Alex on a Mission

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

10 Little Things

10 little things about our mission

1. Our backyard has turned into a veggie garden/mini farm! With a lot of help from some of our favorite students. Yay!

2. We were able to provide uniforms to over 15 students (and still counting). Including shirts, pants/skirts, notebooks, backpacks, shoes, socks, underwear, pens and pencils. Don't worry- they all look great.

3. India Team came! They shared their testimony and gave talks to the whole student body, made best friends with all the neighborhood kids, climbed a mountain (nbd) held piglets, rode a caribou, drank fresh coconut juice, and swam in the ocean. Pray for their mission in India!

4. We handed out many foam mats, pillows, sheets, blankets, and mosquito nets to our friends and neighbors who were sleeping on the cement floor before.

5. We brought one of our students to the hospital on a different island to have surgery on his fractured arm. Everything went well! He's a happy camper.

6. We continue to provide rice and prayers to those who come to our door hungry. And we sometimes dance with our regulars.

7. We are trying to set up a time to take Ganise and her mom to the main land to have surgery on her cleft lip. Through Smile Train the operation is free but, we need funds for ferry/travel expenses, meals, and a place to stay for the week. She will also need medication for after the surgery. Please consider donating! I have estimated it to be about $300.

8. This last week Genevieve got a huge burn on her leg (it was sick) from the motorcycle, hearing this, our neighbors came right over to put cooling leaves and tomatoes on the burn. It is now almost healed!

9. *For Mom-- When the same awesome neighbors found out the I was running a fever the whole family came over to help. The son (23) started making herbal tea from leaves that he found in our yard, the daughter (17) started massaging my head, and the mom came over with medicine and repeatedly told me to take it every 4 hours then gave me a full body massage. (It wasn't your Campbell's chicken noodle soup mom, but close enough!)

10. SHOUT OUT to all the prayer warriors, blog sharers, and those who are supporting us finically. You are the reason this mission is possible! I can not thank you enough for your holy sacrifice. May The Lord bless you and reward you!

(Father Joe and Gogoy say thanks too)

In Him,

Alex

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Quick Update

So many things have happened since I last posted. Here are some pictures of what we have been up to!

#1. I became a Godmother to the sweetest little girl. She has the same birthday as my niece and Goddaughter that I left back home. God is good to me!

#2. While at the baptism meeting, I got asked to be the Godmother of two other boys! :)

#3. For a couple of weeks in the month of June, we had the opportunity to have our friend Flora and her daughter Monay stay with us. Flora had just put an end to her life of drugs and alcohol use with the help of our awesome missionaries in Malaybalay. She stayed with us to get back on her feet and grow in her relationship with Jesus. She is now living in Malaybalay with Monay. Please pray for her to stay strong in times of temptation and trial.

#4. We started teaching again! The summer is over her in the Philippines and a new school year has started! We are now teaching Religion, Values, and some English classes. Holy Rosary High School is BADLY in need of repairs. I will post another blog on this but if you are anyone you know feel called to donate to this amazing school please email me at alex.vidos@yahoo.com.

#5. We were apart of a mass wedding, a total of six couple were married all at the same time!

#6. Genevieve had a birthday! Here is everyone at our house at 5am! Happy 24th!

#7. The China team came for a visit/vacation!! We were so happy to have them for just 2 days!

#8. ASIA SUMMIT! A great week retreat in Malaybalay with missionaries from all over Asia. It was awesome to be with everyone again!

Until next time!

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

The Delopere family needs your help!

This blog was written by my awesome team member Rebecca. We are trying to raise awareness for this beautiful family's needs. Please consider donating!

Meet the Delopere family! Elma is a first-grade public school teacher, and Renati is a stay-at-home father. They have three children - Jane Rennoit (9), Clark Reniel (4), and Johnreel (2) - and another baby due in September.

Renati, Elma, Jane, Clark, and Fr. Joe

Two years ago this family experienced terrible tragedy when Jane, then 7 years old, was critically injured. On August 2, 2012, Jane was walking past the gate at her elementary school when she was hit by a truck. She suffered a broken skull and spent 10 days in the ICU, some of that time in a coma. She has had a total of four surgeries and spent three months in the hospital, followed by a year of recovery at home.

