Connecting to Culture

By Jenny Dunn, Bhutanese ESL Coordinator

A couple Saturdays ago, the Bhutanese volunteers and team had a chance to celebrate our students and the end of yet another trimester of classes. The summer parties are always a special time; they're our most low key parties but are always filled with lots of American culture with the picnic and lawn games as well as Bhutanese-Nepali culture with lots of singing and dancing.

This summer, we had an opportunity to have two outstanding Bhutanese interns, one of who is an excellent dancer. He teamed up with one of our volunteers and choreographed a Hindi dance for a group of us Americans to perform at the party.  We started practicing a month and a half in advance; we wanted the first American dance to be unforgettable. And it was!  It was fun and unforgettable for the dancers as well as for our friends in the audience.

Here are a couple pictures from the "historical party," as said by one of our Bhutanese friends.

In other news:

• We’re negotiating the lease for Adelante Thrift and starting to pull together the team to help launch sustainable community development in our community. Interested in serving on our Adelante Thrift Action Team? Join us at the next Volunteer Orientation and Training on September 13 (see below for details) or email Matt at mattt@missionadelante.org.
• We are having an amazing time with our Cuban family! Five members of the RAICES ("Roots") ministry team are visiting for about two weeks. We have had a lot of great relational time as well as intentional ministry time.  The RAICES team will join the Latino community on our retreat this weekend, where we will be learning about praising God in a variety of contexts.

Prayer needs:

• Pray for our fall trimester planning process. Pray for volunteers, students and kids to be drawn to our programs. Pray that hearts are soft and ready to respond to God’s leading.

Current needs:

• Volunteers for our Fall Trimester, beginning the week of September 15:
• Monday-Thursday afternoons: 20 volunteers to serve one afternoon a week at Leaders In Training, our after-school tutoring and character development program for a select group of 8-13 year old Bhutanese and Latino students.  Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org or Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Tuesday evenings: 8 volunteers to serve at Kids Club, our outreach Bible study for 1-13 year old Bhutanese kids.  Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• Thursday evenings:
• Volunteer conversation partners for our Adult ESL classes.  Contact Morgan Ham at morganh@missionadelante.org.
• 5 volunteers to serve at Kids Adelante, our outreach Bible study for 5-12 year old Latino kids.  Contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org.

• We are making progress on the house rehab and Christ Community Church has been partnering with us every step of the way.  They are organizing work days this Saturday, August 30 and next Saturday, September 6th starting at 9:00.  We will be installing siding, caulking windows, repairing the porch, and painting.  Email Sarah at sarahw@missionadelante.org for more information or to sign up to help.
• LIT has been gifted tablets to use with LIT this school year.  We are in need of cases to protect the tablets.  If you would like to donate one, check out our Wishlist: LIT Wishlist.  If you have questions please contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org or Megan McDermott at meganm@Missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training: Saturday, September 13, 9:00-12:30 All volunteers should attend this training once at the beginning of serving with Mission Adelante. It's also a great way for someone to become familiar with Mission Adelante's ministry. If you or someone you know is interested in finding out more about what we do, and about our volunteer opportunities, please plan to attend/encourage him or her to plan on attending this informative training, and to contact Morgan at morganh@missionadelante.org for all the details.
• All Volunteer Huddle & Dessert: Monday, September 15, 6:30 p.m. We encourage everyone that will be volunteering with us during our fall trimester to attend so we can prepare for a great launch. 
• Fall trimester programs launch: Week of September 15

From Barbie Dolls to High Heels: A Coming-of-Age Celebration!

By Megan McDermott, Latino Children's Ministry Director

One of the best parts of sharing life with the community of Mission Adelante is that we are privileged to be invited into milestone celebrations. We love embracing the uniqueness of the different cultures that we serve and celebrating that culture right alongside our friends!  

Within the Latino culture, one of the most important days in the life of a young Latina woman is when she turns fifteen years old.  This milestone, also known as the Quinceanera, occurs when a young girl is presented to her community as a young woman. Before the eyes of friends and family, she receives her last doll, dances a special waltz with her father, and exchanges flat shoes for a "grown up" pair of high heels.  All of this symbolizes the transformation and celebration of  a little girl becoming a woman.  I was blessed to be invited to the quinceanera of a young woman that I have known for many years.


I met Gissel seven years ago when I began serving at Mission Adelante.  At the time she was eight years old and had this very sweet spark of innocence in her.  She has always had a very special place in my heart because of her inherent goodness, compassion for others, and her tenacious spirit.  As she has matured, she has grown up participating in our outreach Bible study, our after-school tutoring program, our teens program, and recently gained admittance to Bishop Ward, one of the best hig schools in Kansas City!  God has blessed us with the opportunity to walk with her and her entire family.  


We have seen the importance of planting the seeds of Christ early in the life of a child and how, when tended over the years, those seeds can grow into strong saplings.  Watching Gissel walk up to the altar with her parents on the day of the quinceanera was a strong reminder to me of God's goodness and faithfulness. Investing in the children of our community requires time, patience, and faith that God is in control.  As I looked at this beautiful young woman, remembering her when she was so young, I found myself praising God for how He has lovingly guided her over the years.  I am excited to see where He will lead her!



In other news:

• We relaunched one of our Latino House churches this weekend.  It was exciting to see some members reconnect who had been absent for a long time.
• We are excited to welcome our Cuban family, Raices ("Roots"), as they arrive in Kansas City for ten days.  We are looking forward to fellowship, laughter, fun, and the Lord to continue uniting our ministries to spread the Gospel.

Prayer needs:

• The RAICES team from Cuba will be in Kansas City for 2 weeks!  Please pray that their visit will be fruitful, that there would be mutual learning between our community and theirs.
• Please pray for Adelante Thrift while we work through the lease for our location.
• Continue to pray for members of our community looking for work. Pray for good pay and healthy work environments.
• Please pray for the health of one of our dear friends in the Bhutanese Community, Mon Maya, as she has been sick for several months.
• The family members of one of our Cuban community members just received visas to join him in Kansas City after a four year wait. Please pray for the Lord to guide them through all that immigration to the US entails, and to provide for their needs as they settle here.

Current needs:

• Volunteers for our Fall Trimester, beginning the week of September 15:
• Monday-Thursday afternoons: 20 volunteers to serve one afternoon a week at Leaders In Training, our after-school tutoring and character development program for a select group of 8-13 year old Bhutanese and Latino students.  Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org or Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• Tuesday evenings: 8 volunteers to serve at Kids Club, our outreach Bible study for 1-13 year old Bhutanese kids.  Contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org.
• Thursday evenings:
• Volunteer conversation partners for our Adult ESL classes.  Contact Morgan Ham at morganh@missionadelante.org.
• 5 volunteers to serve at Kids Adelante, our outreach Bible study for 5-12 year old Latino kids.  Contact Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org.
• LIT has been gifted tablets to use with LIT this school year.  We are in need of cases to protect the tablets.  If you would like to donate one, check out our Wishlist:  LIT Wishlist  If you have questions please contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org or Megan McDermott at meganm@Missionadelante.org
• The RG Asian store is expanding their store to include a restaurant. They are currently in need of a few small tables and chairs.  Please contact David Stetler at davids@missionadelante.org.  
• We are making steady progress on the house rehab, and will soon need appliances.  Please contact Sarah at sarahw@missionadelante.org if you are able to donate an electric range/oven, washer, electric dryer, or dishwasher.
• We want to re-open our resource center well-stocked with food baskets.  Check out this link  http://www.missionadelante.org/serviceprojects/  or contact Molly Merrick at mollym@missionadelante.org for more information about how to get involved.

Important dates:

• Volunteer Orientation & Training: Saturday, September 13, 9:00-12:30 All volunteers should attend this training once at the beginning of serving with Mission Adelante. It's also a great way for someone to become familiar with Mission Adelante's ministry. If you or someone you know is interested in finding out more about what we do, and about our volunteer opportunities, please plan to attend/encourage him or her to plan on attending this informative training, and to contact Morgan at morganh@missionadelante.org for all the details.
• All Volunteer Huddle & Dessert: Monday, September 15, 6:30 p.m. We encourage everyone that will be volunteering with us during our fall trimester to attend so we can prepare for a great launch. 
• Fall trimester programs launch: Week of September 15

Adelante Thrift Experiences Breakthrough

Written by Kristen Allen, Community Development Director

Our journey towards sustainable community development has been a long one. In December of 2012, the Adelante Thrift Board met for the first time to move forward with plans for a thrift store that provides jobs, job training, and generates revenue for future community development initiatives. We’ve prayed, we’ve planned, and we’ve practiced patience while we wait for God to move and show us a clear path or a clear no. It has been challenging, but has also helped to refine our thrift board and solidify our vision.

After walking a twenty month path, we felt that July 31, 2014, would be the final day for Adelante Thrift to secure a space or feel confident that God had said “not now” for this ministry. At the beginning of July we submitted a final offer for a space we had investigated and the entire board felt peace that we had surrendered this to God and we would move forward according to what was revealed during the final month.

We have a talented Adelante Thrift board who knows business and desires for this ministry to succeed. It might have been easy for us to try and force through the process and make something happen just to see something come of our efforts. We could have changed communities. We could have tried to take a space that didn’t meet our criteria. Instead, we did what may have been the hardest path and that was surrendering to God and staying true to what we believed was the best vision for this project and our community.

Seven days before our deadline, we experienced our first victory when the landlord responded favorably to our final offer. Five days later, we received our 501(c)3 designation from the IRS that we had been waiting for since May of 2013. We had previously been told that our application had been passed on for further review and would require additional development, so we feel these two items coming so close to our deadline could only be described as breakthrough.

We are currently negotiating our lease for the former Hollywood Video at 38th and State. Please continue to pray for us. Ideally we would have the lease signed by the end of this month and then would immediately start fundraising and construction. We look forward to sharing more news from Adelante Thrift and until then we are praising God for showing us His perfect timing.

If you are interested in helping to move Adelante Thrift forward, fill out an interest form to join the Adelante Thrift Action Team to help launch sustainable community development in our community.

Back to School Blessings

Written by Kristen Maxwell, 
Bhutanese Children's Ministry Director

Time flies when you are having fun, and this summer at Mission Adelante we had lots of fun!   It is hard to believe that we are looking at another school year. This past week we had the chance to outfit around 130 kids and 50 teens with backpacks and the supplies that they need to go back to school.  

 Thank you to our partners at Christ Church Anglican and Heartland Community Church for supplying the backpacks and supplies!  They are a huge blessing to our community!

 

 As we outfit our kids, and send them on their way will you join us in praying for them?  Pray that they would have a good start to the school year.  Pray that they would make good friends, who help them to make good choices.  Pray that God would gift them with the knowledge they need to do well academically.  Pray that they would come to know more about Christ this school year, and remember the lessons they learned, and the fun they had this summer.  

In other news:

• Last week Galilee Learning Center, a collaborative ministry effort between several Chin (from Burma) churches, wrapped up their first summer program at Mission Adelante. Please pray for the teachers and leaders of GLC who have started planning for a school year program. It is exciting for Mission Adelante to continue partnering with GLC to dream of this next phase for their ministry.
• The first Internship Mission Adelante has ever done with Bhutanese and Latino interns together came to a close on a Sunday after a intern retreat where interns swam, played, worshipped and reflected on what God has done in and through them this Summer. Thank you to everyone who partnered with our Interns through prayer and financial support. It was a challenging and joy filled summer where everyone grew and learned a lot!
• Baptism!  Last Sunday night we baptized four members of our Latino community!  Those who were baptized included: Yuri and Natalhy, both from Cuba, along with Charlie and Lucy Meek.

Prayer needs:

• Please for the wife and children of one of our Latino community members.  They will be having an immigrant visa interview in Havana, Cuba later this month.  Pray that their visa would be approved.
• Please pray for our summer interns to find longer term roles in our community now that the internship is over.
• Please pray for depth of community and a passion for God’s word in our house churches.

Current needs:

• We were blessed with 5 new tablets to use in our Leaders in Training program!  We have put together an Amazon wishlist of items to outfit our new tablets for use, and included a few more technology needs on it.  Check out the wish list here:  LIT Technology Wish List -  If you have questions contact Kristen Maxwell at kristenm@missionadelante.org or Megan McDermott at meganm@missionadelante.org.

Important dates:

• Bhutanese Summer Party--Saturday, August 9 at 4:00 at Wyandotte County Lake Park, 91st and Leavenworth Road, Kansas City, KS 66109.  After entering the park you'll come to a fork in the road; go left and continue to Shelter #6.  Please bring a dish to share and stay for the awards and cultural presentation!
• Latino Summer Party--Sunday, August 10 at 5:00 at Wyandotte County Lake Park, 91st and Leavenworth Road, Kansas City, KS 66109.  After entering the park you'll come to a fork in the road; go left and continue to Shelters #8 &10.  Please note, these are different shelters than the large shelter where the party has been held in previous years.  Dress casually and bring a dish to share, lawn chairs and/or a picnic blanket.