Word & Deed Ambassadors

Volunteer Profile: Dick Naves

2010-06-12T06:32:00.000-07:00

A Pleasure by Tanya Byl

It all started with a sponsor child. Now Dick Naves has been on Word & Deed’s Board since 2000, with his entry into that position initiated by a field trip to Haiti with Bernie Pennings. Since the beginning, “it has been a pleasure to watch God work and use Word & Deed in so many ways.”

Volunteering for Word & Deed is just one more commitment for an already busy husband, father and teacher. Dick and his wife Carolyn are raising their four children in Ancaster, Ontario, and Dick teaches at nearby Rehoboth Christian School (RCS), where he is also vice-principal for the secondary school.

Besides his service on the Board, Dick enjoys the annual challenge of a 24-hour fast. After reading about a similar event at another school, he thought it would be “both fun for our school…and beneficial for Word & Deed” to raise funds with a student fast. “I was younger then,” says Dick. Don’t forget that a 24-hour fast involves a big sleepover at school along with the food deprivation. The fast has developed to include two more local Christian schools and almost 100 students. The proceeds have also increased from about $3,000 the first year to over $10,000 the last few years, with the latest funds going to the salary of two teachers at John Calvin Christian School in Colombia.

So why Word & Deed and not something else? Dick points out that he has “grown with Word & Deed and … it is hard to imagine not being involved in some capacity.” When asked what motivates him to keep volunteering, the enthusiasm and conviction familiar to all his students surfaces. “Word & Deed is a ministry that aligns with what Scripture teaches and what I fully agree with. It is so important to be sure that when we go into other countries to help with relief work that we must bring the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the only way that we can bring true hope that will last forever. God has clearly instructed us to bring both word and deed to those in need and He has blessed this ministry … in ways that keep us humble.”

Tanya Byl is a copy editor at Word & Deed magazine.

Saluting Volunteers

2009-06-13T13:19:00.000-07:00

(Left to Right) Corrie VanVurren, Anne Koerssen and Maria Wieringa are three of many faithful volunteers north of Toronto, who spend a lot of time knitting, crocheting, and collecting blankets, sweaters, baby booties and much more for th needy overseas.

Dutch Soup and Oliebollen

2009-06-13T13:06:00.000-07:00

Volunteer Profile, Mary Cogbill-by Martha Markwat

Each year as spring approaches, Mary Cogbill starts thinking about Dutch soup – 160 gallons of Dutch soup, that is.

“For the past 10 years my partner and I have had a food booth featuring authentic Dutch food during the Tulip Time Festival in Holland, Michigan” says Mary. “For the last five years a large percentage of the profits have gone to support Word & Deed projects.”

Mary has been a Word & Deed board member since the US branch was started in2000. Since then she has given her time and energy to organizing several fund-raising dinners and auctions, but her Dutch food booth is by far her largest time commitment during the year. She starts preparing food at the beginning of April. “Five dozen buns a day is my goal,” says Mary.

Mary recruits Word & Deed volunteers and some paid help to run the booth for eight of the nine festival days in May. They currently run their booth at Windmill Island, a Dutch theme park in the city of Holland. The average Tulip Time sees Mary serving up 84 gallons of split pea soup, 75 gallons of Dutch vegetable meatball soup, 100 dozen homemade buns, 1500 oliebollen, 500 Jan Hagel cookies, not to mention croquetten, banket (a long roll of pastry filled with almond paste) and currant bread. Customers are thrilled with the Dutch lunch. “We never get a bad comment,” Mary says.

Even though it is a lot of work, Mary enjoys contributing to Word & Deed this way. “It's really worth while,” she says.

“Mary is very dedicated and hardworking,” says Heidi Pronk, the executive director of Word & Deed USA. “Although you may not see her out in front of the crowd, there are very few Word & Deed events that take place without her involvement behind the scenes.”

As an empty nester, Mary finds volunteering is a good way to stay busy with meaningful things, and she is grateful for Word & Deed's emphasis on making the gospel message available to those they assist.

Mary Cogbill and sponsor child Andrea

Mary has had the opportunity to see first-hand how Word & Deed's partner organization CDA is bringing the gospel as they meet the needs of girls in Colombia. On a trip in 2007, Mary and her husband Kent went on some home visits with staff from the Girls Home in Tenjo. They wanted to meet and sponsor a child while they were there, so the staff at CDA gave them a unique experience. “We were allowed to be part of a ‘rescue mission’ of a 3-year-old girl,” says Mary. It had already been determined that this child was living in horrendous conditions and that her life was in danger. She was removed from her home and brought to the Girls Home in Tenjo. “We were then able to spend a lot of time with her and witness first-hand the joy of helping these little ones,” says Mary. “As you can imagine, it was very difficult to leave her behind.”
After they got home from their trip to Colombia, Mary couldn't stop thinking about how the girls at the Girls Home have no concept of what it means to be part of a healthy, functioning family. “We wanted to give one of the girls that opportunity,” says Mary. “We also knew that if she could learn English she would have a much greater chance of advancement.” After much discussion and planning with CDA, Liliana arrived in Michigan in January, 2008. “Unfortunately, she had not done very well on her English lessons so communication was a huge problem,” Mary says. Things did get better as Liliana learned English and Kent and Mary pray that it will prove to have been a positive experience in her life. Since then, an attempt was made by another family to bring another girl to the US for a similar experience. Unfortunately, the Colombian government has since refused to grant visas.

Martha Markwat is a member of the Free Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan and one of the editors of this magazine.

Joyful Determination

2009-06-13T12:32:00.000-07:00

Volunteer Profile Bernie & Ina Pennings-by Tanya Byl

The first thing I notice when I sit down across from Ina Pennings is her hands. Large and strong, with short fingernails, these are working hands. Ina is a mother of ten, a devoted daughter, and one of Word & Deed’s most loyal volunteers. Fifteen years ago, Ina and her husband Bernie welcomed a child unlike any other into their family fold. A little immature, but with real potential, it was Word & Deed Canada. Since then, she has watched it grow from its humble beginnings at a desk in her home to its current office in St. Thomas, Ontario.

