Now and Then

After spending about 3 1/2 months working with the Community Development school and helping run IT, I am back in Colorado.

I am planning on being here for about a month, re-connecting with people and raising more monthly financial support. My plan is to meet with people, and speak in my church. I also plan to visit friends and family in Wyoming.

I will arrive in Montana around the 3rd week of May and resume my department leader- ship position in housekeeping.

Several opportunities have been presented to me that I am seeking God about. I have been asked to work with the tech. department in Kona, and staff the CD schools in Nepal and England.

Thank you all for your continued prayers and financial support over the years. You are truly a blessing to me.

A Very Long Night!

On March 11 and 12 we were hit by the tsunami from the Japan earthquake. I remember sitting in a movie theater on our campus watching a film, when a staff member came in and interrupted the movie saying; “Just to let all of you know the tsunami sirens have just gone off, and they are expecting the tsunami to hit us in about 5 hours”. This was around 10 pm. Shortly after that announcement, I received a text from one of the IT leaders on the campus asking me to hurry and bring what we needed to run live- stream. So I quickly left the theater and began setting things up for our campus live-streaming. 

The Kona campus is just above the tsunami evacuation line, and because we have such a huge facility we are one of the main evacuation points for Kailua- Kona. That night, I stayed up all night monitoring what was being broadcast- ed by the news stations and playing it for our people that were gathered in the court yard area.

There was some damage done to shops along the ocean front but that’s about it. I don’t believe anyone died.

The Ohana Gathering

Every Thursday evening we have what we call The Ohana Gathering. This is a time where the entire campus comes together for a time of worship, and then there is usually a message that follows.
Every Thursday is also open to the public, so anyone who would like to come and listen may do so.
Because I was running the technology aspect of things during the community development school, I was also asked to help run the live-streaming for our Thursday night meetings. During my time as an IT person on the campus, I discovered that I am interested and am ok at working with technology. The IT people there are trying to recruit me to work with them.

Community Development (Online)

The time for this school has come to an end. During the last 3 1/2 months, I have had the privilege to staff the masters-level Community Development school in Kona. this  particular school was done completely online, which made for some very interesting dynamics.

We had about 30 students total,10 face to face and about 20 online. Our students came from Samoa, Canada, Amsterdam, the US and several Asian and African countries.

Running this type of school, presented its challenges. This school was the first one that we ran completely online. 

What was my role?  When I first arrived in Kona, the school leaders came up to me and said basically that this school is all online and we need some one to run the technology part. and we want you to do it. when I first heard this I about fell out of my seat! I knew nothing about the kind of technology that was required, but with a smile on my face and butterflies in my stomach I said... "Uuuhhhh Okaaayy?!?!?!?"

I was seriously thrown into this job without any experience.  But with God's grace I ran the livestream, sound system, microphone set and two online-learning programs.  Plus I carried many other responsibilities relating to the school.

Because this was a pilot project, we did not know what the outcome of the school would be, and how the students were going to be changed. God miraculously came through and we saw transformation take place in the lives of our students through the internet.

God can work through any form of medium!