Dear Family and Friends,
How is everybody? This is Vanessa writing this month. We miss you a lot! I want to start this letter by thanking the Lord Jesus Christ for his awesome faithfulness and love. And also by thanking you all for your prayers and support. Thank you for letting God use you by helping us.
We have been really busy lately. Our water well project is growing very fast. Please pray for Danny and his team (Carlos and now Pedro) as they will be traveling to a community called Cuatro Canadas to drill wells. It is about three hours away (not very far) but our roads do tend to get in really bad condition due to rain and sometimes even disappear! As I just mentioned, Pedro, is the new member of our water team. He is a 19 year old boy who used to be a little boy when we met him. He is making his transition out of the Talita Cumi Home. So please pray for this transition to be smooth and successful.
Something else that is super exciting and recent is the Monday morning Spanish Bible study for men that Danny and friends from our mission have started. These are the names of the men attending so you can lift them up in prayer: Pedro, Marcos, Carlos, Warren, Rudy, and Danny.
As for me, I will be doing something new and fun this time. I will be helping at the Centro de Vida (the Life Center) to create (painting, organizing and decorating) a boutique for moms! I know it sounds very superficial but it is not! Moms who seek help at the center will be given points for attending church, reading their Bible, going to Bible studies, etc… those points will then allow them to purchase baby items as well as mommy items and clothes! As you can tell I am very excited and ready to start. The Centro de Vida is a wonderful ministry and I love working with them.
Our kids are doing great both at home and at school. Isaiah will be starting Tae Kwon Do classes. We attended one and he did great. He is very excited about the white suit!
Luciana has the lead role in a school. This is huge! So please pray for her.
And Nathaniel is getting very tall and handsome! At 6’2” he is taller than Danny now. He and his daddy are racing bicycles on a local Bolivian team. Praise the Lord for our children. I am grateful to have such wonderful kids and plan on enjoying them every minute we have them at home.
We will be having lots of teams this spring and summer. If you are planning on coming here please know that the Beams are praying for you. And also that we are ready to work and have fun together! We are already discussing all the possibilities and there are so many!
Another praise is that we have started the process of sending two of the oldest girls from Cristo Viene Home to technical school thanks to a gift we received from one of you! Here are the names three ladies with whom I have been sharing Jesus and could really use some prayer:
Lucy, Angie and Susi.
Please know that we love you and cherish every moment we have spent together. Our prayer for you and your family is that the Lord will give you ten times more for every blessing you give us and that his Spirit will go with you wherever you go!
Vanessa
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com, www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.comPhoto Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Carnival in Santa Cruz -- Deadly Fun
We just finished the week of Carnival here in Santa Cruz. This is a holiday much like Marti Gras in New Orleans. This is the first year we have actually stayed in Santa Cruz. The majority of Bolivians love this holiday, but most ex-pats have advised us to either get out of town or stay locked up in our house for the four-day-long party. The festivities started out mildly enough with a parade on Saturday, and people throwing water balloons, buckets of water, shooting squirt guns, etc. But the party degenerates fast, with the majority of people getting stumbling drunk on Sunday through Tuesday. They say Tuesday is the day that God leaves earth and forgets about his people, so we (they) are free to do whatever they want. On Ash Wednesday, Catholics go to church to confession. I don't want to stereotype Catholics, but I think this is really their holiday. The Evangelical Christians I spoke with said they do not participate in any aspect of Carnival. As the days progress, people begin throwing mud, oil and paint. Many of the taxis and busses actually smear their entire vehicles with mud so that the other nasty stuff that people throw will not mess up their paint.
To escape the madness on Monday, we rented a cabin near the Lomas de Arena (sand dunes), half an hour out of town. It was a great time of hiking, swimming, horseback riding, and (for me) photography—truly a relaxing couple of days. I didn't try to get any pictures of the maddness that is Carnival, but here are couple of pictures from our tranquil little get-away.
To escape the madness on Monday, we rented a cabin near the Lomas de Arena (sand dunes), half an hour out of town. It was a great time of hiking, swimming, horseback riding, and (for me) photography—truly a relaxing couple of days. I didn't try to get any pictures of the maddness that is Carnival, but here are couple of pictures from our tranquil little get-away.
As we drove back into town on Tuesday evening, the roads were full of drunk drivers swerving from side to side, and drunk people stumbling down the middle of the road. I have never in my life seen such a large percentage of the population drunk in the street like that. At the time I thought that it must be an extremely dangerous time to be out and about, but I didn’t know exactly how dangerous until I heard the next day that 30 people had been killed on the streets of Santa Cruz over the holiday weekend (and that was just in our city).When I talked to Carlos the next day I found out that one of our neighbors out at the workshop had become a statistic as well. The son of the neighbor lady who washes Carlos’ clothes was killed on the highway on Tuesday night. Coming home drunk at 10:00 that evening, he stepped out in front of a car as he tried to cross the highway. The car sped away without stopping, leaving him dead on the side of the road. He was only 22 years old.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Out There with the Beams – January 2008
Dear Family and Friends,
Hi everyone. This is Danny writing this month. We trust you are surviving well through a cold winter up north. Here in Bolivia it is summer and the rains will not let up long enough for anything to dry out. Although we have not flooded here in our house, several of our friends homes have flooded and even Talita Cumi, the orphanage we work with that is a couple of blocks away, flooded and the girls all had to move into the upstairs portion of the boys home next door. Please especially pray for the flooded farm areas around the Rio Grande and Yapacani rivers several hours east and south of Santa Cruz. These areas get hit year after year with flooding and this year is no different. We have several well projects planned in these areas but right now travel is too difficult to begin drilling.
