October 2023
Dear Friends in Mission,
It has been longer than usual since our last newsletter. For us personally, this spring and summer has gone by quickly for many reasons. We had a very blessed trip to India in March and then a family trip to Florida in April. After that there were some unusual challenges in our part of Nova Scotia. During the wildfires we were evacuated from our home for eight days. The fire came as close as the end of our road, so we felt very blessed to come back to our home of 20 years. Later we were mildly impacted by the unprecedented rain and are still doing some repairs in our basement that had a small amount of water throughout.
We had a great time in India from February 28th to March 14th reconnecting with our pastors and the churches and communities in which they minister – our first visit since November 2019. We had five other Canadians with us from churches that have been involved in recent church construction projects. We were able to spend time with our regional coordinator and see firsthand the current projects – from the primary school now in our new facilities, to the diploma training program for pastors, to attending the first annual convention for the twelve churches that have been established by our pastors. Over 400 people attended this wonderful day of encouragement and blessing!
It is truly a privilege to be part of these growing ministries and our desire is to keep providing the funds and encouragement that allow our partners to fulfil the vision that God is giving them. We want to express our thanks to both individual and church donors for the wonderful prayer and financial support that you have given so faithfully to Far Corners Ministry!
As ministries grow there are always additional needs to be filled. While we would sometimes rather not be asking for support, it is a good situation, and one that we feel led to share with you. We ask that you prayerfully consider if there are certain projects that you would like to support. Here are some of the current needs:
Centre of Ministry Location (Uses include church, pastoral training classes, primary school, and small conference facilities. Four rooms for overnight accommodations are just nearing completion):
-School Desks – For $100 you can provide one of the ten desks currently needed for the kindergarten and primary school classrooms. Each desk seats two students. Any additional funds would go to support the school fees, uniforms and books for some of the neediest students.
-School Lunch Program – We have just committed to providing nutritious lunches to 15 students so that they are better prepared for learning. The total cost to cover lunches for all these students is
$220 per month, so perhaps you would consider covering the cost of one month.
-Dependable Electricity - Due to unexpected power outages, pastoral training programs and church programs have frequently been caught with no electricity. For $900 they could purchase an inverter giving them their own backup power supply that would give eight hours of electricity.
-School Van - The largest item on the wish list is a school van. There are students in nearby villages that would like to come to a good school, one that would give them quality education preparing them to go on to higher learning. But transportation is an issue. Most private schools provide transportation, so having a ten-seater diesel vehicle would make this possible – allowing the school to grow and become self-sustaining. The total cost for a new van would be $11,000.
Our Churches:
We continue to see growth in the churches where our supported pastors are ministering. Our next church building project for a growing congregation already has funding in place thanks to one of our supporting church families. But there are requests from some of our pastors for their churches that we have already built:
-Washroom facilities at a local church led by one of our pastors that would cost $1,400.
-Front porch or veranda for a recently constructed church as water is coming into the building when it is rainy and windy. This would cost $2,900.
Our agricultural program is doing well as there are now over 60 piglets that have been born. Some are ready to be sold. They are also raising chickens and have started a pilot project with fish in a pond on the same property. As these projects grow and become profitable, funds generated with be used for ongoing ministry needs.
You’ll find some pictures below that relate to some of the needs mentioned. Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter, and please contact us if you have any questions. We would be most happy to come and give an update in person to any church or group, or to provide any additional materials for groups that would like to take on a project in the coming months. Donations can always be sent to our mailing address or given via e-transfer to info@farcornersministry.org
Once again, on behalf of all our brothers and sisters in northeast India, thank you so much for being part of this ministry! Yours in the Lord’s service,
Rev. Dr. Shant and Ginny Manuel,
Executive Director and Ministry Administrator