In 1996, Bernie and Ina had to decide whether Bernie would leave his electrical contracting business to become Word & Deed’s director. Although the couple initially declined, an industrial accident injured Bernie and changed their minds. Ina says, “The Lord was saying to us, you made the wrong decision. I want you to go into missions.” This made their commitment easier, because “when he goes [overseas], I know it was the Lord’s decision.” With Bernie working as Word & Deed’s executive director, the organization has had a direct impact on the Pennings family. “We as a family work more as a unit together. Especially in the beginning, we did everything together – magazines, picnics…”

Ina has always volunteered her time for Word & Deed’s wellbeing. For the first five years, she was its office secretary. When she began home schooling her children, she stepped back to managing the packaging and distribution of the magazine.

While the distribution currently happens at the local FRC church, Ina remembers that “we used to do it on my kitchen table.” These days, about 15 volunteers come and go throughout a day, spurred on in their work by a pan of Ina’s homemade soup. Twice a year, they stuff remittance envelopes into the magazine as well.

When travellers head to Word & Deed projects overseas, Ina packs one of their suitcases with goods for that country, taking full advantage of every 50 available pounds. Although current airline policy has cancelled the free second piece of luggage, a suitcase on an airplane is still one of the most economical ways to ship goods to foreign countries. Ina seems to approach her life’s tasks with good humour and determination. She laughs, “One person asked me ‘How are you going to get 75 pounds in this suitcase?’ and I said, ‘Watch! Squeeze…roll…’”

Ina is keen to see more young people visit the developing countries in which Word & Deed works. “They’re the future of charity,” she says. “They’re going to have it on their heart.” Has all her volunteering encouraged her own children to do the same? “I think so,” Ina says. “They’re caring, sharing. I don’t even notice it. I figure that’s just a part of how we’re supposed to live.”

Tanya Byl is a member of Burgessville Heritage Reformed Congregation and one of the editors of this magazine.

High Hopes and Lots of Prayer

2009-06-13T12:06:00.000-07:00

Chilliwack Ambassadors-By Judy denHertog

When Word & Deed put out the call for ambassadors, four women from the Chilliwack, BC area answered. We are Judy Baars, Nanette Greendyk, Judy denHertog, and Fran Westeringh. As ambassadors, we have organized three annual fundraising dinners. We started three years ago with small expectations, high hopes and lots of prayer. The first dinner and presentation was full to capacity, which was humbling. This encouraged us to look for a larger venue the following years, enabling us to cater to twice as many guests.
A lot of planning precedes the events. When Rick Postma notifies us of the date we can expect the speaker, we begin planning. It takes regular meetings and careful discussion from the outset as we explore our options. Each year again we have seen the Lord provide in every step of the preparation.
A critical component of each success is the many volunteers from several of our local churches. Our volunteers are involved with advertising, ticket sales, food preparation and serving, decorations, set-up and clean-up. A special feature at our last dinner was a group of youth recruits who assisted as ushers and servers.
With all of our dinners, we sought sponsors for each table, who were expected to invite enough guests to fill their table. We found this works well, as the guests also are encouraged to donate to the cause of Word & Deed. We have been blessed with dedicated sponsors who have supported us in many ways. We retain a waiting list for unfilled seats, and consequently have been able to serve a full house. We have witnessed a slow but steady progress of increased participation from various Fraser Valley churches. We pray that this will continue as we look forward to each upcoming event.

Word & Deed ambassadors: (from left) Fran Westeringh, Judy Baars, Judy den Hertog and Nanette Greendyk.

Five young men who served as dinner ushers: Wouter Koster, Matt Stam, Jesse and Allan van Oosterom and Damian van Woerden.

Business Groups in British Colombia

2009-05-26T07:55:00.000-07:00

Business Group of Chilliwack
On Thursday, June 11, 2009, at 7:30 p.m. we hope to have our second annual business group meeting at the Chilliwack Cattle Company at 47749 Prairie Central Rd. in Chilliwack. We will be using a board room above the machine shop. Click here for directions.

Business Group of Abbotsford/Langley
On Monday, June 15, 2009 at 8 p.m., we hope to launch the Abbotsford/Langley business group at Darvonda Nurseries, 6690 216 Street, Langley. Click here for directions.
To find out more about Word & Deed business groups, click here.
Anyone interested is welcome.

Business Group meetings in Alberta

2009-05-25T08:10:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of meeting with the four business groups of Alberta: Southern Alberta, Calgary, Central Alberta and Edmonton. Below are some pictures of the Southern Alberta group meeting. If you are interested in joining a group, or a starting one, please contact Rick Postma at 877.375.9673.

Here are some pictures of the meetings.

The Business Group of Southern Alberta is funding the micro-business development project in Colombia.

After the meeting, there is time to get to know one another.

Here is a picture of the Business Group of Central Alberta (with several members unable to make the meeting). This business group is funding a large multi-purpose hall for the Nkhoma Orphan project in Malawi.

Here is the Edmonton Business Group (several members were unable to make the meeting). This group is sponsoring the John Calvin Christian School in Colombia. A project which will begin in July with phase 1, the Lord willing.

I neglected to get a picture of the Calgary business group meeting. Below is a picture of the Calgary group, taken in 2009. This group is raising funds for the John Calvin Christian School in Colombia.

Business Group Annual meetings in Alberta

2009-04-02T09:09:00.000-07:00

The second annual meetings are being held for all four Alberta Business Groups at the end of April. Updates on projects which have been selected will be provided and new projects to support, where applicable, will be chosen.

