Christmas Greetings of Peace on Earth, Thanksgiving and Joy to you from the Kek'Chi people and the kids of the village & orphanage on the Rio Dulce in Guatemala.

Their heartfelt thanks, for all of your support towards helping them fulfill their dream of a church, is being sent to you at this special time of year along with their prayers, that you too and those are closest to yous heart will also see their dreams come true.

Capt. Norm, Maria Teresa and Peggy returned to the U.S. in August. The Capt. & Maria Teresa have been visiting churches, kids groups, schools and other organizations sharing the good news from the Rio Dulce along with stories about the people. Photos, slides, video and music have all been apart of various presentations and the response from the people visited has been wonderful. The Capt. & Maria Teresa say that they have been overwhelmed with all the positive responses and increased interest, loving concern, & generosity of everyone they have encountered.

Three Stories of Threes' (Condensed)

"The Three Feathers". (A story of generosity and gratitude)

In the early time of our stay in Guatemala, we encountered a sick family that needed several weeks of hands-on assistance. Teaching in a Mayan village is something that requires time and example. During my daily visits I would boil water, wash clothes, sweep out the little Manaca covered, stick walled house and go over the medication application and bathing procedures using anti-bacterial soap etc...with Mama.

The kids would watch me carefully and I would sing to them and play with them as I worked. One day, the oldest boy, Menor, brought me three beautiful feathers. We talked about how lovely they were and how wonderful God was, that He made such good things for us to enjoy in our lives. These were Menor's pride and joy for they were literally the only thing this little one had. Menor and his brothers and sister don't have toys. They don't even have shoes. (They are not unhappy though, so please, don't feel sorry for them. They are loving, happy kids finding play and fun in the natural things around them.)

Well, my work was done after a long day and as I left the family and went to pick up my bag I was overwhelmed with the gift that lay next to it. Menor had given me his Three Feathers as a present to say Thank You for helping my family. This little boy gave me his best. Is it any reason that the Capt. and I want to continue to help in this place where it is easy to see the face and find the presence of God.

"The Three Crabs" (A story of magnanimity & integrity)

The Capt. and and I were at anchor, on the good little ship, "Quetzal", near Livingston, Guatemala when we noticed several boys in their cayucos (dugout canoes) trying to catch jaibas (crabs). It was a rainy day and all the boys but one had some kind of plastic to cover themselves from the dampness that was certainly chilling even though the temperature was in the 80s.

The Capt. thought it would be a good idea to give one of the poncho's we'd received from donations to the boy. For the welfare, self-esteem, and confidence of the people we serve here, we don't just "hand out" stuff. We make "Good Trades". It is better for them if they earn the things we can provide. Being sensitive to the "Good Trades" concept, we decided to ask the young man (probably 11 or 12 years old) if he would like to trade two crabs for a poncho.

He eagerly said yes and came alongside the Quetzal. We handed him the yellow poncho and his eyes lit up like it was a Christmas gift all wrapped and bowed. We could tell he was happy and that was really all we needed. It was time to lower the bucket for him to place our two crabs inside...

He carefully selected the two BIGGEST Crabs he could find and started to hand it back to me when he suddenly stopped and said "Ah! Una mas" (one more) He smiled and we said "muchos gracias y que Dios te Bendiga". (Thank you and God Bless You). Now all of his friends had come around in their little cayucos to see what was happening. He paddled off with them and he had the biggest joy filled expression of them all.

"The Three Brothers in a Cayuco" (An example of the kids' eagerness to learn)

Peggy, the Capt. & I were teaching classes at the orphanage. We were teaching 11 classes a week, working as a team. These classes included not only teaching the kids, but teaching the teachers and volunteers who worked there as well. We were teaching English, Basic Christian Concepts (Love One Another as I have Loved You"), music, writing, reading, & art. Peggy and the Capt. are excellent teachers and the kids had so much fun that the news traveled fast and far.

Within a short time we had special visitors one day. {Remember that saying about being hospitable to strangers because you could be entertaining Angels} I believe these three little brothers are Angels. They paddled against the wind and somewhat high waves of the river one afternoon to ask us if we would come and teach in their village too! They said they had lots of (friends) kids who didn't get to go to school at the orphanage for various reasons and they came to us, as messengers, to ask if we could help them because they loved them!

We soon began teaching in a little manaca covered room that had a solitary chalkboard and a few broken pieces of chalk. Along with some rough benches for the kids to sit and write on. We gave them each a little red notebook, some paper and a pencil. You would have thought it was Christmas for each one of them. They had never had a notebook and pencil of their own before. Quickly, upon our appoach to class each time, the kids would come calling out as they ran towards the little classroom, "Hello how are you I am fine thank you", all in one sentence. This still lifts our hearts and draws forth a choking felling in our throat with tears as we visualize the sweet faces of those kids!

During the months we worked in Guatemala, we realized how eager those kids were to learn and how much their parents supported education. These people have little voice in their country. Their opportunity for education is almost nil. This is why there is a need for all of us to continue to help.

We would like to tell you many stories and we have them too! But, for this first issue of Kids to Kids News, we would like to share one that gives a beautiful example of how this program works. This story is about Amy! Amy was the first and only (newly confirmed) student, out of 45, who said yes when asked to become a part of a new program that would be planned by and implemented by kids to help other kids. It was an idea born out of a need to get kids involved with using their gifts and time to think about and help others instead of themselves. It was a way to live out the Sacrament of Service!

Well, it been 4 years now since we started and I had the absolute, wonderful pleasure (Blessing) to see Amy at St. Helens Church a few weeks ago when the Capt. and I were doing a presentation there....The interesting thing is that she is attending college in San Angelo and just happened to be visiting St. Helens the same time we were. What a blessing for us. Thank you Lord!

We had only a short time together but Amy shared that she is tutoring kids at a boys school as a way of continuing to help others. "These are kids in need", she said, "It is something I relate to the first project we did with Kids to Kids, when we collected items for Homeless Teens at Covenant House in Houston and we took them there and met with the Deacon and met some of the kids in trouble.

Congratulations Amy for being a beautiful example of a CHRISTIAN and a Kids to Kids Leader! We pray God will continue to bless her and fulfill her dreams for all the good she is doing for other Kids.

Many more stories. Peggy Gerke has been blessed with a wonderful job as the new Director of March of Dimes, Austin. We can't think of a better place for her (except in Guatemala) and the people she will influence to do good and help kids than this. {Note* We tried to get Peggy to be the Austin Coordinator for Kids to Kids but we couldn't compete with the salary, office space and benefits}.

Congratulations Peggy. After your dedication and commitment to the kids in Guatemala and Kids to Kids Outreach, you deserve the best. God Bless you. We Love you and please don't forget us as your friends.

New Volunteers: We have two young people who are committing to a year of service in Guatemala. They are James Dear, 19 and Tracy Giammalvo, 18. Tracy and James have been preparing for this for over a year now. They are at our Arteaga, Mexico site right now, studying Spanish and pitching in where they can as part of their inculturation process.

The Capt. and I returned in August to do our missionary work here with our communities and kids. Our focus of this visit is to let everyone know that the church is built and the people are very thankful and joy filled. It is also our hope that the people we encounter on this journey here in the U.S. will make a commitment to support the new dream of:

The Capt. and I are asking you to pray for all kids and to make a monthly, quarterly or yearly generous contribution to help in this effort. The Capt. and I are doing as much as we can and we are committing the next 10 years to continue to help people and Kids to Kids. Please consider joining us and become an active member of Kids to Kids Outreach.

Kids to Kids Outreach
P.O. Box 423
Rockport, Texas
(512) 365-1213 || (512) 790-9740