2003 Report
JANUARY
December 29, 2002 - January 4, 2003
HAPPY NEW YEAR!! We celebrated with some church friends by singing and praying in the New Year. It was great!With holidays over, we're kind of shifting gears preparing for Steve's next trip. He'll be heading to the Medical Missions Seminar in Dallas, Texas, soon. After that, he'll be going to Guyana for several weeks. So, right now we're just getting things in order for all that.
Jerry & Pat Veatch have gotten to slow down and take a breath since their son's wedding on December 28th. They report that it was a beautiful wedding, and I know they enjoyed it. They have been working on presentations of the work in Guyana to give to congregations they are visiting while in the States. And they also plan to be at the Medical Missions Seminar with Steve.
Jerry and Pat plan to return to Guyana on January 21st. They are eager to get back to their home there and warmer weather!
May you receive God's blessings and bring Him glory.
Praying that you have a Happy New Year.
January 5 - 11, 2003
On January 8th, Isaiah celebrated his SIXTH birthday! When we would ask him what he wanted for his birthday, he would say, "a Spiderman cake!" And that is so funny, because he doesn't even eat cake!!! But, he did have a Spiderman cake. He liked putting in the candles and blowing them out. And finally that night before he went to bed, he ate a couple of bites of it. You can read an update on his latest check-up on this website.After the holidays, people usually get back to a normal routine. I guess "normal" for us is scattering this time of year. Steve left on the 9th going to Dallas. He was at the Medical Missions Seminar through the weekend, as well as Jerry and Pat Veatch. Several of our team leaders were there and Steve had an opportunity to visit with them.
The kids and I left on Friday to come to Louisiana, where we are now. We'll be here visiting with my parents and sister for several days.
I am in the process of collecting glasses, both prescription and reading. If you have any to donate, please let me know. Also, I'm scouting out for a lensometer (a piece of equipment to read the prescription on glasses). We really need one of these to take to Guyana. If you know of someone who would like to donate one or sell at a reasonable price, I would sure be interested. Please contact Colleen at colleen@guyana-missions.org if you have glasses to donate or any word on a lensometer.
January 12 - 18, 2003
This week has been very busy for Steve. He started out in Dallas, then went on to Barbados, and ended up in Guyana the end of the week.On Sunday, he attended services at two congregations in the Dallas area, and then spent Monday and Tuesday getting ready for his trip. There was packing to do, paperwork to get done, and lots of phone calls to make.
Finally, on Wednesday morning early (about 3 a.m.) he left for the airport. After traveling most of the day, he ended up in Barbados at the Hotel about 9 p.m. that evening. Talk about a long day...
He stopped over in Barbados because two graduates from the Bible School in Guyana are from Barbados and asked him to stop and speak to the church there. So on Thursday, Steve had a meeting with several from the church in Barbados.
Although many of us think of Barbados as a vacation spot, there are almost 250,000 people that live on the island. Even though there are this many people there, the church is very small--only four congregations.
The church there is really struggling, and needs some help in the way of teaching, crusades, and general excitement. Since Barbados is on the way to Guyana, it will be easy for us to supply some of this support as we come and go to Guyana.
While there, the church asked Steve to stop back by on the way home in February and conduct a three-day meeting. During that stop over, we are planning to meet with several other members of the church there to see if we can come up with some concrete ways to assist the church in growing more. Please pray for this effort.
On Thursday night, Steve travelled on to Guyana, arriving at the Hotel about 9:30 p.m. Over Friday and Saturday, he spent the days unpacking, settling in to the office and apartment, and getting things ready for this coming week.
There is lots to do to get ready for the summer of 2003. Papers have to be filed, locations have to be secured, and organizational meetings have to take place. Also, all the hotel and travel preparations have to be made. And to top it off, we are getting ready for our third Annual Lectureship and Workshop, which will be held the first week in February.
Please pray for our efforts here. And pray that Steve will get lots done in terms of the preparations for this coming summer. Things are really shaping up to look like this is going to be a GREAT SUMMER INDEED!
Thanks so much for your continued prayers, encouragement, and support. Without it, the work just wouldn't get done. Thanks so much for all you do to hold up our arms in our efforts to serve God in Guyana.
January 19 - February 2, 2003
The past two weeks have been very, very eventful. God continues to open doors, and great things continue to happen.For the past two weeks Steve has been sick "off and on." ... Two weeks ago it was a sort of flu, and over this past weekend it has been a stomach virus. In between though, everything has been fine.
