September 2024

1Peter 3:15. But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.
It has been such an awesome summer for us.  A time to reconnect with our children and grandchildren.  We haven’t all been together for 6 years and so it was truly wonderful to see our grandkids connecting.  Spending time with our adult children has been a blessing on a whole different level.   

We also had a chance to share about our ministry at several Churches and some home groups and of course the Gleaners, where the volunteers had a chance to hear stories of how their work at the Gleaners plant reaches people in need.   God has given us a great love for the people of Guatemala, and it is always a joy to share our stories with others.


Although we were in Canada for 3 months the work continues.  We are thankful for a couple of men in Guatemala that are our hands and feet while away, Erick and Marvin.


In our last ministry update we reported on Rolando, disabled from birth who was awaiting a specially made wheelchair to accommodate his disfigured back.  We are thankful to the team at Beeline Wheelchairs who were able to make a customized wheelchair for him.  He received this while we were in Canada so we will be looking forward to having a visit with him.

We visited the community of Santa Marta today and had a look at the construction of the Church, which is moving along.  We are encouraging some of them to take the Pastor Training/Biblical Studies program with us, but they tell us that none of them have much education and they are worried about the studies.  We encouraged them that they are not the first to come with little education.  Please pray for them as they consider all this.  They sent us home with a beautiful gift, see below.  ​

Just after we arrived in Canada we received a request for a wheelchair for a 12 year old girl who had her leg run over when she was 5 and although we don’t know the whole story, it seems she never received medical attention.  As we looked at the photos we thought maybe there was more we could do than just a wheelchair.  We put an appeal out to the Guatemala missionary group and found out that there is a missionary orthopedic surgeon who lives in Guatemala.  He agreed to assess her, which took a bit of coordination due to distance, but we were able to help the family with the travel costs, and his services are free for this type of case.


We just heard back from the Dr. and he said it is a very complicated case.  He has a team of trauma specialists coming in March and he would like her to come back then to be assessed again by them.  He asked that we be praying for her, and so we ask you also if you would pray for her as she comes to mind.  Her name is Susanna.  She has her whole life ahead of her and it would be wonderful to see her walking.

We are still awaiting to see how many Pastor training students there will be this year.  We have often mentioned that “Guatemala time” is a real thing, in that no one is ever on time, but it also includes making commitments to a program like this … is usually last minute.  


We spoke about vented wood burning stoves last ministry update and we have had a great response and quite a lot of interest in the sponsorship of a stove, around 17 have been sponsored, and a couple from Calgary raising funds for more stoves.  


The Guatemalan who manufactures these stoves plans to deliver them to us on Oct 21 and spend a day or two with us as we begin the installations.  These will be ongoing.


A few have expressed interest in possibly coming on a stove installation team, from different areas, so if this is something that still interests you, let us know so we can see about forming a group as this would be easier for us.  Here is a photo of a before and after, someone we helped many years ago.  The device in her hand was to show the reduction of C02 and carbon particles in the air.

The details of the stove project are as follows:


The vented stove uses 70% less wood and removes toxic smoke outside.


Less wood means less degradation of forests.


In order that the families take ownership, we require a buy in of 300Q (about $55 Cdn) plus they will provide the 12 bricks for the base of the stove, and donors will pay the rest, about $180. Cdn. Or $130 USD.  In the Guatemalan culture, not giving the item for free, but asking for a small amount of buy in, encourages the careful and responsible management of the item they are receiving.


If they are widowed or abandoned and without family support we can adjust their buy in to their circumstances.


As we install, they will be required to assist in order to learn how to install the combustion chamber bricks, sand and cooking surface, and learn how to clean and maintain the stove.


The health benefits are immediate.  No more lung infections, headaches, eye irritations and no worries about their children getting burned. 


They will be required to fill out an application in which they agree to eliminate the open fire inside the house and that they use the stove correctly and provide weekly cleaning as instructed.  There will be follow up to ensure the stoves are being properly used.  


We are utilizing a Guatemalan based wood burning stove factory to make the stoves.  We have looked at many, and in our opinion the Chapina Stove is one of the better models.  

Recent news is that as of today, 945 boxes of Black Beans donated to the Gleaners by a farmer in Manitoba, are being loaded onto a 40' container and will be arriving around Oct. 22, 2024.  
We wanted to finalize our update by making a short tribute to a man by the name of Victor Gomez who was really instrumental in bringing us into many communities in the area we live and work now.  He will be missed by many and made an impact in many communities and in many lives.  We shared many laughs with him and he will always have a special place in our hearts.  Here is a brief story below.


Way back in the beginning of our ministry we had been invited to the area we are working in Guatemala by a leader who was a retired police officer and a strong advocate for the rights of the Indigenous people.  His name, Victor Gomez.  He was the one who introduced us to, and advocated for the community of Santa Marta being chosen to receive a maternity clinic.  After a time of working with Victor, we realized how much we needed a Kekchi Interpreter, and Victor didn’t speak Kekchi.  We also realized that although Victor was a Christian, he was also politically motivated and we did not want to be seen as being politically supportive to any party.  So we parted ways amicably and continued to provide him with Gleaners food on occasion as he visited poor communities.  


On July 1 this year, just after returning to Canada,we opened up our local Coban news and the headlines were that Victor had been assasinated as he was leaving his home early that morning.  We were shocked and saddened as he leaves behind a beautiful wife, 3 children and a grandchild.  Unfortunately, in Guatemala, politics and assasinations seem to happen all too often.  He was a wonderful, kind hearted man, and simply wanted better conditions for the indigenous people.  We know he will be missed.

​Blessings
Denis and Eileen Nogue