News & stories
Rebuilding Indonesian communities

Craft projects like this give the children a medium to express their creativity and recover from their trauma.
Education
God has continued to open doors for us to address the longer-term education needs of the people of Aceh. We are currently running children’s programs in four villages in S— as well as in the main stadium in B—. This stadium houses refugees from throughout the province of Aceh. Due to the number of refugees there, we hold programs four days a week in the stadium. The children hear a lesson on values, receive assistance with their lessons, make craft projects, and play organized games.

Organized activities help the children develop their motor skills and provide a chance to have fun.
Shrimp Ponds
We have rented 6.6 acres of shrimp ponds, which we will use for a community development project. This past month we continued to repair the ponds to make them useable; we are also gearing up to do a major long-term project that, if successful, will significantly change the livelihoods of many families in the region.

After-school tutoring is provided for kids who are struggling to make up for time lost due to the tsunami.
Housing
The housing work continues to make progress.

The current focus is to finish the rehabilitation of approximately 80 homes in B— that were damaged significantly but not destroyed. In S—, 60 houses are nearing completion and in September we will start work on another 100 homes.

Finally, our road construction is nearing completion. This road will provide access to an island containing 534 homes that need to be rebuilt.

One of our members reports that the local people are amazed – and curious – to discover that he is a Christian. He says, “We have good discussions about religion. My wife and I get a lot of questions about marriage, so we tell them what the Bible says about it. The women seem to be more responsive than the men.”

We believe that God is at work through us and around us!