Thanks to all of your prayers and financial support, our water well drilling ministry is poised to begin making a great impact on the lives of people in rural communities around Santa Cruz in 2008. Many of you have made specific donations to this ministry and this has allowed us to rent a farm and workshop where we are building drilling equipment, experimenting with new drilling techniques, and training people to go out into the communities to teach them how to drill their own well. We normally use manual labor to drill wells, but this takes teams of 8 to 12 people, so we recently built a small motorized drilling rig that enables us to drill wells with only three people helping. With a little more innovation we hope to build a combination percussion/rotary rig that will be better equiped to drill through harder clay and rock. So many areas of Bolivia could be farmed, but for lack of water during the dry season, these areas are not being utilized productively. If we can help poor farmers drill water wells and gain access to water year round they will be able to improve farm and livestock project and ensure their families a brighter future. And of course most importantly, we want to share the love of Christ with them and help them get plugged in to a healthy growing churches in their communities. You can see a video of our new drilling rig in action at www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com.
We have a great start with this ministry, but there are so many needs in Bolivia we cannot even begin to meet the demand. If you would like to help us expand our water well ministry, we hope you would consider a special designated gift. Just to give you an idea, each well costs an average of $250 to drill and to install a hand-pump. Thanks also to everyone who has followed through on your monthly pledges to support our regular budget . Aside from special project funds, we also need to raise about $5000 month to support our family and ministry here in Bolivia. Just so you know, we are at about 75% of what we need for our regular budget. It would be such a blessing if you would make a commitment to help us reach our buget this year. We are including a attachment to this email that explains how to make contributions if you are not already doing so.
I hope you don’t think we only write these monthly updates to ask for financial support. We really want to share with you how God is working in and through our family here in Bolivia. We are super excited about the individuals and mission teams that are coming to Bolivia this year to participate with us in God’s work. It is so much fun to share our home and our lives with friends who are experiencing Bolivia with fresh eyes.
Vanessa’s work with the orphanages is going well. She is teaching aerobics, arts & crafts, has a summer reading club, and is working through the book, “The Healing of Memories” with a group of older teen girls. And of course she hosts big birthday bashes for the Talita Cumi kids every other month. Also through a special gift from a supporter, we have started a scholarship fund for kids who graduate from high school and want to go on to study in college or a trade school. We have been looking for a way to help the kids make an easier transition from orphanage to independent living as adults in the workplace. Through this fund we are offering to pay tuition and to give them a small living stipend as they leave the homes and seek to make their own way in the world. We will certainly keep you updated as this new ministry progresses and will ask you up hold up these kids in prayer.
Blessings,
Danny
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com, www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
Hi everyone. This is Danny writing this month. We trust you are surviving well through a cold winter up north. Here in Bolivia it is summer and the rains will not let up long enough for anything to dry out. Although we have not flooded here in our house, several of our friends homes have flooded and even Talita Cumi, the orphanage we work with that is a couple of blocks away, flooded and the girls all had to move into the upstairs portion of the boys home next door. Please especially pray for the flooded farm areas around the Rio Grande and Yapacani rivers several hours east and south of Santa Cruz. These areas get hit year after year with flooding and this year is no different. We have several well projects planned in these areas but right now travel is too difficult to begin drilling.
Thanks to all of your prayers and financial support, our water well drilling ministry is poised to begin making a great impact on the lives of people in rural communities around Santa Cruz in 2008. Many of you have made specific donations to this ministry and this has allowed us to rent a farm and workshop where we are building drilling equipment, experimenting with new drilling techniques, and training people to go out into the communities to teach them how to drill their own well. We normally use manual labor to drill wells, but this takes teams of 8 to 12 people, so we recently built a small motorized drilling rig that enables us to drill wells with only three people helping. With a little more innovation we hope to build a combination percussion/rotary rig that will be better equiped to drill through harder clay and rock. So many areas of Bolivia could be farmed, but for lack of water during the dry season, these areas are not being utilized productively. If we can help poor farmers drill water wells and gain access to water year round they will be able to improve farm and livestock project and ensure their families a brighter future. And of course most importantly, we want to share the love of Christ with them and help them get plugged in to a healthy growing churches in their communities. You can see a video of our new drilling rig in action at www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com.
We have a great start with this ministry, but there are so many needs in Bolivia we cannot even begin to meet the demand. If you would like to help us expand our water well ministry, we hope you would consider a special designated gift. Just to give you an idea, each well costs an average of $250 to drill and to install a hand-pump. Thanks also to everyone who has followed through on your monthly pledges to support our regular budget . Aside from special project funds, we also need to raise about $5000 month to support our family and ministry here in Bolivia. Just so you know, we are at about 75% of what we need for our regular budget. It would be such a blessing if you would make a commitment to help us reach our buget this year. We are including a attachment to this email that explains how to make contributions if you are not already doing so.
