Christmas Greeting

Christmas 2016: Our Family

A warm Christmas greeting from the Gendreau family to yours!

May the Lord's blessings be upon you this season.

Love,

Phil, Mia, Selah and Shiloh

Our Newsletter: Monthly Updates

     The Christmas month is here and we are so excited to share with you all the things that we have done in the last 8 months. Here is a quick summary of the things we did since we arrived here in El Salvador:

May/ June 2016

      We arrived in El Salvador and spent some time searching for a home and a good school for the girls! We found a nice little home close to an excellent school that is very safe and secure.

July 2016

      The girls were able to celebrate their birthdays at school. With the help of the Master Commission students of UCCR, they were able to share the love of Jesus to their classmates. 17 classmates received Jesus in their hearts and several kids prayed for each other for healing in their bodies.

August 2016

     Phil set up the clinic at Castilla Del Rey and has seen hundreds of patients since then to receive free dental care and prayer for healing.

Setting up clinic and seeing patients

September 2016

     Teams from the US and Canada arrived to minister to the different towns such as Candelaria, Las Delicias, Potrerios and Mira Flores.

     We also helped to get the Sala Cuna ready "Children's nursery" at church by painting a mural on the walls.

Painting the Sala Cuna

     I began to co-teach a basic English class with another missionary, Jessica Wolf, to help the students of UCCR ( Último Cosecha de Castillo Del Rey) fulfill their dreams of becoming a missionary to another nation.

The Teachers

October 2016

    Our Costa Rican dentist, Dr. Josúe Hernandez, arrived to assist Phil in setting up the second clinic at Nuevo Esperanza. Nuevo Esperanza clinic has not been used for 3 years, and we are happy to announce that it looks like a new office and all ready to receive patients from that community.

Dr. Josue arrives in El Salvador

Here is the clinic after repairing dental equipment, cleaning the facility, organizing and painting nearly all the walls. 

Selah graduates from Kindergarten!

     Selah has surpassed so many obstacles, and both girls are excelling  and doing a wonderful job adjusting and making friends.

    The Sala Cuna is ready. Our entire family currently helps there each Sunday to minister to kids between the ages of infancy up to 3 years old.

The kids at the Sala Cuna

November 2016

     Both clinics are up and running! More teams arrive to help share the gospel to the local towns. We are thankful for the team from Orlando, Florida led by Tim Mackey. Here are some of the people that was part of the medical team. Dr. Nora Bolaños served as a pediatrician.  She grew up in El Salvador and has had a deep love for the Salvadorians. Beverly Wicks , a nurse practitioner, was also part of the team.  She has been to over 20 mission trips. The team had morning devotions early every morning, and we believe this made a big difference in their ministry. Over 180 patients received medical and dental care. Many seeds were planted and over 15 gave their lives to the Lord.

The team from Orlando Faith Assembly

    We also celebrated Thanksgiving Day with all the American and Canadian missionaries.

    English Classes for this semester at UCCR ended. Classes will begin this January 2017.

December 2016

     Graduation for some of the students at UCCR. Celebrating Early Christmas with all the missionaries and finally, preparing to go back to California to spend Christmas and New Year with our families!

Preparing for Christmas

    So much has happened, and we are so blessed to have such a great community of missionaries and Salvadorean friends. God is touching so many lives through the dental clinic and through our local community. We thank God and all of you for making this possible. Looking forward to see what 2017 has for us here in El Salvador.

We are also currently looking for six people who can partner with us at $50 per month. If you feel lead to serve with us in this way please click on the link:

https://giving.ag.org/Give/Search?SearchFields.Ministry=Gendreau

 

Thank you very much!

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.....

Blessings and Love,

The Gendreaus

Phil, Mia, Selah, and Shiloh

Working In and Out of the Clinic

   Dr. Phil begins the day at the clinic at 8:30 AM, and he usually sees anywhere between 8-10 patients a day. Some of his patients have to wake up at 3:00 AM to walk to the clinic in order to receive treatment. It sometimes takes the patients two hours to walk to the clinic. Some patients even wait the entire day at the clinic just to be seen. The cost of a typical extraction is about $10 here. With that same amount of money, people can feed their families for two weeks. Phil is giving them free dental care so that they can feel better and so that they don't have to spend the income used for their basic needs. Most of the patients cannot afford dental care. They suffer with different toothaches, infections, broken teeth, and periodontal disease, but they are unable to treat their condition due to lack of funds. Therefore, patients feel very privileged and grateful for all the dental care they receive from the clinic.

