Thursday, March 17, 2011

Volunteer Transitions

Spring is slowly making its way into Toronto bringing long-awaited change to our daily lives and our Volunteer Program is in transition. A couple of our Volunteers are reaching the end of their service with us, one has been added to our team, and one has had to return to Germany to attend to a family concern. Thanks for praying that the Lord will continue to bless us with great unity of purpose as we manage day-to-day affairs.

Andreas and Marcel, our volunteers at the Moffat Liebenzell Mission Centre have completed their service here in Canada and are presently on holiday for a few weeks before returning home to Germany. We appreciate the work they were able to accomplish at the Mission Centre-- chopping fire wood, felling trees, caring for the grounds and facilities. They were a key component in making our ministry to immigrant congregations an ongoing  success! The Mission Centre serves smaller church groups that need a place for retreats and personal get-aways.


We added Sara to our ranks in February! She has come to care for several children of our missionary candidates during the next five months. Sara has been able to integrate quickly despite some tough paperwork challenges that we are still working to resolve.Please pray with us as we work with Immigration to give them all the answers they are seeking.

Finally, one of our Volunteers serving UrbanPromise Toronto flew home urgently to attend to his father who suffered a serious heart attack. We continue to pray for Micha O, his father and his family. We hope and pray first that his father will make a full recovery, but then that Micha will be able to return to Canada and continue the great work he is doing with the after-school programs among at-risk kids in Toronto. We miss you, Micha! [Update: Moments after initially posting this we received news that Micha's father passed away. We are deeply saddened by this news. We take comfort in that his father was a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ and is now in the Lord's presence.]

In the next several weeks, we have a busy schedule. One of our Volunteers is off to Haiti with his church on a short-term mission trip. In April, all the volunteers will gather for a two-day retreat. After that, Spring will be fully upon us and we will be looking towards a great finish in June and July.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support of the work of Volunteer Year Toronto.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

UrbanPromise Christmas Gala Recap


Christmas is a few months past, but the December video below highlights an important aspect of the work of UrbanPromise Toronto. Seven of our interns serve this ministry. They organize and run a series of after-school programs for at-risk children. The "camps", as they are called, help the kids by giving them something to do during the after-school hours when many parents must still be at work.
The interns give homework help, organize games, and supervise special projects with the children. A major highlight of the year is a "Christmas gala" in which all the participants receive personalized invitations at their home and then bussed to the event. They are pampered with things like manicures, hors-doeuvres, and on-camera interviews. The charming video shows the joy the kids receive from the special treatment.
Plus, the gospel message is presented emphasizing the same message of God's love given through the love and friendship shown each day at camp.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Special Guest from Germany


We are honored this week to host Joachim Jenny, Youth In Mission coordinator for Liebenzell Germany. He is an important part of our Volunteer Year Toronto team as he is responsible for recruitment and selection of all volunteers that come to Canada. I have spoken with him frequently in recent months as we look to fill the spots for next year's ministry positions. During his visit here to Ontario we will be visiting all the different ministry locations so he gets a better idea of the work in each location. As a result, he will be even better prepared to match up volunteer candidates with the appropriate ministry. It is part of our commitment to serving our ministry partners with the best prepared, most competent young people during a one-year internship. Thanks for your prayers as we make some important decisions for the future.