Below is the rest of the news from the very full and busy Ecuador and Vivanco-land. Please remember that you are a blessing to us and we appreciate you more than you will ever know.

Blessings,

Cameron, Roberto and Graham

Roberto and Graham, dressed and ready for church

Now that Roberto has finished school he has been asked to take on more leadership responsibilities at the church where he has directed the music ministry for three years already. In fact he is preached this past Sunday IN ENGLISH for the first time. Additionally, he has been invited to be an 'elder' at the English Fellowship Church as of mid-June, which is the combination of being on the vestry and expanded spiritual leadership role for the church. 

E=H students during recess, but this bunch doesn't need the prep course yet..

We are in the process of setting the budget for the upcoming school year and have also launched what is basically an SAT prep course for the students who have graduated from high school. For many, if not most, they are the first in their families to finish secondary school and the possibility of going to college is daunting and exciting.

Remember to check out our video: https://vimeo.com/61823823, 

or on our website: 

www.educationequalshope.org.

With the Prov IV team at the Equator Monument

Our teams have the chance to serve at local churches, resourcing and supporting their on-going ministries.  For example Prov IV youth helped a church run a VBS, did maintenance and new construction at the property, and then went with the church members to do service work in their community. Some teams work at Casa Gabriel, a home for former street boys, or La Roca, a skate church, or go into more rural areas to work with and encourage the church there.  

Father and son doing music ministry

The band is doing well and was invited to be a part of the resurrected Diocesan youth ministry in Ecuador this last weekend. (It is true! Thanks to the current Bishop's support, the Diocesan Youth Ministry is back on track.)  It is a huge joy to see the young people that we poured into for years take the reigns and we now serve in an advisory role.  Praise God!

Gedeon- Over the last few weeks they have had three radio interviews and traveled to the coastal town of Guayaquil to play two outdoor concerts in the Sociedad Biblica of Ecuador.

They have also been invited to provide the music at a week-long camp in August in another coastal town, Manta.

They are working on an acoustic CD.

Jewelry made by the girls

Many of you know that we have started a micro-enterprise/cottage industry as a spin off of the Scholarship Program Education=Hope.  The goal of Handmade=Hope is to provide for job training and micro-enterprise to those in desperate and difficult places; especially girls rescued out of sexual slavery. 

Pictured here is some of the jewelry that they produce that we get to offer to teams.  It is a win, win coming out of deep suffering.

Happy Birthday to Gigi with a walk in the park

In June we celebrated my mom's birthday. She is doing well but struggling with being so very limited in her mobility due to no cartilage in her hips.  Please pray for her spirits to be high and the strength to fight the blues when they come. 

Graham and Pierce Myers hanging out

We have had the immense pleasure of a series of house guests this summer, starting in May with our friend Pierce Myers from Sewanee. He taught Graham how to stick his tongue out.

Please pray for the summer teams that we have had (especially Christ Church School, St. Bart's, Prov IV Youth Ministry, First United Methodist of E City) and the ones yet to come. The teams are a blessing to Ecuador but also please pray that returning home the experiences would bear fruit as a result of their time here. 

Continued prayers for balance for me as I continue to head up the Short Term Missions department, which includes supervising the teams, relationships with the ministry sites, our full-time staff and summer interns.

For the music and recording studio as well as expanded responsibilities at the church. 

For Fall Furlough/Home Ministry Assignment planning. We are planning to be home this fall for about 10 weeks.  We normally are home on HMA for 5 months, but are in need of changing the routine now that Graham is on the scene and Roberto's expanded responsibilities.  We will not be able to visit all of our wonderful supporting churches this fall, but are planning to be home next fall as well to finish the circuit.