This is a short version of my monthly email (less exciting & less pictures 😦 ).
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H O L A!
April has been a very exciting and very busy month! I am so so thankful for the many people that have generously partnered with me and invested in the ministry of ENGAGE, enabling me to meet with YFC staff this month in both North and South America. When I get back to Ontario, I would love to share more about it with you over coffee! Until then, here are some quick updates…
BRITISH COLOMBIA
The Youth for Christ Canada team, at our yearly meeting at the YFC Honeymoon Bay Retreat Center. Since we work across the country, this time together is so beneficial for developing relationships, ensuring unity in our vision, and working collaboratively.
Knowing I’d be in the area for our YFC Canada team meeting, I arranged to visit the Lifeteams campus and get to know the students. Lifeteams is a one-year discipleship program of YFC Vancouver, based in Abbotsford, BC. These young adults spend a year living and working together, studying the Bible and volunteering with local YFC ministries. For many of these students, ENGAGE could be the perfect next step for them as they continue to discover what a life in ministry could look like for them. A bonus for me is that they already are familiar with the vision and values of YFC and have been trained in servanthood – making them great candidates for the ENGAGE Program! Do you know a young adult who might be interested in serving with YFC internationally? We’re recruiting!
COLOMBIA
Up until now, I have never travelled to another country to see their YFC ministries. Although I have developed great relationships with YFC staff around the world, and have sent Canadian volunteers to several countries, there is something very special about being able to be there in person. I am so grateful for the opportunity to get to know the staff, volunteers, and youth here – and to see the ENGAGE Program through new eyes.
On my first day in Colombia we travelled to the outskirts of Bogota, up in the mountains. YFC Colombia has run programs in this community for the last 10 years, including an English school. Being here, especially with Lucas, a volunteer from Germany, helped me to experience first hand what the role of international volunteers can look like. I already have new ideas for how to add to or modify our training, so that our volunteers are better equipped to serve.
Tonight I leave Colombia for Ecuador and then I return to Ontario next week. Please pray for continued safety and that this time in South America will continue to strengthen relationships and create so much new potential for the ENGAGE Program.
S E E K I N G N E W P A R T N E R S
There are so many exciting things happening right now with the ministry of ENGAGE. It has been my goal for a while to start working full-time in this position, and to make that happen I am looking for some new partners.
Are you excited about what God is doing in this ministry? Do you want to make an investment in the lives of young people around the world? I would love to talk with you about what that could look like.
I am currently looking for 15 additional partners:
3 at $100/month, 3 at $75/month, 3 at $50/month, 3 at $25/month, and 3 at $10/month.
Is one of those you?
Ashley Stromenberg 