March update

Hello everyone!

Okay, so I know that the subject says "March update" and it is April, but if we go with Salvadoran culture's view of time I am actually on time in sending out the March update instead of late (that's the advantage of being bi-cultural, you can use it for great excuses!). LOL! So, here is an overview of what has been going on in our very busy lives over the past month or so:

1. The "kids" - So I know that they are not "kids," but that's what we like to refer to them as :) We have had a super busy month with them with lots of stuff going on in school and also spring break.

Beatriz has been the busiest over the past month with lots of projects in the university. One of the major differences between college education here and in the States is that here the students begin taking classes specific to their major from the very beginning. So, although Bea is only in her first semester of school, she has already had to begin doing some student teaching (she is a special ed major). This, in addition to swim, has her running most days and on weekends as well. She also participated in her first swim meet last month, where she took 3rd place in the backstroke (pics are posted on Facebook and on our phanfare website)!

Samuel is still studying at the university where he has an almost perfect grade in english (I have been trying to engage the kids in english conversation more and I also give them little english activities to do like making out my grocery or market list)! He was taking guitar classes on Saturdays but has recently begun taking them during the week also. He is excited because he can now play a couple of songs! It is a little challenging though because he does not have a guitar of his own to practice with here at the house (his guitar instructors lend him a guitar during his lessons). So, if anyone out there has an acoustic electic guitar sitting around their home that they aren't using anymore and would like to donate, please let me know!

Jonathan is definitely adjusting very well to family life. He is always making us laugh because he fills the "annoying little brother" role so well for both Samuel and Beatriz! I love watching him hound them with a million questions, imitate Samuel's behavior, and give Bea fashion and "boy" advice! He is also your typical 16 year old in many ways in that he always has the answer for everything but at the same time is also insecure in so many areas as well. He is definitely the most enthusiastic and best cook of the three kids! Each of them has an assigned day of the week that they have to prepare dinner, and Jonathan enjoys his cooking day and is always enthusiastic to cook something new. After seeing his big brother learn the guitar, he shared with us that he would like to learn the bass, so he began lessons a couple of weeks ago. He is excited about it also and has been practicing (although I have to admit that my ears have gotten a bit tired of listening to the same bass chords over and over and over and over.....).

Spring break week was a very busy week for us and we did lots of activities with the kids. We spent an afternoon visiting the town of Miramundo (which is near the highest point of El Salvador), went to the movies and out for pizza, visited Puerta del Diablo (a national park), went swimming with the youth from church at the Polideportivo here in Nejapa, set up the projector in our back yard and had a movie night, and put together a big panoramic puzzle! It was a very busy week but the kids (us too!) had so much fun.

Some of the challenges that we have been facing this month have been with grades. All of the kids received bad exam and interim grades last month (with the exception of Samuel who only received a bad grade in Math). I was speaking with a psychologist who is working with Bea about this and she said that poor grades are normal for kids who were raised in orphanges or who were abandoned/abused/neglected. She said that these kids have a lot of test anxiety (which is what is going on with Bea, she gets excellent grades on homework and projects and then bombs her exams because she gets nervous) and that they also tend to have problems analyzing information (they also have a hard time managing their time). In addition, Jonathan shared with me that it is hard for him because he has had to switch to a new school every year since he left the orphanage, so he is constantly having to learn a new system and materials. We have been trying to address this issue with the kids. Samuel is taking a math refresher course, Bea's counselor has been giving her "homework" to help her with analysis and also exercises to help with anxiety, and we have worked with Jonathan to set up homework times.

Another challenge that we have encountered recently is with Jonathan in school. He was suspended for almost a week last month due to disrespecting the teacher and principal. We also discovered that he had been hanging around a group of guys at school who were not exactly the best influences. The principal was very direct with us and told us that she will only give Jonathan one more opportunity and if he is disrespectful again then they will expel him for the rest of the year. He spent his week of suspension doing lots and lots of cleaning at the house and church and then had to apologize to the principal when he returned. We are praying that he has learned a lesson and that he also will begin making wiser decisions concerning his friendships and who he hangs out with at school. Lots of prayers in this area would be greatly greatly appreciated!!!!

We are also very happy because, with the help of a friend, we are trying to connect each of the kids with a mentor. We really feel that the influence of a Christian mentor in their lives will be significant. The kids, especially the boys, need to be exposed to strong Salvadoran role models. They need to see and know other young Salvadoran men/women who are successful and are actively living out their faith everyday. We met with a friend a couple of weeks ago who is helping us find just the right mentor for the boys and then I will be working on finding a mentor for Bea through the church that we attend on Sundays. Our friend has already found a great young man to mentor Samuel and Samuel will be meeting with him for the first time this week (lots of prayers please as Samuel is a little aprehensive about it!).

2. Church - Unfortunately, this month presented many challenges in the church. As many of you know, a little over a year ago we brought on an assistant pastor, Daniel, to work with Bobby in the church. We were so excited because God blessed us with the financial ability to begin sending him to seminary in San Salvador and it was our hope to turn the church over to him and make him the general pastor at the end of the year. However, it was discovered a few weeks ago that Daniel had made some decisions and engaged in some activity that would not allow him to continue in his pastorship position. This was extremely heartbreaking for us and the church. Since then Bobby and I have been in a number of meetings and brainstorming sessions with various friends and leaders trying to make some big decisions regarding the future of the church and the direction we should head. A lot of ideas have been laid before us and we are just searching and praying for God's wisdom and His will. We have peace in knowing that He already has all of this worked out and a perfect plan, we just have to patiently wait for His guidance!

3. This and that - Some of you have brought it to out attention that there has been a little confusion regarding where to send financial donations, and we are sorry for that! There have been several address changes, but here is the official address where you can send financial donations:

Love and Hope International
9555 Vista Way, Suite 230
Cleveland, OH 44125

Please make checks out to Love and Hope International and include a separate note that the donation is for Bobby and Britney Hibbs or you may write our names on the memo line of the check. If you have recently sent a check to another address, do not worry, your donation will get to us. There have been a number of organizational changes to Teams to the Nations (which is now Love and Hope International) over the past few months which caused a couple of address changes, but any donations sent to an old address will be/have been forwarded on. In addition, many of you received a letter in the mail from Love and Hope International regarding donations and the Love and Hope orphanage. Although we serve under the same organization (Love and Hope international) our ministries, and funding are separate so any donations made to us go to us and any donations made to the orphanage go to the orphanage. If you have any other questions, please let us know.

4. Prayer requests - We are so thankful to everyone for your constant prayer support! Your prayers have protected us (we were recently in a car accident and no one was injured, and Bea/Samuel/and I have all recently been on buses that were robbed yet we were left alone), given us wisdom, strength, guidance, comfort, and carried us through every moment that we have been here. Thank you so much! Our current prayer requests are as follows:

1. The kids' grades
2. Jonathan's salvation and improved behavior in school
3. The church and wisdom for some big decisions that have to be made
4. That each of the kids will learn what it means to have a truly personal relationship with Christ
5. A car - we have begun saving little by little to hopefully purchase a vehicle someday soon (as taking a bus can be difficult and dangerous in addition little things like going to the grocery are very difficult when you have to go by bus!)

Thanks to everyone for everything that you do to love and support us! We are truly thankful!

Dios les bendiga,
Britney and Bobby Hibbs