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The VandeLinde Family
Ryan, Erin, Micah, Josiah
& Analise
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Record Attendance…Again!
Colegio Color Esperanza-Punta Cana Christian School
It’s August which means several things here in the DR. First, it is extremely hot and humid. Secondly, winter baseball is just around the corner. And finally, it’s time to go “Back to School.” Several years ago Franklin Francisco (preacher of the Punta Cana Christian Church) and Ryan VandeLinde (missionary) did a thorough study of the surrounding neighborhood of EDCM’s Punta Cana Christian Church to see what the needs of the people truly.
While the needs were abundant, they discovered that the three primary needs Villa Esperanza were spiritual, educational, and health (food, clean water, medicine, hygiene, etc…) related needs. The Punta Cana Christian Church remains the primary ministry of EDCM in Villa Esperanza as we try to meet the spiritual needs of the people by leading them to Jesus. However, we wanted to take that a step further and help meet some of the other needs of the community as well. Therefore, we developed a social plan that would help meet the educational and health needs. This plan would include a school for the 3,000 children that were not attending school as well as a water filtration system that would provide good clean drinking water to the community.
 In August of 2013, we opened the “Colegio Color Esperanza,” a small elementary school, with a vision of offering a good education to approximately 40 children from preschool through 4th grade. The response of the community was overwhelming with 106 students pre-registering, which demanded us to grow the vision immediately. Therefore, we opened the school in August 2013 with 106 students from preschool-4th grade.
For the 2014-2015 school year, we expanded our school through 7th grade, which raised attendance to approximately 260 students. This called for the rearranging of classrooms and schedules as well as the need to hire more teachers.
The current 2015-2016 school year once again comes with growth and challenges as we prepare for a record attendance of 410 students! The reputation of the school has reached the community and the response is truly amazing. The spike in attendance has demanded that we add two classrooms as well as substantially upgrade our playground area.
We praise God for the growth of our school, as we know that His name is glorified through our school as we use it to help spread His love and grace.
 
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It’s not ‘Goodbye’
It’s ‘See You Later’
In January of 2013, God blessed our mission by bringing the Baez family to the Dominican Republic
to lead the La Romana congregation. Jovanny and Leticia (along with their children Nashlie, Saimon and Sianny) were living in Costa Rica working part-time with a congregation and running a thriving candy business. However, God had been moving in the hearts of Jovanny
and Leticia and pushing them towards full-time ministry. After talking with them for several months, they decided to make the move from Costa Rica to the Dominican Republic as Jovanny would become the lead minister of the La Romana Christian Church.
Upon arrival to the DR, the Baez family hit the ground running as they immediately jumped into the driver’s seat and began leading the congregation. Jovanny used his talents in preaching, teaching and administration to bring consistency and organization to the church while his wife, Leticia, began to revamp the children’s ministry and help guide the worship ministry. Over the past 2 ½ years, God has certainly used the Baez family to do great things in La Romana. The church is once again stable and has begun to grow, reaching many young adults.
 
However, the Baez family has recently made the decision to resign from the La Romana Christian Church and return to Costa Rica. This decision was a “family decision” based on the overall health (spiritual and emotional) of the Baez family. They have been very clear to say that they love the La Romana Christian Church, they love the people of the DR, they love the ministry and they love the missionaries. They also have made clear that there are no underlying issues such as marital problems, but that at this time in their lives, they feel like the best decision for their family is to return to Costa Rica.
This announcement was made to the local congregation on Sunday, June 21st with the plan for Jovanny to remain as the lead minister until August 31st. The local congregation has planned a surprise “going away” party for the family which will occur on Sunday, August 30th.
The Baez family is a very special family and will truly be missed. Jovanny and Leticia’s energy, leadership and love have impacted the community and changed our lives forever. We will truly miss Jovanny’s leadership, Leticia’s energy, Nash’s love, Saimon’s incredible smile and Sianny’s sweet spirit.
We love you Baez family and we don’t want to say goodbye.
Therefore we say “See You Later.”
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Website & Twitter
Check out our website and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
Facebook: Eastern Dominican Christian Mission
Twitter: #EDCMmissions
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Contact Information
Ryan & Erin VandeLinde
Email: ryanvandelinde@hotmail.com
Cell: 1-809-707-3069
Mail and Donations to:
Eastern Dominican Christian Mission
PO Box 20136
Roanoke, VA 24018
*for all financial donations
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Micah’s Minute
One of my new favorite things to do is play my guitar. I haven’t been playing for long, but I really love it.
So far I know the chords G, C, D, Em, Am, E, and A. Yeah, I think that is all. But is is really fun. The other day I practiced for almost two hours!
I love it because I get to be by myself, away from my little brother and sister and just play my guitar.
So far my two favorite songs to play are “You never let go” and “God’s not dead.” I love these songs!
Ok, keep pickin n grinnin!
One thing I love to do is help my dad around the house. Whenever he is working with tools or just needs help, I am always ready to help.
The other day, I went to the hardware store with my dad, my brother and Poppy (my grandfather). They gave me goggles, an apron, nails, wood and a hammer. I had to read the directions and build “Hulk’s Tank.” My dad was there to help me, but I had to hammer in all of the nails myself.
Wow! This was hard, but a lot of fun. Praise God for tools…and Hulk!
-Josiah, 4 yrs. old
(almost 5)
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PHYSICAL NEEDS
- La Romana Christian Church: we are looking to help them pay for 50% of a new bus. Therefore, we are looking for donors to give towards the $9,000 goal. (The local congregation is raising approx. 50% of cost.)
- Higuey Christian Church remodeling project. We need about $7,000 to finish the iron work around the property
PRAYER NEEDS
- Baez family as they prepare to return to Costa Rica
- For Victor Hernandez’s US Visas. He has applied twice and been denied for no apparent reason. We will be applying again shortly. I would love for him to join me at the ICOM conference in October. Nahum and Franklin have already been approved. Praise God!
- 2015 School year for VandeLinde children
- Eladio Vargas: elder in La Romana is in the hospital with tonsillitis.
PRAISE GOD
Franklin and Nahum have received their US Visas and will be attending ICOM in October
EDCM had a very successful summer with several US teams and Conecta2 youth camp
Thank you for your prayers! God listens and answers!
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