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U.S/World Missions

H2Jamicia Mission Trip

Dr. Neil Williams from Nazareth brought Nazareth’s first medical team to Jamaica in 1990.  He wanted to start a tradition of Nazareth members and others personally participating in overseas mission projects.  2017 marks our 28th year of ministering to people in the interior portions of this island nation and our medical mission is called “Hope and Health to Jamaica” or H2Jamaica. We had 52 participants from Alaska to Massachusetts and everywhere in between with 29 from the Cedar Valley and 13 from Nazareth.  Our mission typically occurs the first two weeks in February, this year from February 4 to 16.  Over 8 clinic days our three medical teams and two dental teams saw 1,583 individuals.  Our construction team installed 17 one-quarter acre irrigation systems for subsistence farmers and built safety rails around a gazebo we constructed last year at “Gift of Hope”, a Roman Catholic residential facility for severely challenged children. The various teams have many stories to share from our 2017 trip, but one that stands out occurred after our group installed an irrigation system for a lady named Rachel.  After each installation, one of our group asks the recipient if we can pray over their field.  Hank Wellnitz from Nazareth asked Rachel if she could start out and he would finish the prayer.  Rachel started praying the most beautiful prayer, thanking God for the wonder of his creation, the glory of his salvation and various other items of praise.  We were all captivated by the Spirit’s presence in her prayer and when she finished after 2 or 3 minutes, Hank simply said, “What can you say after that but “Amen!”  We all joined in with a heartfelt “Amen!”

This trip is due, in part, to a large effort by Barb and Bob Ericson. If you're interested in participating in this outreach, contact Barb at (319)493-5039 or at h2jamaica@gmail.com.

Caribbean Christian Centre for the Deaf

BASIC (our college & young adult ministry) serves at CCCD in Kingston, Jamaica annually over spring break. CCCD exists to reach, teach, and nurture the Deaf of Jamaica so that they can experience the joy of knowing Jesus and serving within their community. Nazareth's partnership has been essential in empowering the students at the school through long term relationships with the missionaries, helping start their social enterprise DeafCan!, and encouragement through our spring break trip where the team focuses on building relationships.  

Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project

In June 2016 and June 2017, Nazareth was blessed to receive a visit from Jackson Kaguri, the Founder and Executive Director of the Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project.  The mission of the project is to work on behalf of HIV/AIDS orphans in rural Uganda to end systemic deprivation, poverty, and hunger through a holistic approach to community development, education, and healthcare.  Mr. Kaguri shared his powerful story with congregation members and with all of the children in attendance at VBS. 

St. Andrews Refugee Service

Through donations totaling $75,000.00, Nazareth is blessed to be partnering with the St. Andrews Refugee Service (StARS) in Cairo, Egypt, to provide assistance to refugees in the region.

Here are some exciting updates about how God has been at work through this ministry:

  • In 2018, StARS helped over 30,000 people and their families access healthy food, education, mental health services and professional development tools.

  •  650-750 children a day receive breakfast and lunch through The Children’s Feeding program.

  • In 2019, StARS education program supports over 4,000 teachers and learners through its Children’s Education program, Preschools, Adult Education program, Education Access and Capacity Building program and Early Childhood Wellbeing program.

  •  90% of students in the Children’s Education program passed their internal exams.

  • StARS employs over 280 professionals and experts who provide support ranging from individual medical consultations to language classes to organizational capacity building to cross-sectoral emergency interventions.

  • 208 volunteers also work part-time and full-time to support the activities of the program, most notably making up the bulk of StARS’ legal teams and providing a range of individual and group support to adult learners in the Adult Education and Education Access and Capacity Building programs.

  •  Given restrictions to services for refugees and ongoing inflation, an increasing number of people approach StARS each day with emergencies.

  • Throughout the year, an emergency fund supports 428 people, 62 percent of whom were women, in accessing their basic needs through life changing interventions, impacting 631 of their family members.

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