December Update

Greetings,

As another year comes to a close, we are reminded that the ministry was registered in Belize to begin the work here a little over three years ago. It seems like such a brief time, and yet we have seen so many incredible things that God has done. We never imagined all that God had in store for us. The opportunities for ministry are ever increasing as we are continuing to grow and looking forward to another great year ahead!

Pictured Left: Chen home shown here missing roof after hurricane Richard.
Pictured Right: Mr. & Mrs. Chen standing in front of their home with repaired rafters and a new roof.

We would like to give everyone a quick update on the situation in Belize following hurricane Richard that hit the northern part of the country on October 24^th. God miraculously provided funds designated for hurricane relief to rebuild homes damaged by the storm. We have begun that process of putting new roofs on homes as shown here. Special thanks to the ones who followed the prompting of the Holy Spirit and very lovingly and generously contributed to this cause without even being asked.

During this Christmas season, one of the greatest ways to celebrate the birth of Jesus is seeing people continue to accept the gift of salvation. More and more people are putting their faith in Jesus and following Him in baptism. Shown here are pictures of baptism services that took place on November 6^th and 7^th in two different villages. We are working very hard to see that these new believers are discipled and taught the Word of God. All in all this is the reason we moved to Belize…to see others come to Christ. As these new Christians are being discipled, the churches are already becoming very evangelistic about reaching others with the gospel.

There are still many villages waiting for us to come and begin a church, not only in Belize but in neighboring countries in Central America as well. In many of the villages there is little or no transportation which prohibits people from being able to attend church in villages other than where they live. Please continue to pray for us that God will provide everything that we need to establish new churches as people come to Christ.

In the Gaither household, Brandon is suffering through his semester exams as this newsletter is being written. Though he is less than thrilled at this opportunity to display his knowledge, I am sure he will do fine. Micah, on the other hand, enjoys practicing his academic skills. He loves to name all the circles and triangles that he can find and recently has decided to draw circles on everything he sees….the walls, the table, Brandon’s school books, etc. Look out Picasso!

Otherwise, the Gaithers are busy getting ready for Christmas. We have been decorating, and redecorating, and redecorating the Christmas tree. Apparently Micah is never quite pleased with how it looks and taking the ornaments off the tree is a daily (or hourly) event. Randy and Sheila are having to learn all over again how to drive in city traffic where there are actually street signs and traffic lights (what do you mean you have to stay in one lane and aren’t stop signs really just a suggestion?). Regardless of the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, the Gaither crew is enjoying time with family and friends as we all celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We will be back to the much warmer temperatures (thank you Lord) in Belize right after Christmas.

Merry Christmas!

from Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah

October-November Update

Greetings from Belize,

"The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold." (Psalm 18:2 NIV) Of course we have always known these words to be true, but the very active weather we have had this hurricane season and the apparent popularity of Belize among the tropical storms and hurricanes has caused us to recall these words of David over and over again. Through all the recent weather the Lord protected us.

Though we took a direct hit from hurricane Richard on October 24th, the good news is that no lives were lost. The Gaither four had actually just flown back to the U.S. for Randy to speak at several meetings the weekend before Richard's arrival in Belize. Randy returned to Belize right after the storm to deal with the damage and help wherever he could. He was amazed at what he found when he arrived at our house. We lost all of our trees and our fence, but it was as if God had cupped His hands around our house, according to Randy, and we only sustained some roof damage. There was also some damage to the shop building on the northern campus due to a tree on the roof.

In Valley of Peace, our facilities "weathered" the storm with some roof damage to the church and internet cafe' and a few trees down on the fence. However, the hardest hit was the village of More Tomorrow. In the entire village, Randy located only two homes that still had a roof after the storm, and some buildings were completely destroyed as you can see from the pictures. Fortunately, we were able to have the church opened for a hurricane shelter before Richard's arrival and the building stood strong. In addition to the destruction of their homes, the people in the village lost their crops to the winds and flooding. We have been distributing food door to door in More Tomorrow and are trying to raise the funds to help put roofs back on the homes.

Though the weather has dealt some pretty heavy blows, we are continuing to see people come to Jesus. Pastor Rafael Chuc at the church in Dump recently baptized four new Christians in the swollen river during the visit of tropical storm Matthew, and there are three others in Dump who will also be baptized soon. Randy just had two baptism services this past week. He baptized three in Bella Vista and one in More Tomorrow.