I hope you don’t think we only write these monthly updates to ask for financial support. We really want to share with you how God is working in and through our family here in Bolivia. We are super excited about the individuals and mission teams that are coming to Bolivia this year to participate with us in God’s work. It is so much fun to share our home and our lives with friends who are experiencing Bolivia with fresh eyes.
Vanessa’s work with the orphanages is going well. She is teaching aerobics, arts & crafts, has a summer reading club, and is working through the book, “The Healing of Memories” with a group of older teen girls. And of course she hosts big birthday bashes for the Talita Cumi kids every other month. Also through a special gift from a supporter, we have started a scholarship fund for kids who graduate from high school and want to go on to study in college or a trade school. We have been looking for a way to help the kids make an easier transition from orphanage to independent living as adults in the workplace. Through this fund we are offering to pay tuition and to give them a small living stipend as they leave the homes and seek to make their own way in the world. We will certainly keep you updated as this new ministry progresses and will ask you up hold up these kids in prayer.
Blessings,
Danny
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com, www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Raining Frogs and Worms
It has been raining non-stop in Santa Cruz since last Friday. The Santa Cruz Christian Learning Center (our kids school) is flooding and they have called off school for the rest of the week. All of the grassy areas and sidewalks are under water and Isaiah's classroom has several inches of water in it. The kids said there are frogs and worms everywhere. They even found a three foot eel and a one foot catfish. There aren't even any rivers or lakes near the school so who knows where these came from. Thankfully our home has not flooded, but we have friends who are having to leave their homes. Even in Talita Cumi the girls are having to leave their home and move in upstairs in the boys home next door. Both major highways to Cochabamba and La Paz are closed do to washed out bridges and mud slides. It is a good thing we got back from Sucre before the highways were completely closed.
Photos from Our Trip to Sucre
Click on the title of this post to see pictures from our recent trip to Sucre, Bolivia. Sucre is the old capital of Bolivia, in the mountains of the Chuquisaca department. It was about 14 hour drive from Santa Cruz. About half of the drive was on gravel and dirt roads. We had a great week with our friends the Wilkes, who are also missionaries in Santa Cruz. We also got to meet the Emmons, new friends in language school in Sucre. If everything works out they will be here in Santa Cruz next year teaching at the Santa Cruz Christian learning Center.Monday, December 31, 2007
Out There with the Beams – December 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
Merry Christmas! I know everybody says this, but we truly mean it. I can’t believe Christmas is here! We are having fun decorating our house and trying to guide our kids in having the right spirit during this time; although it has been pretty hot in Santa Cruz.
For me, this is the hardest time of the year. It makes me feel homesick—missing family, friends, places, food...snow... Anyway we just want to tell all of you that we miss you horribly and think and pray for you a lot. And most of all thank you for all of your support, thank you for your prayers, your thoughts, thank you for being our friend even though thousands of miles and almost another year separate us.
Please keep sending us your e-mails and cards. We love them. If you have changed your email address, or are not getting our email updates, please drop us an email so we can add you to our contact list. Thank you so much for your confidence and support of our ministry both economically and through prayers. We hope that during this season of giving you will remember Bolivia and our ministry with the orphanages and water well drilling. We know the Lord will multiply his blessings on you, so we want to encourage you to keep supporting us. If you have not done so already, please consider making a monthly pledge of support for the coming year.
This Christmas we will have three celebrations. One with our family and our friend and worker Carlos (before Nathaniel goes to KY). The next one will be with the kids and staff of the home Talita Cumi and the last one will be with our EFCCM mission family. We hope and pray you will also be surrounded by loved ones and mostly by the Spirit of our Lord himself; that this special time will be a reminder of God’s unexplainable and limitless love for you. If I could hug you right now, I would. Times like this just get all my emotions going! We love you very much. If possible please send us a photograph of you and your family so that our children know who we are talking about and so that we can continue praying for you. We just would love having you on our fridge!
With lots of love,
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com, www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
Merry Christmas! I know everybody says this, but we truly mean it. I can’t believe Christmas is here! We are having fun decorating our house and trying to guide our kids in having the right spirit during this time; although it has been pretty hot in Santa Cruz.
For me, this is the hardest time of the year. It makes me feel homesick—missing family, friends, places, food...snow... Anyway we just want to tell all of you that we miss you horribly and think and pray for you a lot. And most of all thank you for all of your support, thank you for your prayers, your thoughts, thank you for being our friend even though thousands of miles and almost another year separate us.
Please keep sending us your e-mails and cards. We love them. If you have changed your email address, or are not getting our email updates, please drop us an email so we can add you to our contact list. Thank you so much for your confidence and support of our ministry both economically and through prayers. We hope that during this season of giving you will remember Bolivia and our ministry with the orphanages and water well drilling. We know the Lord will multiply his blessings on you, so we want to encourage you to keep supporting us. If you have not done so already, please consider making a monthly pledge of support for the coming year.
This Christmas we will have three celebrations. One with our family and our friend and worker Carlos (before Nathaniel goes to KY). The next one will be with the kids and staff of the home Talita Cumi and the last one will be with our EFCCM mission family. We hope and pray you will also be surrounded by loved ones and mostly by the Spirit of our Lord himself; that this special time will be a reminder of God’s unexplainable and limitless love for you. If I could hug you right now, I would. Times like this just get all my emotions going! We love you very much. If possible please send us a photograph of you and your family so that our children know who we are talking about and so that we can continue praying for you. We just would love having you on our fridge!