In all cases, new members are warmly welcomed to join us. Please contact Rick Postma for more information publicrelations@wordanddeed.org or 877.375.9673.

Business Group of Southern Alberta
On Monday, April 27, 2009, we hope to have our second annual business group meeting at the Vanee Livestock Truck Wash (3716 9 Avenue North Lethbridge, AB) at 7:30pm, the Lord willing. Click here for a map.

Business Group of Calgary, Alberta
On Tuesday, April 28, 2009, we hope to have our second annual business group meeting at the Free Reformed church building at 7pm, the Lord willing. The address is 6167 6 St SE, Calgary and it is near the Blackfoot Inn. Click here for directions.

Business Group of Edmonton, Alberta
On Wednesday, April 29, 2009, we hope to have our second annual business group meeting at the Edmonton ORC (URCNA) building, 11610 95A St NW, at 8 pm, the Lord willing. Click here for a map.

Business Group of Central Alberta
On Thursday, April 30, 2009, we hope to have our second annual business group meeting at the Morningside Community Hall on Hwy 2A between Lacombe and Ponoka at 7:30pm, the Lord willing.

Sheffield Business Group

2009-02-26T08:35:00.000-08:00

The Sheffield Business Group was launched in February. The group chose to complete the funding needed for two orphan buildings in Malawi and to allocate remaining funding to home-rebuilding and agricultural projects in Nicaragua. New members are welcome to join the group. New members are welcome!

Volunteer: Led to Language

2009-02-05T19:11:00.000-08:00

by: Yolanda Gonzalez Laman

I was born in Spain and my family and I moved to the United States when I was five years old. My parents were seeking a better life for my brother and me, and knew they would find it in the USA, the land of opportunity. We moved to northern New Jersey, where my father and mother found good employment, and were able to purchase their first home. Their children were able to attend college and eventually go on to find their own employment. This certainly couldn’t be attributed to good fortune, chance, or even to my parents for moving us to the USA. Instead, we give all glory and honor to God, our Father, for providing for us and bestowing His grace and mercy upon us.

The Lord led me to a nursing degree, and two years after graduating, I married my high school sweetheart. We have been married for six years and have been blessed with a healthy little boy who will be two this December. The Lord led us to Saint Johns, Florida, where we have lived for almost two years.

It was my brother-in-law, Paul, who first suggested I might be able to help out Word & Deed by using my bilingual skills in translating. My first inclination was that I wasn’t sure I would be capable of what I thought would be translating official documents. But after praying about it, I felt prepared to help out however I could. It certainly wasn’t what I had thought. I was given forms to translate according to my own ability and I translate as many as I comfortably can. It is a pleasure corresponding with Heather VanMeppelen-Scheppink, administrative assistant, and she has helped me out when I needed it.

Translating for Word & Deed has brought joy along with many new perspectives into my life and I am thankful to God for it. Consider volunteering and sharing the gift given to you for the benefit of God’s kingdom. If you have been given a talent by God to know another language, what better way to put it to use than to fulfill God’s commission and to glorify Him who sent His own Son so that we may have life and have it more abundantly (John 10:10).Yolanda Gonzalez Laman lives with her husband, Steve, and small son in Saint Johns, Florida, where they attend Christ Church. Yolanda translates Spanish documents for Word & Deed.

Word & Deed Resources - Canada

2008-10-14T07:19:00.000-07:00

Click on the below links to download and print the respective files.

Fund-raiser sponsorship form

Child Sponsorship Frequently Asked Questions Sheet

Child Sponsorship Sign-Up Form

Malawi Orphan Basic Group Sponsorship Information Sheet

Malawi Orphan Basic Group Sponsorship Sign-Up Form

Pre-Authorized Payment Form

Word & Deed Resources - USA

2008-10-12T09:29:00.000-07:00

Below are information sheets for our child sponsorship and orphan sponsorship programs. Click on the below links to download and print the respective files.

Child Sponsorship Information Sheet

Child Sponsorship Form - Individual

Malawi Orphan Group Sponsorship Information Sheet

Malawi Orphan Group Sponsorship Form

Business Groups

2008-06-28T12:37:00.000-07:00

Maximizing Your Donation Impact - by Rick Postma

It is a sad reality that most of the money given to the developing world gets stolen before it can reach the intended recipient. The money that does get through is often used in a way that either doesn’t help at all or actually makes matters worse. By means of a grassroots network of indigenous Christian partners in the developing world, Word & Deed is able to ensure that any donations you make are in fact delivered to the intended recipients in the way that best meets their needs.

There are a number of ways that you can plug into this efficient and effective means of bringing hope to precious individuals in the developing world. One way is to become part of a local Word & Deed business group.

Word & Deed is setting up a number of regional business groups across North America, following the example of Woord en Daad in The Netherlands, where this approach has been used with great success over the past few years. As a member of this group, you will be able to pool your donation with that of other members to support a sizeable project. It further provides an opportunity to connect and identify with that project. From afar, you can watch it make a life-changing impact on countless lives. There will also be an opportunity for members of your group to periodically visit the projects your group supports.

The First Business Group
In December of 2007, the Word & Deed Business Group of Southern Alberta was launched. The members of this group pledged $28,000 and chose to support a micro-loans project in Colombia (budget of $40,000) that will provide small loans to a total of 126 families over three years to start their own businesses. Unfortunately, I didn’t remember to take a picture until I saw the tail lights of the last member drive away. Coordinators: Hank Arnoldussen 403.553.3311; John Van Hierden 403.327.9941 Dave Van Pelt 403.345.5175

Subsequent Groups
In April of 2008, several more groups were launched.

