Thursday, October 3, 2024

Backpacks, Backpacks ! And a Smooth Collection Trip


It's time to talk about this year’s backpack collection trip!

This year’s trip was completed thanks to the efforts of Sowers4Pastors staff members Kirstin, Esdras, and Mary Faith, with a helping hand from J.R., a pastor from Life Community Church in Ohio (one of the sister churches). J.R. traveled from Ohio to Maryland to lend a hand and just flew back home last night. Esdras and Mary Faith were part of the collection journey from Mississippi to Florida to Maryland, while Kirstin is still in the States, gearing up for one last speaking engagement at an AWANA program tonight.

Now, this is usually the part where we share the dramatic side of the trip — outrunning hurricanes, or a Penske rental truck getting a flat tire. But this year? Well, let’s just say, the most "dramatic" moment came when a rental truck got a little lost for a bit. According to Kirstin, “Nothing bad happened!” — we’re calling that a win!

Though we don't have official backpack collection numbers yet, we’ll be sure to let you know once every last backpack has been counted.


In the meantime, there are a few prayer requests we’d love your help with as we prepare for the next phase:

The port workers strike along the East Coast of the U.S. is affecting shipments. Although the strike has been delayed, it can still affect future shipments.

Pray for no problems with getting the duty-free shipping from the Honduran government.

Pray for safe shipment, arrival, and release of the containers, which can sometimes face challenges at customs in Honduras.

Last year, you may recall, one of our containers was unpacked by officials, leading to some personal items going missing. We’re praying this year goes smoothly and that everything arrives safe, sound, and on time.


From Rachel: "The first backpack distribution team is scheduled to come to Honduras to help pass out backpacks at the end of January. Ideally, we like to ship the container at the end of October, which gets the containers to Honduras by early December, giving us enough time to prepare for distribution. If they arrive by early January, we’ll be fine. Even mid-January should work. But after that, we might run into a situation where our team shows up, and…no backpacks!"

So, let’s get to praying, all you backpack enthusiasts! The kids are counting on these backpacks!

 - posted by Christi



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