Port Maria – May 31, 2009

I arrived in Montego Bay on April 10 and was greeted by the three young men who have become my sons; Bulky who drives the van over hill, dale and raging river, Jason who carries the burden of Recording Brother and Marcel who grasps Scriptural concepts in the blink of an eye.

The days have been filled with visits to schools for the “Champion a Child” Program, conducting classes with the Brothers and Sisters in Port Maria and visiting Sisters, some who had not been out to meeting in a while and the widows in Port Antonio who relish visits from anyone who comes to the town.

“Champion a Child” sponsors cover the costs for uniforms, books, meals and taxi fares to school. Students are encouraged to remain in school and do their best. They are also active in the Sunday School and other youth activities during the week.

We have settled into a routine of classes in the morning, before the heat of the day makes us lazy, the afternoons are filled with errands and the evenings are spent in Prayer Meetings, Youth Circles and Mid-week Bible class. Generally there are upwards of 30 children and young people in the apartment on a Friday evening for CYC. The lively choruses echo down the hill and I’m told that you can hear them from the “Festival” shop. The young people who have missed the van can tell that class has not yet begun and they pick up speed to arrive before the singing is done.

Each day we have a different class. On Monday the young adults are working on English so they will be able to pass their exams and get a high school diploma. Tuesday is “Effective Speaking”. On Wednesday Mildred joins us for a class about the work of the Levites. Thursday is supposed to be our day off, but we haven’t yet been able to get to the beach. So much ocean, so close, but you can’t go there in the rain.

This week we welcomed the birth of Daniel Emmanuel Reid. Anxious to join the family he arrived about 3 weeks early. It is one big family. The young people have acknowledged their relationship to each other and to God by taking on the family name – Delphian. You can reach them on gmail. As you can see, the young people welcomed me right into the family. This picture was taken during the first week that I was in Port Maria.

The economy in this area has put many of the sisters and brothers out of work, so we have started a cottage industry. Currently, Sister Mildred is busy sewing skirts to fill the orders that have been coming in. She can now take care of her family financially while remaining at home to provide direction for her children. The young men are making bead rings that they hope will find a ready market as well.

The van lost the engine. It will soon be fixed and we will be back to business as usual.

Love in Christ

Sis Linda Reding