2017 Highlights
What a Great Year
God has done great things in and through Casas por Cristo this year. We completed 256 homes as a ministry – 35 in the Dominican Republic, 63 in Guatemala, 64 in Cd. Acuña, and 94 in Cd. Juárez. God is good! That means 256 families now have a safe and secure place to call home and a constant reminder of God’s love and provision. It was an honor to witness God at work in the lives of these families, their sponsoring pastors and churches, and the volunteer teams who came to build and serve.
New Model Home in Cd. Juárez
We were so excited to debut our new home model in Cd. Juárez, our busiest location, at the beginning of this year. The new model features 340 square feet of space with a long living room, two bedrooms off of the main room, a single-pitch durable metal roof, and a small front porch. While it’s a bit more work to complete than the old “single” two-room model, the improvements for the families are well worth the effort. In addition to the benefits for the families, the new model is also more similar to the house plans in our other locations, making it easier for our teams, volunteers, interns, and staff to build in multiple locations without having to learn a new design.
A Time to Build
This year, Casas continued our A Time to Build campaign by beginning construction of a new Administrative Building and International Operations Building at our headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Our vision is to use the new spaces to expand our ministry to 12 more Latin American countries. We have completed the foundations for each building and will be standing the walls soon. We are committed to completing this project without taking on debt. However, we still lack the funds to finish the project. Please consider a year end donation to help us carry out the vision God has given us.
Expansion
This year, we also scouted a new country to begin operations. Our executive team will be traveling there in January to make plans and set things up. If all goes well, we will reveal the new location soon, so stay tuned.
Tornado Relief Homes
In May of 2015, a devastating tornado swept through the city of Acuña, México, destroying homes and displacing families. As a result, a company called KB Global Care contacted Casas about partnering to provide relief homes for the affected families. The city of Acuña donated the land, KB Global Care provided the funds for the home building materials, and Casas provided the volunteer labor. Scott DeWitt, Director of Acuña, worked countless hours on this partnership to provide 14 homes for displaced tornado victims this year. All 21 of the tornado relief homes have now been completed. However, KB Global Care plans to continue building and serving with us in the future. We are thankful for this partnership. God is so good!
Staff & Interns
Additionally, Casas enjoyed serving with 22 interns this summer. These young men and women raised their own funds and sacrificed three months of their time and energy to build homes for families in need and serve in our administrative and field offices. We could not have survived our busy seasons without their help. Their passion for service brought a wave of refreshment to our ministry. Brigham Dion, our Intern Manager, did a great job training, investing in, and discipling our interns. Casas hired six full-time missionaries this year, three of whom completed the summer internship program. Argenis Disla joined staff as a Dominican Field Coordinator. Mary Cadarette and Dusty Cockerell moved to El Paso, Texas to serve as Juárez Field Coordinators. Weston Lott and Zachary Bryan joined the Creative Department at our headquarters to fill the roles of Graphic Designer and Videographer. Finally, Kyle St. Amand moved to El Paso, Texas to serve as a Team Coordinator. We look forward to one more of our interns, Brendan Noerper, joining us in January. We are excited about all the gifts that our new staff members will bring to the table to help our ministry.
Donate
We praise God for all the great things He has done through Casas por Cristo this year. We would not have been able to accomplish so much without your generosity. Thank you for your partnership. Help us continue in our mission to build and serve.