With lots of love,
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com, www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Out There with the Beams -- November 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
We trust that you had a fun filled Thanksgiving holiday. We enjoyed swimming on Thanksgiving morning and then shared a turkey dinner with several other missionary families in our neighborhood. We plan on traveling to Cusco, Peru right after Christmas to spend some time with Vanessa’s cousin who lives in Lima.
The last couple of weeks have been chaotic in Bolivia. In general, missionaries are cautioned to stay out of politics in their host countries, but even still it is sometimes hard to avoid the affects of political and civil unrest around you. I just wanted to share a little bit of what is going on so you can be praying for peace and prosperity in Bolivia. We live in the department of Santa Cruz. It is the largest department in Bolivia, taking up the eastern third of the country. Santa Cruz has been seeking economic and political autonomy within the country. They would like to keep more of the tax revenue from oil and gas, and agriculture within our department rather than share it with La Paz, the seat of the national government. The current president, Evo Morales and his MAS party are socialist and are closely aligned with Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. Morales is the first indigenous president ever elected in Bolivia. He has promised many reforms that will address the disparity between rich and poor, and the discrimination against the indigenous population (75%) of Bolivia. While he appears to have some good ideas and the ambition to make change for the betterment of the country, he is attempting to ramrod his changes through a stalemated legislature and is threatening the democratic process in Bolivia. For example, last week the delegates rewriting the constitution met and voted to approve the new constitution. The problem is only the MAS party delegates were present to vote on the Constitution (155 out of 258 total delegates). Of course everyone opposed to the MAS party is calling foul. In general there is a culture of resistance among minority political parties and groups who block and confound any attempt to govern the country.
Most of the opposition to the MAS party is centered in Santa Cruz; and actually 6 of the 9 departments are governed by groups opposed to the Morales government. They are continually calling for civil resistance against the government. That often means they call strikes of various kinds and will block major highways for weeks at a time. A “paro civico” is a general strike where everything and everyone comes to a halt for 24 hours. All businesses and schools close and no one is allowed to drive their cars on the road. If you do so without special permission you risk having your windows broken by an agree mob of protesters. The kids have missed a number of school days in the last couple of weeks due to the “paro civicos.” Road blocks often mean you cannot travel to other cities around the country without the risk of either not being able to get there or not being able to get back home. There are so few highways in Bolivia, that a simple road block at a key bridge can paralyze the economy of millions of people.
So how have we been effected? Our SUV runs on diesel and diesel has been scarce in Santa Cruz for over two months now. Santa Cruz is only receiving about 1/3 of the diesel they need for the city and for the current agricultural campaign. The result is super long lines at gas stations. To fill our tank with diesel I have to drive all over town asking at gas stations when the next delivery of diesel will occur. Then I have to get to the station several hours before the tanker arrives and wait in line. The problem is, trucks wait in line 12 or 24 hours for the diesel to arrive and then the get it all before anyone else has a chance at it. Gas stations are only receiving 5,000 to 10,000 liters of diesel several times a week. This means once they start pumping, the supply only lasts for 2 or 3 hours. For example, two nights ago I got in line at 7:00 in the evening waiting for diesel that was supposed to arrive at 9:00. I was the 47th vehicle in line. I finally got to the pump at 11:15, but they were rationing how much they sold each customer and would only sell me about six gallons. I think I need to buy a gasoline powered vehicle. The scarcity of diesel is affecting all aspects of life in the city. There are only about half the number of busses running as normal. The majority of the city population does not own private cars and moves around on city buses. This means that most buses are too crowded to board and passengers often have to change buses lines many more times than before. So for a person who previously paid 3 bolivianos a day for bus fare may now have to change buses three times and pay up to 9 bolivianos a day for bus fare. An average wage in Santa Cruz is about 40 bolivianos ($5 US), so fully ¼ of a daily earnings goes to commuting. There are also shortages of fresh vegetables and other staples in the markets, and the cost of all food items is rising rapidly. People are really beginning to worry about the affects of seemingly out of control inflation.
I hope I haven’t depressed or confused you with the details of politics and economy in Bolivia. It really is too confusing to convey in a short letter. Just remember to continue praying for Bolivia as a country, and pray that we can have an impact on the folks we are working with.
Thank you so much for your continued support of our work here. As you think about giving this holiday season, we hope that you will think outside of the box, and consider giving to the people of Bolivia through our ministry. If you would like to make a special designation to the water well drilling project or to one of the children’s homes that we work with, please indicate that with your special gift or monthly pledge. We also hope that if you have not already made a monthly pledge to our ministry, that you will consider doing so for 2008. I am confident that God is completely capable of supplying the financial needs for our family and ministry. Please pray about what part God would have you play in our ministry.
Vanessa also asks that you pray especially for her brother Paul and his family who live in Cajamarca, Peru. Pray that he God will be honored through the decisions he is making about his life and family.
Blessings,
Danny
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com
www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
We trust that you had a fun filled Thanksgiving holiday. We enjoyed swimming on Thanksgiving morning and then shared a turkey dinner with several other missionary families in our neighborhood. We plan on traveling to Cusco, Peru right after Christmas to spend some time with Vanessa’s cousin who lives in Lima.