Last Sunday, Steve went across the River to preach at the Nismes congregation. There were well over 50 people there, and it was a wonderful service together. There were several visitors and lots of encouragement. It is good to see some maturity in the local churches. ... We are seeing this more and more.
This past Monday, Gerald Bennett arrived in Guyana from Houston, Texas, and they have been able to do several things together: visiting the local Bible School (G.I.B.I.), visiting with some of the local missions staff and preachers, and getting things ready for the Lectureship that is coming up February 4-7.
On Wednesday night, Gerald got sick, and then on Friday night, Steve got sick, along with Pat Veatch, our clinic supervisor. (Gerald must have taken down a bad Texas bug.) Bill Day arrived from OKC on Saturday night. ... Watch out for the bug, Bill!
Today (February 2) while Steve was still trying to get well, Jerry Veatch, Bill Day and Gerald Bennett went across the River to an area-wide worship service at the Canal Number Two Church. There were well over 100 people there and it was a SUPER SERVICE. They had a special class during the Sunday School class time for non-Christians taught by Desmond Zephyr. After class, there were seven people who wanted to be baptized!!! What a wonderful DAY!!!!
Please pray this week for the Lectureship. Bill Day, Gerald Bennett, Jerry Veatch, Joel Dalrymple (from Jacksonville Beach, Florida), and Steve DeLoach will be the speakers on the program. Pray that God will use these men in mighty ways and that much good will come from this meeting.
May God bless all of us this week as we strive to serve Him!
FEBRUARY
February 2 - 8, 2003
Well, I think we had the best Lectureship we have ever had. It was well attended, and as best I can tell, over half of the churches in the entire country were represented here. We had preachers, Sunday School teachers, church leaders, students at G.I.B.I., new converts, mature Christians, and much more there.Our Five Speakers did an OUTSTANDING job, and the post class comments were all excellent!
We started every day with a devotional. There were three class periods during the day, each lasting 1½ hours, with three or four DIFFERENT classes being taught during each class period. That way, people could pick and choose where they wanted to be. This was followed by a worship service together.
Gerald Bennett taught on the Oneness of the Body, and on Predjudice and Race Relations in the Church. Both classes were extremely well attended.
Jerry Veatch taught on the Nature of God, and this class, too, was very well attended. Jerry has lived in Guyana for almost two years and many people know him and love him very much.
Bill Day taught on the One Another Aspects of Christianity. He did a great job, but was sick for a couple of days and wasn't able to teach.
Joel Dalrymple taught on the Assurance of Salvation and had several people attend his class on a regular basis.
Steve DeLoach taught two classes. One on Conflict Resolution, which averaged around 30 attendees per session, and one class on How to Plan a Better Medical Mission or Crusade. This class was also well attended.On Tuesday night, Gerald Bennett spoke in the general assembly, followed by Joel Dalrymple on Wednesday night, Jerry Veatch on Thursday night, and Steve DeLoach on Friday night.
Once Steve gets back to the States, we will post some pictures on our website. (It is just too hard to transfer them now, what with how slow the Internet runs here.) Altogether though, it looks like around 200 different people attended the Lectureship throughout the week! What a great turn out when you consider that almost none of our brethren have their own transportation.
Next week, Steve leaves Guyana and will stop over in Barbados to strengthen the church there, then it is on to Dallas, and finally home.
Please keep us in your continued prayers. Our efforts would not be rewarded without your support before the throne of God.
February 9 - 15, 2003
Jerry and Pat Veatch are in Guyana, the lectureship is over, and they are getting back in the normal swing of things. Jerry had a Greek class on Tuesday evening. This was held in the O.G. (Operation Guyana) office and he packed in 17 people! That is a really good attendance. They ran out of chairs, but a couple of people sat on desks and made it ok. He said it went very well.On Wednesday, Jerry worked at the Plaisance building all day helping with painting, cleaning and repairs. Thursday, he devoted most of the day to paper and computer work, filing sermons, etc.
Friday night, Jerry and Pat went out for Valentine's with two other missionary couples. They all enjoyed spending time together.
Pat teaches a man how to stretch his legs and back
before he gets out of bed in the morning.
Pat saw 110 patients in the clinic this week. I know the patients were glad to have her back! Alvin Persaud is her assistant in the clinic area. This has eased her load a lot with paper work and she has more time with patients. Alvin helps in a lot of ways.
Orin Ross, the office administrator, continues to keep things running smoothly. He pretty much has his hands full with the telephone. Most of the calls are for appointments with Pat, and he keeps all of that in order, plus keeps the bills paid, etc.
Nigel Edwards, our driver, helps with errands and pretty much knows where we could find most anything. We keep him running, especially when our family is there!
