All things are possible....

...to them that believe.
Who would have ever thought that a group of 12 average folks from a small Ontario town could make such a big difference?
Actually it was not just the twelve but the entire town and surrounding area....the church....c'mon!
But let me tell you a few things about these team members....
Marcel....you are the Mansion Man. Your total love of what you were doing was evident to all. Giddyup!
Peter...I love your heart to serve...way to go man. Remember, you are the salt of the earth and the......c'mon!
Steve...your heart for those kids was written all over your face...an inspiration to me. Who can forget the Outdoor Butcher Shop?
Dave...your whole-hearted work ethic with the garbage and the post holes was incredible. The Blue coveralls were the bomb!
Kate...I loved your quiet willingness to do whatever needed to be done. It did not go unnoticed.
Karen...your friend "Buttons" was a huge hit. Elder Yang raved about the "clowns". Now about the 2000+ pictures....lol.
Dan...dude! Watching you do balloon animals at Orlofka ministered to me greatly....seriously man. The kids were mesmerized!
Sandy....Herbie was a great addition. Thank him for me. Great job!
Lucas....loved the way you just "hung out" with the older orphans. Only somebody that oozed "hipness" could pull that off.
Connie...I just loved your attitude. Thanks for the "barf" blessing! C'mon now! Somebody shout "Jesus!".
Michelle...you just oozed "motherhood" everytime you walked on that property. Thanks.
Pastor Scott...my prayer is that Goderich Bethel fully recognizes the gift that they have been given. Your heart for people inspired me.
No better representatives could you have had on this trip. Enjoy the reports...pictures...videos and stories.

yellow blue bus sammy!.......Marshaka

Get Cracking!

Production has begun. The orphans would not have had options as far as eggs go in the past...but they do now. C'mon!

New Tenants in the Mansion.

They have moved in! Twenty Two laying hens and a rooster.

The Inspection of Marcel's Mansion

Yes...Marcel's Mansion (also know as the Chicken Shed, Barn, Dwelling, Abode, Home...etc) was officially inspected Saturday afternoon by the Director (in back) and her Assistant. As you can see it is insulated by bales of straw and has nice wooden boxes for the chickens to lay their eggs in. The Director was so impressed that she made a comment about it being so nice that she could live in there. As far as Kyrgyzstan goes this chicken dwelling would be a "five star" resort.
Twenty-Two laying hens...a rooster....and a years supply of chicken feed. We are believing that this will translate into an average of 15-16 eggs a day. For the folks in Goderich Bethel and to all those who supported this team with resources, donations and prayer....you can take joy in the fact that these children will never be the same. That my friends is what it is all about.
Posted by Sammy Welten PI.
P.S. - If you look hard enough you will see some of my hair and skin on the one roof beam. It was about 5'11" from the ground and I am about 6' tall...ouch...that is gonna leave a mark! I can definitely tell you that this building was built solid!

The "Test" run!

Tonight we threw another party. What can I say...the Goderich crew are like "party animals".
We had shashleek (shish-kabobs) and Kraft Dinner and then 5 cakes as we had the orphans sing Happy Birthday to Rachel Couper (Nine years old today) and Brooke Findlay(turns 3 on Monday)....wild stuff.
The burners work great (you can see the KD cooking...I bet you can almost smell it!).
Tomorrow(Saturday) we are at the orphanage for the last time. It will be a sad day for the team. Be sure to be present for "Report Sunday". The video alone will bring the house down...or at least it should...the extent of this teams impact is eternal.

On top of Old Smokey...

All covered with cheese...No meatballs lost here...just tons of spaghetti...garlic bread with cheese...cookies...candy...fruit...it was a party for the ages! Deep in the heart of Kyrgyzstan there was a group of crazy people from the "Prettiest Town in Canada" that took a stand against injustice. Enough! After working themselves silly all day they served a "full-blown" spaghetti dinner with all the trimmings to about 40 orphans. After the "mother" of all meals the orphans enjoyed the company of "Herbie & Buttons" who entered the room to the anthem "We will rock you". That my friends was wild. These kids need a "rock"...they got a message about the love of the Solid Rock tonight! C'mon! Somebody shout "Jesus!" Folks at Bethel in Goderich...when your team has their report Sunday...do not ...I repeat...do not miss it.

More stuff to come.

Sammy Welten PI reporting!

You are the Salt of the Earth

And Pete Findlay is the "Pepper"! Yes, that is right folks I think Pete Findlay may be in the process of converting to "clowning". If he dives in, we have decided his name will be "Pepper"!
We had no power at the orphanage today. All power tools ready but no power. We are told we will have the "juice" back tomorrow.
The ladies continue to take children to the market on shopping trips. They only have 26 more orphans to go after today. I am told it is a lot of walking but it is truly worth it!
Speaking of walking...back to "Pepper" (Pete F)....maybe...just maybe...you might catch a glimpse of Pepper walking in downtown Goderich in the future handing out buttons! Go Peter!
I love you man!
Sam Welten reporting from Tokmok, Kyrgyzstan.