The last couple of weeks have been chaotic in Bolivia. In general, missionaries are cautioned to stay out of politics in their host countries, but even still it is sometimes hard to avoid the affects of political and civil unrest around you. I just wanted to share a little bit of what is going on so you can be praying for peace and prosperity in Bolivia. We live in the department of Santa Cruz. It is the largest department in Bolivia, taking up the eastern third of the country. Santa Cruz has been seeking economic and political autonomy within the country. They would like to keep more of the tax revenue from oil and gas, and agriculture within our department rather than share it with La Paz, the seat of the national government. The current president, Evo Morales and his MAS party are socialist and are closely aligned with Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. Morales is the first indigenous president ever elected in Bolivia. He has promised many reforms that will address the disparity between rich and poor, and the discrimination against the indigenous population (75%) of Bolivia. While he appears to have some good ideas and the ambition to make change for the betterment of the country, he is attempting to ramrod his changes through a stalemated legislature and is threatening the democratic process in Bolivia. For example, last week the delegates rewriting the constitution met and voted to approve the new constitution. The problem is only the MAS party delegates were present to vote on the Constitution (155 out of 258 total delegates). Of course everyone opposed to the MAS party is calling foul. In general there is a culture of resistance among minority political parties and groups who block and confound any attempt to govern the country.
Most of the opposition to the MAS party is centered in Santa Cruz; and actually 6 of the 9 departments are governed by groups opposed to the Morales government. They are continually calling for civil resistance against the government. That often means they call strikes of various kinds and will block major highways for weeks at a time. A “paro civico” is a general strike where everything and everyone comes to a halt for 24 hours. All businesses and schools close and no one is allowed to drive their cars on the road. If you do so without special permission you risk having your windows broken by an agree mob of protesters. The kids have missed a number of school days in the last couple of weeks due to the “paro civicos.” Road blocks often mean you cannot travel to other cities around the country without the risk of either not being able to get there or not being able to get back home. There are so few highways in Bolivia, that a simple road block at a key bridge can paralyze the economy of millions of people.
So how have we been effected? Our SUV runs on diesel and diesel has been scarce in Santa Cruz for over two months now. Santa Cruz is only receiving about 1/3 of the diesel they need for the city and for the current agricultural campaign. The result is super long lines at gas stations. To fill our tank with diesel I have to drive all over town asking at gas stations when the next delivery of diesel will occur. Then I have to get to the station several hours before the tanker arrives and wait in line. The problem is, trucks wait in line 12 or 24 hours for the diesel to arrive and then the get it all before anyone else has a chance at it. Gas stations are only receiving 5,000 to 10,000 liters of diesel several times a week. This means once they start pumping, the supply only lasts for 2 or 3 hours. For example, two nights ago I got in line at 7:00 in the evening waiting for diesel that was supposed to arrive at 9:00. I was the 47th vehicle in line. I finally got to the pump at 11:15, but they were rationing how much they sold each customer and would only sell me about six gallons. I think I need to buy a gasoline powered vehicle. The scarcity of diesel is affecting all aspects of life in the city. There are only about half the number of busses running as normal. The majority of the city population does not own private cars and moves around on city buses. This means that most buses are too crowded to board and passengers often have to change buses lines many more times than before. So for a person who previously paid 3 bolivianos a day for bus fare may now have to change buses three times and pay up to 9 bolivianos a day for bus fare. An average wage in Santa Cruz is about 40 bolivianos ($5 US), so fully ¼ of a daily earnings goes to commuting. There are also shortages of fresh vegetables and other staples in the markets, and the cost of all food items is rising rapidly. People are really beginning to worry about the affects of seemingly out of control inflation.
I hope I haven’t depressed or confused you with the details of politics and economy in Bolivia. It really is too confusing to convey in a short letter. Just remember to continue praying for Bolivia as a country, and pray that we can have an impact on the folks we are working with.
Thank you so much for your continued support of our work here. As you think about giving this holiday season, we hope that you will think outside of the box, and consider giving to the people of Bolivia through our ministry. If you would like to make a special designation to the water well drilling project or to one of the children’s homes that we work with, please indicate that with your special gift or monthly pledge. We also hope that if you have not already made a monthly pledge to our ministry, that you will consider doing so for 2008. I am confident that God is completely capable of supplying the financial needs for our family and ministry. Please pray about what part God would have you play in our ministry.
Vanessa also asks that you pray especially for her brother Paul and his family who live in Cajamarca, Peru. Pray that he God will be honored through the decisions he is making about his life and family.
Blessings,
Danny
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com
www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
Sunday, November 04, 2007
October Newsletter
Hi Partners,
We trust you are having a great Fall. The rains have finally started falling in Bolivia and the trees are turning Spring green. It is such a relief to have the smoke filled skies of the dry season behind us. October was a busy month as we prepared for and hosted a mission work team from Crossroads Christian Church. Eight people ventured south to Bolivia to help us with a water well project at Talita Cumi children’s home. This home already has city water, but by putting in a private well and a water tank we can help the home save about $50 a month in water bills. The team had a great time getting dirty and drilling the water well, but I think they had an even better time getting to know the 30 or so kids at the home. Unfortunately we didn’t finish the well while they were here. We hit a hard layer of rock at about 50 feet and could not get through it before they had to leave. We will keep working on it. If you would like to see pictures from the week, they are available at http://www.pbase.com/beamsclan/cccoct2007.