The Hamilton South Chapter met on April 9, at the Rehoboth United Reformed Church, and chose to support the new three-year John Calvin Christian school building project in Barranquilla, Colombia, in 2008. The fund-raising goal for this large project is $308,000 for each of 2008, 2009 and 2010. Actual construction will begin in 2009, the Lord willing. Numerous fund-raising activities (choirs, hunger awareness campaigns, etc.), churches and business groups will be needed to successfully complete this project. Coordinator: John Langendoen 905.679.8937

The Calgary, Alberta Chapter met on April 14 at the Blackfoot Inn and selected the John Calvin Christian School as well for which $38,000 was pledged with more to come. Coordinators: Edwin Kamphuis 403.281.6990; Don Fraser 403.239.9191; Lydia Vandenberg 403.668.9729

The Central Alberta Chapter met at Wolf Creek Inn near Ponoka on April 15 and selected a large multi-purpose building for the Nkhoma orphan care project in central Malawi as the project they will fund. This project has a budget of $74,000 and will involve a great deal of volunteer labor from the local people. Coordinator: John Lindemulder 403.783.8443

The Edmonton Chapter met at the Orthodox Reformed Church of Edmonton on April 16 and selected the Medical Clinic project in Barranquilla, Colombia. They hope to raise $50,000 for this project, which involves restoring an existing but shut-down (due to government corruption and neglect) medical clinic. The project will require an estimated $172,000 in operating costs for the first year, decreasing to zero over three years as small fees are charged to those who can afford it. Coordinator: Tom DeGraaf 780.469.9264

The Chilliwack Chapter met at the Chilliwack Free Reformed Church on Thursday, April 17 and selected two projects to support. First, they will fund the $30,000 home rebuilding project in Nicaragua (supplying wood for rebuilding 100 homes, with families providing the labor) and then remaining funds will go towards operating the Girls’ Home in Colombia. Coordinators: Corney Les 604.795.6938 ; Allan Les 604.799.3222 ; Dick Westeringh 604.823.6081

Each of these groups is looking to expand their numbers, so if you live in the area, please contact the representative. If you would like to help start a group in your area, please call me. New groups are being established in the Hamilton and St. Catharines areas in June, the Lord willing.

Here is how it works …

Local businessmen and women with a desire to make a major difference in the lives of needy people in the developing world are asked to join the local Word & Deed Business Group Chapter. Prospective members are asked to commit to a $1500 donation per year but lesser amounts are also gratefully accepted. Some will be in a position to give more.

A business group launch is held, at which a Word & Deed representative gives a presentation providing a brief overview of Word & Deed – mission, strategy, areas of emphasis (using indigenous Christians to run our projects, for example). A selection of projects is then reviewed.

All are asked to write on a slip of paper how much they would be willing to donate (they could also write a check at that point). The Word & Deed representative tallies the amounts so that the total amount of funding is known.
The group discusses which project they’d like to support. A vote is held to determine the final selection. The group may take on a whole project or part of one.

Periodic updates are provided to the group as the project progresses.

Every few years, one or two members of the group visit one of the projects they’ve been supporting. This travel is self-funded. These members are then in a position to bring back a first-hand account of the project to their fellow group members.

The following year, the group chooses another project or continues to fund the current one (for example, operational costs).

Please call 877.375.9673 or email me at publicrelations@wordanddeed.org to find out how to join an existing group or how to start a new one in your area.

Rick Postma is director of public relations for Word & Deed Ministries

Volunteer: Karen VanderSloot

2008-06-28T12:17:00.000-07:00

Counting the costs - by Martha Markwatby

From 8:00 to 5:00 Karen VanderSloot manages the financial aspects of HVAC equipment sales at her job as a controller for Airtech Equipment in Grand Rapids, Michigan. But after hours she records donations and disburses relief money for those in need around the world.

Each month Karen gives between 15 and 20 hours to all things financial for Word & Deed's US board. Her duties as treasurer include sending receipts to donors, tracking receipts by donor and by fund (ie sponsorship, Malawi, Colombia, etc), paying expenses, monitoring cash balance, disbursing funds to partners, and reporting to and advising the board on all financial matters.

As treasurer for Word & Deed USA, Karen VanderSloot's job satisfaction level is pretty high. “It is exciting to be able to help those with funds connect with those who have such need,” says Karen. “Having been on mission trips and seeing much poverty and need in the developing world, this was a way for me to contribute. It is also very satisfying to help others exercise good stewardship of their God-given abundance by being part of the oversight and decision making regarding the suitability and accountability of projects.”

Balancing volunteer duties with daily life can seem difficult, but Karen makes it look easy. “Since I am single, I have a full-time job, so most of the work is done in the evening and on Saturday,” says Karen. This takes some careful planning, and sometimes foregoing desired activities. “Occasionally, I take a lunch hour to do banking or other items that must be done during business hours,” says Karen.

Being a part of Word & Deed has given Karen a greater respect for the time, energy, prayer, and thought that goes into properly running this type of organization. “It has also made me more aware of how richly blessed I am,” says Karen. “If I am ever tempted to feel sorry for myself or think I am sacrificing too much, I consider the many people in this world who struggle daily to merely survive.”

And six of those struggling people are very close to Karen's heart. Karen has six sponsor children; four in Guatemala and two in Colombia. On her many mission trips – she's been to Colombia three times and to Guatemala at least ten times – she has been able to visit each of her sponsor children. “One family in Guatemala I have seen every year but one,” says Karen. “This is truly a great blessing and joy.”

Karen VanderSloot with her sponsor children and their family

In addition to her treasurer duties, Karen also coordinates many of the US mission trips to Guatemala andColombia. She usually arranges flights, work projects, transportation needs and itineraries in the countries they visit, which can take many emails to accomplish. She also coordinates team members – including finding out who wants to go, what skills match the work to be done, and searching for people to fill the missing spots. And of course, she takes care of the finances.

There are several reasons why Karen coordinates these trips. “I really enjoy seeing it all come together,” says Karen. “Plus, with my work schedule I am limited to which time of the month I can go, so if I coordinate, I have a little influence on the timing. Besides that, no one else has taken me up on my offer to let them do it!”

Martha Markwat is a member of the Free Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan and one of the editors of this magazine.

Volunteer: Diana Alblas

2008-06-27T13:29:00.000-07:00

Gifts and Talents - By Tanya Byl

Two-and-a-half years ago, a school principal got married, settled in St.Thomas, Ontario, decided against a long work commute, and thought, What now?

With an education and a decade of interesting work experience, many doors were open to her. But Diana Alblas decided that Word & Deed might be able to use her talents, and is now Mission Team Coordinator. Much of her time used to be spent coordinating volunteers for Gulfport, Mississippi. Now she assists people interested in overseas missions. Is volunteering a job? “I’m not sure what the difference would be, except you get paid for one and not the other. I feel a sense of responsibility to accomplish the tasks I have been asked to do and agreed to do.”

Diana Alblas with husband Arie and daughter Daniella

Diana's rich experience with different cultures and Christians lends vision to her current work with Word & Deed. She has studied linguistics and obtained her teaching certificate. As a literacy specialist for Wycliffe Bible Translators, she has desktop-published books in 30 languages in Mexico; and taught classes in languages she couldn’t speak, without an interpreter. She has eaten grasshopper and goat’s head (with the eyeballs still attached). Her final adventure before coming to Word & Deed was serving as principal of Wallaceburg Christian School in Ontario. Throughout her experiences, “I was fascinated by the variety of people I met and things the Lord allowed me to do along the way, ” says Diana. “I was able to…come to understand the meaning of a church universal.”

Her responsibilities at Word & Deed begin with answering your questions about proposed mission work trips to places like South Africa, Colombia and Guatemala. She organizes the travel plans, books the tickets, and smoothes out the wrinkles. Just recently, she held an orientation for several young women heading to Malawi. That involved getting everyone to the same place at the same time, creating an information booklet on the country, helping the participants get to know one another, and discussing the logistics of the actual mission. How much time does that take? “A lot!” But Diana points out that “it really is hard to stop when it is something you enjoy doing so much!”

And, of course, there are bigger parts to Diana’s life than her work at Word & Deed. The most important are taking care of her husband Arie and new daughter Daniella (13 months), in the old country home they recently moved to. The “cutest little girl ever” helps out the mission planning by entertaining herself in the office playpen or napping while Diana is working. The local Christian school also recently acquired Diana as a board member. Her life is definitely full.

Of her volunteer work, Diana says it “seemed like a way in which I could use my gifts and talents to further the work of the Lord abroad since I am not currently able to serve overseas myself. I would just love to be part of the work there and see what the Lord is doing for myself. Alas, maybe one day!”

Tanya Byl is a member of the Heritage Netherlands Reformed Congregation in Burgessville, Ontario, and one of the editors of this magazine.

Mission Circle Volunteers

2008-06-27T13:01:00.000-07:00

Hearts and Hands - by Rick Postma

I’d like to highlight the many women who spend countless hours using their creative talents to make blankets, sweaters, little infant hats and booties, finger puppets, and much more. Some do this alone, but many gather on a regular basis in mission circles. There they enjoy good fellowship while making many needed articles for countless precious individuals in the developing world. Their hearts and hands reach out in love to children and older ones in Africa and Latin America – people they will never meet, but people who nevertheless thank them from afar for their loving deeds.

Girls in Malawi enjoy finger puppets lovingly made by the late
Mrs. Boukje Wiegman of London, Ontario.

Guatemalan baby girls benefit from mission circle handiwork

A Mother
with newborn enjoy mission circle quilt.

The Vineland mission circle is shown below. We have also included pictures of some of their handiwork being handed out. We’d like to include pictures of other groups in our next yearly volunteer issue, so please send us your photos by mail or email.

Thank you, ladies!

The Vineland Mission Circle with some of their projects

May the Lord richly bless your countless loving acts of kindness to the wellbeing of many needy people in the developing world. May they, in turn, give thanks to the Lord for you.

Rick Postma is director of public relations for Word & Deed Ministries

Fundraising Tour: Dinner with the Miskins

2008-01-02T16:12:00.000-08:00

Rev. Arthur Miskin (who is also a medical doctor) and his wife, Dr. Sonja Miskin, came to North America in early October for a whirlwind tour. Since Rev. Miskin needed to be in Chilliwack, British Columbia for the classis of the Heritage Reformed Churches on October 18, Word & Deed invited Sonja to join him so that the trip could also serve as a fund raising tour.

By the time it was over, the Miskins had sat down to dinner with 1,100 people and enjoyed a dessert evening (Monarch, Alberta) with over 100 more. The dinners took place in Dundas, Ontario; Jordan Station, Ontario; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Pompton Plains, New Jersey; Chilliwack, British Columbia. In all, over $176,000 was raised which was significantly beyond the target of $100,000.

Word & Deed, as well as the Miskins, wishes to thank the many ambassadors in each location who worked so hard to put on these events, the many business sponsors, the cooks, servers and clean up crews, the hosts for the Miskins who provided a home away from home as well as the many guests who gave so generously. Most importantly, we thank the Lord for his gracious provision and further pray that He will bless the team at Nakekela clinic so that they may be the hands of Christ bringing comfort and, where possible, healing to those suffering from AIDS. But even more importantly, we pray that they may be instrumental in bringing eternal hope and joy into the lives of those they help.

Ambassador Role in Brief

2007-02-23T13:56:00.000-08:00

Are you interested in making a world of difference to many needy people in the developing world? Then you have come to the right place!

The Word & Deed Ambassador Role was created to encourage many of our supporters in North America, who have a heart for helping the needy of the developing world, to get directly involved. Below is a brief list of what ambassadors can do – more details are provided in “The Ambassador Role Part 1” and the “Ambassador Role Part 2” below this entry on the left.

It is understood that some people have more time than others. If you only have a few hours a month, you can still make a big difference.

Depending on your time and talents you can get involved in one or more of the following ways:

1) Word & Deed point person in your church. Ensure that magazines get handed out, help coordinate presentations, and ensure that events in your area are properly promoted. Perhaps even do a presentation yourself if you like doing that. You also promote child sponsorship as well as Word & Deed projects in your church thorough bulletin notices, word of mouth, pamphlets etc.

2) Organize fund raisers in your area. Examples include bike-a-thons and dinners. In most cases you would join other ambassadors form your area on a local organization committee.

3) If you are a business person, you introduce other business people you know to Word & Deed and encourage them to sponsor projects or get involved in some other way.

4) Coordinate mission teams. Numerous ambassadors have coordinated teams to Gulfport and recently 2 coordinated a team to Colombia.

5) If you are a teen, you could join a number of young ambassadors who help coordinate presentations and fund raisers in schools and church youth groups.

6) Other specialized areas: Ambassadors are filling roles such as National Mission Team Coordinator, National Mission Team Project Coordinator, Web Site Design & Support, Magazine Editing … and much more. Let me know what you like to do.

7) Translate documents and forms from Spanish into English. We have a team of volunteers from around the world who assist with this but we can always use more.

8) Sign up additional ambassadors. Approach churches to add them to Word & Deed's growing number of supporting churches.

…If you are ready to join, please give me a call at 1-877-375-9673 or email me at publicrelations@wordanddeed.org.

Welcome Aboard!

Rick Postma

Thank You

2007-01-23T07:44:00.000-08:00

Dear Ambassadors,

While attending a Colombia Mission Team fund raising dinner last Saturday, the wife of a gentleman who works at a very large humanitarian aid organization said to me, "your organization has a lot of momentum". I don't think that observation was about me or even Word & Deed so much as it was about you and the indispensable blessing of the Lord.

One year ago, we began the Word & Deed ambassadors program and our very first ambassador was Lydia Vandenberg (nee Penninga) from Calgary. Today I'm very grateful to report that we have over 50 ambassadors across the country at various levels of involvement and we are rolling out the ambassador model to the USA in 2007. By the way, Lydia is expecting a baby any time now!

I have been thrilled and encouraged by all the contributions you have made to Word & Deed and to the service of the Lord in the developing world. You have made and are making a huge difference in the lives of many needy people there.

Quite a number of you are part of a Word & Deed organizing committee in Grimsby, Hamilton, Calgary, Lethbridge or Chilliwack (from east to west). As you all know, we had a very successful tour with Missy Christie in November which raised $78,000 (it has gone up a bit). The success of this tour was entirely due to the hard work you did in organizing, promoting, setting up, and, in several cases, actually cooking the meals. Thank you! Let's look forward to doing even better in 2007.

Speaking of 2007, the Hamilton contingent of the Colombia Mission Team mentioned above put on a wonderful dinner last Saturday night with 170 people in attendance and raised just under $11,000. Most of these people were from one church, Hamilton Rehoboth URC. What a great start to 2007!

The success of the dinners has encouraged our ambassadors in Edmonton to organize a dinner there in the next few months.

A number of you have been organizing fund raisers in schools and church youth groups or using sports tournaments to raise funds. Thanks very much!

Some ambassadors have been very active in coordinating the mission teams that have been going to Gulfport and some are leading a team going to Colombia in a few weeks. In a few months we will have hit 180 people having gone to Gulfport since we began this program last February. Several of you have gone to Gulfport 2 or 3 times, sometimes for extended periods of time. I offer you my heartfelt thank you.

Others of you have been actively promoting Word & Deed to businessmen, churches and individuals. You have been promoting child sponsorships or you have been organizing sports tournaments. Once again, I am very grateful for all your efforts.

Then we have people who are actively running our website, editing our magazine, taking pictures and video at some of our events. Thank you for all your hard work.

Looking back over the past year I count it a great blessing to have gotten to know most of you by phone and/or face to face. I've even had the privilege of staying at some of your homes. Getting to know you has been one of the many high points of my first year at Word & Deed.

I'll send a separate email outlining what we hope to do in 2007.

May God bless all that we have done to his honour and glory and may we continue to be of use to Him in bringing hope to the needy of the developing world – both for this world and for the next.

In His Service,

Rick Postma

Word & Deed Ministries

Volunteers - Thank You

2007-01-10T14:14:00.000-08:00

Word & Deed is very grateful for the many volunteers that have assisted us over the years. Some of you have been involved since the beginning. While this site focuses on the ambassador role, we continue to highlight the critical roles played by our volunteers in other areas such as:

1) bringing happiness to many needy people by making quilts, blankets and clothing
2) packaging magazines for mailing
3) selling honey and other items with proceeds going to Word & Deed
4) assisting in either the US or Canadian offices
5) packing suitecases for the mission teams
... and much more.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

Calgary Organizing Committee

2006-11-22T07:56:00.000-08:00

Alas, I didn't get a picture of each organizing committee, but I did get one of Calgary's.

From left to right, Sharon, Ryanne (back), Janey, Mike and Don. Missing from the picture is Lydia.

There were many others involved in setting up and running the event as well.

Like all the organizing committees, these ambassadors did a huge amount of work and put on a top quality dinner fund raiser. The dinner was held at the Woodgreen Prebyterian Church in Calgary - a very fine facility.

The silent auction was very well planned and presented. Thanks for all the hard work!

2006-10-13T10:23:00.000-07:00

Word & Deed North America

Our Mission

To improve the lives of needy people in the developing world both materially and spiritually in obedience to Christ’s command to love our neighbor as our self.

Our Strategy

To communicate the predicament of the suffering in the developing world to the people of North America such that they are given the opportunity to respond to their needs in love motivated by thankfulness for God’s grace in their lives.