The doctors inserted an artificial bone in Jane’s skull to protect her brain, but they are not sure whether or not this procedure was 100% successful or if it is a lasting solution. Elma told us that the right side of Jane’s head is soft to the touch, like a baby’s skull that is not yet fully formed. Another operation may be necessary for further healing and recovery.

Because the truck driver was only able to pay a small portion of the damages incurred, Elma and Renati were left with the majority of Jane’s medical bills. They currently owe P380,000 ($8,500) in hospital bills -- as a teacher, Elma earns only $400 a month, making it nearly impossible for them to make payments on these loans and still provide for the family's needs. Jane's last operation was in January, and she is supposed to have a monthly check-up, but the family has already had to miss three of her check-ups because they cannot afford the doctor’s fee, which is P500-P1000 per visit (between $11 and $22).

We asked Elma to share Jane’s story with us so that we could share it with you! Renati has begun working as a fruit vendor to provide a little extra income, but it is not enough. We assured Elma and Renati that we would pray and ask for benefactors to help with their family’s needs.

Jane (far right) with some of her cousins and my teammate Genevieve

It was touching to see how deeply these parents love and care for their daughter. Elma said, “We do not have money to spend for our child, for her security. ... I don’t care what God wants her to do when she gets older. If she is to be a sister [nun], okay!”

Even though they have experienced great hardship over the past two years, they are not bitter or angry at God or at the truck driver. Their main concern is for Jane’s health and their family’s well-being as they struggle to pay for these expenses.

Elma and Renati were so blessed at the thought of our “friends back home” sending financial support to help them through this difficult time. Your donations will allow Jane to receive the medical care she needs as soon as possible!

Please click here to donate to my fund and write "For Jane" in the comments section to ensure that your donation will be given to the Delopere family.

Saturday, May 24, 2014

More pics!

Our trip to the typhoon effected islands

Stole Fathers glasses 😎

Some really cool monks!

With the Franciscan Sisters of Divine Mercy

Fathers ordination after party

Giving the neighborhood kids a ride

Didn't know I was a hair dresser did ya?

Selfieeeee

I'll post more later! Promise!

Follow my mission on Instagram!

For all of you with smart phones out there, I post many pictures from our mission on Instagram. Follow me there if you want to see more pictures!

Saturday, May 17, 2014

If He can use me, He can use you.

It’s almost humorous to me that I am a Catholic missionary. And it is probably humorous to anyone who knew me in high school or college (in the few classes that I did take before dropping out), to my whole family, and to all my friends from back home. “Alex Vidos? A Catholic missionary? That’s… interesting, never would have put those two together. Maybe the Peace Corps or PETA or that company with the horrible Sarah McLachlan commercial, but Catholic missionary?”

Yes. God called me - a stubborn, carefree, rebellious, flower child - to be His missionary. He called me, of all people, to go to the other side of the world to proclaim the Gospel and serve the poor. And I LOVE it! More than I could have ever imagined. This life - being in the center of God's will - is the most glorious and joyful life I have ever lived. To bring the people of the Philippines the light of Jesus, to give them hope makes me the happiest person on this planet. Missions truly is the BEST life! And it’s the hardest.

There are days when I don’t want to tell people about Jesus, when I don’t want to greet the people who come to our door at any given hour for food or just to be loved on, when I don’t want to live in a fish bowl or take bucket showers. There are days when I miss my family and friends so much that I start looking online for one-way flights to America. There are times when I tell Jesus that I just can’t go any longer. But right when I’ve given everything I have, He comes in to do the work through me, and that’s when the miracles happen. That’s when my stony heart starts to soften. That’s when I can start to understand why He is using me. It is not because I am the best missionary or that I have more missionary skills than anyone else. It’s because He can use anyone and is calling everyone. He is calling you, no matter how incapable you think you might be, to give up your life and follow Him. He’s asking you to put your own desires aside and love those around you, to serve the needy in your own town, church, and family.

Let us always pray for God to work through us, because if He can use me, He can for sure use you, too.

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Ceeelebrate good times, come on!

Since my last post we have had a lot of celebrating to do! We've had many birthdays (including my teammate Brenana!), karaoke with many priests and the Bishop, end of the school year, graduation, senior trip, church staff party/birthday party, and just a lot of fun with our friends. These last couple of weeks have been very blessed!!