Speaking of growth, construction continues at our preschool in More Tomorrow. The building itself has come a long was and survived the hurricane. Now we just lack the doors, windows, and electrical before we can furnish it with furniture, equipment, and supplies. The bathroom facilities also need to be completed and a water tank built so that we can open the doors to students when the school year starts in September, 2011.

The Gaither family is doing well. Sheila and the boys have enjoyed visiting family and attending Sheila's nephew's wedding while they are in the states (congratulations Jay & Brittani), but they are definitely looking forward to all four of them being in the same country again. Randy will be returning to the states soon so they can all hit the road together for several meetings. Road trips provide for a good bit of "together" time, and it is always great to see friends stateside while taking care of business and sharing about the ministry in Belize.

Otherwise in family news, Brandon has been busy training his new puppy and trying to teach him NOT to eat everything he sees...fingers and toes included. There is quite a battle of the wits in the Gaither household these days as Micah and Hachi (the puppy) both want to be in total control of the household and the center of attention at all times. Micah loves Hachi, but he is not used to someone having him by the seat of the pants...literally. It should be interesting to see how this one shakes out.

Blessings,
Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah












Captain Jack: 7/11/05 - 10/06/10 Brandon & Micah with Hachi

September Update

Greetings from Belize,

It is hard to believe that summer has come to a close and the school year has already started. Things have not slowed down any as we are continuing to see the Lord’s blessings poured out upon us and the work here in Belize.

The busy summer ended with two great teams in August from Central Christian Church in Fort Smith, AR. Both of these teams consisted primary of youth with a focus on evangelism. They had VBS activities for the children in the villages in addition to conducting sports camps. The first team spent one day in More Tomorrow and then headed south to our southern campus and spent the rest of the week in the village of San Isidro. The second team ministered in both San Pablo and Bella Vista which are located in southern Belize. All of these guys did a great job sharing Bible stories, their own personal testimonies, and the love of Jesus Christ in general to people of all ages. For several of these youth, it was the first time they had shared their personal testimony and God moved mightily as several folks accepted Christ as their Savior.

Three of the pastors from Central Christian also accompanied the teams. The pastors and team members made such a close connection with the people here in Belize that they have decided as a church to partner with us and adopt the village of Bella Vista. We are looking forward to many great things to come as this church is planning several trips throughout the year to help grow the church and disciple new Christians as they work through GEM.

September started off with a team of friends that we have known for years from our home area in Arkansas (Hartford & Mansfield). We had a wonderful time with the Tobey and Hancock families showing them the various aspects of the ministry and a little of the culture here in Belize. This group brought blankets and “goodie bags” filled with toys, candy, etc. for the children. The blankets were made by children in the states as a VBS activity and each blanket was accompanied by a note from and a photo of the children who made it. The team also purchased, bagged, and distributed much needed food (beans, rice, flour, sugar, and lard) to the people in both More Tomorrow and Valley of Peace.

The Gaither family is doing well. Brandon is staying very busy being back in school (and you know he is excited about that). He has Spanish I this year and although he is doing well in the class and making A’s, Micah is giving “Bam Bam” a run for his money when it comes to speaking Spanish. Micah is not speaking in sentences in Spanish as he is in English, but he is naming common objects in Spanish. The other day he even hollered “vamos” when he wanted to go outside to play in the dirt. He has also learned to turn on the outside faucet and spray the dog with “agua”. I guess Captain Jack (the dog) is learning Spanish as well…it didn’t take him long to figure out what it means when Micah says agua. Meanwhile, Randy has recently discovered that there are chiggers in Belize and he was voted “Best Host” by the little critters. Sheila, on the other hand, is just trying to keep up with her three guys while trying to figure out how the mold even grows on the shoes you wear daily when it is the rainy season in Belize…hmmm.

Blessings,

Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah

July - August Update

Greetings from Belize,

This summer has been flying by! It is hard to believe there are less than two weeks before school starts again. We have had a very busy summer filled with several teams and many friends. It is amazing when we look back at all the projects, ministries, and most of all lives touched during these past several weeks. We, along with the people of Belize, have been truly blessed by each person who chose to take some time out of their busy lives in the states to share the love of Jesus Christ in so many different ways.