The well drilling project is beginning to pick up steam. Carlos, is working full time for the project now and we are installing our workshop/training center on a rented farm about 20 minutes out of town. It is a beautiful piece of property with fruit orchards, forest, pasture, and a river. A number of people and institutions are showing interest in supporting the project, but we are still financing the project with a shoestring budget almost completely out of our own salary. There are so many doors opening up to work in rural communities and to provide water well drilling training to other institutions. Pray that our resources will expand to meet the need for water in Bolivia. I visited, Nueva Esperanza, a community of flood refuges near Cuarto Canadas several weeks ago where 130 families are getting water from a single well. These families have had to leave their farms and communities because of severe flooding. They established a new community on higher ground, but now they are now living on small house lots and only have enough space for a house and a small vegetable garden. In the mornings and evenings they have to stand in line to fill their water jugs to carry back to their homes. We have promised the community leaders we will come back soon and drill two new wells at each end of the community so people will not have to stand in line or have to carry their water so far. We would also like to help the community build a water tank and an irrigation system for the vegetable gardens. This would really help them increase their productivity. There is not yet a church in Nueva Esperanza, but there is a group of Christians meeting in a home each Sunday. They have asked us to help them purchase a lot and build a church building. The land they would like to purchase will cost about $400.
Thanks so much for you continued support of our work here. We could not be working here without your prayer and financial backing. Bolivia is sometimes a hard place to live. Violent demonstrations, strikes, road blocks, and fuel shortages are daily worries. Two days before our team arrived, the Santa Cruz airport was the scene of cancelled flights, protests, a military take over, and then more protests that kicked out the military. The scenes on the television on Thursday night looked like an all out war. I didn’t think our team would be able to come in, but by Sunday morning when they arrived everything was back to normal. Despite all the poverty, and political and social turmoil, God is working here in the hearts of many people. It is encouraging to see the positive spirit and hard work of so many Christians working to share the gospel and to help those in need. You are all a part of this work as well. We are excited about a number of teams that will be coming down next year. If you would like to come and help out a while, you have an open invitation.
Blessings,
Danny
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com
www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
We trust you are having a great Fall. The rains have finally started falling in Bolivia and the trees are turning Spring green. It is such a relief to have the smoke filled skies of the dry season behind us. October was a busy month as we prepared for and hosted a mission work team from Crossroads Christian Church. Eight people ventured south to Bolivia to help us with a water well project at Talita Cumi children’s home. This home already has city water, but by putting in a private well and a water tank we can help the home save about $50 a month in water bills. The team had a great time getting dirty and drilling the water well, but I think they had an even better time getting to know the 30 or so kids at the home. Unfortunately we didn’t finish the well while they were here. We hit a hard layer of rock at about 50 feet and could not get through it before they had to leave. We will keep working on it. If you would like to see pictures from the week, they are available at http://www.pbase.com/beamsclan/cccoct2007.
The well drilling project is beginning to pick up steam. Carlos, is working full time for the project now and we are installing our workshop/training center on a rented farm about 20 minutes out of town. It is a beautiful piece of property with fruit orchards, forest, pasture, and a river. A number of people and institutions are showing interest in supporting the project, but we are still financing the project with a shoestring budget almost completely out of our own salary. There are so many doors opening up to work in rural communities and to provide water well drilling training to other institutions. Pray that our resources will expand to meet the need for water in Bolivia. I visited, Nueva Esperanza, a community of flood refuges near Cuarto Canadas several weeks ago where 130 families are getting water from a single well. These families have had to leave their farms and communities because of severe flooding. They established a new community on higher ground, but now they are now living on small house lots and only have enough space for a house and a small vegetable garden. In the mornings and evenings they have to stand in line to fill their water jugs to carry back to their homes. We have promised the community leaders we will come back soon and drill two new wells at each end of the community so people will not have to stand in line or have to carry their water so far. We would also like to help the community build a water tank and an irrigation system for the vegetable gardens. This would really help them increase their productivity. There is not yet a church in Nueva Esperanza, but there is a group of Christians meeting in a home each Sunday. They have asked us to help them purchase a lot and build a church building. The land they would like to purchase will cost about $400.
Thanks so much for you continued support of our work here. We could not be working here without your prayer and financial backing. Bolivia is sometimes a hard place to live. Violent demonstrations, strikes, road blocks, and fuel shortages are daily worries. Two days before our team arrived, the Santa Cruz airport was the scene of cancelled flights, protests, a military take over, and then more protests that kicked out the military. The scenes on the television on Thursday night looked like an all out war. I didn’t think our team would be able to come in, but by Sunday morning when they arrived everything was back to normal. Despite all the poverty, and political and social turmoil, God is working here in the hearts of many people. It is encouraging to see the positive spirit and hard work of so many Christians working to share the gospel and to help those in need. You are all a part of this work as well. We are excited about a number of teams that will be coming down next year. If you would like to come and help out a while, you have an open invitation.
