A volunteer for life
A few days ago, part of the Project M:25 team had the opportunity to visit a Van Gogh art exposition. It reminded me how the after-school program designed years ago has grown, thanks to the cooperative work of donors and volunteers joining efforts to transform lives around the globe.
Growing up as a missionary kid, Michelle moved to different cities across continents while her parents served in ministerial positions. As part of her journey, this young Honduran woman learned English to communicate with friends around the world. A few years later, she arrived in Ecuador with her parents. Like before, she had to rebuild her life, find a job, and adjust to everyday activities, while trying to figure out her life calling.
Michelle soon got a teaching job at a local bilingual school. She always thought that her life calling was to teach English as a second language and had already done that in the Philippines a few years before arriving in Ecuador. However, after a year Michelle felt that the teaching experience was soon coming to its end and was looking to get involved with a new rewarding and fulfilling task.
Michelle was not happy and felt like she was trapped in a never-ending, energy-consuming routine. It was a difficult time for Michelle when she talked with Bobby and Tamitha, directors of Project M:25. They encouraged her to serve as a volunteer at Project M:25 while she got another job where she could feel more comfortable.
In those years, Project M:25 had a couple of volunteers from the community who served with Tamitha and her twins. They did everything from teaching an English class, to controlling microphone volumes, and teaching English to kids.
Michelle fit immediately with the community and got along very well with both the kids and other volunteers. Michelle started an Art and Music club, and while teaching kids Christmas songs and drawing Van Gogh artwork, God started healing Michelle’s heart. The smiles of kids sparked a fire in her life to serve others in need.
“My time with Project M:25 helped me to develop my listening skills, my pastoral heart, and how to cope with strong emotions while helping young kids to express their emotions in a safe, constructive environment”. Today, Michelle is a hospital chaplain in Florida, US. Daily she helps people with her bilingual and listening skills. She helps doctors when they have to inform families about difficult news, and while it is a challenging position, she’s happy that her words and skills bring peace to those in moments of crisis.
Project M:25 plays an important role in helping regular people do amazing things for their communities and those around them. Your faithful support provides the resources to equip and send professional helpers to heal the hurting and wounded.