During the latter part of June we had a team here from Rogers, AR. They set out to work in the village of Jalacte' in southern Belize but had to be evacuated to the northern campus when tropical storm Alex came through on June 26th. However, the team handled the sudden change of plans well and the children in two villages benefited as they worked in one village in the south and one in the north.

July was filled with five different groups from various parts of the U.S. and a great deal of activity. To make things a bit more interesting, the engine in our bus blew up on the way back from taking the previous team to the airport on July 1st. As Randy sat on the side of the highway watching flames coming from the bus with a non-functioning fire extinguisher in hand, a Good Samaritan with a shovel stopped and threw some dirt on the engine to put out the fire. We are also fortunate to know some wonderful people with a neighboring ministry that not only picked up our next team from the airport, but also shuttled everyone to church until we could borrow the bus from our southern campus while the other bus was being repaired.

However, if that was not enough "fun", the daily power outages and power surges finally took its toll on the freezer in the dining hall. Of course all of the grocery shopping was done on a Friday in preparation for a team arrival on Monday. Enough meats to last a large team ten days were put away in the freezer as usual. What was not usual was the awful stench coming from the kitchen by Sunday morning! The freezer had gone out completely and all the meats were ruined. Nevertheless, we were able to scurry around to get the mess cleaned up and more groceries purchased on Monday morning before the team arrived...whew!

Our first team in July was from Eaton, CO. This youth group conducted sports camps in two different villages and very generously provided a beans and rice lunch to all of the children that attended the activities. These guys also took on a variety of construction projects in three different locations. They painted the interior of the internet cafe' at Valley of Peace and began work on the septic system for our church in More Tomorrow (Sheila is so happy at the prospect of indoor plumbing). This team also worked on repairs and painting the inside of the staff house as well as the plumbing and foundation for new bathrooms (including 3 showers on each side) here at our main campus.


While the previously mentioned team was here, a second team from Albertville, Alabama worked on the new preschool in More Tomorrow. Thanks to this team, the walls are plastered inside and out and we now have a concrete floor instead of a covered pasture (the cows are less than thrilled). Now all we lack are windows, doors, and furnishings before the place can be filled with beautiful smiling faces of children ready to learn.

The next two teams were primarily focused on evangelism and God really blessed their work. A team from Darden, TN stayed at the northern campus and worked in the villages of More Tomorrow and Valley of Peace. This group conducted a women's Bible study group and a men's Bible study group while the children were attending VBS each morning, and in the evenings they held revival services. At the same time, a group from Austin, TX was at the southern campus with similar activities...VBS in the mornings and revival services in the evenings at the church in Dump. It is fantastic to know that through the efforts of these teams we have a number of people to baptize as they now know the Lord Jesus Christ.

Regarding family news, the Gaither four enjoyed being the Gaither five together for a week in July. Ben, our oldest son, made his first visit to Belize. We really enjoyed showing him the many aspects of the ministry and the sites around this country. Though Ben was fascinated with the sites around Belize, Micah was more fascinated that "Bubby" was here when he woke up in the mornings. It was wonderful to have some family time in the midst of our busy schedule!

As far as other family news, Randy and Sheila are just trying to keep up with the day to day activities and which way did Micah run now. We even enlisted help from some of the team members a few days to help keep up with Micah...you know, the younger, more energetic type. Who said babysitting is not a ministry? Meanwhile Brandon spends much of his time trying to keep up with the grass. This is the rainy season here in Belize, and sometimes you can literally see the grass grow. As soon as Brandon makes his last pass with the mower and parks it, he has to start all over again. Well, maybe that is a bit of an exaggeration, but he does mow an average of three times a week when there's a break in the rain showers. But hey, it is great for his tan! After all, it is either spending some peaceful hours on the mower or trying to figure out where Micah hid the wireless mouse. It is always an adventure around the Gaither house...

Blessings,
Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah

June Update

Greetings from Belize,

We have had a wonderful start to a very busy summer schedule. So far this month we have hosted a youth team fro Rogers, AR who spent 10 days working in the village of More Tomorrow leading sports camps for the children. They also spent some time distributing food (team pictured at right bagging food) in More Tomorrow and Valley of Peace and even hosted a "night at the movies" showing The Passion of the Christ which made a huge impact on the villagers.

A second youth team from the same church in Rogers, AR is currently here in Belize working in the southern part of the country. They have many exciting things going on in Jalacte' for the next week and a half including sports camps for the children and building a water cistern at the church to collect rainwater since there is no running water in the village. More to come on that team in next month's newsletter as they have just begun their journey at the time this is being written.

