Dear Friends and Family,

This week has been a lot of fun.  Between camping trips (for Rick), girls night (for me) and a birthday party…  we have been pretty busy!

Rick went on a camping trip with a bunch of guy friends this last weekend.  They drove to Cotopaxi national park and then hiked into the park a ways.  They built a large campfire, ate amazing food, and took a bunch of pictures.  You can see some of their pictures here and here.
This last Sunday was the 25th birthday of our friend, Daniel Klassen.  (The primary organizer of the aforementioned camping trip.)  He grew up in the Alliance Academy dorms, while his parents served as missionaries in Peru.  He has grown up hiking, climbing mountains, ice climbing, and trekking through the jungle.  He is currently working (through Youth World) as a chaplain at AAI and he also helps head up the Climbing Club at the school.  He has studied photography extensively, as well as attending climbing school in Norway.  We have been so thankful to have him in our lives here in Quito.  Daniel has helped Rick teach his photography class on several occasions, and has also helped spearhead a few camping trips for Rick and the other guys.

While Rick and the guys were out camping, I organized a small girl’s night of my own.  A few friends came over, we ate yummy snacks, and watched the movie Hero.  It was so much fun to have a group of girls to hang out with!  I tend to be more of a couch potato and less of an extrovert, which means that I don’t often seek out opportunities for deeper friendships. God seems to be working on me in this area, and has provided several wonderful ladies that I am getting to know more and more all the time.

Rick and I continue to pray for direction regarding our staying here in Quito.  We continue to form closer friendships (both with adults and students) and continue to find things that we love about this country.  At the same time, we want to make sure that we are following God’s will in all that we do.  We must let the school know what our decision is by next week, so I am sure that the Monday Memo next week will also include that update.

Please continue to pray for the people to whom we minister.  I often feel that spiritual oppression is increasing (or maybe I am just more aware of it), and I see more and more people struggling with depression, anxiety, marital issues, drugs/alcohol, pornography addictions, etc.  There are days when my heart feels so heavy, and all I can do is pray that the Lords return is soon.  I am so thankful for the opportunity that He has given Rick and I to minister and love the people here.  I pray that God will continue to guide us as we tell (and show) His grace.

Thank you all, once again, for your prayers and support.  We look forward to hearing from you and welcome any visitors who might want to come and see us.

May God bless and keep you always,
Rachel

Hello Dear Friends!

Well, another Monday has come and gone.  As always, it was eventful (and good).

This last week has been full of crisis management issues, many of them requiring the involvement of the Counseling Department at AAI (so I have been pretty busy!).  In the last week we have dealt with issues of 1) Inappropriate touching amongst elementary students (events that occurred at one child’s house, while having a sleepover with peer) 2) bullying amongst middle school and high school students (one student had bruises on his arms and legs from where the other student was hitting him on the school bus) and 3) parents having melt downs in the high school office with threats to sue the school (ironically, but today, this parent was very calm and apologetic…).  This, in addition to daily set of “So and so was mean to me”, “My parents are getting a divorce”, “My boyfriend broke up with me”, etc. made for a lot of decion making and relationship building.  I believe that, with the Lords help, we have navigated each of these situations well, and have been able to maintain a healthy relationship with parents and students (even when disciplinary measures were required).

The Counseling Department (myself included) is in the final stages of planning the Counseling Summit, which will be a half day of seminars and trainings for the middle school and high school students.  We have ten different seminars lined up.  All of them will have the focus of “How does ________ affect the way that I see myself, my world, and God”.  Seminars will have topics like depression, divorce, relationships (friendship and dating), multi-cultural issues, etc.  I am pretty excited to see it all falling into place, and pray that the students will find it interesting and useful.

Rick is very, very close to finishing last years yearbook.  As many of you have heard, his students last year were not very good at meeting deadlines, and thus left him with the majority of the yearbook to finish even after the school year had ended.  He has been working on it during his spare time, weekends, and holidays.  He is hoping to be done by the end of this week.  His students this year are much more consistent, and he is giving them even stricter deadlines, so this year’s yearbook should be done by the end of the year.

This last weekend we were able to spend time with a group of fellow teachers, whom we have been getting to know better over the last month of so.  Dave is the Youth and Family pastor at our church (English Fellowship Church - EFC), Linsey works with the Counseling Department and also with the Skill Center at AAI (and she is dating Dave), and Amanda McKeen is the girls PE teacher.  Our friends, Amanda and Craig Black, were also in our weekend group.  We all signed out the school van (yes, the dreaded green van which has absolutely no power and is very slow going up mountains…  we were once passed by a family of four on a motorcyle, carrying a duck, while struggling up a hill.  They laughed at us as they passed!) and headed out to Papallacta.  (you can see pictures at http://www.termaspapallacta.com/galeria1.htm).

Papallacta is known for its thermal springs, which have been diverted to pour into different pools of different temperatures.  The pools that are closest to where to water comes out of the hot springs are very, very hot.  As the water flows down to other pools, it cools down, so some of them are quite cool.  Other of the pools are filled with fresh, spring water, which is very cold!  Rick and Dave got cheers and applause from some of the others when they jumped straight into the springs (and came back oh-so chilly!).  The entrance fee is only $7 a person, so it is quite affordable.  Overall, it was a wonderful way to spend a Saturday, and a great way to get to know our friends better.

On Sunday our paster at EFC, Len Kinzel, was preaching and ministering at the local Haitian church.  They are very much in need of prayer, as many of them have family and friends in Haiti that they are still trying to locate.  Our church will take up a love offering for them next week, and our elders have agreed to cover their church expenses for the next six months (so that the church members can have extra money to send to family and friends in need).

Rick and I are still praying about God’s will for us, here in Quito.  We have told the school that we will let them know by the end of this month, whether we will be staying or heading back to the US.  Please keep us in your prayers, as this is a very difficult decision for us to make.  We are trusting that God will show us His will, and that He will take care of our needs, whether in Quito or in the States.

As always, thank you all for your prayers and support.  We are often surprised and blessed by your generousity and kindness.

May God bless and keep you always,
Rachel Sams

Hello, friends and family!

‘Saludos’ from Quito, Ecuador!  I bet there are a whole bunch of you who never thought you would hear that in an email! 

As always, this has been a week full of adventure, challenges, and ministry.  School has been back in session for one week, since coming back from Christmas break.  For many, the joy of seeing friends again (after being gone for 10 days) has worn off, and the daily routine of school has returned.  Already I hear students complaining of schoolwork, projects, and tests that are due.  Project reports went out last week, so some are worried about their grades, too.

I am preparing for the Counselor’s Summit, which will happen on Feb. 1st.  It will be a half day of school, during which the middle school and high school students will have seminars (instead of class).  The focus of the seminars this year will be “What do you know?”.  The basic focus is what we believe to be true about ourselves, our world, and our God.  We will also address different topics that affect what we believe about ourselves/the world/God, such as abuse, disabilities, addictions, culture, music, etc.  I am still trying to find enough teachers and adults willing to lead seminars, as well as coordinating the whole event.  Please pray that our students (and parents) will learn and be ministered to through this event!

Quito continues to experience rolling blackouts which seem to last about two hours a day.  We are thankful for the rain that we are receiving, since the blackouts initially were lasting for about four hours a day.  Please continue to pray that God will send us rain, as this not only affects the electricity, but also the agriculture throughout the country.  Many farms and their animals are really suffering.

We have been blessed, over the last week, to have dinner with several different friends here.

On Thursday night we ate with the Douce family.  They have been in Quito for many years and work with a ministry called Casa Gabriel.  Their main ministry is to teenage and young adult boys who have grown up on the streets, but have now voiced a desire for a relationship with the Lord and a better way of living.  Rick has developed a relationship with several of the guys at Casa G (especially with Boris, shown below, who is getting married next month to a wonderful Christian girl).  Their children have all attended Alliance Academy and have been a real blessing to work with.  Their youngest son, Tully, is involved in Peer Helpers with Rick and I.

On Friday night we ate dinner with the Pickens.  Their oldest son, Noah (seen below in a picture of Rick’s yearbook class or ‘08.  Noah is the one in the middle in the grey shirt) was one of the first students that Rick really felt a connection with here.  He is currently studying at Wheaton college.  His younger brother and sister still attend AAI.  The Pickens have ministered in Colombia and Ecuador since Noah was an infant.

 

Tonight we ate dinner with the Hanlin family, who came to Ecuador one year after us. Rene teaches French and Brett teaches English at AAI.  Their daughters are in elementary and middle school.  They, like us, are in the process of praying to see if God wants them to continue on at AAI.
Rick was able to have a Guy’s Night with a group of the guys from the dorms last Friday night.  They spent several hours just hanging out at our place and watching movies.  He is really loving the opportunity to sow into their lives, as well as to get to know them better.  Many of them will graduate this year, so it is a wonderful opportunity to help prepare them for the life they will lead after high school  (The picture below is Rick and Nick, one of the dorm boys, and a friend to Rick).

