Mexico - The Ministry [Fruitage And Sights]

As we mentioned the ministry here is fruitful. In our Congregation here we have close to 35 publishers and 17 pioneers (soon we will be losing 2 families - which make up 9 people. This will mean we'll be 2 Pioneers and 2 Elders less). So this congregation needs help, and Manzanillo is on the list from the branch for places to serve that need help. Our congregation averages 2 bible studies per publisher and a number of those are coming to meetings regularly. We do our territory similarly to other foreign fields except that we don’t rely primarily on referrals. We go door to door, we knock & greet them, tell them what we’re doing and ask if they know of anyone who speaks English. When they do know of someone they eagerly point out the house and tell you all about their schedule so we can find them home :-) When we find someone who speaks English, they are typically very friendly and we’ll usually have a good conversation with them. One difference is that since it’s a canvassing work we don’t keep not at homes except for homes with English speakers.

We already have a couple calls each and I already have a bible study with a man who runs an Abarrotes (like a corner mini-mart) in the front portion of his home. This week we went over part the first chapter of the book "What Does the Bible Really Teach?" He really appreciated knowing that God hates injustice, and mentioned that these studies are bringing more spirituality into his life, which he feels is good. He mentioned he may want to have 2 studies per week. I also am just starting another bible study with a foreigner from Canada - I'm excited to see how that goes. Emily just got a really great call this week that is turning into a study! When Emily asked her if she has time today she said "I'll make time. It's important to make time for spiritual things." We'll keep you updated on how those go.

While in the ministry we see lots of interesting sights. We thought we would share some of the experience with you.

Our territory goes from the beach up into the hills so when we're driving up windy roads to calls we often see beautiful views.


Take notice of the "Gas Tank". It reminds me of something a Sturn would do in a pinch :-)


You never know what you're going to see when you turn a corner. We were driving down a street in the middle of town when we saw something intriguing:


Their garage was a tiny stable for this magnificent steed.

So back in Portland we loved Sweetness Bakery on SE 52nd and Powell for a needed break in the ministry. Well this is our Mexican version... Deeeelish!

A lot of the cooking and baking in Mexico is done in brick ovens.

See the brown dome in the back? It's a huge brick oven - the baker uses a long pole to retrieve the freshly baked loaves.


Or if you want store made - Mexico has that covered to...



When it gets hot we turn to another type of treat. Don, Joan, Lyndsey and Tiffany enjoy a "Magnum" ice cream bar.


We’re getting into the groove of service, study, meetings – sprinkled in is of course some fun sights around Mexico. For instance some of the local fruits and veggies...

Banana Plant



One of the many delicious fruit stands. You can see Bananas, Yaka fruit and a variety of other tasty natural delights. Tiffany is having a hard time choosing...

The huge green fruit is "Yaka". You eat the outside of the seed pods, which when removed are similar to (closest we can describe) apricots. It has a very unique flavor - very hard to describe. It seems to be a combination of mango, watermelon, cherry, cantaloupe and delightful mystery.


Emily says "Is this culture dedicated to straining things or what?"


A "Mexican Squirrel" as I call it - even though they have squirrels here too.


Cool foot bridge.


Our place is put together enough now to have people over for dinners. This time was with the Lopez' and the Bryants from our congregation. Emily made Spanish Rice and Chicken Mole - a special Mexican sauce that has 40 different ingredients including peanut butter and chocolate. It was awesome!


A shout out to Emilio Lopez - he got skillz


While Gloria (stayed with her on our drive down) was in town we got to do a beach day.


Found shade w/ Trevor, Gloria and Tiffany

Trevor’s parents Don and Joan – very loving and hospitable, and their friends Crystal and Eric Dobbs from the Bryant’s hometown cong.




We got a chance to go to Colima to see the Solanos family. We got to spend time with when we stayed in Colima last December. See "The Adventures List" for that post.

Damaris Salanos - Getting married to Armondo Sandoval from our hometown Portland, OR Congregation - Hawthorne. The wedding is here in Colima at the end of April.


One of the things Manzanillo is known for is fishing for Sailfish. Every once in a while the local brothers will go out and try to catch some. I joined them.

They will sometimes catch these big guys (Marlin and Sailfish shown here - caught by Don Bryant and Tommy Jorgensen on a previous trip). We were hoping for that.


Sunrise on the way out to sea...





Crystal and her husband Eric were visiting from the States, so we let her go first. She caught a Mexican Mackerel.

Then Joan Bryant also caught a small fish. But that was all the boat caught that day. The waters were supposedly too cold for lots of the big ones to surface. Even though we didn't get any big fish the trip was fun and we saw some cool sights. For instance... Dolphins



Here is a video of the dolphins in action! For the best viewing experience TURN ON YOUR SOUND.


I had the helm for a while

But relinquished the responsibility back to the captain when rocks were ahead...



We hope everything is well with you. We'll be flying back to Oregon May 19th and staying through the summer to work. We look forward to seeing you all soon!

Much Agape

- Dane and Emily