Today was a great day...

New sinks are in! The orphans will be so intrigued by the shiny new sinks that they now have to wash their hands in before meals. Peter Findlay, Steve Root, Lucas McIntyre, Dan Herbison were the installers. While they were working on that Dave Herbison was outside helping load a truck with garbage from the orphanage yard. Pastor Scott Couper and Marcel MacIntyre were with Sergei and I buying supplies in Bishkek. The ladies took 10 kids to the market and bought them new clothes and shoes. Tomorrow another 10. Tomorrow another day of hope and love will shine on that orphanage....Thank you Goderich!

Going well for the Team!

This is Sam Welten reporting from Possibilities International....

We had a great day today...went to church..celebrated the goodness of God with a local congregation....sang a song with "Herbie" and Buttons" in the main service and then Herbie and Buttons went with the kids to their program and were a HUGE hit. We then headed to Bishkek to the Metro Bar and Grill where we enjoyed some tasty food....then a bit of shopping and then back to the place we are calling home for the next week. Let me list for you the rundown of where the money that was raised (about $25,000) has been invested so far...

$5,000 for new tile on floor and wall in kitchen, and three other small rooms attached to kitchen

$3,500 to redo all plumbing and electrical for kitchen (major job)

$1,500 to replace two large windows in Dining Room (new vinyl windows)

$3,500 to put in new heating system that will enable them to use half of the orphanage that was only used in summer to be used all year around.

$1,000 to build a building(shed) to house the boiler unit and this building will also include a room to store coal that is used to heat the boiler unit.

$750 for a winters supply of coal.

Still about $10,000 left....the blessing continues. Stay tuned.

Oh yeah...one more thing...Lucas (as seen in pic above) is like a "babe" magnet over here! If he was a president of the United States he would be called "Babe-raham Lincoln". I have heard he has a girlfriend at home...though I have never met her I just want to say that he is doing well and not letting all the female attention go to his head. However....the swarm is building!

Seriously, Lucas is a machine...he is doing great!

The Atmosphere was Electric!

On day one Michelle Findlay had 220volts blasted through her body as she tried to remove a converter plug from a wall socket. As tingly an experience as that was it was nothing compared to the atmosphere around the team today as they rubbed shoulders with the orphans in Orlofka! I said..."we will make it a 45 minute visit" as we had other places to go. Well it became 2 hours my friends....Steve Root carried the same little girl for an hour....Marcel McIntyre's Ipod was blasting tunes and playing games for a couple young lads...and Dave Herbison was being mobbed by the orphanage director(Gulnara) as he told her about a couple projects that you folks in Goderich were going to take care of! (I have it on video...you gotta know it is going to hit the big screen at Bethel...oh yeah baby!) Lots of other stuff going on...more reports and pics to follow....oh yes...back to Michelle Findlay (seen above with Aipery)....Michelle was overcome when Aipery looked at her and said "I will be waiting for you on Monday".
Goderich Bethel...be blessed...your resources are changing lives and your team...well their lives are being changed and they are a "full-out" blessing! You should be proud!

We have arrived in Kyrgyzstan!

Sam Welten reporting for TeamKo7...
It is now 8:26pm and we are safely tucked into the Mercy Foundation (where we will be staying while here in Tokmok). The flights went smooth and the airline food was ....well....airline food.
We had a bit of a snooze before lunch and then went and got some money exchanged...had lunch and then went the market, but by the time we got there is was closing up. That was bad news for Connie as her personal bag did not make it with the rest of the bags. (We are in process of tracking it down). It's all good and Connie is in great spirits.
I find myself in the same room as Pastor Scott...and that is very interesting as he combats some intestinal issues. LOL!
Folks, the team is doing great...we head to Orlofka tomorrow for a tour of the orphanage.
Stay tuned to this blog for more updates and feel free to visit
www.possibilitiesinternational.blogspot.com for other updates as well.
Sorry about no picture but I have none...will have them shortly.

The Renovations are a Reality!!!

In the busyness of all the preparations to "Go" it is easy to lose sight of what all of this is really about. When I received an e-mail with pictures of the renovations that have begun, with the money that we wired ahead, it really hit me.

After almost a year of planning all of this is really a reality. We give God the glory for bringing all of this together.

Here are some photos of the work accomplished before we left Canadian soil.

Hard at work putting new tile on the walls

Laying tile on the floor


































Wow, what a difference!!!

All this is so amazing but what amazed me even more were the faces of these precious children. Please pray that we will have an impact on these kids as we allow Jesus' love to flow through us.

It's for the Kids!!!

Work in Progress

They have started renovating the kitchen at the orphanage

Removing old tile

Plumbing

Electrical

It's for the Kids!!!

Almost Packed and Ready to Go!!!

The Operation Kyrgyzstan '07 Team is almost ready to go!!!
4 more sleeps.

Are you "Almost packed and ready to go"yet???