It’s hard to top the news of last month! After opening a double storey school block, we took a big sigh, leaned back in our chairs, closed our eyes for a moment and thanked God that it was over J, and that after all the challenges along the way – that we were now ministering to 350 children in such a positive environment. The Village quieted this month of April, as children went on school leave, staff took vacation, we said goodbye to our second short term missions team of the year, and began to reflect on the way forward. On what the future held….

COOLEDGE FAMILY PLANS

ZIMBABWE WORK PERMIT – Once again we will need to reapply for a work permit in Zimbabwe. Our current permit expires August 25th, 2009. We can reapply up to 3 months in advance (as of end of May). Please join with us in beginning to pray the process through again! The granting of a work permit will have a direct influence on when we can plan a furlough home in Canada.

Please pray again for God to make a way, for the papers to fall into the right hands, for a quick response so that we are not again working on month to month stamps like we did last year. The frustrations of living on an uncertain future, and month to month, can take its toll on work and family life.

FURLOUGH – September 2, 2009 will mark our 4th year in Zimbabwe at the Village of Hope! At this point then, we are due for an extended leave in Canada, to touch base with family and friends, to fundraise, to report back in person to our support base, to personally refresh and get ready for another timely commitment to the children of Zimbabwe.

However, we cannot make firm plans or dates until the above Zimbabwe Work Permit issue is settled. Our wish at this point, is to be in Canada by mid-September, and return to Zimbabwe sometime in January/February of 2010.

UPDATE ON OUR KIDS – As of April 15th, we officially have 3 teenagers in our house! Latasha turned 13 years old, Ben will be 15 next month and Nathan is now 17 and driving! We are proud of the Christian men and women they are growing into!

Nathan won the most prestigious award at school this year – the Arete Cup – for having outstanding and consistent Christian character! He has become prayer leader of his youth group, on the youth leadership team, and will be preaching for the first time in a few weeks. He is on his last year of high school and needs your prayers as he makes plans for his future.

Ben’s love is skateboarding and drums. We were so proud this month as he auditioned for, and was selected to become the new drummer for the youth worship band! This happened being virtually self taught, as we have had challenges finding a drum teacher in Harare!

Latasha is now also heading to youth and has developed a beautiful singing voice, which has gained her an award or two in school competitions.

VILLAGE OF HOPE PLANS

C.H.A.P.S. – By September this year, we will begin construction on the last building to complete Cornelius Hope Academy Primary School. Funding is already in place for this 3 classroom school block. It is here we pray to begin Secondary School classes, moving in one graduating grade 7 class at a time, and giving us about 3 years grace to make final plans for building and registering a Secondary School.

SECONDARY SCHOOL – It would be our dream to start a Secondary School to maintain a high level of excellence in our children and community, throughout their education. As we do not have enough land at the Village of Hope currently to meet city requirements, we are looking at 2 options – the purchase of another piece of property, or special consideration by the Ministry to use existing land. The latter is the most cost effective option. Please pray with us that God would make this next step very clear as we endeavour to see our children right through high school.

ORPHANAGE – We now have 2 children’s homes occupied with 22 resident children. We have 4 homes under construction and in various stages. Our third house mother and her 4 children are getting ready to move into the 1st of these 4 homes within the next month.

Churches and people in Canada have been so gracious in providing for these children, that we have money in the bank and/or being raised currently for another 4 children’s homes! We hope and pray that these would be built through 2010, dependant on the rate at which funds are raised. Our ability to move forward will also depend on changes to our Registration with Social Welfare, allowing more resident children to come on board. They set a maximum based on liveable homes. Please pray for this process as we start it even now.

MEDICAL CLINIC – Funds have been raised! We praise God that this month we celebrated with great joy, the visit of Carrie Anne (pictured second from left) and her family, as well as 9 other members of their home church. If you haven’t yet heard this story – you need to! Through a project she called, ‘bracelets of hope’, Carrie Anne raised $50,000 to build the clinic we have dreamed of for years at the Village of Hope in just over 2 years – and started at the age of 11 years! Carrie Anne then went on to raise money for our 2 playgrounds at the Village of Hope!

What a privilege it was to have her share her testimony, speak into the lives of our CHAPS kids and inspire them to ‘dream big’! There are still things like politics, Registration, and long term sustainability, to wade through before the first brick is laid. But we pray to do just that, God willing, before the end of 2009! Please pray that God would continue to ‘make a way where there seems to be none’!

Let me close with a story we received across email – a testimonial of what God is doing in young hearts at the Village of Hope. And a way of thanking you for what you have done in being part of the Village of Hope!

I just want to thank everyone involved in the running of Village of Hope, but mostly to the school.

I am a mother of two, and i got divorced in 2007. My children were very much affected by the events that led to it. My youngest was the one who showed most signs of being affected and went from being a very good reader, very expressive, never afraid of speaking her mind on anything to a very quiet and withdrawn child. A child who used to excel at nursery and 1st grade to someone who could not even read the word; mother.
I was very much worried and being a parent you want the best and don’t want to see your child hurting.

I made it a point of highlighting my child’s situation to the teacher and i am very happy to say that there is alot of improvement. In just one term, my child is now very confident, is benefitting immensely because of the After Schools program, schoolwork has improved etc.. The teacher has been paying individual attention (i’m sure to very student in her class) because i am very happy with the results.

i just wanted to say “THANK YOU” for the work of God in your lives that you are administering to your staff and children of VOH. It just goes to show that God is at work and will see us through. May God continue to bless you…

Please pray for housemothers – for Godly, spirit filled women with a calling to care for children – as we expand the orphanage.

Please pray for His continued grace, as the world economic slump is showing in our accounts as well. Salaries, costs of materials, etc. are increasing, and our budget no longer matches the demands on it.

We praise God for His continued provision for the programs and buildings at the Village of Hope!

Please pray in advance, for the granting of another work permit this year. August, and the expiry of our current permit, will be here before we know it. We cannot plan our furlough in Canada as a family, until this issue is settled.

We thank God for Blessings healing!  Though she was hit by a car and her leg broken, she is now off the crutches and walking!

Please pray for little Tinashe, who at the age of 8, has just been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. We now need to think through wheelchair accessibility in our future orphan homes.