Loving and Selfless

On February 15th, 1st Pres sent eight of its own people to Belmopan, Belize. Our calling was to care for children at the King's Children's Home (KCH). We were greeted by Tim Tam, a Presbyterian minister turned long-term missionary, working for the Word at Work. He has been active in ministry around Belize for over 20 years. As we traveled throughout the country, we quickly observed that everyone knew someone that Tim had helped during his career in Belize.
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Paul White

When we arrived at KCH, 20 children from ages 9 to 19 greeted us with friendly smiles. This is a relatively quiet time in the KCH history, as they are licensed for 50 children and have had up to 70 living there in the past! Since its beginning, KCH has cared for hundreds of children who were victims of abuse and neglect, removed from their homes by the Belizean court system, and cared for by a loving and selfless staff.

With 20 kids, we got to engage with them and get to know them on an individual level. Each of us was assigned to a group of kids for the week. Our days began at 5:30 AM, joining the children for their morning devotions before breakfast. They would sing and pray and recite memory verses. We didn't do any evangelizing, as it was clear that our Heavenly Father had adopted these kids into His family long before we arrived! On Sunday, we spent the afternoon swimming and horseback riding with the children as a special gift from the congregation of 1st Pres.

After breakfast, the children went off to school while we 1st Pressers got to work. The facility was clean and well-cared for but worn by time and use. The windows had no mosquito screens (having been kicked in by errant soccer balls), railings were falling down, paint was dirty and chipping, doors were splintering, and their internet service was unreliable. We had plenty of work to do to make this home safer and more comfortable for these amazing kids. Each day, we worked in the hot sun (between torrential downpours), enjoying the camaraderie. We built relationships within our team and with the KCH staff. Each of us had our roles on the team that came so naturally.

Sometimes, in the afternoons, we'd travel around the local area meeting amazing people and seeing their ministries at work. With the Gotz Mission Grant, our church has supported First Stone Church in opening a church-based preschool. This is preparing to open this coming fall, with plans for an entire K-12 system over the next few years. We met ladies who teach sewing courses for free, giving women the means to support their families. We spent an afternoon working with a church group from Ohio to build a home for the elderly in the Valley of Peace. We met teachers who care for El Salvadoran and Guatemalan refugee children. We were witnesses to God’s hand working around Belize.

God protected our travels around the country, but we had a few hiccups: getting stuck in the mud and replacing a flat tire on the highway. But each evening, we got back to KCH safely to have devotions with the kids again and stuffed ourselves with delicious Belizean dinners before our own group prayers and devotions!

At the end of the week, when all was said and done, KCH looked fresher. The girls were delighted to have doors for their bedrooms and bathrooms that worked. The dining room and "cool-down" room had new paint and looked so much brighter. The main building with all the common areas had mosquito screens again. The WIFI system had been improved and extended to cover the whole living area. After a week we were proud of the work we had done, but we were more impacted by the time we spent with the KCH kids and staff. It was tough to say our goodbyes to such wonderful people. We took some time to explore a Mayan ruin and took a boat trip out to the islands and reefs to fish and snorkel. The rest of the evening, we debriefed and prayed. Then we packed our bags and began the journey home.

We're still processing the trip, and God had different lessons for each of us. We trust that God has used our time there to bless our new friends in Belize and grow us individually. Thank you for your prayers and continued support for this exciting mission of a new relationship with the King’s Children’s Home. We can't wait to see where He leads our congregation next!

In His Name, Paul