This past week has been a busy week for Steve! He started on one continent and ended on another.Last Sunday, Steve worshipped with the Grove Congregation in Guyana. There was a small gathering, but everyone had a great time together. Andre Brown, a young man that our family has known in Guyana since 1994 and who has sort of been our "foster son," went with Steve. In fact, when Steve is in Guyana each year in January and February, Andre goes to church with him and they spend many hours together.
On Monday, Steve spent a lot of time "mopping up" things that had to be done in Guyana before he left. Our Operation Guyana staff also met in a staff meeting and got things going in terms of what we need to do to prepare for the summer of 2003. This is going to be a great summer, and the preparation has already started in a big way.
On Tuesday, Steve left Guyana and traveled by plane for a little over an hour to the island of Barbados. Although the island is well known, and has a population of over a quarter million, the church there is struggling. Steve had been asked by the local brethren there to do a meeting for them. So, he stopped over and did a three-day meeting that was attended by people from all over the island. The series of lessons was on "Moving the Church Forward," and dealt with "Attitudes, Challenges, Dangers, Opportunities, and Enemies."
This three-day meeting was very well attended, and plans are being made to offer more in the area of encouragement and emotional support for the church in Barbados. The opportunity there is fantastic, and we, as God's people, are making every effort to meet that opportunity.
On Friday, Steve started his journey back to the U.S.A. That was all day on Friday, when he finally arrived in Dallas, where his vehicle was.
On Saturday he left Dallas and drove on to Oklahoma City, where he picked up some equipment, visited with Bill Day, and then went on to Jenks, Oklahoma, where our sponsoring congregation is. After arriving there Saturday night, he had a meeting with one of our elders, Arlen Millikan, and then settled into bed.
What a week of opportunity, travel, and excitement. Please pray that God will continue to bless our efforts and use us in His service.
February 16 - 22, 2003
On Sunday the 16th, Steve attended services at Jenks, OK, and then that afternoon had a meeting with the elders, who oversee the work of Operation Guyana. During that meeting, we discussed a lot of things that have an impact on our work. It is so good to have elders that are so involved and informed about our work. It makes the process of planning for the future so much easier when the elders are already so well informed.There are so many exciting things just around the corner in regards to our ministry. God continues to open doors of opportunity, many times so fast that it seems hard to go through those doors when they open. Please pray that we will have the wisdom and courage to go through the doors that the Lord opens for us.
Steve got home to Springdale on Sunday evening after a long time away. It has been great having him home this week. We've been pretty busy trying to catch up on paperwork, mail, meetings, etc. It has also been great just spending time together. Lots of times while we are Stateside, Steve is on the road. So when he is home, we all enjoy our time together.
Also this week, Steve, Colleen, and Isaiah went to the passport office and made application for Isaiah's U.S. passport. He should receive his passport within three weeks. Another BIG STEP in the long process of finalizing everything!!!!! In fact, this will be the final step in the adoption process. We are hopeful and excited.
On Wednesday evening Steve spoke at a congregation in Springdale, AR. He gave a presentation on the work in Guyana and seemed to strike some interest in some of them. In fact, we may have several that end up coming down and working with us over the next year. PRAISE GOD!!!
He's also had to have some work done on the motor home so he can hit the road again. He leaves the afternoon of the 22nd and will be gone most of the next two months. We'll keep you posted on his whereabouts.
As for word from Guyana, Jerry Veatch said he and Nigel have been tackling our primary generator. This is the generator that we use a lot during the summer medical missions. It sounded like it was a rather frustrating challenge that took three days, off and on, getting it fixed.
Jerry's Greek class went well again. He had one extra person this week, making it 18 in class.
Nurse Pat saw 133 patients this week and is booked almost three weeks in advance. She had a real touching story to share. There was a 67-year-old lady who had come in to get glasses. When Pat put a pair on her, the lady cried and cried because she could see again! When things like that happen, it just really touches your heart.
Alvin is a big help in the clinic. He visits with the patients when they are waiting their turn, gives away lots of tracts and World Bible School lessons, and even has Bible studies sometimes.
Jerry spent Thursday across the River at Canal #2 visiting people. The local preacher there has asked Jerry to come every week to do pastoral-like counseling with the members.
So, as you can see here, lots of things are going on both in Guyana and Stateside as well. As always, we appreciate your prayers and interest in this work.
February 23 - March 1, 2003
From the news from Jerry Veatch, they've had a pretty busy week there in Guyana. He preached at Canal #2 on Sunday. The attendance was between 45-50. He's been doing some visiting in that area.Monday, Jerry and Pat worked at the Pleisance church building doing some painting.
