It all started with a youth group in Rockfield church in Montreal, QC and their desire to spread the gospel, two years of planning and the support of the rest of the church to make this trip happen. 6 members ages 15 through 81 (one member young at heart), embarked on a trip trusting in God and knowing that He does extraordinary things through ordinary people.
“Thursday, after stepping off the plane and into a “WOOSH” of very… VERY hot and humid air, we were met by John – for some of us a first – and from there were transported by bus to the Casa Marina resort where we are lodging. Yes… Casa Marina RESORT. I could already hear some of you thinking “What?! A Resort?! What kind of a mission trip is this!?” says Mel. “It’s just a place to unwind after a hot, muggy day at work, eat, spend time in evening devotions together.....and SLEEP!” 
Trip Highlights: worshipping with fellow believers in villa Esperanza, 
physically building the kingdom, 
singing with the children, 
playing with the children,
and especially visiting the sick in the hospital.
This is Mel's story of their visit to the hospital.
“Yesterday was a very… incredible day, incredible for many reasons. I never thought I would feel so… comfortable doing what we did yesterday.”
“We arrived at the Puerto Plata hospital in the afternoon, after having spent the morning back at our “home” village in Esperanza. I, personally, was not too sure about what to expect, concerning both the interaction with the patients of the hospital, as well as MY reaction towards the whole experience. Turned out that before we knew it, we had spent 4 ½ hours standing and walking and kneeling by bedsides, talking and praying with patients of the hospital and their family.” 
“One of the most memorable parts of this experience for me was the following: at one point, as I was knelt down by the bedside of a young man, maybe 17 or 18, the look in his face was one of literally complete despair. He seemed panicky, before I even started to talk to him. I approached him, and took him by the hand, and started talking to him about the hope that is Jesus Christ. When I asked him if he was a Christian, he looked at me with what I think might have been tears in his eyes, and shook his head. No. I prayed for him, and left his side, reminding him not to forget God, to remember that He has a plan for his life. Personally, that was one of the most moving moments of the day, because though this young man said very little words, his face was the complete demonstration of everything happening in his heart.... pain, worry, & despair.”
“Delight yourself in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.” Psalm 37: 4&5 
We pray that the Lord has touched your hearts and blessed you as much as you have been a blessing to others.
Little did we realize at the time how much our lives would be changed, stretched, strengthened in Christ and rearranged from what we previously knew it to be. I don't think we even realized the changes we would see happen within us and how God would be able to recycle a couple of late 40 year olds into workable tools for his service. Not that we thought we were useless to Him before but now we were placed in an element and culture that was truly foreign to us. But over the past 2 years we have seen our faith and dependence on God manifested moreso than I think it may have living in our previous comfort zone of Canada. We have seen the power of prayer working magnificantly, Godly provisions never ceasing and a realization that all things work to the good of those who fear the Lord. To borrow an old adage "We don't always know what the future holds, we certainly know who holds the future".
To celebrate this milestone in our lives, Jane and I took a little over night excursion to Samana and then over to one of our favourite places, Las Terrenas. Though we didn't take many pictures of our time there, the memories of relaxation, peace and quietness will certainly last a lifetime.
On Wednesday and Friday mornings the center is a busy place where 150-200 children and elderly are fed a nutritious hot meal. Jim & Sue cannot do this by themselves and have an excellent support staff of locals to help them.
Claribelle has tested seven different menu options which have been enjoyed by both the children and the elderly. In every bowl of her homemade chicken soup there is an entire drumstick or piece of chicken and one of the children’s favorite meals is spaghetti with salami. 
Woody and Marco distribute the food bags (separate food program) that are assembled for some sponsored families who need a little extra food and then do crowd control duties to ensure the younger children are admitted first to eat. Everyone is hungry and would like to eat a meal, but no matter how much extra food Claribelle cooks, there never seems to be enough to feed everyone waiting.
Papo also helps keep order in the house when he is not scrubbing the pots.
I (Jane) am the newest recruit to their team to lend a helping hand where needed….. usually organizing the groups that come to serve or being elbows up in suds on cleanup duty, and in October will be taking charge when Jim & Sue go home to the U.K. for a short break. The many years experience I spent volunteering for the Women’s Guild of H.D.C.H. preparing and serving meals to large groups of people is certainly paying off. At the end of a hectic day, the kitchen and serving area are spotless and ready to go for the next time.
Thank you to all the volunteers and especially Jim & Sue Coates who give their time and love in Jesus’ name to make this feeding program a roaring success. It is a blessing to be a servant in the Lord's name. Praise God that He will continue to bless this program, an excellent example of the community in villa Ascension working together to help each other once again.
In the rural areas of the Dominican Republic these machines are not available so patients must use an external bag taped to their bodies for an 8 hour period, 4 times a week. 
On our last trip to Canada we secured some medicine that was donated by a doctor in Cambridge, Ont. for Ramon. Packed in ice and put in a cooler bag it cleared customs without a hitch. However, upon our return we were informed that Ramon was so sick that he was sent to the children’s hospital in Santiago shortly after we left. 
His mom Sarah, has stayed with him in Santiago for the past 3 months as his primary caregiver. Ramon’s father had abandoned their family so the other children have been staying with relatives this entire time without any resources to go to Santiago to see their brother.
They will meet the doctor this week and hope that Ramon may be able to return home soon…because school starts on August 17th. Please pray that all will go well with his treatments and that their family may be reunited once again soon. They live in Sosua Abajo very near to us so we will update his condition when he returns home.
