Puerto Rico Mission Trip Update

We just left a church that is in the center of the area that was most severely hit by the earthquake. The fiberglass ceiling tiles and a lot of glass had fallen. The church had just recently finished repairing the damage from Maria.
Many local inhabitants will be able to sleep there now. They spoke of their fears. One elderly woman sat outside all day waiting for it to be cleaned. She told me she was in the bathroom when the quake hit and has flashbacks when she tries to go back in.

When we were done the pastor spoke beautifully of their thankfulness. We all sang “How Great Thou Art” - some in English some is Spanish. Not surprisingly there were tears. It has never had greater meaning to me.

I was also thankful that there was not another quake! As we were deciding whether we should go there we were told there will likely be another one magnitude 3 or above. Please send prayers.

If anyone wants to help the church we worked with has an amazing ongoing program which continues To help people ravaged by Maria.

— Marianne Fimble

Maasai Village: Request for Support from Marianne and Ed Fimbel

To our friends at Grace,

Ed and I recently went to Africa. I would say it was a very life-impacting experience! We would like to share one piece of it with all of you in the hope that you will then be interested in joining a project with us.

We visited a Maasai village (see attached pictures). We were greeted by a group of people who truly amazed us. They live in a village with no running water or technology and have little in the way of food and what we would consider the basics of life. The school was a room with a blackboard and benches. Yet the children responded to us as if we were long lost relatives. I have rarely had people react with so much joy upon seeing me. I will attach some pictures. The little boy that I was holding was curious about my phone but had absolutely no reaction when I showed him his picture. I was told later he didn't know it was his picture as he really doesn't know what he looks like.

They live at the top of the Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania. It is near the equator but it gets cool at night due to the high elevation. The Maasai warrior who guarded our camp at night (we were visited by zebras, wildebeests, etc.) had no gloves or raincoat and were quite cold in the morning. The little boy I was holding had very cold hands and feet in addition to having a cold.

Ed and I hope to send them school supplies and clothes. As the whole village is in need of warm clothing any size is good. The people were all thin and many were tall. The children need navy pants so they can attend school and I was told the Maasai love the color red.

The guide we worked with, Baraka, will pick up the boxes in Arusha and drive them to the director of our camp. They will bring the items to the villagers and send us pictures.

If you feel moved to donate new or gently used clothing, school supplies or money to help with the mailing expenses, we would be grateful. More than that, you will be making a big impact on the people of the village.

Thank you,

— Marianne and Ed Fimbel

New Socks & Underwear Needed

Dear Grace United Church of Christ!

As you may have heard from Mr. Bill Taylor, Grace is a solid supporter of the Family Promise network in Hunterdon County. We now have a unique opportunity to continue that support.

Family Promise is participating in a CARE event which involves various community service organizations distributing information to members of our community who might need support. Individuals in the community who attend the event are provided lunch, box dinners, some medical screening and other useful items. THIS IS WHERE YOUR SUPPORT IS NEEDED!

I am coordinating a drive for NEW underwear and socks to be distributed to those in need who attend the event. All sizes are needed and must be new in the packaging (nothing gently used, please). Underwear and socks can be purchased in bulk packages; Family Promise will separate into sizes -- we only need you to bring them in. Items are needed no later than October 27 to ensure they are packaged and prepared for the event on the first.

So - as you are out and about in the coming weeks and find yourself in a store wondering what you might buy, please consider picking up some packages in different sizes. Children's sizes and adult sizes are needed.

Thank you so much for your continued generosity!!!!

With much love in Grace,

-Chris Syltevik

"So You Want to Talk About Race" - Week 1 of 10

This week we will begin our interfaith book reading and discussion of “So You Want to Talk About Race,” by Ijeoma Oluo.

If you want to participate you still have time to RSVP. You can join the discussion group that will be meeting weekly, or you can read along a home.

If you are attending the discussion group you can purchase the book at the first meeting. If you will be reading along at home, you can order it online (don’t forget to use Amazon Smile so Grace gets a small donation)!

Our at-home readers can follow-along here on the blog, where we will post discussion group questions. You may also submit your own questions to be presented to the group.