In addition to hosting some great teams, we are very excited to report that there were sixteen students who graduated from the Children's Nest Preschool in Valley of Peace on June 12th and are now ready to start primary school in the fall. Eight additional children successfully completed their first year of preschool at the Children's Nest and all eight are planning to return in September to master their school readiness skills by the time they are old enough to move on to primary school. Congratulations students! We would also like to express our appreciation to Elba Galdamez and Mabel Franco, the two preschool teacher, who helped make this a great year and hosted a wonderful graduation ceremony. Thank you teachers for a job well done!

Regarding the Gaither family, we are doing great. Brandon's ankle is healing well. He is now off crutches and out of his walking boot...just supposed to take it easy for the next four weeks. Although he has tried to convince mom and dad that he has some sort of allergy to taking out the trash, it was determined that the walk to the trash disposal area would be great therapy for his ankle (I am sure that was written in the last progress note from the orthopedist). Now at sixteen months old, Micah has transformed into part baby and part monkey and literally climbs up anything he can reach with a knee or a toe. Look out local howler monkeys, here he comes! And by the way, if you happen to receive a strange phone call or email from our household just know it is a friendly "hello" from Micah. He is quite the wiz kid at dialing the phone and playing on the "puter" as he calls it. What will it be next week?? Sheila is busy running around after Micah trying to keep the phone hung up and the computers shut down as well as making sure Brandon does his "therapy" every other day (could washing dishes be good therapy too). Maybe those frequent power outages are a blessing when it comes to Micah's high tech tendencies. Randy is meeting himself coming and going taking care of teams along with eight churches, three graduations, and the day to day business activities. At least they were able to get the air conditioner in his truck fixed today which makes the running around a little more comfortable. All in all we are having a great time with many teams and projects lined up for the summer months.

Blessings,
Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah

May Update

Greetings from Belize,

It has been an incredible journey here in Belize. The ministry continues to grow as people are coming to Christ and experiencing the eternal life-changing grace, love, fellowship, and power of Jesus Christ! There is no doubt that even greater things are in store as God is moving mightily among His people as they share with others their testimonies of what the Lord has done in their lives.

Evidence of how God is moving can be seen in several of our churches. In the village of San Pablo, the congregation has already outgrown the small thatch roof building where they are currently meeting. Aside from having large numbers of folks saved in their own village, this church is also going out preaching and sharing the message of salvation in other villages, and there were over 30 people saved and baptized in just one of the communities. At Dump there have been five people saved in the past few weeks. Along with that, couples are committing to marriage as the Word of God is being taught. Currently the people in both Bella Vista and San Isidro are meeting in homes with very limited space. We are looking at the possibility of purchasing a partially constructed building in Bella Vista that can be finished for a nice church building. In San Isidro, land has been secured and they are ready to begin construction on a church building. We are believing God for the funds and the laborers to move forward with buildings for these new church developments.

The church in the village of Jalacte' held a special service last month celebrating the new sound system and instruments provided provided by a grant from the Kingdom Mission Fund. It was a tremendous time as people surrounded the church to hear the gospel in song and preaching. Pictured to the left are some of the musicians proudly displaying their new ministry equipment.


At the onset of the hot, dry season in Belize (typically April and May), we became aware of a need in the village of More Tomorrow for buckets to collect rain water. Although there is a community well in the village for he people to hand pump water for their animals, cleaning, and laundry, the water is not good to drink. The villagers rely on catching rain for cooking and drinking water. Therefore, we recently distributed 5-gallon water buckets to each family for them to use to collect rain water. Maybe one day we will be able to provide large cisterns so the families don't have to worry about running out of water during the dry season.

We would also like to thank everyone who has committed to sponsoring a child for the 2010-2011 school year. There are still approximately 30 children that need assistance in order for them to attend school. Please let us know if you would like to assist with the school scholarship program.

