It all started about two years ago when FAME Executive Director, Bill Warren came to visit my church, Kempsville Christian Church in Virginia. Bill gave an account of what FAME was about and where it was. My ears perked up when I heard “Indiana”, as that is where my father’s family is from and the state in which I was born. This was also the first medical mission my church had been involved with. As a Registered Nurse (RN) I had always dreamed of doing medical mission work, so I was very interested.

Later, after doing some research on medical mission trips and FAME, I realized at this time in my life I may not have the resources to pull off a mission trip out of the U.S., but I could get my feet wet by driving to Indiana to work in the medical warehouse. Fortunately, I was able to combine the trip with an upcoming family reunion in northern Indiana.

I loved the fact that we started each day there with a short devotional and prayer. I really felt like I belonged from the start and went right to work. My specialty as a nurse was in the O.R., so Barry Reed, FAME’s Director of Mission Resources, who oversees all the incoming and outgoing medical supplies and equipment, presented me with donated surgical instruments and had me identify and store them. I was impressed by the way other nurses had already organized the instruments, making my job a snap. Overall, the warehouse is very well organized, and it is amazing to me the amount and variety of supplies they have to support so many missions all over the world.

I was there for four days and each day was different and interesting. Wednesday I met a group from a local Indiana church who came and made short work of sorting, labeling and checking expiration dates on pallets of 100 cubic feet of supplies. It’s amazing what the Lord’s people can do when they work together!

Part of each day I was there was devoted to orthopedic supplies that had been donated. I sorted and cataloged splints and braces for about every part of the body. I sorted through enough wrist and finger splints for hundreds of broken bones. I was happy to have the job finished by Friday and now Barry will have a record of it all in the inventory system, making it easy to send what is needed to Africa, Mexico, Nepal, Honduras, Liberia, or Ukraine. These are just examples of the many countries my work with FAME might touch.

I almost hated to leave because I had not felt so appreciated for my talents and knowledge base as a nurse in a long time. Frequently, the day in – day out work in medicine can leave a nurse feeling under-appreciated and burned out. I would venture to say that a visit to FAME could do a lot to reverse that feeling in any other nurse or healthcare provider. I highly recommend it and I’m very glad I stepped out of my comfort zone to come here. I might even make that mission trip again in the next few years. Thank you, FAME Staff for having me.

Sincerely,

Debbie Gibson RN LT NCUSNR-R

“Everybody is somebody in Christ’s body,” is a motto I learned as a new Christian in 1999. It was drilled into my brain by my campus minister which simply reminded me that God has given me skills, abilities, and possessions which matter to kingdom service. Making a difference in this world for Christ does not just exist from a pulpit. Then, several years later I found myself at that same campus ministry in the role of a campus minister, chanting this motto again and again. This motto helped focus our ministry to take annual service trips with FAME. The experience helped our college students see how FAME leverages medical skills, education, and resources to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Hi, I’m Barry Reed, FAME’s newest staff member as Director of Mission Resources. After twelve years serving the kingdom as a Campus Minister at Western Illinois University, my family and I have relocated to Indiana to join the global impact of medical evangelism. Though Indiana has been a regular place of travel for our family, we have always lived in Illinois. I grew up just outside of Peoria, IL in the rural community of Farmington. Later, I attended WIU and completed a Bachelor of Accountancy. It was in those college years that God transformed my life and my career goals made a sudden change. Being a member of Campus Students for Christ (Christian Campus House of WIU), I was exposed to a variety of mission work, including church-planting. Following graduation, I was blessed with the opportunity to join a church-planting staff, specifically as Worship Minister. I began attending Lincoln Christian Seminary at this time, and later completed a Master of Leadership after transitioning to campus ministry.

My wife, Christi (Pim), and I have been married 15 years. We have three boys; Gavin, Cooper & Tucker. We have made Shelbyville, IN our new home where Christi serves in the elementary public school as a Behavioral and Life Skills Case Worker. We are huge St. Louis Cardinals fans. We spend a lot of time on the baseball field and basketball court. My favorite hobby is coaching my boys and their friends. However, as a family, we have also learned the beauty in sharing our home, and holidays with international students. God has brought some of our most special friends to us from across the ocean. From Russia to Brazil; China to Nigeria; there are homes we would find welcome to us because God has brought so many to us.

I will be happy to meet many who belong to the family of FAME, as volunteers in the warehouse, senders of medical supplies, or participants in a packing party, preparing medical supplies for a specific mission field. However you are connected to FAME, I’m honored to be joining you in this specific way as we all join together as somebodies in Christ’s body.

FAME has partnered with Del Corazon de JesuCristo in the city of El Catey, Dominican Republic since 2004.  Dr. Steve and Julie Dorsey are the Directors of the work there.

Recently, FAME took a team of 20 team participants, which included 15 associates who work at Hancock Regional hospital in Greenfield, IN, to partner with the Dorseys and with Dr. Leslie Valenzuela.  Dr. Leslie is on staff at Del Corazon and she sees patients at the Del Corazon clinic who are from El Catey and surrounding communities.

We were so blessed throughout the week to be able to serve through medical outreaches in locations that were chosen by two local Pastors.  These medical outreaches opened doors for evangelism long after our team left for home.

There are two medical outreach stations that I have always felt hold a special place in our medical ministry.  Our preventative “Health Education” station and our “Kids” station.  Why the “Kids” station you might ask?