Blessings,
Danny
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com
www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Smoke in Santa Cruz
For the past month or so the air pollution in Santa Cruz has been getting worse and worse. Lately, there has not been a cloud in the sky, but in middle of day if feels and looks overcast and you can actually look directly at the sun. Visibility is less than a quarter mile at times and the local airports have had to cancel flights because of poor visibility. It is also causing health problems (eyes and lungs). The cause of the smoke is the burning of the forest by small farmers who are slashing-and -burning their way through the jungle (like the farmer from Yapacani pictured here). I don't blame them for wanted to farm and support their families, I just wish it didn't have such an affect on the rest of us during the dry season. The local newspaper reported there has been more than 14,000 fires in the department of Santa Cruz this year, up 25% from last year. There are techniques farmers can use that do not require burning (and in fact the Hooglands, an EFCCM missionary family in Yapacani are teaching such techniques on their farm), but the easiest way to farm the jungle is to cut it down, let it dry out, and then burn everything before planting. In some cases the fires get away from the farmers and unintendedly and uncontrollably burn large tracts of land. The first rains of the season should be here sometime in October or November. These will signal an end to the burning season and the beginning of the planting season. I'm sure the air will clear up again and beautiful skies will return. I just hope that in 10 or 20 years, Bolivia still has some intact rain forest. I love the wildness and natural beauty of Bolivia, but I am afraid it will practically disappear within my lifetime.
Talita Cumi Fire
Here are a couple of pictures for the fire at Talita Cumi that we mentioned in our newsletter. A storage room full of paint and cleaning chemicals caught on fire around 8:00p on a Sunday night. Several of the older girls were trapped by the fire on the second floor and had to jump from the balcony to excape the flames. Thankfully no one was seriously injured. The total damage was about $3000US.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Out There with the Beams -- September 2007 Prayer Letter
Hello loved ones and partners in ministry,
This month has been kind of crazy but good (mostly). Danny has finally found a workshop/farm, about half an hour from home, where he and Carlos will build tools and parts for well drilling. The little house, which will be used as an office, is on a big piece of land which will be used to demonstrate well drilling techniques. So that is one answer to prayer! Even our kids are excited about the property because it has lots of room to run around and lots of mandarin and mango trees. We want to ask you, however to pray for our friend Carlos to find the way to move back to Santa Cruz and start working with us.
Some exciting news—a work team from our church, Crossroads Christian in Lexington will arrive on October 21st. We will be drilling a water well and building a water storage tank at Talita Cumi that will be used for laundry and showers. Can you imagine how much water is consumed to wash the clothes of some thirty plus kids?? A lot! Also we may still be working on some of the repairs still needed at the home. Sadly to report, last week there was a big fire at Talita Cumi—but praise the Lord for his wonderful mercy and protection, nobody got severely hurt. Wilma (one of the oldest girls and sweetie pie) jumped from the balcony and hurt her arm, and several of the kids especially the oldest girls are still pretty shook up and refuse to sleep back in the bedrooms upstairs since they saw their steps on fire! Needless to say the material damages are a lot! They lost most of their tools which had been stored in the little room where the fire started which also gone now and the steps and roof over the patio need to be replaced. It was about $3000 in damages. As you can imagine this is a big deal for a home that struggles just to buy food each month for more than 30 kids! So please everybody lift the kids and the staff up in prayer and also pray for some more help to come to them.
I am so thankful for all of you who I know you are here with us through your prayer and your support. It also makes us feel so good when you guys write us asking questions about the people we are involved with. Thank you! Please keep praying for Fernanda. She is going through a time in her life when she needs to decide what she wants. I still haven’t figured it out. She tells me she wants to keep going, become a teacher or social worker. But she has not yet attended one of the counselling sessions I had arranged for her. One good news is that she is also working now for a family as a nanny and cook. She should graduate from high school in December. Please pray she won’t try to fill her need to feel loved and accepted in a way that will only bring more pain into her life. Also pray for forgiveness and salvation for her mother. Many times I have wanted to hurt this woman for selling her little 8 year old into prostitution but I realize she is just so lost and sick. I don’t think this woman would ever have the ability to face the horror of what she has done. But I know Jesus does!
Here are some other names and things we need you guys to lift up in prayer:
Cristo Viene girls home, please pray for a renewal of the staff. Pray the Lord will provide more Christian workers and for the Salvation of those who are there now.
Lily, Shirley, Vicky and Elvira who have also left the home. Pray for protection and discipling and for the Lord’s provision.
Our working team of eight and the impact they are going to make here in Santa Cruz.
Our health since the city has been very smoky for more than two weeks now, our kids are having a smoke day (as opposed to a snow day) from school today.
Isaiah he is having some separation issues I guess since he has started school and it is the first time we are separated for a long time every day.
Luciana and Nathaniel for wisdom and protection at school and home.
Danny and Vanessa for wisdom, self control and protection.
Our prayer for you today is that the Lord will go with you wherever you go and that He will show you His provision and purpose for your life. And that you will feel his presence. May our God also multiply his blessings for you today, as He promises to those who bless. Believe me you bless us every day!
Please visit our blog and photo websites to see pictures and read a little more about our work and about Bolivia. We love and miss all of you, please write to us, call us or better yet come and see us!
We appreciate everyone’s faithfulness in supporting our ministry, whether through a monthly pledge or a one-time gift. If you are new to our ministry or need another donation card, simply open the attached PDF, print a donation slip, and mail a check to Owingsville Baptist Church. It’s that simple.