As always, please continue to pray for the country of Ecuador.  There are always many political, socio-economical, and spiritual needs that are on our hearts.  No government is perfect and it is always difficult to trust that they have the people’s best interest at heart.  Our current president often voices his desire to help those of indigenous decent and those who struggle financially.  He has made some very positive changes in areas of schools for those in rural areas, as well as the children who live on the street.  Please pray that God continue to use him to help others, and that his political and spiritual beliefs will not impede the continue spreading of the Gospel throughout the country.

Thank you for keeping Rick and I in your prayers.  For me this has been a very challenging week, and the next few will be very busy as well.  Please pray that God will give me peace, as well as strength, to truly glorify Him as I work with students and their families.

May God bless and keep you all,
Rachel

Feliz Navidad and Happy New Year!

It has become quite apparent that, when I am not actively caught up in the school schedule, I am not very consistent with the Monday Memos.  :P  So, today’s memo should serve as a catcher-upper….

Let me start with the last two weeks (Christmas Break).  Over the break…
-  We had a Christmas party at our house (co-hosted by Rick, myself, and our friend Stephanie Taylor), inviting all of our regular Tuesday night pizza crowd (and then a few more).  We had a total of 24 people, most of whom brought large amounts of food to add to the copious amounts that we cooked.   Everyone left with a large plate of goodies for home, and we were still left with several plates more.  Thankfully, Rick agreed to take all that was left in to school the next day and to share it with his students!
- Rick and I spent Christmas Day with our friends the Saavedras, as well as with Dave Saavedra’s Mom and Dad, Leslie Foster, Kim Thomas and her boyfriend Fernando.  Much lasagna was made (and consumed), along with yummy side dishes and desserts.  We are so greatful for friends who are willing to share their home and their family with us during the holidays!
- We had about 10 friends over the Monday before Christmas for more lasagna.  Once again, we ate ourselves silly and enjoyed our time spent with people that we like.  Present were the Tutens, the Hanlins, Leslie Foster, Juan Pablo Tumipamba, and Dan Klassen.
-  We also spent New Year’s Eve at the Saavedra’s house, along with the Tutens, the Bryans, the Blacks, Leslie Foster and Dan Klassen.  We watched the firework displays from their rooftop at midnight, and then went down on the sidewalk to burn the effigy of the Old Man (the Old Year).  By about 1am the whole neighborhood was covered in smoke and fireworks, and we all went to bed happy.  :)  Please check out our facebooks for pictures taken by Rick of this great fun!  (I also want to reassure our mothers that we were very, very careful when setting things on fire… hee hee).
- Overall, we assisted in the feeding and entertaining of somewhere between 65 and 70 people over the last two weeks!
-  Our friends, and co-workers, Josh Brown and Sarah Sherrick celebrated their marriage on December 24th in Pennsylvania.  They flew back to Quito a few days later, and then headed straight to the coast and the beach for their honeymoon.  They were back at school as Mr. and Mrs. Brown today.
- Our friend, Luke Owsley, proposed to his girlfriend, Wendy, while visiting New York at Christmas.  His mother was able to fly in from China (where his parents are missionaries) to be there for the event.  He, too, was back in school today, and was smiling from ear to ear.  Wendy hopes to come to visit Quito in February, and we are axious to meet her.

Today…
- We started back to school today, so just about everyone looked a little sleepy and confused.  One student, sadly, was not able to return due to disciplinary issues right before the break.  The school made the decision to expell him due to these issues.  This was a student that Rick was beginning to form a relationship with, so it has been sad for us to see him return to the States.  Please keep him, his friends here, and his parents in your prayers as they work through these changes.  Disciplinary issues are never easy, and I pray that it will be a learning and growing experience for all involved.
-  Please continue to pray for the peer relationships amongst our students at Alliance Academy.  We continue to have many concerns regarding sexual harrassment and innappropriate behavior amongst some of our students.  While I realize that this is not an uncommon problem in most schools, it is my great desire that Alliance Academy be a place that is safe and free from harrassment and bullying.
-  Rick and I continue to pray and seek God’s will regarding our time here in Quito and at Alliance Academy.  Finances continue to be a worry, as I know they are for many people in these times.  We make about 1/4th of what we made in the States, and have been learning how to live on a budget that is a little tighter than we have been used to in the past.  As always, please help us pray that our car in Olathe will sell, as that would free us from the car payments and cost of insurance.

As always, we are so greatful for your thoughts, prayers, and support as we continue to serve God in our day-to-day lives.  We are truly blessed to have such wonderful family and friends!  We welcome visits at any time, and would love to help coordinate any missions trips, too.
May God bless and keep you all,
Rachel Sams