Christmas and Graduation Update

Dear Friends,

Happy New Year! I pray that God will bless you and your family this year!

Trip to the US

I’m excited to update you on all that is happening with Youth for Christ in Honduras. As many of you know, I had the opportunity to go to the Youth for Christ International General Assembly in Denver, Colorado at the end of September. It was a great time of prayer and fellowship with brothers and sisters from all over the world. For me I felt a little taste of heaven, having 80 nations in one place, all worshiping our God! After leaving Denver I visited many families and churches all over the States. Thank you to everyone that welcomed me into your home and church. I visited lots of old supporters and met new ones along the way.

Christmas at La Roca
Upon returning home, I was welcomed by many packages of school supplies, clothes, and gifts for the church and school. I am thankful for all your support. Thanks to you, every person at the church and every child at the school received a wrapped Christmas present. Santa even came to deliver the gifts!

Graduation from La Roca

The highlight of 2011 was the first graduation from the school, La Roca! The Honduran school year goes from February to November. We had 13 kids graduate from sixth grade and 18 kids graduate from kindergarten. Here in Honduras, only 1/3 of children are educated past 6^th grade. According to Honduras’ National Statistics Institute (INE) only 58% of school age children reach the 5^th grade; on average, Honduran children complete 5.4 years of schooling.

Another sad statistic for this year is that because of teacher strikes in the public schools, out of 200 scheduled days, the schools were only open for 90 days this past school year. At our school we work through a home school program. So, these kids that could not even go to public school are receiving more education because we did not have to close for the strikes. The graduation was a great accomplishment for these children, their parents, and this poor community. We helped each family with the graduation clothes and prepared a meal for the celebration afterward.

One of the mothers told me proudly, “My son has never been dressed so nice in his whole life; I am so proud of him, and he is so happy.” To be able to provide hope to these families through education, a pair of khaki pants and a nice shirt really blessed my heart. Thank you for helping us through prayer, finances, and supplies this year.

Dump Ministry
The city dump ministry continues to go well. We had the opportunity to work together with a local tv program to bring gifts to the people living and working at the city dump. Through this, we got to share on tv what YFC is doing at the dump and how to contact us to be involved in serving with us.

Prayer Requests

Please continue to be in prayer for the lives of everyone involved in this ministry. Please pray for the families, the community, the school, the church, and the city dump. God has done great things this past year and we want to thank you for being part of the ministry. It could not have happened without your obedience and discernment to God’s voice. The needs for this year include:

• teachers’ salary
• food for the school lunch
• school supplies
• food for the city dump ministry
• transportation (I need a reliable car)

The school has been a huge blessing to all these families, but without the funding to pay the teachers and provide the food, it is hard to continue. We live each month by faith, and God has provided. Please be in prayer for these crucial aspects of the school.


How to Support

• By check: YFCI, PO Box 4555, Englewood, CO 80155(write the Honduras fund number #528.02 or Aben Claros in the memo line)
• Go to www.yfci.org. At the top of the page click on donate. Write 'Aben Claros' in the box marked 'other.' Click 'Add Donation' and then 'Donate Now'
• Email: aben.claros@jpclatam.org

Thank you for loving and serving these youth in Honduras. We are grateful for your prayers and support.

God bless you,
Aben