A Simple Appeal 4 U 2 Consider from a Missionary Friend
Many of you may have already received this information through our newsletter or our e-mail list, so please forgive the redundancy, but some of you may not know that Cheryl and I are spending the next year in East Africa helping AIDS orphans and starting a school for these orphans on behalf of Open Arms International. Feel free to check out our blog at www.mattandcherylinafrica.blogspot.com or check out the Open Arms web site at www.openarmsinternational.com to get more info about what we are doing here. We are also making a goal of raising $50,000 on behalf of Open Arms for four different causes that we thought might interest you. Before you just blow off our Christmas wish as just another spam appeal, consider these three facts. Number one, 99.9% of you who have received this e-mail know us personally. Second, when you consider the budgets of the average university or even the average public grade school, consider the valued investment of each of these causes, i.e., starting a school for AIDS orphans for $3000. Third, as you are ordering another pumpkin spiced latte at Starbucks this week, consider that one of our appeals to feed homeless street children in Eldoret, Kenya is also being supported by one of our local Kenyan Open Arms staff members, Morris Mordecai, who has never even been to Starbucks, probably could never afford it, and yet still manages to give the equivalent of hundreds of dollars of his own money from his own $2000 annual salary to help feed these same street children. Anyway, if you are interested in supporting this cause, or even spreading the word about what we are doing and why we are doing it, feel fee to continue reading the following newsletter whcih explains our Christmas wish in a bit more detail, and the response form if you decide to give towards this cause. Open Arms International
November 2009
Matt and Cheryl Tallman – Missionaries to AfricaWe are so Thankful
As we prepare to sit down with various missionaries and expatriates in Eldoret, Kenya to celebrate Thanksgiving, we will have a very different holiday celebration than we are normally acquainted with. We will be sharing our Thanksgiving meal with a large gathering of new friends in a new country, and with an old bird (or no bird at all…I don’t think they have turkeys here in Kenya). Most, if not all of our previous Thanksgivings, have been spent with old friends and family in a familiar place with a fresh bird, but this one is beginning to sound a lot more like the very first Thanksgiving, minus the pilgrim outfits.
Nevertheless, we have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. We are grateful that we arrived safely in Kenya, that we have a roof over our heads, that we are well fed, and healthy. We are also so very thankful to the dozens of you who have helped make it possible for us to be here through your sacrificial gifts on our behalf.
The hundreds of street children and orphans we have met in Eldoret live in stark contrast to what we normally take for granted. Without the assistance of Open Arms International, they would be without food, clothing, and education, and many would have already died during the short two months we have already been here due to disease and starvation. It is because of them, we are acutely aware of our own circumstances and especially grateful for what we have.
November 2009
Matt and Cheryl Tallman – Missionaries to AfricaWe are so Thankful
As we prepare to sit down with various missionaries and expatriates in Eldoret, Kenya to celebrate Thanksgiving, we will have a very different holiday celebration than we are normally acquainted with. We will be sharing our Thanksgiving meal with a large gathering of new friends in a new country, and with an old bird (or no bird at all…I don’t think they have turkeys here in Kenya). Most, if not all of our previous Thanksgivings, have been spent with old friends and family in a familiar place with a fresh bird, but this one is beginning to sound a lot more like the very first Thanksgiving, minus the pilgrim outfits.
Nevertheless, we have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. We are grateful that we arrived safely in Kenya, that we have a roof over our heads, that we are well fed, and healthy. We are also so very thankful to the dozens of you who have helped make it possible for us to be here through your sacrificial gifts on our behalf.
The hundreds of street children and orphans we have met in Eldoret live in stark contrast to what we normally take for granted. Without the assistance of Open Arms International, they would be without food, clothing, and education, and many would have already died during the short two months we have already been here due to disease and starvation. It is because of them, we are acutely aware of our own circumstances and especially grateful for what we have.
Our Vision for 2010
Our ordinary living expenses in Kenya will be covered for the foreseeable future due to the generosity of those of you who have faithfully committed to regularly supporting our work here in Eldoret for the next year. However, in order to complete our mission here over the next ten months, we feel there are four things we would like to accomplish for which we need to ask your additional assistance.
• First, our regular expenses have been taken care of, but we will be facing some travel expenses in February, March, June, and July when we need to do some travelling in and outside of Kenya to assist some short term teams and temporarily leave Kenya for reasons related to visa restrictions – approximate need = $8,000.
• Second, to help start a school in January at the Open Arms village (our primary assignment), we need to remodel some existing buildings into classrooms. In the short term this will enable us to educate up to 80 orphans by the end of this coming summer – approximate need = $3,000.
• Third, Open Arms regularly feeds and meets with nearly 200 street children in Eldoret. Through this interaction, many of these street children have been able to get off the streets, go back to school, and some have become a part of the Open Arms village. Because of a lack of funding, this program has been reduced to only feeding the children twice a week. However, we want to get this program fully funded for the next year – approximate need = $4,000.
• Fourth, Open Arms just completed their first permanent home housing sixteen AIDS orphans and abandoned street children. The next three homes will be completed by the end of December or early January, housing an additional 48 orphans. However, the fifth home is only half done due to a lack of funding. Help us finish this home and house a full complement of 80 children who would have no place to live without your help – approximate need = $35,000.
Would you please prayerfully consider helping us with our goal of raising $50,000 to complete our mission in Kenya in 2010. We know this is an ambitious goal, but if every one who reads this letter can respond in some way, we can meet this goal. If you are interested in supporting any one or all of the initiatives we have mentioned, please write out a check to “Open Arms International”, fill out the enclosed response form, place both items in the enclosed reply envelope and mail it to Open Arms International, PO Box 343, Portland OR 97207.
