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The India Christian
Mission Center (ICMC) exists to serve India's orphans, widows, lepers, the handicapped
and the unreached, irrespective of caste, creed, community and
religion through the love of Jesus.
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"Did You Ever Wonder?" -- WATCH a
NEW VIDEO
Take a look at the first two minutes of our new video of the
children produced by Central Christian Church in Nevada and
Brendon Hollingsworth
www.icmcindia.org. View it online (high speed
internet), download it and show it at your church or small group
or to a friend!
Order the whole 4-minute version for free by emailing Jo at
jmarshall@icmcindia.org
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Sponsorship: From $20 to $25
The
care of the children is a hundred times better than the villages
they came from. However, we see opportunity for a much
higher quality of individualized care. A suggested extra
$5 per month would allow ICMC to decrease the child to caretaker
ratio to twenty to one, provide training for the caretakers, and
increase the attention to their healthcare, for example.
While we changed the suggested
sponsorship to $25/month in 2006 for new sponsors, we certainly
understand if existing sponsors need to continue at $20/month.
As you see the new number in our marketing materials, we wanted
you to know why.
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Poultry Farm
Dedicated, Construction Started
 This
chicken "coop" isn’t going anywhere. 150 feet long and 20 feet
wide, the structure’s solid steel stakes sink six feet under the
soil. It’s also a two for one deal. With the funds raised last
year for the chickens, there’s also a duplicate cow shed being
built for ICMC’s 30 cows. ICMC contracted with poultry locals
to live by the farm and care for the chickens in exchange for
part of the profit. Why wait so long to build it? Chickens
and cows need water. Buying the land at the foot of the Yercaud
mountains where the water runs freely was worth the wait.
 A
couple thousand little bare feet picked their way through the
windy Promised Land path for the ½ hour trek to see the farm
dedicated by the Arizona team. No whining. No complaining.
When a child felt the prick of a thorn, a bigger child picked
them up. Someone else pulled out the thorn while they walked,
so as not to slow the line down.
In the future
for agriculture: Finish the dam and stock it with fish.
Attract white pigs from the mountains with an acre of planted
peanuts, plant acres of papaya and other fruits and
vegetables, and of course harvest more rice fields.
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Welcome to Dr Abraham
and Nurse Elizabeth
 At
the rural Promised Land, healthcare and sanitation for 1,000
children is a challenge. The nearest hospital is an hour away.
A “school nurse” situation has grown into a full-time on-site
doctor and his wife nurse to treat the children in the “sick
room” clinic. A line of children with cuts, colds, fevers,
stomach diarrhea, toothaches and skin scabies are assessed and
treated every minute of the day. When the newly-arrived Dr
Abraham was asked how he would manage treating so many children,
he said with a quiet smile, “I enjoy working.” And then he
looked up from the sick boy and his bandages and said, “This is
not my work. It is God’s work”. Dr Abraham and Elizabeth live
with their three-year old in one room next door with simple cots
and a chair and table for furniture.
On Sundays, Dr
Jay’s daughter and medical student Neva, spends her one day off
at the Promised Land also directing and helping with the
healthcare needs.
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Toothbrushes, Vitamins,
Water and Underwear
 Simple
things. But oh, so good to see. In the mornings, the children
have graduated from finger brushing to real toothbrushes, thanks
to the teams last year. In the evenings, the children now line
up for a multi-vitamin three days a week, an iron pill one day
and a codliver oil pill one day. Three new water purifiers help
pump out cleaner water. The Lord filled up the wells so that
there is enough water to go around. New bathrooms were built,
new kitchens were built, and additions to hostels were built.
All the girls now
have underwear, thanks to Mississippi and Arizona sponsors; new
blankets and sleeping mats, thanks to Seattle Rotarians; and a
new outfit, thanks to all the sponsors.
Next on the
short list: Sandals! $5 x 1,500 children without a pair of
shoes = $7,500 |
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"Free" Water From Heaven
 “The
poor and the needy search for water. But there is none. Their
tongues are parched with thirst. But I, the Lord, will answer
them. I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will make
rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I
will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground
into springs…I will do all these things, so that the people may
see and know, may consider and understand that the hand of the
Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created
it”. Isaiah 41:17
As the teams who
visited in January walked acre after acre of cultivated rice
paddies and saw beautiful mountains and land stretched ahead,
and marveled at the trench that captures the first water that
flows freely from the mountains , and directs it to the dam, we
could only but Praise God for His faithfulness.
