The Mitcheners

They're Coming!! We have another family joining the ground team on May 21st. Scott & Angela Mitchener just purchased their one-way tickets to the Dominican Republic. We are looking forward to having them here. It's been a long time coming for them, but God has provided, & it's exciting to see the day has arrived. 

Also, please include this family in your prayers as they make the Big move. They're going to be doing a lot of packing, preparing, & even saying good-bye to loved ones. It's a transition that can be difficult (especially since they have 2 little ones). But, I know they're excited & so are we!

FIRST CHILD SPONSORED!!!

Nika Bonita

Read her story at Uprooted And Undone by Mariam Green

Just a Few Things...

VISITORS: Over the last couple of weeks, we've had visitors. It started with a visit from the Halderman family. They joined us for a week to learn about our ministry & share life with us. We had a great time getting to know them! Next, we had a visit from the Green's. Nathan & Mariam spent this past Wednesday to Saturday with Freedom. We had fun including them the ministry & bringing them into our homes. I can't say enough how great it is to have people here!

CHILD SPONSORS: We have officially begun the process of child sponsorship for the next school year. Currently, there are 20 children on Freedom's sponsorship page that need sponsors. Your sponsorship will go to providing a bilingual, Christian education for these kids. Their cute little faces are asking for your help!!

FURLOUGH: As many of you probably know, Kurt & I will be home for 3 weeks at the end of May. Our flight arrives in Atlanta, Georgia on Wednesday, May 16th. We'll be spending the first few days in SC with Kurt's family. Then, we'll travel to Indiana & Ohio for the rest of our trip. We are both so excited to see everyone. :) We want to spend as much time as we can with friends & family! So, if you want to hang out, email us: kurtcline@itisforfreedom.com or katiecline@itisforfreedom.com.

I think that's all for my updates... looking forward to catching up with everyone in May!!

Dixon Update

To start, there was an error in communication with the mother. We originally thought the baby's name was Nixon, but as we learned later, it was actually Dixon.

Now to give you the much needed update. Baby Dixon has been doing about the same for the last week. He's still alive & feeding, but not improving like he should be. Jason has taken him to the hospital in Ramon Santana twice now, and the doctors say he's fine. Fortunately, a team of doctors, from La Romana, visited Lima yesterday. They were able to see Dixon & recognize his need for a feeding tube. Even though he can feed, he's using too much energy to do it & not gaining the necessary weight. So, Dixon & his mom went to La Romana with the doctors. I haven't heard anything more, but I'll give another update when I do. (Hopefully I can get a new picture too.)

Thanks everyone for your prayers on behalf of this precious little one!!

This pictures reminds me how much I love the kids here in the DR. Three of these four kids are in our preschool on Monday, Wednesday, & Friday. They are Abigael (far left), Marcia, & Abel (far right). Since I've had the opportunity to get to know them better, I want to claim them as my own. After the first month, it felt like I added 21 kids to our family. I have such a great love for them, and I'd say it's unexplainable, but I know it comes from God. He put a desire in my heart to love others, just as He loves me. I know my face lights up each time I think about those kids! I picture each one of them doing something funny or showing affection through BIG hugs, and I can't stop smiling. Don't get me wrong, they are little stinkers, but adorable at the same time. I am blessed to be here & be able to build relationships with these kids.

4 Years of Life Together!

Kurt & I celebrated 4 years of marriage on March 8th. I know it's not a long time to be married, but I feel like we've aged :) I've learned a lot about being a wife, especially these last couple of months. (There's a lot more to it than I remember in the beginning!) God has stretched me & my understanding of how to be a godly wife. And, no matter how many times I fail, I wouldn't trade married life for anything.

Seat Buckle

We had been in the country a month & already made several trips to the capital. This trip was no different until… We reached the tollbooth, & Kurt unbuckled his seat belt to reach for change to pay the toll. As we pulled up to the drop, I noticed a police officer standing on the other side watching. I wasn’t concerned until I saw him wave his hand. He called us over & started talking rapidly in Spanish (which we barely knew). He was saying something about Kurt’s seat belt, & then he wanted our licenses, registration, & insurance. Obviously, we didn’t understand half those words & were fumbling around for what we thought he wanted. He said a few more things & then motioned us to move to the side of the road. I started to get worried because he was talking about giving us a ticket. Of course, a ticket here is not like a ticket in the states. Anything is possible. He finally came back, still acting like we’d get a ticket, but calmed down after he saw I was about to break down! We ended up leaving without a ticket, but it was our first of several experiences with the police. Not a dull moment on the road here in the DR.