The basics

We're moving to Managua, Nicaragua.

Why? We're going because we feel strongly that God is calling us to do His work there.

What is He calling us to do? We are trying to follow His calling as best we can, but we realize that we can never know God's plan in full. He has placed good work in front of us, and we will do it faithfully, knowing that He could change things.

The main reason we are going to Managua is to work with Fortress of Hope, a children's home for orphans and children who can no longer work at home. The organization has some needs that we feel need to be filled, and we feel God has called us to fill those needs. We're working with the board to figure out our roles. When we get to Managua, we will be spending time with the kids and staff and building relationships. God's going to be working in our lives and showing us how we can best serve Him. He has so much to teach us through the people we will be working with, and we pray that we can be willing and eager workers.

Fortress of Hope was started by a group of churches in the Midwest, and the board of directors is comprised of members of those churches here in the US. There is also a full staff of Nicaraguans working in Managua at Fortress of Hope, known in Managua as CINAFE. Part of the board's vision is to have us act as a kind of liaison between the English-speaking board members and the Spanish-speaking staff. That means we need to learn the language and learn it well!

After we arrive in October, we will spend the first three months [October, November, December] taking intensive language courses at VIVA Spanish School. Those classes will consist of 4 hours each morning, Monday through Friday, working one-on-one with an instructor. Twenty hours of language instruction each week is quite a bit, so we pray we will have the stamina and dedication to learn the language as well as possible.

In January, our schedule will change quite significantly. Since we will not be working full-time at CINAFE [there's not enough liaison-type work to do full-time], we decided it would be a good idea to seek out other employment. We were lucky enough to visit NCA: Nejapa [Nicaraguan Christian Academy: Nejapa Campus] on our first visit, and as this move became a reality we stayed in contact with the director. Long story short: we will both be employed full-time at NCA Nejapa!

NCA Nejapa is a private Christian school, located just outside Managua. It is a sister school of NCA - a private international school started by missionaries for their children. NCA follows the U.S. school calendar, is accredited in the U.S., and conducts classes in English. Our school, NCA Nejapa, shares a board of directors, but it follows the Nicaraguan school calendar and is entirely in Spanish. NCA Nejapa serves about 440 students, from kindergarten to high school.

Lauren will be working as an assistant in a kindergarten classroom. She'll be helping the teacher carry out lessons and working with the students in Spanish. Mitch will be teaching English to middle school and high school. He will spend half of his time teaching, and the other half supervising and assisting the other English teachers. Both of us are excited to share some of our knowledge and experience with the staff, as well as learn different ways of teaching and working with children. NCA Nejapa is looking to implement new teaching strategies, some of which we are familiar with, and we hope our input can be valuable and effective.

We have been lucky enough to find a house in the San Patricio barrio [near the Kilocho bus stop on the map], which is where CINAFE is located. We are in walking distance of CINAFE and about a 15 minute drive from NCA Nejapa. Also, you should know that we have a couple extra bedrooms and there is a guesthouse on the same block that can hold up to 60 people. So if you want to come visit, you have no excuse for not making the trip :)

Finally, although it looks like we're going on our own, in reality we have many people supporting us, and two great organizations. Our home church, Eastside Church, has commissioned us and is providing ongoing prayer and feedback. Over the last four years, Eastside has helped shape us, and we are extremely grateful for our church's role in this endeavor. Additionally, we will be working under Virginia Mennonite Missions' 'Partners in Mission' program. VMM will provide us with coaching, training, and other resources to make our time in Nicaragua a success.

Those are the basics. We're putting ourselves in positions to do God's work, and we pray that we are humble enough to listen for His direction as we begin life in a new city and new culture. Here's to whatever comes next...

Make it a great day,

Lauren and Mitch