Nigel and Jerry continue to work on generators. I think we may have one that is hopeless.
Orin Ross has spent the afternoons out in the bond re-organizing and painting. He's getting things ready to be labeled. The bond is kind of an on-going, never-ending project! And a HOT job.
Pat saw 106 patients this week, making the monthly total 349.
Please keep the work of Operation Guyana (both Stateside and in Guyana) in your prayers.
As for Steve's where-about's, this week started in Oklahoma City. Sunday, Steve spoke at the Northwest Church of Christ in Oklahoma City (OKC) at their annual "March for Missions" effort. "March for Missions" is a month long event at Northwest, the entire month of February. They bring in speakers from all over to encourage the church to support the many missions efforts of the Northwest congregation. Then, the first week in March, they have a special contribution that covers the missions efforts for the entire year. It is always a great event with tremendous results for the cause of Christ.
On Monday and Tuesday, the motor home had to have some repair work there in OKC. As most of you know, Steve travels a lot, and the motor home allows him to travel great distances and still sleep in the same bed each night. It also serves as a mobile office and allows him to carry all the things he may need while on the road. At any rate, this motor home gets a lot of miles and lots of wear and tear. As a result, from time to time, we have to stop and fix things. Please pray for travel safety and that God will keep the motor home in good repair, especially now ... over the next two months, he will have to travel almost 10,000 miles before we go back to Guyana. Pray that all will go well.
Monday through Wednesday were also very, very cold in OKC. In fact, there was lots of snow and ice on the ground. This made it a challenge to get out of town, but finally on Wednesday, Steve was on his way to Pampa, Texas. The Mary Ellen and Harvester Church of Christ in Pampa has been a long-time supporter, and Steve went there to give them a report and update on Operation Guyana. There are also other individuals there who support the work in Guyana in several ways, so Steve was there until Friday afternoon.
There was lots of snow in Springdale, too, as can be seen in this photo of Erin and Meagan.
On Friday, Steve drove to Abilene, Texas, where he had a meeting with some prospective doctors who may come and work with us over the next couple of years. Then, it was on to Snyder, Texas. The church there supported us last year, and so Steve was on the way there to thank them and to give them a report of the work.
Our BIG news this week is that Isaiah got his U.S. Passport on Friday, February 28th. To say that we are excited is the understatement of the decade. This brings to an end the process that we started four and a half years ago. PRAISE GOD!!! I (Colleen) had to bury my ego to put these pictures on the Web site. As you can tell, it was a tearfully joyful moment ... but a "Kodak moment" nonetheless! Isaiah looks precious, anyway!
The first week of March, Steve is on to other places. We will have more on that in our next report. Until then, keep us in your prayers, and may God richly bless you!!!
MARCH
March 2 - 9, 2003
This week has been a long week, with lots of miles, and lots of good work done. And, in the process ... Steve has covered a great deal of the state of Texas.On Sunday, Steve was in Snyder, Texas, out in the panhandle between Lubbock and Abilene. There Steve met with several members of the local church, including the preacher and the elders. On Sunday evening Steve visited one of the small groups of the church there and gave a report on the work in Guyana. There were lots of good comments and questions, and the possiblity of developing a team from there was even discussed briefly.
On Monday it was on to Abilene for another meeting with some medical workers. Then on Tuesday it was on to the Fort Worth area. This day was spent doing paperwork and organizing for upcoming events. It was a general "housekeeping day," too, with laundry being done and basically "regrouping."
On Wednesday it was on to Greenville, Texas, about 40 miles east of Dallas to visit with one of the congregations there which is involved in our work. This was a good visit, as it gave us a chance to report on recent events of our work and to visit with Ray and Debra Allen. Ray and Debra have been involved in Guyana for the past seven years and have been vital to the success of our work in many ways. Ray is a master in terms of computers and computer networks. He has set up several networks for us in our office in Guyana, as well as our homes, both in the U.S. and in Guyana.
On Thursday it was on to Tyler, Texas, to set up an appointment for next week, and then it was on to Houston.
Friday and Saturday in Houston were amazing days. Gerald Bennett, who preaches for the Lindale Church of Christ and is also one of the elders there, has been coming to Guyana to work with us for about seven years. For the past three years Gerald has come and worked with us twice a year, for two weeks each time! He is incredibly valuable to our efforts there by helping us with many of our nurturing projects.
On Saturday Steve attended a funeral in Houston for one of the elders at Lindale, Brother Tom Lang. Tom was an incredible example to the church in Houston, and between 400 and 500 people attended this funeral. What a testament of the measure of this man! He was such a wonderful example, shepherd, and Christian! He will be sorely missed, and many who were at the funeral got an opportunity to express just how special he was. We pray for his family, both physical and spiritual as they cope with this loss. Our loss is truly Heaven's gain.
This next week is going to see Steve cover almost as much ground, too. Please keep him in your prayers as he continues to travel and to make preparations for the coming year! God is opening so many doors, and giving us so many wonderful opportunities. It is our prayer that we will be able to seize the opportunites and make the most of every opportunity that God gives us.
Keep us in your prayers, as we remember you as well.
March 9 - 15, 2003
This week was a whirlwind. I (Colleen) have had a busy week with family things here at home. I made a trip to Little Rock for Isaiah's check up. Erin went on this trip with me and I was sure glad. She is so much help. Isaiah really did better for this doctor's visit than ever before. That was a great accomplishment. We'll hear from his tests in a couple of weeks.Steve was in Houston, Texas, at the beginning of the week and then on to Tyler, Texas. He came home for a couple of days then on to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Next week is the Tulsa Workshop and we'll have a booth there for Operation Guyana. If you are there, please stop by and see us.
Jerry and Pat are doing well in Guyana. Nurse Pat stays pretty busy in the clinic. She saw 123 patients this week. She also spoke at a Ladies' Fellowship Day at Canal #2.
Jerry has done some visiting, preaching, teaching at GIBI, and continues his Greek class he's teaching. He's done a lot in helping the Plaisance congregation with their building and they have a new sign now.
March 16 - 22, 2003
On Sunday the DeLoach family attended services at Jenks, Oklahoma. That night the kids and Colleen returned to Fayetteville and Steve preached at a congregation in Oklahoma City. He returned to the Tulsa/Jenks area on Monday where he had several meetings over the next few days.On Wednesday, Erin, Isaiah and Colleen joined Steve in Tulsa to set up our Operation Guyana booth for the Soul Winning Workshop. The workshop began on Thursday and went through Saturday night. We were able to visit with a lot of people. There were many people we haven't seen in years and it was great to reunite with them. There were people who have worked with us in Guyana who stopped by our booth and there were also some who are interested in coming to Guyana or supporting the work in some way. It was a very encouraging several days.
On Friday, Colleen drove back to Fayetteville to spend the day with Meagan celebrating her 18th birthday!!!! Then she and Brooke rode back to Tulsa with Colleen to spend Saturday at the workshop.
In Guyana, Pat Veatch saw 120 patients in the clinic. Jerry Veatch taught a marriage seminar at one of the congregations from Monday through Thursday as well as his regular classes he teaches at GIBI. Orin Ross has been keeping busy in the bond, sorting and labeling ... that is truly a never-ending job.
Jerry and Pat work closely with the Plaisance congregation and spent a day on an outing with them. I'm sure they enjoyed the time away from the regular schedule.
Jerry and Pat both have been a little "sickly" lately. There are some days that are like that ... just feel blah and don't really know why.
Next week we'll report on Steve's where-abouts ... along with Erin. She'll be traveling with her Dad!
March 23 - 29, 2003
After church services in Jenks, OK, on Sunday morning, Steve and Erin started their journey towards Florida, and Colleen and the other kids headed back to Fayetteville. Erin and Steve spent a few days relaxing before stopping in several places for speaking engagements.Isaiah got another good report from his lab work that was done a couple of weeks ago. His HIV is still undetectable!!!!! Always a relief to hear that. So, we just keep doing what we have been doing with him and his medicine. And most certainly keep praying!!
Let me take this time, too, to mention that along with the job Orin Ross is doing for us at Operation Guyana, he also is getting ready for a wedding in his family! Orin and Marie's oldest son, Orin, or who most of us know as Junior, is getting married on April 26th to Malini Jaikarran. I'm sure there are a lot of preparations they are all busy with, and we pray God's strength and blessings on them all.
APRIL
March 30 - April 5, 2003
Our Operation Guyana clinic has been put to good use. Nurse Pat and Alvin have had lots of patients coming through. As a matter of fact, they are booked up through April. In March, 562 patients were treated. Pat reports that she is running low on several of the medicines.Pat's non clinic time has been spent working on Bible class material to teach at Industry.
Last week Jerry taught a Marriage/Relationship Seminar at Linden. Linden is 1½ hour drive, one way. Nigel drove Jerry all four days. I know the trip itself wore them out. The seminar was very well attended. There was an average of 50 each night. That's GREAT!
This week Jerry spent a lot of time making visits to church members. He's also been busy helping the Plaisance congregation. He is in charge of making sure there's someone lined up to preach each Sunday there.
The Veatch's landlord is having some repairs done on their house and it requires someone to be there for security purposes. So they've had their hand's full!
Steve and Erin are still making tracks through the southern part of the States. I can hardly keep up with them! They have visited congregations in Florida, members in Alabama and are making stops in Tennessee right now. Please pray for their traveling safety.
April 8 - 12, 2003
As many of you know, Steve has been on the road the past three weeks. An awful lot has been done in those three weeks and lots of work and preparation has been done. Steve and Erin (our youngest daughter) have traveled through Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Arkansas. They have met with churches and team members all over this area and have visited with lots and lots of different people.This week they will wrap things up in Arkansas and will meet with three different teams here, and then plan to be home sometime on Wednesday night late.
In about a month, we will be in Guyana getting things ready for the summer. It looks like we are going to have 8 teams come down to work with us, all in varied sizes ... from 15 to 70 in number!
We have a congregation in Jacksonville, Florida, that is helping us with our fund raising in a very different way. They are hosting a Golf Tournament! We are hoping that this will be successful and that we can duplicate this in other areas and use it as a way to raise funds that we otherwise could not get. You can visit their website at www.jbcoc.org/golf_001.htm and see what their plans are and what the dates are. Mark Tutor, a PGA Golf Pro, is a member of this congregation and is putting this all together. Once it is finished, he will have put together a preparation book that will allow us to duplicate this with our other teams easily. We will let you know more later!
Please keep us in your prayers now. As we prepare to leave the country, Satan is working hard to distract us and discourage us. He does this every time and we are accustomed to this, but it is always a factor for us. Pray that God will meet our needs and not allow Satan to be successful in ANY WAY!
In Guyana, Pat saw 106 patients in the clinic in four days. She and Jerry took a much needed day off on Friday and just relaxed away from work and home. Jerry has finished up his first level Greek class. They'll take a break and then he'll begin a second level.
Orin has pretty much finished the bond he's been working on so diligently. And I know he is busy with wedding plans for his son this month. Our prayers and blessings go out to Junior and Malini.
Thanks so much for visiting our website on a regular basis and for being a part of our life and our work. Without your love, your support, your interest, and your prayers, we could not do this work. Thanks so much!
April 13 - 19, 2003
From Guyana, Jerry and Pat Veatch report a good week. Jerry taught Bible class at Plaisance on Sunday morning. And on Monday and Wednesday mornings he taught a "Sermon on the Mount" class. The Plaisance ladies had a retreat in New Amsterdam from Thursday through Saturday that Jerry and Pat both participated in. Jerry spoke to both the men and women. And Pat spoke to a group of about 100 ladies/children. Traveling there and back in their truck, they were pretty loaded with luggage and people. Even some standing up because there was not enough room to sit. This was no short trip, either. I know they were blessed by having been there.On Tuesday, Jerry and Pat had a pizza party for his Greek class. He gave out grades and awards.
Along with all the other things Pat participated in, she still was able to see 63 patients in three days.
Back in the States, the DeLoaches have been scattered, but are now all back in the same location getting ready for some of us to head back to Guyana real soon.
Steve and Erin started off in Jonesboro, Arkansas, and literally had meetings all day long on Sunday, with various members of the congregation, team, team leadership, and team family members. It was a great day and a very productive time of preparation.
On Monday, Steve met with the Campus Minister there in Jonesboro, and they just dreamed and planned for 2004. A big part of what we do is planned years in the future. It never just "falls from the sky" but often takes time for the idea to develop, grow, and ultimately be harvested.
On Monday night it was on to Searcy, where Steve met with our Intern for this summer, Melody Ramey. She has been to Guyana numerous times, but this is her first time to come and spend the summer as an Intern. We met and talked about her duties this summer and tried to answer lots of questions.
On Tuesday, Steve met with a prospective team in Searcy in the early afternoon, and then early in the evening we met with our long time team from there in Searcy. After our meeting, Erin and Steve drove home to Springdale, having been gone for over three weeks.
On Wednesday, Steve and Colleen drove down to Fort Smith and met with the team there. The Fort Smith team meets on Wednesday nights and answers questions, prepares, and trains their team members. Perhaps it is no accident that this team always comes very highly prepared and very productive.
Also while in Ft. Smith, we went to the INS office to turn in paperwork concerning Isaiah's citizenship, only to find out that it has ALL been taken care of. Nothing more there to turn in!!!! Be sure you check his latest update on this site.
The rest of the week was spent just trying to tend to "family business" after having been gone for so long, and trying to get ready for our trip back to Guyana.
While we have been working here, Jerry and Pat Veatch have been busy in Guyana. One of the wonderful things about having them in Guyana as part of our team is that our work does not stop when the DeLoach family comes back to the U.S.A. In fact, we are seeing more nurturing, more maturity being developed, and more groundwork laid now than ever before.
Please keep our entire Operation Guyana team in your prayers. We depend on each other an awful lot, and we cannot get along without any of our team members. Pray that God will continue to bless our efforts, and that we will continue to give Satan "fits" in our efforts to serve God!
April 20 - 26, 2003
We hope everyone enjoyed Easter and was reminded of how good our God is. Our family enjoyed our time together.We've been doing a lot of "family" stuff this week. Isaiah had a check up in Little Rock at Children's Hospital. It'll be a couple of weeks before we get all the test results. The doctors that see him there have been talking a lot over the past year about changing his medicines because of his high cholesterol. They talked to us this week about some research that has been done and with great prayful consideration, we'll probably agree to change some meds when we return from Guyana in August. Please be praying about this with us. God has worked above and beyond in Isaiah's situation. It has been in big things and small details that we continually see God's faithful hand. He has truly blessed us through this little boy.
Meagan, our middle daughter, is finishing high school next month and we've been busy getting things wrapped up with her. She'll be staying back in the States this summer to work. It's going to be so strange going back to Guyana without her. This will be the first summer she's been in the States since 1992.
Jerry and Pat enjoyed Easter in Guyana and the traditional kite flying on Monday following Easter. The seawall was lined with people flying kites!
Jerry finished up his GIBI classes this week as well as the Philippians class he was teaching at Plaisance.
Pat saw 86 patients in four days this week. Monday was a holiday.
Orin's son, Junior, and Malini were married on Saturday. I know Orin's been real busy getting ready for the that. We wish we could have been there for the wedding. Jerry and Pat were there, and we know they were glad to have been able to go.
Our family will be in Guyana within the next few weeks. Please pray for our travel preparations. We love you all.
MAY
April 27 - May 3, 2003
The DeLoaches are two weeks from departure to Guyana. There are always so many details to tie down before leaving. Seems there is something every day! Even things at the house that just fall apart and need to be taken care of ... we had a door knob that just quit working and it was an exterior door and had to be fixed ... the air conditioning unit had a glitch and had to be dealt with ... just time-consuming projects that we have to stop and take care of.On Sunday our family drove over early to Jenks, Oklahoma, to attend services with our sponsoring congregation. They are in the process of building a new building so there will be enough room to have the whole congregation meet at one time. Right now, Jenks holds 3 services in the small building they have had for several years. But this Sunday was an outdoor service next door to the property where they are building. It was a great service with the whole congregation meeting at one time and a picnic lunch afterwards.
We're real excited about the plans for the summer in Guyana. We ask that you pray for God to send us those who are seeking Him and for each one of us who will be serving in Guyana to be used by God to His glory. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement.
May 4 - 10, 2003
This report is going to be short and, hopefully, sweet. This is a busy weekend for us (DeLoach family). We are scurrying around getting things ready to leave on Monday, May 12th.Steve preached at two congregations in the Kansas City area on Sunday. Then, on Wednesday, he met with one of our teams coming down this summer from Broken Arrow, OK.
Other than that, we've been running here and there trying to get ready to leave. Please, please pray for our safety, for good health, for God to lead us to those who are searching for the truth, for the teams preparing to come down, and for the family members we are leaving behind this trip.
Next report will be after we're in Guyana.
May 11 - 17, 2003
What a week!This week, we started in Arkansas, then were in Miami for a few days, and finally ended up in Guyana. We have covered a lot of miles and are working to get settled in and ready for the coming weeks with our teams.
As always, unpacking and getting our house in order has been the consuming item on the agenda for the past couple of days. Getting everything unpacked, getting our apartment back in order, and picking up various odds and ends from the grocery store to get us started again has all been the main events of the past three days.
Upon arrival, we found that our staff had really worked hard to get things ready for the summer. The warehouse, where we store our supplies and equipment for the summer, has been completely organized and put together in such a way, that the summer will be a lot easier in terms of what the teams need.
They also have been working in the office, and with some of the local churches, getting things ready for the summer. We are excited and ready for what the next few weeks have to offer.
On the way down, we rode in the plane with Jim Cox, a missionary who has been working for years up in the Northwest District. He had a member of his congregation with him, and they were on their way Northwest to do some advanced teaching there. The church has really grown in this region in the past several years, and that is due largely to the hard work and example of Jim Cox.
G.I.B.I. (the School of Preaching) is planning on having their graduation this year on June 20th. This is earlier than ever before, but things seem to be going well there. Jerry Veatch has been teaching a class there this session, and also teaching at the office an advanced Greek course. We have lots of good teaching scheduled for here this summer with Jerry, Steve, and lots of our preachers, teachers, and elders who are coming down to work with us this summer.
We have 8 different projects scheduled this summer, and they will basically be going on one right after the other. This is going to be a very busy summer!
Next week, Steve will be meeting with Government officials and others who help us or advise us in terms of our work. In the meantime, the rest of the family will continue with the task of settling in. Hopefully we will be settled before the first team arrives in about 3 weeks.
Please keep us in your regular and daily prayers. Ask God to lead us, guide us, protect us, and use us to His glory. And, ask God to deliver us from Satan's schemes. It seems that on every turn he is trying to slow us down or even stop us. Pray that we will be victorious over him, and that God will be glorified for this.
In the meantime, please make an effort to visit this site often. We are going to be adding regular updates on all the many different things that will be going on this summer. Come back and read the reports, look at the pictures, and keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
May 18 - 24, 2003
Our week started with services at Nismes, on the West Bank Demerara. This is where Desmond Zephyr is. It was so good to be with them again. Desmond does a lot to help coordinate all kinds of church related projects on that side of the river. And we will have the majority of our medical missions over there this summer.Tuesday was Pat Veatch's birthday. That was a good reason to celebrate with cake in the office!!! Happy Birthday, Pat!! We love you a lot and appreciate all the hard work you do.
We had a good staff meeting the middle of the week. We're getting things sorted out getting ready for medical missions to start soon. This involves getting locations confirmed, getting equipment ready, as well as hotel and transportation issues. Steve had a lot of business and governmental meetings and will have more in the upcoming couple of weeks. This is to get paperwork and permits squared away. Paperwork here takes forever! You just can't imagine.
Isaiah went to school here last summer, but because we're here for such a short time this summer and the fact that he is behind, because we didn't get to work with him while we were in the States, we have his teacher from last year coming over to tutor him. He is enjoying that! His teacher is a real blessing. She loves her job and loves Isaiah. She works so well with him and he learns so quickly from her. He'll probably go to the school some, from time to time, on P.E. days and be with his friends there.
On Friday night, we met with some of the missionary staff that works with G.I.B.I. for food and fun. This was at Steve and Monica Foster's house. It was great just to sit down, relax, and visit. There was a card game going on that most of them got involved in. There was no grace shown among those missionaries in that card game!!! Ha Ha. The pictures are from that night.
Some of you may already know that this was our first trip down without Meagan. It was with great mixed emotions leaving her behind. We're so proud of her accomplishments in finishing her High School studies. She has a full-time job working with a bank in Fayetteville. Now, she and her sister, Brooke, are working at competitive banks. It is hard coming down with less children, though. We've watched our girls grow up half their lives down here. We are so proud of them and I know Guyana will always have a special place in their hearts. They look forward to when they can come back for a visit.
May 25 - 31, 2003
We've had a really good week getting things organized and prepared for the teams to start arriving. Our first team will arrive on June 7th.
Ramesh and Anne Mulchand were celebrating
their anniversary on Sunday.
Steve preached at a small congregation in the Grove squatting area on Sunday. Brother Ramesh and his wife, Anne, attend there and are a great encouragement to those brethren. Some of you may know Ramesh as "the bottle man."
Worship at Grove.As Memorial Day was being celebrated in the States, we celebrated Independence Day here in Guyana. Steve had a good sermon on Sunday. After explaining what our Memorial Day celebration is in the States, he showed that as Christians we celebrate Memorial Day around the Lord's table on the first day of the week. Then explained that as Christians, we celebrate Independence Day everyday being freed from sin through Christ. What a great celebration!!
Melody Ramey, our summer intern, arrived on Wednesday night. We look forward to her help this summer. She is 20 years old, from Searcy, Arkansas. Melody and her mother, Debbie Poss, have been coming to Guyana on medical missions for about 10 years. We are really glad she is here.
This week, our entire staff has gotten together several times to get things ready for our teams. We are better prepared this summer than we have ever been before. That is due to our GREAT staff. Each one has pulled together, and together we are truly working as a unit. We're excited to see what this will mean to our efforts this summer.
Please keep us in your prayers. We have a lot of things going on and seven different teams coming down to work with us. Pray for the teams, as well as the lives that we'll touch through these medical missions.
May God use us in mighty ways.
