What's New

Serving the Lord with our Hearts and Hands

WHAT’S NEW

In addition to the web site, we also try to send out an email update each month with more information and no pictures, and a newsletter a couple of times each year with information and pictures for those without web access. You can sign up for either of these by clicking these links: NEWSLETTERS, UPDATES. We have designed this page so that the most recent entries are on the top and we will date them so you will have a sense of the timing. We will try to keep about a year’s worth of news on this page and move older stuff to the WHAT’S NOT SO NEW page.

Colossians 3:23,24 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.

Don & Christine Ames

CURRENT LOCATION

Updated: June 13, 2009

We are currently in: Nescopeck, PA

Serving the Lord at: Cornerstone Bible Church & I-TEC

Projected departure date is around: Late Summer

Madison, GA

February 10, 2009

We had a wonderful and safe Christmas trip to PA. We were able to visit most of our family and several friends. We traveled over 2000 miles in about three weeks and were able to visit four churches that pray for or help to support us in ministry.

Things were all but shut down in Madison for most of the time we were gone, which is why we didn’t update this page sooner. During this last month or so the men began the footings for the new steel columns in the office building (and no, Christine is only posing with that jackhammer). Meanwhile Don began work on the new electrical service. As we write this we have a team of electricians here from Altoona, PA helping Don do the change over from the old, to the new service. Lord willing we will be able to remove the old service equipment and the room it was in from the center of the construction area by this next week. Now that will make a great picture for the next WHAT’S NEW entry!

Madison, GA

February 19, 2009

Here are the pictures we promised you last week. Ken cut up the last of the electrical equipment room after Don helped him push it over. Then Marvin hauled the pieces out to the waiting dumpster to be hauled away.

Finally the picture that the demolition team has been waiting for: the only thing left standing in the space are the equipment and tools we are working with.

The footing holes are dug and awaiting rebar and concrete.

We are packed up and heading to Titusville, FL for a short project there. We plan to return in three weeks to join another team.

Titusville, FL

March 10, 2009

The Lord provided several volunteers to help with the rebuilding of the Tech Booth at Calvary Chapel Space Coast Church. Mark and Don had worked together several years ago building a similar booth on Merritt Island and they improved on that design here and increased the size substantially. This church has a vision for making videos available on DVD and online in addition to sermons on CDs and cassettes. This takes more people, equipment, and space.

Before, during and after adding eighty square feet and better organization.

Madison, GA

April 4, 2009

Text Box: We returned to Madison GA for a couple of weeks to continue the renovation project there. Joining us for the second week was a group of 13 volunteers from Cornerstone Bible Church in Berwick, PA. Christine did all of the meal preparations for the week and Don worked part of the time with the construction crew and the rest of the time he helped in the kitchen. The team built a wall, worked on computers, graded lessons, moved shelving, cleaned and painted parts of several buildings, and even helped with the reconstruction design. They worked hard and we all had a great time of fellowship. Pastor Jim presented SLM with a check for $1600 to purchase two rolls of paper bringing joy to all at SLM especially the pressman.

Madison, GA

May 5, 2009

Text Box: During this last month we spent three weeks back in FL so that Don could help out our friends with the tower business. God worked it out that at the same time that SLM is waiting for drawings to get the permit for the next phase of the project, the tower company was awarded a large contract with a deadline. By having Don climb it allowed them to split into two crews and finish the work faster. We came back to GA last week for Don to help Tech Serve missionaries, Jerry and Sarah, relocate the Phone system. Jerry had to almost totally rewire the “back board” in order to relocate it and straighten it out. Don learned some more about phone wiring by working with Jerry again. We have worked with these two Godly people on several projects around the world over the last 10 or 12 years and always enjoy their fellowship. Along with putting some finishing touches on the phone system, Don will also be wiring a room for the expanded Braille printing ministry. We are then planning to leave GA on the eighth for PA with a weekend stop in WV to witness our friend Justin’s graduation.

Beckley, WV

May 14, 2009

Text Box: We went to Beckley for the weekend to witness Justin Gambel’s Graduation from Appalachian Bible College. The Gambels are fellow missionaries with La Mission, and Justin has obtained his degree to be better qualified to teach evangelism, and counsel people in need. We ended up staying for a few extra days to do some wiring on their house. It was originally built in the late 1800s as a miner’s shack and then added onto at least seven times. Unfortunately most of the electrical wiring was done by unqualified do-it-yourselfers and falls short of the electrical code and safe wiring practices. Don was able to encourage them by correcting several problems, adding 4 outside lights, and a ceiling fan in the family room. We are praying that Justin can make some time to fix some other issues in between helping raise their four children, taking courses for his next degree, his work at the homeless shelter, his involvement in the local church, and his occasional trips to do and teach street witnessing. We wrote in our email Update that it would be an interesting Mother’s day weekend as Brandie was due to deliver their fourth child on May 9th. Haleigh Grace Gambel was patient enough not to interrupt her dad’s graduation, or Mother’s day, or even her dad’s birthday on the 13th. She selected her own birthday on the 14th and was born at home with the help of two capable midwives. She weighed in at 7lbs, 8ozs, and was 19” long. It was good to be able to see her enter the world before we headed to PA.

Montoursville, PA

June 12, 2009

Text Box: Since we landed in PA we have been keeping busy at Cornerstone Bible Church and the ministry of I-TEC in Montoursville, PA. Don has finished several items on the church’s to-do list like replacing some light fixtures, installing electric supplemental heaters in the restrooms, replacing the basketball goal, and removing the window shutters for painting. There is still almost half of the original to-do list to complete and there is four or five weeks of children’s ministry where Don drives the bus and we both help with classes. Meanwhile a little over an hour away at I-TEC, we are sorting through a bunch of donated items to organize the things they can use and list the rest on EBay to generate some money to fund ministry projects. Don is also doing some wiring in the shop as he is pictured here installing controls and wiring for several machine tools. I-TEC has several projects going on including the construction of their new RV park that will allow up to seven volunteer families to stay on site. We are also planning to join I-TEC for about six weeks in Africa in the fall where we will be helping with three different electrical projects. Pray with us that the funding will come in for this as it will cost about $4,000 each.