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Coming Home to Help
 Five
of Dr Jay and Mrs Christy’s original twelve orphans are grown up
and back to help. Strong believers, they are educated and
willing to care for orphans like themselves. Peter and Chinna
just returned with their Bachelor of Theology degrees from Bible
School. Tamil Selvi (known by her Christian name, Ruth)
pictured left with Melissa Sloan and Jeanne Zahn will also
attend the Teacher Training Institute at the Promised Land while
she cares for the children.
Their ambitions
start young. When asked what 14-year old Raghul wanted to
be he said, “My one brother wants to be a police man. The other
brother wants to be a doctor. And I want to be…” He stopped to
think about how to word it. “I want to be a Jayaraj Krishnan. I
want to help other small orphan boys.”
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The Real Deal by Dr Michael Tucker,
Pastor and Pastoral Consultant
 Do
you remember the first episode of the TV series WEST WING?
Josh Lyman and Sam Seaborn had worked in politics and were
discouraged and disappointed. They left that arena and entered
the corporate world, making lots of money. They agreed if they
ever found “the real deal” they would contact each other. Josh
found Sam in a big law firm and told him, “I found it – the real
deal.” Sam walked out of an important meeting and left a
financially rewarding career to join the campaign of Jeb
Bartlett who was running for president.
Friend, I’ve found
“the real deal” in the real world...
I WHOLE HEARTEDLY
ENCOURAGE YOU TO GET INVOLVED WITH THE EFFECTIVE MINISTRY AT
ICMC.
Read the rest of
The Real Deal from Mike's recent trip ...
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Janette's Journal by Janette Lemme,
Seattle Rotarian
 Is
love more wonderful the second time around? In regard to a
second trip to ICMC, the answer is Yes! In January last
year, 2005, I traveled to Salem with my son, Sterling, in a
group of eight under the leadership of my husband, Busso. On
first meeting, the orphans took my breath away. I bonded
immediately with “our” children, the ones we support, and also
the many others with whom I interacted, talked, hugged, laughed
and played. Everyone was friendly, endearing and beautiful...
But now
that the
newness was gone, would I see it with different eyes? Would the
children be as engaging? Had the activities and projects grown
and progressed? Would the kids and staff appreciate or benefit
from my return?
Read about the
Seattle
team's 2006 trip by Janette Lemme . . .
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Rotarian Hugh
Nelson Blogs about ICMC
A rotarian and
business man, Hugh Nelson and his wife joined the
team from Seattle to experience ICMC in January.
Seen through fresh first-time eyes, follow Hugh as
he describes the train ride, the harrowing traffic,
the sights and smells of the city, and meeting the
children. You can read his blogs such as What
Did We Take to India, Shopping in Salem and Evenings
With Dr Jay at
http://web.mac.com/hughn2/iWeb/ICMC/Welcome.html
If you would like a presentation in your rotary club
or group in the Washington State area, please
contact Janette Lemme at
jlemme1@aol.com
Dr Jay was a former past president of his Salem
rotary club and was responsible for giving 25,000
children a polio vaccination.
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Light
From Darkness: Brendon Hollingsworth
Brendon, our first USA "long-termer"
to ICMC,
continues to shadow, encourage and help Dr Jay while learning
the language and culture. He eats with his hand at every
meal, bobbles his head just so, serves Indian tea like a pro,
and is on a first name friendship basis with just about all
2,000 people there. He goes by the affectionate Tamil
nickname for "Needle Nose". His soft heart and spiritual
passion is lighting a fire for true discipleship both here and
there.
To
get on Brendon's news list Light From Darkness
about Dr Jay's legal battle, sweet Elavarsi almost lost to
typhoid, how to call Brendon in the middle of the night, and
more stories, email him at
bhollingsworth@icmcindia.org
To
invest in Brendon financially as he invests long term in the
children you sponsor, you may send funds to ICMC in Nevada with
a note that it's for Brendon.