Phil goes on outreaches whenever there is a team that arrives from the U.S. The outreaches are usually a week long. They take bus rides to different towns which could be as long as 1 or 2 hour trips, and they stay there all day to see as many patients as possible. Each patient seen receives spiritual counseling and a chance to receive the gospel of Jesus. These outreaches have been very successful with increasing church attendance in that area and makes a huge difference in the community.

Patients waiting for their turn at the clinic

One of the many patients about to receive dental care.

Me and Phil

A happy 5-year old girl

Mauricio is training to be a missionary and plans to go to India
and other countries. Now he knows how to take better care of his teeth.

This young boy was so brave when we had to take out a tooth with a very large cavity. 
If it was not treated, it could be very serious for his health.

Getting the trucks ready to go to a mobile location. We all rode
standing in the back of the pick up truck. The ride home was
interesting with heavy rain and no umbrella!

Phil, Pastor Julio, Dr. Josue at Pastor Julio's church. He was so grateful
that we came because he knows it makes a significant difference in the
community and his church.

Ministry

     For this October post, allow me to speak about my husband, Phil, and how he was truly destined to become a missionary. For those who already know him, he has a genuine heart of mercy and compassion, and he greatly desires to let every person know about God's love. Not only does he serve the people through dentistry, but I am actually talking about a person who actually tells a person that walks by him that Jesus loves them. I spent an entire 40 minutes following this guy in a different car going to the camp and witnessed him stop by every person he sees and tells them, "Jesus lo ama mucho!". Translation: "Jesus loves you very much!". And to my surprise, every person smiles and responds very well. I personally am not that brave. Yes it is true that there are a million missionaries out there, but there are those few like Phil that radiate the love of Jesus! I am sharing this tidbit about Phil because I want you all to know that Phil is creating a new atmosphere in El Salvador wherever he goes. Phil loves to pray for everybody no matter where we are... at the grocery store, at the mall, and even in the streets. This has been a great example for me and the girls. Just by having his presence here, seeds are being thrown out left and right. God loves people and desires to heal them inside and out. He reminds us that prayer is powerful and can be done in faith wherever we go. Please see testimony of Dr. Bailey below:

     Last week, a team from Lakeview Church, Indiana led by Pastor Rob Haslert came to serve at Castillo Del Rey. During this whole week, the evangelist team shared the gospel with over 1,000 people and over 300 gave their lives to the Lord. They also brought a medical team: June, Nurse Practicioner; Dr. Jim Bailey, Dentist; Dr John Bailey, Dentist. In addition, we also have a recent addition to the Castillo Del Rey medical team, Dr. Josúe Hernandez, Dentist.  Dr. Phil and Dr. Josúe were able to join this medical team, and all together they saw a total of 418 patients. 96 of these patients were dental patients. 9 of these patients gave their lives to the Lord and all the patients heard the gospel message. Many seeds were planted and watered. It is said by the local pastors that after a team comes to visit a town, there is always an increase in church attendance in this area. Stay tuned for a video we are putting together to show you all the work and testimonies of lives being changed here each day.

The Camp of Castillo del Rey

Dr. Phil, Dr. John Bailey, Dr. Josue Ramirez and Tamika
working at a remote location

Dr. Jim Bailey, Fallen, Phil treating patients

The section where fillings are done

The Medical Section. Patients were seen for health concerns andfor glasses, and medication were given.

The awesome team at the pharmacy that was set up.

      As for myself, it has already been 8 weeks since I have been co-teaching a Basic English class at the Bible School for Castillo Del Rey.  Along with another missionary, Jessica Grace Wolf, we have been teaching the students basic English with a purpose. This means we have been teaching the students bible verses, Christian songs, religious vocabulary, and a few grammar lessons to help them converse in English. This has definitely been a surprise for me since I never imagined I could ever be a teacher. Most young moms would agree that when you have more than 1 child, patience and self-control becomes a big challenge. When we were in Costa Rica, I had to do a few homeschooling activities with Selah, and that always was a great test of my character. When Ms. Terri Triplett approached me and asked if I could help teach English to the Master Commission Students, I thought to myself, " God does have an interesting way of choosing how one will serve in ministry." Teaching was not on the radar for me. However despite the fear and intimidation, I embraced the opportunity to see if this is where God wants me to be. Every time I step into the classroom, I am always filled with anxiety, but when I start teaching, a supernatural love for the students simply overwhelms me and causes me to survive each class. I pray that God fills me with wisdom and discernment  on how to teach each student strategically and effectively.