As far as family news, we would like to express our appreciation for all of the phone calls and prayers for Randy's mother after her recent heart attack. In lieu of her illness we returned to the states for a brief stay, and we are glad to report that she is out of the hospital and doing much better now. In other family news, Brandon FINALLY completed school for the year, and was so excited about having straight A's and an extra long summer break that he did a back flip and broke his ankle. Ok...he didn't really do a back flip, but that sounds more exciting than the real story. The truth is Brandon was chasing after Micah on the front porch of our office in Arkansas when the two of them went off the edge of the porch. Micah came out on top with only a few minor scrapes, but Brandon didn't fare so well. We are praying for a quick recovery so Brandon can still enjoy some summer fun during his break. Micah is busy naming everything he can see and chattering non-stop. He is especially concerned about Brandon's "boo boo" and can't wait for Bam Bam (his name for Brandon) to be able to play with him again soon. Randy and Sheila are also looking forward to Brandon's speedy recovery so he can get back to doing his own chores...ha.

Blessings,
Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah Gaither

April Update

Greetings from Belize,

Things continue to progress very well as the new churches are growing and reaching others for Christ. The excitement and joy of seeing people saved and lives being changed far outweigh any struggles we sometimes encounter. God is so great and glorious! There have been some wonderful things that have happened just in the past few weeks.

Last month we hosted our third medical team this year. The team was from Bethel University in McKenzie, TN and they did a fantastic job ministering to folks in the southern part of Belize specifically in the villages of Santa Cruz, Santa Elena, San Vincente, Conejo, and Dump. This team of six (including one medical doctor, two physician assistants, and three PA students) was able to see a total of 578 people throughout the week they were here.

Thanks to the Bethel team and two other medical teams from TN that were here in February, the people working with the Ministry of Health in Belize have been very pleased with the medical care provided through GEM to the remote villages in southern Belize. We were also asked to have a booth in the health fair held on March 24th in San Pedro Columbia in coordination with the World Tuberculosis Day events. The health fair was a great success as we saw students from three different schools as well as many local villagers.

Another team that was here in March worked in the northern part of Belize. This team from Grace Community Church in Fort Smith, AR built rafters and put the roof on the preschool building in More Tomorrow in just three days. While some of the team members were busy on the construction site, others were working with the children in the village after school each day teaching Bible songs, playing games, and working on various crafts. In addition to the construction work and ministering to the children, the team went house to house distributing food to families in both More Tomorrow and Valley of Peace.

The new church building in More Tomorrow has become quite the center of activity in the village...and what a blessing! Besides our usual Sunday morning and Sunday evening services, we have recently begun a midweek Spanish service for the adults that do not speak English. The building has also provided a place for teams from other ministries to hold outreach activities. The week preceding Easter a youth group from North Carolina was working with the Baptist Training Center here in Belize and wanted to have a three day VBS for the children during Easter Break. It was wonderful to have our church building for the team to use to teach the children about Jesus.

As schools have once again resumed class following Spring Break/Easter Vacation, we are already looking ahead to the 2010-2011 school year. Believe it or not it is already time to start working on school supplies, uniforms, shoes, books, etc. for the upcoming year. School registration fees are due by the first part of June for many schools. Therefore, if you would like to sponsor a child for school please let us know as soon as possible. You may notify us via email at gem3737@gmail.com. The cost to sponsor a child for one school year is $250.00 US dollars. That amount covers the school registration/tuition fees, two uniforms, a pair of shoes, books, and school supplies for the entire year.

We as the Gaither family are doing our best to stay cool during this hot, dry season. For Sheila, Brandon, and Micah that often times means taking turns in Micah's baby pool. Randy, on the other hand, seems to find many errands that require him to drive around in an air conditioned vehicle...hmm... Captain Jack, our Australian blue heeler, is a little less than thrilled about us spending so much time outdoors trying to cool off because Micah likes to steal his favorite rubber bone and play Keep Away from "Puppy". There is certainly never a dull moment around our house. All in all we are doing great.

We would like to thank everyone for your love, support, and prayers. In recent days we have received several emails and phone calls from people just letting us know they are praying daily for us and the ministry here. Those emails and phone calls are very encouraging and are a great reminder of our extended family all across the U.S.

Blessings,
Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah

March Update

Greetings from Belize,

There is a lot of excitement here in Belize among our churches as we are seeing many wonderful things happening. Several teams have been involved in ministry, evangelism, and construction making a huge impact in the villages. God continues to do amazing things that make the impossible become a reality!

Last month we hosted two medical teams who provided care in a number of remote villages in the southern part of Belize. Between these two teams over 1200 people received treatment for various conditions. In addition to providing medical care, the team distributed Bibles and set up an outdoor "theater" to show the Jesus movie. The theater consisted of a flat screen TV with a built-in DVD player powered by an inverter and the vehicle battery. Although they did not serve hot buttery popcorn, many people heard about the Bread of Life in their native language.