Our ordinary living expenses in Kenya will be covered for the foreseeable future due to the generosity of those of you who have faithfully committed to regularly supporting our work here in Eldoret for the next year. However, in order to complete our mission here over the next ten months, we feel there are four things we would like to accomplish for which we need to ask your additional assistance.
• First, our regular expenses have been taken care of, but we will be facing some travel expenses in February, March, June, and July when we need to do some travelling in and outside of Kenya to assist some short term teams and temporarily leave Kenya for reasons related to visa restrictions – approximate need = $8,000.
• Second, to help start a school in January at the Open Arms village (our primary assignment), we need to remodel some existing buildings into classrooms. In the short term this will enable us to educate up to 80 orphans by the end of this coming summer – approximate need = $3,000.
• Third, Open Arms regularly feeds and meets with nearly 200 street children in Eldoret. Through this interaction, many of these street children have been able to get off the streets, go back to school, and some have become a part of the Open Arms village. Because of a lack of funding, this program has been reduced to only feeding the children twice a week. However, we want to get this program fully funded for the next year – approximate need = $4,000.
• Fourth, Open Arms just completed their first permanent home housing sixteen AIDS orphans and abandoned street children. The next three homes will be completed by the end of December or early January, housing an additional 48 orphans. However, the fifth home is only half done due to a lack of funding. Help us finish this home and house a full complement of 80 children who would have no place to live without your help – approximate need = $35,000.
Would you please prayerfully consider helping us with our goal of raising $50,000 to complete our mission in Kenya in 2010. We know this is an ambitious goal, but if every one who reads this letter can respond in some way, we can meet this goal. If you are interested in supporting any one or all of the initiatives we have mentioned, please write out a check to “Open Arms International”, fill out the enclosed response form, place both items in the enclosed reply envelope and mail it to Open Arms International, PO Box 343, Portland OR 97207.
Prayer Requests
- Thanks for answered prayer. Johnny at the Open Arms village is recovering nicely from his surgery to remove his tonsils and his adenoids.
- Pray for the remaining orphanage homes to be built well and on time. In addition pray for electricity to be hooked up to the village.
- Thanks for answered prayer. The well at the Open Arms village is operating properly thanks to a lot of hard work and the financial assistance of Athey Creek Christian Fellowship in helping us purchase a new pump for the well (thank you Athey Creek!!).
- Pray for our plans to start a school at the village in January. We have gained proper approval to start the school but pray for us to hire the right teachers.
Matt and Cheryl Tallman PO Box 2694-30100 Eldoret, Kenya
E-mail: matt@openarmsinternational.com or Cheryl@openarmsinternational.com
Support: Open Arms International, P.O. Box 343, Portland OR 97207, Account #1000 Yes, I would like to support Open Arms International this Christmas!
___ I would like to give a special gift of $ __________ to help feed homeless street children.
___ I would like to give a special gift of $__________ to help start a school in Kenya.
___ I would like to give a special gift of $__________ to help finish an orphanage home.
___ I would like to give a special gift of $__________ to help Matt and Cheryl in Kenya.
Help us reach our goal of raising $50,000 to complete our mission in Africa Name:____________________________________________________
Address:__________________________________________________
City/State/Zip:______________________________________________
Phone:__________________________Cell:______________________
E-mail:____________________________________________________
Enclosed is a check payable to “Open Arms International” (remember – for gifts to Matt and Cheryl, do not put our names on the check).
For other giving options, including online banking, credit cards, and monthly automatic withdrawals, please contact Nancy at the Open Arms office at 503-296-9989 ext. 15.
Contributions to Open Arms International are made with the understanding, according to IRS guidelines, that Open Arms has complete control and administration over the use of donated funds. Open Arms international
PO Box 343
Portland Oregon 97207
- Thanks for answered prayer. Johnny at the Open Arms village is recovering nicely from his surgery to remove his tonsils and his adenoids.
- Pray for the remaining orphanage homes to be built well and on time. In addition pray for electricity to be hooked up to the village.
- Thanks for answered prayer. The well at the Open Arms village is operating properly thanks to a lot of hard work and the financial assistance of Athey Creek Christian Fellowship in helping us purchase a new pump for the well (thank you Athey Creek!!).
- Pray for our plans to start a school at the village in January. We have gained proper approval to start the school but pray for us to hire the right teachers.
Matt and Cheryl Tallman PO Box 2694-30100 Eldoret, Kenya
E-mail: matt@openarmsinternational.com or Cheryl@openarmsinternational.com
Support: Open Arms International, P.O. Box 343, Portland OR 97207, Account #1000 Yes, I would like to support Open Arms International this Christmas!
___ I would like to give a special gift of $ __________ to help feed homeless street children.
___ I would like to give a special gift of $__________ to help start a school in Kenya.
___ I would like to give a special gift of $__________ to help finish an orphanage home.
___ I would like to give a special gift of $__________ to help Matt and Cheryl in Kenya.
Help us reach our goal of raising $50,000 to complete our mission in Africa Name:____________________________________________________
Address:__________________________________________________
City/State/Zip:______________________________________________
Phone:__________________________Cell:______________________
E-mail:____________________________________________________
Enclosed is a check payable to “Open Arms International” (remember – for gifts to Matt and Cheryl, do not put our names on the check).
For other giving options, including online banking, credit cards, and monthly automatic withdrawals, please contact Nancy at the Open Arms office at 503-296-9989 ext. 15.
Contributions to Open Arms International are made with the understanding, according to IRS guidelines, that Open Arms has complete control and administration over the use of donated funds. Open Arms international
PO Box 343
Portland Oregon 97207
We wish we could see you in person this Thanksgiving and Christmas, but while we are in Kenya, we want to extend our warmest holiday greetings to you and wish you an exciting and adventurous New Year. God bless you,Matt and Cheryl Tallman
