INTERNATIONAL MISSION

Christmas at The Panamerican Institute

This is the story of a party at the school my father founded in T. J. Baja California, Mexico.

I recommend  this as an "International Mission". In Christ, Rev. S. Welty, Jr. 

It is 5 AM on Wednesday December 17th. It is time to wake up and start the day we all were waiting for: Distribution of Christmas food baskets! It is raining and cold so we pray that the rain stops for our students’ families to be safe as they come to school to pick up their food. Several volunteers and I arrive at the store at 7 AM with donations YOU sent to purchase the food. After gathering the merchandise and getting ready to pay, the sky begins to clear, just a few scatter showers, but sunshine improves the day! Once at school other volunteers are waiting to unload our three vehicles and carry the food upstairs where it is dry. We take a little brake to enjoy oatmeal and “encanelados” (Mexican bread with butter, sugar and cinnamon) then back to work until all 64 food baskets are ready to be distributed to our students’ families. We take a lunch break, this time for tamales and champurrado, and then we opened the doors to all our families. They joyfully come in to have their picture taken, (picture attached) receive a special gift from their “adopted sponsors” or a bag of candies, take their Christmas food basket and get ready to go back home, but not before hugging us and wishing us and YOU, our sponsors, ¡FELIZ NAVIDAD Y PROSPERO AÑO NUEVO, 2015! It is now 4 PM and all volunteers (picture attached) are ready to go back home with a wonderful feeling of being your extended helping hand and have the opportunity to receive all the smiles, love and gratitude from students and their families. ¡GRACIAS! In Christ