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Sarah's Journey and Colleen's English
Sarah Zook (left) from
Plymouth Convenant in Michigan: Follow her journey to --
and experience in -- India and ICMC. From a college campus
to considering a long-term life investment in India, read her
weekly journal entries at
www.plymouthcovenant.com/
Missions/India/India.htm
Click on Missions and then Sarah Zook.
Colleen
Hosey (middle) from Spring of Life in Arizona: If you want
to hear all about how students and teachers learn and teach in
India, about how far a jar of peanut butter can stretch, or
about how the Bible became alive to her there, contact Colleen
at chosey@yahoo.com
She is back in Arizona now to begin her teaching in Elementary
Education career after a month teaching English and observing at
St Basil School at ICMC.
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Sponsor a Child!
 Click
on
Sponsor a Child
and log on to provide a home, an education, and a place to learn
Christian values and ethics for an orphan, semi-orphaned or
abandoned child in India for $25/month. Questions
about sponsorships? Click on
Sponsor
FAQ.
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Short
Term Teams Plan Trips
July 2006:
Mike Webster plans to lead a team of medical and dental
professionals during July at the Promised Land. Contact Mike
for an application at
michael.webster@usm.edu
August
2006 TBD:
Five spots open for anyone who wants to come play with the
children, experience the "It Factor" of ICMC, and become ICMC
Reps just because you were there! Contact
Jeanne for an application at
jzahn@icmcindia.org
Fall
2006 TBD:
 John Jackson plans to take a team of pastors and business
leaders ready to investigate partnering with ICMC. Contact
John at
jjackson@icmcindia.org
Fall 2006 for
two to five years: Brendon
Hollingsworth is
 recruiting for a short/long term team to invest
in ICMC and the children. Looking for humble, willing, and
able men, women and families. All applicants
require creativity, flexibility, leadership skills, experience
in your particular field, and a mature, growing relationship with
Jesus.
Contact
Brendon at
urlightsea.yahoo.com
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Update
from Mrs Christy
 With profound joy and happiness, we entered into the New
Year 2006 by His enduring mercy. Dr. Jay gave a
fantastic and meaningful New Year’s message. We recollected the sufferings we
underwent in the New Year’s day of 2005 and thanked for
this year’s (2006).
All the schools and colleges were reopened on Jan 2,
2006 after the half yearly holidays for the children of
the House of Peace. The St. Grace Lilian Teacher Training
Institute was officially opened on Jan 4, 2006. The
House of Peace children who study at the St. Basil
Matriculation School participated in the scout training
along with two of their teachers.
Mrs. Janette’s team of 8 members arrived our place on
Jan 14, 2006. All felt glad of their visit. Some of our
children were gone home and returned as it was Pongal holidays. During the Pongal
holidays 10 of our senior boys attended a Youth meeting
at Vellore which was very useful to their spiritual
growth. (Pongal is a famous Hindu festival which
is celebrated by the people of Tamil Nadu). We met the
Catholic Bishop and got his blessings on Jan 16, 06 as
we participated in the inaugural function of shifting
the Catholic Syrian Bank at Salem. On Jan 19, we had a
program which was attended by all our visitors at St.
Basil Matriculation School. On Jan 20, there was a
program by the children of the Promised Land. Both the
teams went to the Promised Land.
Mrs. Jeanne’s team (of 6 members) arrived the House of
Peace on 23.01.06. It was a great joy to receive the
team. A spiritual meeting was conducted by Mr. James of
Youth With A Mission and his team at the Promised Land
on 23.1.’06. All the children and staff took part in it.
It was a great blessing to all the participants.
26.01.06 was our Republic Day. In every ICMC school, the
national flag was hoisted. We had good program by the
Promised Land children and the students of St.Grace
Lilian Teacher Training Institute.
Every Thursday two staff members from Child Evangelism
come to the House of Peace and conduct meetings for the
children at Salem Centre.
Dr. Michael Tucker taught at the Timothy School where
there are about one hundred students. The team visited
the Konanchettiyur and Udayapatti village churches.
