Clausons in Monterrey

As we prepare for our 8 month home assignment, we realize how blessed we are by our fellow team members and the many volunteers God has brought together to serve at the Family Development Foundation (FDF).  Some of these volunteers come with well developed skills and others with servant hearts ready to learn; most importantly all of them are committed to Jesus and the vision of the FDF.  We would like to share with you some of these great people and ask that you join us in prayer for them as they will be taking on even more responsibility as we go on home assignment.

Sandra is a very talented young woman who, after serving with her husband Alberto in FDF three years ago, returned to Monterrey last October.  She has been a huge blessing to us, as she has been committed to praying with us for the youth club, developing relationships with the kids and facilitating some of the values classes.  We are  so excited that she has agreed to take over the position of youth club coordinator!  She is a natural leader and teacher and has already made many strong connections with the youth. 

Alex has served with Covenant Merge Ministries for many years and is currently in the process of becoming a Covenant missionary.  His main focus will continue to be with Merge, but since January he has been helping teach a computer class, along with some English, to the youth club twice a month.  He’s also started video game nights, which the kids have really enjoyed and it gives them a space to have fun and laugh together and build stronger relationships with each other and FDF staff and volunteers.

Joel is a young man from DeKalb, IL who has been helping Alex with Merge and has also been involved with the computer class and video game nights.  He is in the process of discerning how God is calling him to serve Him, whether continuing in Mexico or elsewhere.

Marcela is an art teacher who has helped with art activities for the kids of Project Down for years and is now offering art classes to the kids and teens of the Dos Cerros community ministry.

Finally, one of the things Erika has enjoyed the most this last year has been the informal leadership development/mentoring among several of the teenage girls from the youth club.  Abigail, Liliana, Rosalinda, among others, have been a huge help in running the English Club for the younger children.  They have been in charge of registration, receiving payments, basically acting as the treasurers and secretaries of the English Club.  They have also been faithful volunteers with Project Down once a month. 

 These are just a few of the many amazing volunteers God has sent to serve with FDF.  In fact, later this month we will have a dinner to honor and thank all the volunteers and as we created the invite list the number of volunteers was over 50!

 • FDF Annual Planning Retreat:  We will be spending time as a team in prayer and planning for the next year.

• Youth Camp:  Our first ever camping trip with the youth, many of whom have never been camping or spent a weekend outside of the city.  This will be a joint effort as we will be integrating our youth club with the Awana youth from Gualterio’s Covenant church plant on the other side of the city.

• Amy Mullin is a Covenant missionary who is finishing up her support raising and in June will be leaving for language school before coming to join the work in Monterrey. 

• Director of the FDF:  As you know Nils has been serving as the interim director for two years now and so we ask you to pray that we will be able to coordinate as a team how to best distribute his responsibilities while we are away and that soon we would find and be able to support a national director.

• Home Assignment:  We will be spending August 2009 to April 2010 in the US visiting churches and preparing for the change from project to long term missionaries.  We ask your prayers for the details of leaving things in order here and making the transition with our kids to life in the US.

Many thanks to those who sent birthday wishes to Matías...we had a fun party with lots of good friends at a park in downtown Monterrey to celebrate his turning four years old.  Here is a pic of the family, plus good friend Alejandro.  Matías chose the Spiderman theme: