Happy Holidays!!

We pray you are enjoying the holiday season. It has been a blessing for our family to celebrate the Christmas season in the United States this year, and to introduce the newest member of our family, Samuel, to our friends and family. Our last two years in Paraguay have been years of learning, growth, and great blessing.

Since arriving at the Hogar GANAR children’s home in February of 2009, the home has grown from 10 to 30 children, with the opening of two additional houses. We have begun a bible study program with the help of a local church in Paraguay and have a Bible memorization program in place. The Lord has blessed the home with a new missionary couple, Joe and Jayne Martinez. Joe has his masters’ degree in counseling and has begun an intensive counseling program with each of the children. Our farming and gardening programs are growing by leaps and bounds, thanks to a donation from the Project for the People of Paraguay of a dozen pigs and eight cattle. We now have 21 cattle and plenty of milk and beef for our children’s needs. Our tilapia ponds are adding to the children’s diet, and providing a fun activity for the children and house parents in the form of fishing. Our garden and bakery are now used as forms of job training for the children and so many of the children are now beginning to dream big dreams for their future. We also discovered that the property was home to honey bees and we have a new volunteer, Michael Tell, who will be joining our missionary staff in March 2011 to revamp our honey bee program, training nationals in the care of honey bees. Michael also plans to develop projects to better utilize the fruit produced in our citrus grove.

One of the most exciting recent developments is the transition that will take place in our elementary/middle school this coming year. Previously the school was managed by the government, but the quality of education provided was very poor. This coming year (the school year in Paraguay runs from February to November) the school will transition to private education. We are adding a Christian principal and teachers to the program and we can’t wait to see how our children will flourish with a higher quality of education. We are also going to add a full-time English teacher to the school. Dana Williams, a new volunteer, will be moving to Paraguay in February to oversee this new English program. We have received several laptops in donation and will integrate computer classes into the curriculum. If you are interested in supporting our school project, please contact us (mortonmissions@gmail.com).

All of these new developments would have been impossible without the support that you have provided. Your financial and prayer support for the homes has literally changed the future of thirty precious children, and we believe will even change the future of the nation of Paraguay! THANK YOU for giving! We pray that the Lord would bless each of you and that the coming year will be one filled with the peace and joy of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Serving Paraguay,

Shaun, Sara, Abigail, and Samuel Morton