Their visit to the village churches encouraged the
pastors. We are so thankful for the three US teams as
they work hard to find sponsors for our children.
We
had Sports Day and Annual Day function at St. Basil
Matriculation School on Jan 28. All our US friends
enjoyed attending the function.
On
Jan 29 we had a great function at the Promised Land. All
the children from Salem and Eden Garden joined the
children of the Promised Land. It was a day of enjoyment
to every child of House of Peace. Special meals with
chicken was served.
Spring of Life’s poultry farm was opened by Mrs. Jeanne
Zahn. This work is going on at the Promised Land. The
foundation stone for the Boy’s Home, Timothy School and
Dam were laid by Mrs. Melissa Sloan, Rev. Dr. Michael
Tucker, Mr. Jason Olcott and blessed by our US friends. We all had a great time with our US
friends.
Mrs. Jeanne’s team left
for Madras airport with saddened hearts. We all prayed
earnestly for their safe return trip.
Practical exams started for the 12th grade
children. 10th and 12th grade
students had their 1st revision exams during
the last week of January ’06. Please pray for their
studies.
We thank all the sponsors and
donors and prayer warriors who extend us their
helping hands in our ministries.
Yours in Him,
Mrs. J. Christy
Dr Jay wrote today "
My mother-in-law (Christy's
mother) died today by saying Jesus, Jesus. Her body
will be taken to her native place to bury there. It is about
800 kilometers away and it will be buried in a Anglican
church. All her family members belong to Church of England
and her grand father was a great speaker in the Anglican
Church. Thanks for all your prayers. She is 83 years old.
She was happy to go to Jesus. She was a very good, godly
woman. A woman of prayer".
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You can set up
automatic payments online now! Go to
www.icmcindia.org and click on MAKE A DONATION.
You will use a secure account to charge your credit
card or debit card with a one-time or re-occuring payment.
You can
also use your online bank's Bill Pay system to cut a check
to ICMC each month. Visit the website for your
personal bank and add ICMC as a Payee.
NOTE to
existing sponsors: Children are being linked to you as I
write, but you may not see your children yet. We
have you linked to your child in ICMC's manual system.
We plan to have all sponsors online and linked in March 2006.
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What's
Happening for ICMC in the USA
WALK FOR WATER
2006:
On March 4, two seniors from
Shorecrest High School in Washington state are hosting a
"walk-a-thon" non-profit event. All funds raised will
benefit the children at ICMC to improve three water wells at the
Promised Land.
The
walkathon is from 9:30am to noon at the Shoreline stadium.
If you live near Seattle and want to participate or pledge,
please contact the Senior Project Office at (206) 361-4285 and
ask for Pam or Simran or email them at
walk4h2o@yahoo.com
Thanks to
Lake Forest Rotary for sponsoring the event!
SET IT UP IN YOUR
AREA!
Are you a school, a church, a
rotary club, a mom with friends, a motivated sponsor?
We have rotarians, pastors,
business leaders, teachers, sponsors, (and moms) who are awesome
speakers, passionate about ICMC, and willing to speak to your
club, church, school assembly, or home dinner party.
The speakers are engaging and
will be experienced in your field or interest area. They
also have already been to India and ICMC and can speak
personally.
Contact Jeanne at
jzahn@icmcindia.org and you will be linked to the
right speaker in your area and field.
If you have an
event or trip to post for your state, church, school, or
organization, please contact Jeanne at
jzahn@icmcindia.org
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What
do you Think?
Do you like this format of
getting information from ICMC? You will get it each month,
mid-month via email. Make sure to let us know email
changes as this saves on costs.
Let
us know your thoughts, ideas, suggestions, or problems viewing
at
jzahn@icmcindia.org
jzahn@icmcindia.org
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Miss a
Newsletter?
Click here...
December 2005
January 2006
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Addresses
For sponsorships:
ICMC
PO Box 530758
Henderson, Nevada 89053
For letters/cards:
ICMC
Dr. S. Jayaraj Krishnan
(Your child's name)
House of Peace
Vasanthapuram,
Chinna Thirupathy PO
Salem - 636 008
Tamil Nadu India
It cost .84
in stamps and write "airmail" on the envelope.
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