To partner with Christian Organizations in the developing world on a wide variety of projects including child sponsorship, Christian Education, orphan care, disaster relief and vocational training, while providing reliable monitoring and timely updates to all supporters.

Our Methods

To offer help to the needy of the developing world, irrespective of race or religion, in the name of Jesus Christ.

A careful use of field trips, interviews, correspondence, and application procedures to ensure that potential partners (churches and missions) and projects make responsible use of the funds provided and are motivated by a love for God and their neighbor.

Timely updates in the form of presentations, quarterly magazines, church bulletins, Emails and website articles in order to raise awareness of the plight of the needy.

Consistent monitoring and supervision of ongoing projects

A focus on empowering each needy person to eventually provide for themselves in recognition of the dignity they have as God’s image bearers, having been made both to work and to worship.

What is emphasized at Word & Deed

Gospel focus (concern for man’s eternal destiny and the extension of the Kingdom of God)

Targeting self-sufficiency – “teach them to fish” (pouring in money only trains dependence)

Reliance on indigenous partner organizations in the developing world (rather than sending people from North America)

Ambassador Role Part 1

2006-04-27T08:18:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone and welcome to the volunteer Word & Deed Ambassadors Team.

Some of you are on board and actively rowing while others are still thinking about it. We are just starting out on our journey so we will be introducing new ideas and making innovations as well as course adjustments as we travel. Ideas from you are not only welcome but strongly encouraged. While we may not be able to adopt all of your ideas there will certainly be room for each of you to develop your own methods and approaches that suit your individual talents and personalities. By sharing your ideas, others will be able to benefit as well. At the same time, to get back to the boat picture, we will need to row together towards the same overall destination. Our Captain is the Lord Jesus and it is in full reliance on Him, "who even the winds and the waves obey", that we embark on our journey. He also controls the currents, temperatures and the very strength, energy and wisdom that we need for each stroke of our oars. We will need to regularly study His Word, the map for our voyage, and communicate with Him through prayer. May we be faithful instruments in His hands to the extension of His Kingdom and the glory of His Name.

If you are like me, then you have frequently wrestled with how to bring the light of the Gospel into the lives of neighbours and fellow employees. Sometimes there is a listening ear, but, far more frequently, there is very little interest if not impatience and derision. The people we are reaching out to have few felt needs,their lives are busy and it isn't until they have a crisis in their lives that they may ask you some questions. I believe that one reason for our limited "success" as a church in North America has to do with that fact that the deaconal ministry of the church – believers motivated by love bringing a cup of cold water to the thirsty in society – has been taken over by the state. The state's faceless form of giving has eliminated thankfulness, responsibility, love and most importantly, an opportunity to come face to face with God as Creator, Judge and Saviour. I hasten to add that there are those in need in our society including prisoners, elderly, sick and lonely. They need our loving acts of service. But I think you will agree that my observation, on the whole, is accurate.

My trip to Colombia underlined the stark contrast between what we are used to here and what is happening in the developing world. Our Christian partners in Colombia are overwhelmed with opportunities to reach out in Christian love. Opportunities to combine Word and deed abound. When Bernie Pennings and I interviewed teachers in the
Christian schools we support and asked them how they came to faith, most of them said that it started with the love shown by Christians to them and their families. A love which stood in stark contrast to the violence, poverty and greed they were used to. They asked questions, "Why? Why do you care about me and my family? " Then came the wonderful opportunity to hear, often for the first time in their lives, the hope of the Gospel. We interviewed many children in the sponsorship program. Their stories were similar. Many spoke of their parents no longer fighting, of going to church now and of their desire to serve the Lord. By God's grace, many, if not most, of the children in the sponsorship program come to know the Lord. Wow. Stop and
think about that. Here is a means of evangelism that the Lord loves to bless. But the sponsorship program doesn't stop there, it also reaches into the home and requires parents to attend classes in which they are taught many practical things, but also and most importantly, they hear the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and how He came to save sinners. The results are amazing. In Cartagena, Colombia, a school was built 3 years ago beside a landfill site (you may have read this in the magazine) for 800 sponsor children. Today, close to 200 people gather on Sunday at the school for worship and I had the privilege of worshipping with them there a few months ago.

The Scriptural prescription is disarmingly simple. Reach out with deeds motivated by Christian love and the opportunity to bring the Word will soon follow. When this is prayerfully done in dependence on the Lord, the harvest is abundant. Where do countless opportunities exist for deeds of love? In the developing world. So where do you, or I should say we (including myself), as ambassadors come in? To answer that, I'd like to use another word picture. That of a bridge. Word & Deed, together with you as ambassadors, needs to be a bridge connecting the believers in North America to the needy of the developing world through the indigenous (or native) church living there. We enable the church here to support the church in the
developing world in Her deaconal ministry to the many poor, sick and impoverished people there. We enable believers here to view the needy in the developing world as if they lived right next door. We make it easy for them to just walk over, as it were, and to bring the love of the Lord Jesus into the lives of these needy neighbours.

How we do that is the subject of a separate post.

Rick Postma

Ambassador Role Part 2

2006-04-24T09:55:00.000-07:00

The previous post dealt with the foundation for the ambassador team. Next, I'm going to deal with the role of the ambassador (a work in progress). As I wrote in part one, different people will gravitate towards different aspects of the work, especially if there is more than one ambassador in your church. At the same time, I'm hoping you will work to ensure that all areas are covered in some fashion.

What should ambassadors do?

1) Educate yourselves about Word & Deed
In order do this, please read the last few Word & Deed magazines carefully. Have a look through the “Focus on country” blogs on the left. Have a look at the information available under “Education” on the left of the blog as well as the Resources section. I will provide an updated Information Package for both Canada and the USA in the near future that you can print off. We can also send you portfolios (made up of the information package, some magazines and pamphlets) and pamphlets.

