Wayne is a very bad boy …

Okay the answer to the question “Why is Erma’s website so terribly out of date” is …. Wayne!!!!!  It’s Wayne’s fault, totally and 100%-ly.  Your dear people are working hard and God knows, lately it hasn’t been easy … and I have not done what I said I would do.  Emily (my mom) has been faithfully sending me stories to post and pictures and oh Lord, I have just kept on … well, just not doing it.  No excuse.  There is no excuse for this long an absence.

I once read if you’re too busy for the Lord … you’re too busy.  I’m sad to say it’s taken the death of my father to shake some ever-loving sense into my noggin … and here I am.  To honour my dad and my mom … I’m trying again.

I will be posting a number of back-logged stories, and getting various people to supply me with updates … bear with us!

Yours in God once again,
Wayne.

Addition to EFF Accommodation Inventory

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

March is a very busy month – with spring break occurring in both Canada and the United States – when students and some of their parents use the break from school to travel. Some join a group, such as Hero Holiday, while others make their own arrangements with Erma to accommodate a family or individuals. As it turned out – a few weeks ago, we were overbooked for the amount of bed space that we had. Solution? An extreme makeover of the “shed” that sits in Juan & Tami Soderberg’s compound.

Mission Outreach – Guerrero Negro and Beyond

It was early morning on March 18, 2010, when nine of us – Norm, Sharon, Christina, Warren, Hannibal, George, I, and Luis and Arturo from the rehab at Sembrador – left the compound with two pick-ups and a suburban fully packed. Our destination was a mission to Guerrero Negro and San Francisco de la Sierra. The hills, mountains and valleys were all greener than normal due to all of the rain which had fallen recently. We stopped along the way to drop off some rice and beans and, for a short visit with Mama Espinosa. Arturo got his guitar out …

Relief Caravan Mission to Mulege Area – Part 2

……and now the “fun” part of what we did on this mission trip! A few of us managed to extend the three day trip to what turned out to be eleven days. Please read on as I take you back to Day 1 after we arrived in Guerrero Negro on January 14, 2010.

The name of the city comes from the whaling ship – the Black Warrior, which was shipwrecked in 1858 in nearby waters. Guerrero Negro is the largest town located in the Municipality of Mulege and is the point of entry to the Mexican State of Baja California Sur. This city of 20,000 is basically a support town for one of the world’s largest systems of salt water evaporation ponds. It produces over three million tons of …

Consul Sask. Group Builds a House

A few weeks ago, under the leadership of Don & Kathy Smith, a group from Consul, Sask., CA built a house for a single mother with two girls. It was a blessing to see the Lord at work through his servants. The youth had a blast ministering to the kids in the area, while the women in the group helped the men get the walls assembled and raised.

Update – Photos of Flood Relief Effort

The following is an account with photos of the supplies and crew brought down to Vicente Guerrero area by Children of the Americas. Along with Erma and her volunteers, relief efforts were carried out in the hardest-hit areas around Vicente Guerrero. Thanks to Dave Brisbin for this story. 

Thanks to Children of the Americas for over 120 blankets, tarps, rope, clothing, warm stocking caps and mittens and jackets, mattresses, misc. necessities, and importantly, well over 2 tons/4,000pounds of food, some of which was purchased in bulk in Mexico.

El Socorrito

Yesterday, on our way south to the rehab at El Socorrito, I had an urge to visit Miguel. He is a disabled young man who crawls on the ground when not in his motorized cart. His humble home, which he shares with his mother & sister, had been flooded. His cart had been covered with water & refused to start due to the water damage. Most everything they own was lost. Their beds & clothing were washed away & they were trying to look through the rubble, along with other families, for anything they could salvage & use. We could see for miles that this area was flooded still. Another ministry had been there with food bags but are asking for mattresses. If you wish to help, please send your donations to our Foundation in Victoria, B.C. Canada at:

Erma Fennell Foundation
c/o Geog & Lorraine Hett, Directors
2833 Lake End Rd.
Victoria, B.C. V9B 2W2

Phone: 250-478-2727

Camalu

February 4, 2010, Thursday afternoon, we visited the worst hit area of Camalu, a community about 11 kms. north of Vicente Guerrero. Friends from California arrived yesterday with more tarps, food & blankets. We began our trek there on a road made through the mud, walking or driving from house to house. We saw people with shovels trying to
clean the mud out of their houses. People spread their belongings about their yards, trying to reclaim what was soggy wet & damaged. Most of it was beyond repair. At the second house …

Mama Espinosa – Jan 1/10 Visit

Early morning – New Years Day 2010, the EFF white van is packed & ready. It is time to make a delivery to Mama Espinosa in El Rosario, about an hour’s drive south of Vicente Guerrero along the Baja peninsula. For Erma, it’s a routine trip, made at least once monthly for over 20 years, but today, we are excited about the prospect of not only another delivery but a hearty breakfast at Mama’s Restaurant. Her family run motel & restaurant sits right on Highway1, where in 1973, the pavement ended. From this point on (about 1200 kms) south to Cabo San Lucas, it was only a dirt road. Mama often says, “bad roads bring good people, good roads bring all kinds of people.” Today, we are blessed by the generosity of Canadian friends – Wayne, Elsie & Robert.

The Worst Storm In 60 Years to Hit Northern Baja

That’s what some local people are saying about the storm that hit Vicente Guerrero, Baja, Mexico with a vengeance late afternoon on Wednesday, January 27th 2010. It came from the north and hit Tijuana & Ensenada first & then east towards Tecate & Mexicali, while continuing its rampage southwards down the Baja Peninsula. We were warned that the storm was coming but many did not understand how seriously we would be affected by it; however, others quickly began preparing for its onslaught. Local stores did a booming trade as stores quickly filled with customers & shelves were emptied of food, water & other essentials. People bought as much as they could afford & then hurried home to protect their houses & families. Some were uncertain of what to do & did nothing while others were fascinated by the awesome intensity of it all. Soon, the streets emptied.