update: August mission trip

CHARITY GOLF CLASSIC

Four Friends International's annual North Alabama Golf Classic will be held on Saturday October 28 at Cherokee Ridge Golf Course. The event has earned a reputation for warm fellowship, fine food, and great prizes. Here is the pertinent information:

AUGUST MISSION TRIP

After three years of limited groups of four or less volunteers, Four Friends International's first post-COVID mission team left Birmingham early on Saturday July 29 and returned late Friday August 4. The team consisted of twelve volunteers, evenly split between Dawson Memorial Baptist Church in Birmingham and two North Alabama churches. The focus of the ministry for the week, as always, was medical and church support. In five clinic locations over five days, 900 patients received care, 90 bags of food were delivered, 50 homes were visited, and 500 children participated in Vacation Bible School. A Wednesday night worship service was held at Los Laureles, with the largest congregation since before the pandemic. The schedule each day was the same: a clinic, home visits, and food relief in the morning, then clinic and VBS in the afternoon. Here are some photos that should give you a sense of what took place.

MEDICAL CLINICS    nurse Vanessa with a patient in El Divisidero, a mountain community served each week by our Four Wheels Clinic

a 90-year-old patient at Los Pinos, one of our two stationary clinics

Reyna Craft, her son Eliot, and Mary Skidmore providing toboggans, reading glasses, and dental hygiene instruction to patients at Laguna del Pito, another mountain community served by our mobile clinic

the crocheted toboggans were a favorite with the people

Liam Craft at the eyeglass table at El Divisadero

praying for a patient at El Terrero, a mission community

nurse Meredith Roy treating patients at the mountain community of El Divisdero

Janet Skidmore assisting Adela, the Los Pinos pastor's wife, and Patty at the clinic pharmacy

Patty and Karina at the clinic pharmacy at El Divisidero

a young man with wounds from a recent motorcycle wreck

HOME VISITS

a typical home in the mountain community of Laguna del Pito

Liam Craft delivering a bag of food sufficient to feed a family for one week

a visit to Kimberly, born with both hips dislocated, who will be able to walk due to surgeries funded by generous supporters of Four Friends International

Amalia, one of our translators, greeting a mother and her daughter during a home visit

Eliot Craft and Reyna Craft praying with a lady during a home visit

MINISTRY AT THE CITY DUMP

children living at the garbage dump received handmade dolls

 

Denise Vasut delivering a food bag to a dump resident

David Skidmore ministering to another resident of the city dump

witnessing the joy of the children at the dump was an amazing and humbling experience 

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL

 

a mother and son attend a VBS session

Koben Craft and one of our translators providing candy to a child at VBS

a "keep the balloons in the air" recreational activity

Jeff Fowler and Imelda, a clinic nurse, distributing Bible story coloring books and crayons

Jeremy Yates, our VBS director, with a small child

Luis, who works at Los Pinos clinic, presenting a Bible story to the children

the coloring books and crayons were definitely a hit

PARTNERS IN THE MINISTRY

Vanessa, the Four Wheels Clinic nurse, with Meredith Roy

Ishmael, a faithful translator

from left, Reyna Craft, Karina (office worker), Ishmael (translator), Pastor Filberto

Eliot Craft with a new friend

Mynor and Luis, who  work at our clinics, have just started weekend seminary classes in Guatemala City. When we first started coming to Jalapa, they were young teenagers. Now they are church leaders and future pastors. Pray for them as they continue their studies.

At the end of this month (September 2023), Four Friends International will have funds sufficient to provide ongoing operations through February 15, 2024. Thank your so much for your generous contributions to this ministry! 

 

Four Ways to Give

1. Send your donation, designated for Four Friends International, to:

Four Friends International 

Randy Stewart MD, President

2101 Lane Parke Court

Mountain Brook, Alabama 35223
-or-
2. Make a one-time or recurring online donation on this blogsite, as follows:
From your computer: select the appropriate Donate button and follow the directions.

From your phone: click on "View web version" at the bottom of this page; then select the appropriate Donate button and follow the directions.

-or-

3. Send your donation, designated for Four Friends International, to:

First Baptist Church

502 North Main Street

Arab, Alabama 35016

(256-586-3153 - arabfbc.org)

-or-

4. Send your donation, designated for Four Friends International, to:

The Baptist Foundation of Alabama 
     7650 Halcyon Summit Drive 
Montgomery, AL 36117 
Phone: 334.394.2000
Fax: 334.394.2039
Email: tbfa@tbfa.org

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1

Four Friends International has no paid administrative employees.

2

The only major expenses in the United States are accounting and insurance fees.

3 

Therefore, over 97% of funds donated to Four Friends International are sent to Guatemala for the medical ministry.

4

It costs only $7.50 per patient to provide free care and medicines, and this amount includes staffing, property taxes, and utilities.

5

Four Friends International is a 501c3 organization. All monetary donations are tax deductible. A charitable contribution statement is forwarded at year's end.

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