Teaching English at the Bible School, Castillo del Rey

     Overall, these students are just amazing... They work so hard and they love the Lord with all their heart. They are passionate about missions and hungry to win hearts for Jesus. It has truly been an honor to work alongside each of them, and it has been a pleasure to get to know all of them personally. My prayer is that God will continue to guide me and give me wisdom on how I can effectively equip these students to minister and speak to the nations.. To make Jesus' name famous all over the world! 

     Thank you for the opportunity to serve here in El Salvador. We are currently seeking monthly financial partners who will help us to continue this journey for the next year and a half. We have lost a few partners due to financial reasons but we are trusting that God will provide for us these next couple of months. If God has given you a heart for the nations and would like to know how you can send your donations, please click on this link:

https://giving.ag.org/Give/Details/600001-296109?MinistryName=Phil%20gendreau&Page=1

May the Lord bless you and keep you, and may His face shine upon you all the days of your lives...

Blessings and Much Love,

The Gendreaus
Phil, Mia, Selah, and Shiloh

Reaching Out

Here are some photos of our outreach to the community in the past months.

The clinic is packed up and ready to go to mobile sites.

Natan was one of our translators. We are getting the bus ready to head out.

The patients waiting to be seen in Candelaria.

These kids were great and happy patients.

Some happy patients that we had the privilege of seeing.

Andee is a missionary who is getting trained at the camp. He now knows how to take care of his teeth so it won't hold him back from serving the Lord.

Children in Our Community

     July is always a busy month for the Gendreaus wherever we go because both our daughters celebrate their birthdays on this month. We decided to celebrate their birthdays this year at their school, Liceo Castilla, with all their new classmates. Selah celebrated her birthday on July 8 and Shiloh celebrated her birthday party on July 21. A few weeks prior to their parties, God told me he wanted to use the girl's parties to share the gospel. With the help of the Master Commission students from UCCR (Ultima Cosecha de Castillo Del Rey), we were able to share the gospel, sing worship songs, pray with the kids, and provide opportunities to receive Jesus.

    For Selah's class, 17 classmates accepted Jesus in their hearts! For Shiloh's class, 6 classmates received prayer for healing. It was a great feeling to know that as we celebrated their birthdays, they also had a chance to share about Jesus and minister to their friends. 

    Living in El Salvador has been a blessing to our family. There have been times when we would have to reinvent our routines due to the changes in our environment such as water shutdowns or power outages, but God always helps us find a way to make things comfortable for the family. We learned to be resourceful and content in every circumstance. It has been an answered prayer for me and Phil to find a community for our family especially for the girls. Every afternoon after the girls do their homework, the girls play with the children from our community. Our neighbors are very friendly and loving towards us. El Salvadoreans go above and beyond to make sure you feel comfortable and accepted. Because the girls are transitioning so well in this country, Phil and I can start focusing on ministry work.

     Phil has successfully been able to set up the clinic at the camp. He has been able to treat several patients and he has assisted in a few medical teams that have come from the U.S. With the equipment that we have, Phil is able to clean teeth, do fillings, and extract teeth. We are working on getting better equipment to be able to do other procedures such as root canals. 

     Phil has worked with a few teams so far in the last couple months in different towns such as Nueva Esperanza, Lago Coatapeque, and Candelaria.  The most recent team that Phil worked with came from Coweta, Oaklahoma. When they visited the town of Candelaria, they had a chance to see a total of 450 patients. Each patient was given spiritual counselling; offered a chance to hear the gospel;  and received the opportunity to accept Jesus Christ. A total of 120 of these patients made decisions to follow Christ. In addition, local pastors were able to follow up with the patients. According to Pastor Erick Zamora, one of the local pastors of Candelaria, there has been an increased church attendance after the team visit. 

     We want to thank all our partners for allowing us to share God's love to the people from El Salvador. Our ministry's goal is to make Jesus' name famous all over the world.

     Stay tuned on my next post about more information about the clinic and also about my new role as a basic English teacher to the first year students of UCCR....

Prayer Requests:

1. To maintain our monthly support for the next 2 years.

2. To have open doors to share the gospel and God's love to everyone we meet.

3. To have perfect health for the entire family.

4. To build a stronger community among the missionaries.

Blessings and Love, 

Phil, Mia, Selah, and Shiloh