Greetings from
Panama! We hope this newsletter finds you all well and enjoying the last bit of
summer. As you know, Corey and I arrived in Panama after our trip to the US for
Corey’s surgery at the end of July. Since then, we have continued developing the
farm, as well as, hosting a group from Parkview Christian Church and Northside
Christian Church in Missouri. The group came to work on the dorms that will
house students, missionaries, or Ngobe that will be training on the farm. This is a huge blessing because both the
manpower for the construction and funds were desperately needed. The group
spent the next week working on the exterior walls of the dorm. In addition to
the dorm, the group also continued work on animal pens that will be used to
house rabbits, or possibly quail for the small animal projects. The whole group
did a wonderful job on the construction work. 
They also had
the opportunity to visit with a local Ngobe pastor in the Comarca, or Indian
reservation area, that LHI has worked with for over a decade. Corey and Matthew
drove the group through the area showing them some of the poverty and need for
such aquaculture/agricultural projects that are offered by LHI. It is hard to
truly explain the poverty of the Ngobe without some hands-on experience, and
the life of the Ngobe is quite different from that of the Latins. Through the
LHI demonstration farm, we will be able to bring in the Ngobe for training both
in the classroom and through the first-hand experience of working on a farm. By
addressing the physical needs of the people, we will then have an opportunity
share Christ with them and if the indigenous that come are Christians, then we
are able to help our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ better provide for
their families and their community. And, it is because of short term teams like
this one, that we are finally getting to a place where we can house people on
the farm. Their hard work will be leaving a lasting impact for years to come.
That is why we love having groups come to Panama. Not only are their lives
changed by the experience, but they are also changing the lives of the people
here in Panama for years to come.
UTV fundraiser
As our August
is coming to an end, we want to thank everyone who has given to the matching
challenge and helped us raise over the amount we needed for the UTV! We are in the process of getting the UTV, and
we look forward to having it to accomplish work on the farm. This is a huge
blessing for LHI, and we are so grateful for everyone’s generosity and the Lord’s
provision.
Other News
We continue
with the dorm construction and planting various plant projects. We also are
continuing the finishing touches on many of the animal pens. It is also during
this time of year, that we begin to plan our time in the US for support raising
and recruiting. Once we have a better idea of our schedule, we will be sending
that out in a newsletter in hopefully September. Please keep us in your prayers
as we plan our time in the States.
In September,
we will be welcoming a team from my (Bethany) home church in Atlanta this
September. The group was canceled in July due to Corey’s back surgery, so we
thank the Lord for working out the details for the group to reschedule and
continue helping us with dorm and farm development. Please keep us in your
prayers as we also prepare for this next group.
We also are
excited to announce the new logo for Lasting Harvest. As you can see below, we have updated our logo and this is now the logo
you can look for when you want to identify LHI. We are sad to see the old logo
go, but are happy to have a logo personally and uniquely designed for Lasting
Harvest.
Thank you to
everyone for your prayers and support. We really appreciate all the encouraging
emails we receive, the prayers, and the financial gifts. God is working to do a
wonderful expansion here in Panama, and we are excited to be parting with you
to make this a reality. For frequent updates on life and work here in Panama,
check out our Facebook page.
Your partners
in reaching the world,
Bethany and
Corey Courtwright
