...in the Dominican Republic

In an area called El Cercado, we inaugurated at least four housing projects, but one stands out over the others. We went into a village that the world had forgotten, or perhaps it never knew it existed. So remote was this place and so bad were the roads to get there. The village is called Abre la Yayas (Open the Yayas - no one seemed to know exactly what these were.) The people have lived there for generations in what I can only describe as horrible poverty (extreme poverty seems too mild a term). The horror of the poverty was well matched by the intense beauty of the setting. Surrounded by verdant mountains, nature showed off the glory of God's creation. Our eyes were drunk with the exceeding beauty of this place.

Someone reached out to these destitute people from beyond the grave. Jeanette C. Rowe, one of our generous donors, left a large legacy of love for FFP at her passing on to eternal life and her family decided to build a village of 54 homes in her memory - the Jeanette C. Rowe Memorial Village. I was fortunate to share with Jeanette's sister, Marie, and her nephew, Matt (Marie's son), the emotion of witnessing with them the transformation of this place from wretchedness to unrestrained joy. One of the grateful villagers, a short, strong and stocky woman kissed Marie repeatedly and hugged her, frequently lifting Marie off the ground. The adrenaline and emotion of the moment allowed Marie to survive unharmed! :o)

We later met in their brand new chapel (yes, they now also have a place of worship!) and the happiness and energy portrayed in their singing, dancing, and praising God are difficult to capture in words. Many of the villagers spoke beautiful words of gratitude to God, to Jeanette, and to us for being present with them at that time. When Matt spoke, he promised that his family would perpetuate his aunt's generosity to this village. There were many moments of laughter and many moments of tears for all of us who shared in this uplifting experience that proved the transformative power of Christian love. Jeanette had to have been smiling as she enjoyed the warmth of God's embrace.

The next week, I returned to this very place with a large group of our speakers, and there was a great encore of joy and song and dance and laughter. In this second inaugural celebration, the little children placed their hands on the heads of our priests and pastors and blessed them. A picture of Jeanette was permanently installed in their chapel and the priests and pastors then went out and blessed the homes of these humble and jubilant people…