missionaries who have an interest
in the work for Christ here in Madagascar), and honoring the memory of
Daniel
Kee.
Daniel was only 30 years old. He had a heart for children, and
a heart for the Betikara children in particular. Daniel had a desire
to come to Madagascar and work with the Betikara lambs, but he was taken
from this life before he could fulfill that dream of service. We
at Betikara grieve for ourselves because we will never know the joy of
Daniel. We are grieving for Daniel too, because he will never experience
the joy of Betikara. |
