Thank you!

        We have mailed hard copies of this letter to many who contributed to our trip to Ghana. There is no way for us to know all of the individuals who committed to praying for us so we wanted you to see this letter as well so we could say thank you from the bottom of our hearts! Without your support, this trip would not have happened. Thank you for believing in us and trusting us to steward your money and resources well. What you are doing IS making a difference!

Thank you for believing in us and in the bigger picture of what the trip to Ghana meant to us. Thank you for stepping up and supporting the lives of hundreds of orphans and vulnerable children. Because of you, we were able to share the “good news” of our Jesus and love on these kids out of the love we have received from Christ. Your role in this journey was and is irreplaceable. Please believe that! We came home on January 9^th, 2011 but that is not the end of the story. We told you before we left that this would not only be a 10-day encounter, but a life commitment to new relationships. We are in this to fight for the hearts of these people, especially the children. This trip was different than any other we had been on. It was our first mission trip together, and Jeremy’s first time to a third world country. Every other trip we had been on, we followed an itinerary during the day, spending time with the people and then going somewhere else at night to sleep. This was different. We were able to truly do life with these children. We slept in the same home (although they continued to spoil us… the Ghanaian culture is extremely hospitable). We participated in morning devotions at 6 am, which Jeremy was given the privilege to lead every day. When we were in the home, we ate every meal with the kids. We have so many stories to tell but I want to give you a small picture of what your giving looked like….

700 children were given meals and heard the love of Jesus through the efforts of an 11-year-old girl and “Feeding the Orphans” ministries. 

46 kids were given Christmas gifts 

40 pairs of feet will have new shoes on them

20 puppets from “Puppets for Orphans” were given out

19 girls were given new dresses

16 kids in the home were adequately treated for ringworm in addition to many others in a remote village 3 hours away

8 ‘little angels’ were given a bed to lay their heads on at night

5 sewing machines were purchased to help single mothers meet the economic needs of their families and be taught the value of their children. They will be making products that will be sold in the US in an effort to keep their children in school and out of danger from trafficking situations, which are rampant in Ghana and all over the world for that matter.  (*If you would like to support these women and children in the future, please visit the "store" at www.feedingtheorphans.com. You can easily get to the site by clicking on the button on the side of our blog.

5 chickens were purchased to produce eggs and promote self-sustainability

3 family members (the pastor we stayed with) received a new mattress to sleep on

2 people’s lives that will be forever changed (Ours)

1 very deserving young man received a laptop for auto-clad school from his sponsorship family

1 goat was purchased and prepared as our meal for our going away party
   (I will not post pictures of the goat..Jeremy took them all... I could not watch...)

MANY children received gifts, notes, and pictures from their forever families. Multiple reusable diapers were given to the orphanages and a vast array of medical supplies were used each day. Many of the kids would find the tiniest cuts just so they could receive some TLC from the nurse and her appointed assistant (AKA Jeremy). Hundreds of school supplies were donated which the kids LOVED!! There was such an overwhelming response that we have friends taking two more bags of our stuff on their trip in a few weeks. Please cover them in prayer as they travel to bring their son home!

I know you look at this list and see numbers and “things” but behind those numbers are faces and hearts of children who desperately long to be loved. I don’t know where you stand on the orphan crisis but please remember it is not going anywhere until we MOVE. There are multiple open doors to sponsorship and adoption. Please give it more than a 30 second thought. If you would like to continue to follow and support where the Lord is moving in Ghana, please continue to check in on our blog www.simplelovetoday.blogspot.com or www.feedingtheorphans.com or www.cityofrefugeoutreach.com.

*We have put all pictures from our trip up on Jeremy’s facebook if you would like to see them.*

Thank you again for blessing not only our lives, but also those of hundreds of children.

~Jeremy and Kristin Miller~