Two teams from different parts of the United States joined together to work in the northern part of Belize in the village of More Tomorrow. These men painted the new church building both inside and out, and it looks fantastic! The interior of the church was further accented by scriptures stenciled on the walls between the windows and a beautiful mural painted on the front wall by artist Ralph Irwin. Not only did this team bless us by painting the church, they decided to paint the government school building as well which thrilled everyone in the village.











The new church developments are really on fire for the Lord and continuing to grow. On February 28th, three men from More Tomorrow who were recently saved were baptized in the river following the morning service. The people were so excited about the baptisms that they organized an impromptu village celebration that Sunday evening.

Speaking of church growth, we had been praying for a sound system for the church in Jalacte'. That prayer was recetnly answered as we received a grant from the Kingdom Mission Fund toward the purchase of a sound system. The equipment has been purchased and is already making a tremendous difference as the Gospel is now being heard throughout the village.

The most recent church plant was started in January in the village of Bella Vista. The people are currently meeting under a tarp on a cement slab that was originally intended to be a home as the owner of the "would be" home said he would rather have a church than a house. Already the village chairman has agreed to set aside up to an acre of land for the church where a new building can be constructed.

In the Gaither household we recently celebrated Micah's first birthday with a trip to the zoo and a lot of chocolate cake...his mother trained him well, ha. Nana and Uncle Craig (Sheila's mom and brother) made it down to Belize for the birthday party, which was a treat for all of us. Brandon enjoyed showing them the sites from the top of some Maya ruins to the deepest part of St. Herman's Cave. Randy and Sheila enjoyed having someone else to chase Micah around the house (and everywhere else). One thing is certain, our house is filled with a lot of joy as we serve the Lord here in Belize!

Blessings,
Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah

February Update

Greetings from Belize,

2010 has started off to be a fantastic year! January was very busy with teams and a lot of activity. The construction teams completed the ceiling in the church at More Tomorrow as well as wiring the building for electricity and installing lights and ceiling fans. How wonderful it is to be able to walk into the building at night and just flip a switch to have lights and fans to help stir the mosquitoes and the air. The team also installed windows and doors in the internet café in Valley of Peace so now it is ready for paint, furnishings, and computer equipment. Last but certainly not least, the construction crew built a new front porch on our dorm at the northern campus and took care of several maintenance projects around the facility to get us started off right for the New Year.

While the men were busy working on all of the building and maintenance projects, the ladies from the team were ministering to the women in More Tomorrow. They held a Women’s Bible study during the week while the children were in school, and the response was amazing. These ladies really made a huge impact on that village. After the team had to go back to the states, the ladies in the village decided to have a Bible study on their own in each other’s homes.

Besides all the building projects that have been taking place, God is continuing to build His Kingdom in villages throughout Belize. We now have a new church in the village of Bella Vista. With the addition of an eighth church we are in awe at how God is growing His ministry here in Belize.

As people are coming to know the Lord, they are recognizing that God’s plan is for them to be united in marriage versus the common practice of just living together. Therefore, Randy has been very busy with weddings since the first of the year. On January 31^st he even conducted his first triple wedding as three different couples all requested to be married at the same time. A triple wedding means triple cake…just keep that white shirt clean!

Regarding family news, the Gaithers are enjoying nice warm temperatures while our family and friends are enduring a lot of ice and snow back in the states (we are so glad God called us to a warm climate). We did have to dig out some long sleeve shirts when the temperatures dipped into the 60’s in January, but everyone has to suffer a little from time to time…ha. Otherwise, we are learning that “backup” refers to something other than moving in the reverse direction when a computer is involved and how not doing so can bring everything to a screeching halt when the computer becomes fatally ill…and dies. Some of us have to learn everything the hard way which is why it has been a little while since many of you have heard from us.

As far as other family news, Brandon completed his first semester of 9^th grade with straight A’s (he must have a brilliant teacher). He also passed his driving test and is now armed with a driver’s permit. Micah celebrates his first birthday this month and is walking everywhere as well as dancing and climbing on anything he sees. The only thing that slows him down is putting shoes on his feet, but he has learned to take them off with little difficulty. Hmmm…what can we think of next…

Blessings,

Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah Gaither