Love,
Vanessa
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com
www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
This month has been kind of crazy but good (mostly). Danny has finally found a workshop/farm, about half an hour from home, where he and Carlos will build tools and parts for well drilling. The little house, which will be used as an office, is on a big piece of land which will be used to demonstrate well drilling techniques. So that is one answer to prayer! Even our kids are excited about the property because it has lots of room to run around and lots of mandarin and mango trees. We want to ask you, however to pray for our friend Carlos to find the way to move back to Santa Cruz and start working with us.
Some exciting news—a work team from our church, Crossroads Christian in Lexington will arrive on October 21st. We will be drilling a water well and building a water storage tank at Talita Cumi that will be used for laundry and showers. Can you imagine how much water is consumed to wash the clothes of some thirty plus kids?? A lot! Also we may still be working on some of the repairs still needed at the home. Sadly to report, last week there was a big fire at Talita Cumi—but praise the Lord for his wonderful mercy and protection, nobody got severely hurt. Wilma (one of the oldest girls and sweetie pie) jumped from the balcony and hurt her arm, and several of the kids especially the oldest girls are still pretty shook up and refuse to sleep back in the bedrooms upstairs since they saw their steps on fire! Needless to say the material damages are a lot! They lost most of their tools which had been stored in the little room where the fire started which also gone now and the steps and roof over the patio need to be replaced. It was about $3000 in damages. As you can imagine this is a big deal for a home that struggles just to buy food each month for more than 30 kids! So please everybody lift the kids and the staff up in prayer and also pray for some more help to come to them.
I am so thankful for all of you who I know you are here with us through your prayer and your support. It also makes us feel so good when you guys write us asking questions about the people we are involved with. Thank you! Please keep praying for Fernanda. She is going through a time in her life when she needs to decide what she wants. I still haven’t figured it out. She tells me she wants to keep going, become a teacher or social worker. But she has not yet attended one of the counselling sessions I had arranged for her. One good news is that she is also working now for a family as a nanny and cook. She should graduate from high school in December. Please pray she won’t try to fill her need to feel loved and accepted in a way that will only bring more pain into her life. Also pray for forgiveness and salvation for her mother. Many times I have wanted to hurt this woman for selling her little 8 year old into prostitution but I realize she is just so lost and sick. I don’t think this woman would ever have the ability to face the horror of what she has done. But I know Jesus does!
Here are some other names and things we need you guys to lift up in prayer:
Cristo Viene girls home, please pray for a renewal of the staff. Pray the Lord will provide more Christian workers and for the Salvation of those who are there now.
Lily, Shirley, Vicky and Elvira who have also left the home. Pray for protection and discipling and for the Lord’s provision.
Our working team of eight and the impact they are going to make here in Santa Cruz.
Our health since the city has been very smoky for more than two weeks now, our kids are having a smoke day (as opposed to a snow day) from school today.
Isaiah he is having some separation issues I guess since he has started school and it is the first time we are separated for a long time every day.
Luciana and Nathaniel for wisdom and protection at school and home.
Danny and Vanessa for wisdom, self control and protection.
Our prayer for you today is that the Lord will go with you wherever you go and that He will show you His provision and purpose for your life. And that you will feel his presence. May our God also multiply his blessings for you today, as He promises to those who bless. Believe me you bless us every day!
Please visit our blog and photo websites to see pictures and read a little more about our work and about Bolivia. We love and miss all of you, please write to us, call us or better yet come and see us!
We appreciate everyone’s faithfulness in supporting our ministry, whether through a monthly pledge or a one-time gift. If you are new to our ministry or need another donation card, simply open the attached PDF, print a donation slip, and mail a check to Owingsville Baptist Church. It’s that simple.
Love,
Vanessa
Daniel and Vanessa Beams
EFCCM
Casilla 3740
Santa Cruz, Bolivia
Email: beamsclan@yahoo.com
Bolivia Telephone: 011-591-3351-1087
Blogs: www.beamsclan.blogspot.com
www.simplewatersolutions.blogspot.com
Photo Gallery: www.pbase.com/beamsclan
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Isaiah Climbs 300 foot Radio Tower
This past weekend our family went out to Pailon to help put the roof on a quechua church that the Friesen's and the EFCCM are helping build. We also went out the the RTM radio station to relax a while and visit with the Friesen's and a several other missionary families working with the Mennonites and Quechua's. Last month Nathaniel and I climbed the 300 foot radio tower on the property, so on this visit Isaiah wanted to do the same.
Here is a picture of Isaiah starting out on his climb.
If you look closely, you can just make out Isaiah climbing on the outside of the tower about 50 feet below the crows nest, where he could finally get a rest.
Here is a picture of Isaiah starting out on his climb.
Here he is about half way up. His little arms and legs were getting tired, but he kept going.
If you look closely, you can just make out Isaiah climbing on the outside of the tower about 50 feet below the crows nest, where he could finally get a rest.
Note: Of course this is only a joke. Just wanted to see if anyone is reading this blog. I would never let Isaiah climb up this tower. He really did want to climb it, but I only let him go up about 10 feet for the picture. Nathaniel, Jonathan, and I really did climb it, but we used harnesses and a safety rope.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Family Outing
These are a few pictures from a recent family outing to the Lomas de Arena, which are some sand dunes and lakes 30 minutes from our house. It is such a great place to relax in the solitude of God's creation.
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