2) Communicate the needs of children and families in the developing world
This would include encouraging others to make a world of difference in child's life (and that of his or her family) by sponsoring that child (information and application sheets are in the resources section). Some of you are already putting notices in the bulletin and positioning application forms and information sheets on the back table of the church. Some ambassadors will be comfortable speaking to groups while others will prefer speaking to individuals. Both approaches are fine. This would also include organizing fund raising events which wouldn't necessarily be limited to the immediate church community (Rick Herfst organized a hockey tournament in Chilliwack which included un-churched members of the community who were happy to raise money for hurricane Stan). Here is one of the areas where sharing ideas is very important. Choose something you enjoy doing. If you are an outdoor enthusiast, how about organizing a bike-a-thon? They are easy to organize and, from my experience, very successful (I can help with planning). Invite families to take part and then have a barbecue afterwards. More ideas and examples are included at the bottom of this post.

3) Coordinate Mission Teams
Act as a coordinator for the team participating from your church or area. This may or may not include joining the team. Ideally you would join, but it certainly isn't necessary. It would include reading the documentation that is sent to you (usually e-mails and attachments, soon to be made available on the blog) concerning the mission team opportunity, notifying your fellow church members by way of the church bulletin (for example) about the planned mission team and answering any questions they might have. For questions you can't answer, you would then contact us at the office. You would also compile a list of team members from your church and send them to us. It should be made clear to individuals who want to join that they need to let you, the coordinator, know. Application forms could usually be sent directly by those interested via fax, e-mail or snail mail (normal mail, which they may want to avoid so as not to miss the boat (!)). We will fine tune this process as we go along. A special e-mail account has been set up for mission team related communication: missionteam@wordanddeed.org

4) Become part of, or assist with, a disaster rapid response team
This area is related to #3 above but may include quickly deploying people with certain skills to a disaster area; collecting essential materials needed to help victims from your church and then forwarding to central collection sites for possible shipment in containers. It may also include warehousing certain materials in different areas so that they are ready for rapid deployment. I hope to speak and meet with members of disaster response teams in the coming months to further develop this initiative.

Communications
My main means of communication with you will be by e-mail. I will also call you from time to time and we may schedule conference calls as well. If you have a high speed internet connection, please consider downloading 'skype' which is a program that enables voice communications over the internet for free. I use it to talk with people in Guatemala, Ecuador, Colombia as well as Canada and the Netherlands on a regular basis. It can also be used for conference calls involving up to 5 people. It is a very handy tool indeed. My skype id is: rdpostma

Clearly the blog is also a new form of communications, especially from me to you! Feel free to add comments, but if you want to address something to me specifically, please email me at publicrelations@wordanddeed.org or phone me: 1-877-375-9673.

Some Ideas

Child Sponsorship:
Teena has placed the following notice in the bulletin of her church and placed copies of the attached information sheet and application form on a table in the church. Perhaps you could consider doing the same. You could mention in conversations that after charitable tax deduction, the cost of the program for a person in an average income bracket is $.64 per day (in Canada). This is significantly less than the cost of a cup of coffee per day.

Colombia (you should edit out the references to the country you aren’t living in):
CHILD SPONSORSHIP – WORD & DEED: Have you thought about sponsoring a child? Why not do so through Word & Deed Ministries, Inc. (a ministry supported by our church). Your money ($35/mo. CDN or $28/mo. US) will be used to provide a Christian education, food, clothing and medical care to a selected child. Most importantly, your sponsor child will hear and, by God's grace, respond to the Gospel. Child sponsorship information sheets and forms are available at the back of church or call YOUR NAME for more information.

Malawi (you should edit out the references to the country you aren’t living in)

Want to make a world of difference in an orphan's life? Word & Deed is launching a basic form of the child sponsorship program in Malawi. For $35 CDN/ $30 US per month, you can sponsor 5 orphans. Children now also have an opportunity to sponsor an orphan for $7 CDN / $6 US per month and be made aware of the needs of their peers in Malawi at an early age. You and/or your child will receive a group picture of all the orphans at one of the centers and a yearly update on the progress of the center. Orphans are placed with care-giver families. They receive a minimum of 3 afternoons a week of Bible training, 3 nutritious meals, a blanket or some basic clothing, primary medical care and more. Child sponsorship information sheets and forms are available at the back of church or call YOUR NAME for more information.

Extending Word & Deed's support base of churches:
Lydia has written a cover letter and put it together with the attached information document and a few magazines and submitted it to the deacons of a church. The response was very favourable and I was contacted with some follow-up questions.

Concerts:
Why not ask local choirs to raise funds for Word & Deed? We can provide handouts that introduce Word & Deed and possibly describe a certain project that could be sponsored by the money raised.

Something involving food:
Breakfasts, desert evenings or full scale dinners are always a big hit. People like their food!

Schools:
We have successfully run 24 hour hunger awareness campaigns in a number of Christian schools (high school ages). Why not approach a school in your area? We have plans and forms that can be used for this. The fast provides an opportunity to highlight the plight of the needy and gives the youth a chance to do something about it. A presentation or discussion that further highlights this and also invites the youth to consider mission related work is also something that could be linked with the fast.

Physical activity related:
Always a big hit. I mentioned bike-a-thons above. Note that if you can get 20 riders with an average $500 of sponsors each this adds up to $10,000 in a hurry. The first year we ran a bike-a-thon in our area we raised $11,000 and we haven't gone below that figure since (8 years and counting I believe). Golf tournaments are also popular but
require more planning.

Estate Planning:
People can be invited to consider leaving a part of their estate to a charity like Word & Deed. Another interesting approach is to suggest that a charity be added as an additional child. For example, parents with 4 children could add a 5th so that the estate is divided into 5 equal parts with the 5th part going to a charity such as Word & Deed.