The purpose of our “Health Education” station is to provide education on how to stay well and how we can prevent disease.  Simple handwashing is an example of how we can eliminate almost all diseases, but yet, this is not a common practice in many developing countries.

FAME’s Dominican team shared these topics when teaching at our “Health Education” station – how to treat a sore throat without the use of medications, treatment of diarrhea, and the importance of exercise and a proper diet.

What makes the “Kids” station so special?  The smiles, giggles, sounds of balloons popping, face-painting, rope jumping, chalk drawings, bubbles, games, nail painting, etc: all lead to the beginnings of a personal relationship with each child, albeit for a day.

It was this type of relationship between Dr. Steve Dorsey and a young Dominican boy that changed this boy’s life forever!

A few years back, our FAME team was headed home after serving a week with the Dorseys. We were at the airport in Santo Domingo when we heard one of the airport employee’s yell “Hey, I know you!”  When we turned around, he walked up to Dr. Dorsey and said, “You used to come to my town every year when I was a kid, and I remember you!”  This young man had not forgotten all the attention and love Steve and others poured into him so many years before.

This story has an even more amazing ending.  God’s plan all along was to call Steve to become a full-time missionary in the Dominican Republic.

Thank-you Dorseys, for allowing us to be a part of His plan for Del Corazon de JesuCristo!

In the “unknown” Northeast part of India (it is North and East of Bangledesh next to Myanmar) a 16 year old girl was staying with family in the small village of Miao.  She was keeping up her studies while her parents were in their village, which was a 4 day hike, harvesting Cardamom for essential oil providers.

She became very ill with whole body swelling issues and was driven in the car of our Mission Partner Stephen 17 hours to the hospital in Margherita Assam.

This was too severe of a journey and the car was not adequate to care for her-she passed away before her parents were able to even see her.  Our Mission Partners Asian Christian Services is being helped by FAME to acquire 4×4 Ambulance which will be able to provide safe transport from these remote areas.

$1000 will provide the bed, oxygen system, and IV systems for the Ambulance.

Solonique lives 1 mile from a new subdivision near Manila– but Solonique’s family does not live IN a “Camella Home” they live under the billboard advertising the new homes. He laughs, loves to swim, plays soccer with his friends, but Solonique will likely never see a doctor in his lifetime.  Unless something changes, when he needs medicine, or medical treatment he will never be treated by a doctor.

Solonique is not alone; 600,000 people in Bacoor City, Philippines have no address and no healthcare EXCEPT for the Mobile Clinic being provided by Partners of FAME like you. Even though Solonique and his family have no access to medical care – the Mobile Clinic will now have access to them; bringing medicine, medical treatment, and most of all the Good News!

Here is where YOU can make a difference as a Pallet Partner– Every Mission Partner, more than 30, of FAME needs Medicine and Supplies…these all have to be acquired and then sent to our partners.  I’d like to introduce you to an opportunity to SEND those needed supplies, medical providers, and facilities to boys like Solonique.

Introducing:  FAME PALLET PARTNERS

Our Pallet Partners will be monthly partners who help send medicine($25 sends medicine for 156 Children) and medical supplies($50 a month for a year, sends a full pallet of Supplies) to open the door for the Good News.  We believe that people are highly receptive to the gospel as their health needs are met, so we are asking you to help touch their lives at that time of openness to the Good News.  If you want to help provide a Mobile Clinic or Facility to care for children and families, $250 a month for 2 years provides an exam room in a Mission Hospital where the pallet of supplies can be distributed and used to touch lives like Solonique.

Over 400,000!  That’s the number of the world’s most vulnerable YOU have impacted by partnering with FAME!  In the last 18-24 months that many people have been treated and told the good news of Jesus by our global partners.

400,000

If we listed their names and their country, giving you 5 seconds to read each one, it would take you

That is YOUR impact!

But instead of that 6,400 page list, let me tell you about ONE family – because while we impact thousands – your global reach is ONE FAMILY At-a-Time!

Hector works at the Vallealto Produce Greenhouse in San Antonio, Coahuila, Mexico only a few miles from a FAME Partner Hospital under construction.  He works 12-hour days raising the “Naturall” Tri-Color Peppers that you may buy at your grocery store.

But his daughter was sick, really ill and no one knew why.  Hector went with her every-day to the government clinic to try to see a doctor, but they were never open- the doctors never came to their village even during the hours listed on the door.  But then Hector heard that Dr. Esly and Sandy Fuentes, from the nearby village church were not only building a hospital but they had opened a Farmacia and Clinicin San Antonio!  Hector took a chance and took his ill daughter to the Clinic and was waiting at the door at the time listed that it would open…and Dr. Sandy was there!

It was a simple illness for Dr. Sandy to diagnose and treat- but thousands of the world’s most vulnerable children die from preventable diseases!  She gave them medicine from the Pharmacy (at a cost equal to 75 cents US Dollars)- which Hector could afford.  But better than that, Hector and his family were invited to a Bible Study in the village that was started because of the witness of this clinic.  ONE FAMILY At-a-Time- that is how your impact adds up to 400,000!

In over 40 Countries there are thousands of stories like Hector’s family because of YOU and your partnership with FAME.

Can you help us start 2019 strong with your gift of $250 and keep hard-working men like Hector able to find help and hope through our global partners?  Any gift amount will help FAME touch the world’s most vulnerable and position our global partners to continue to treat people in the name and love of Jesus.