We Need a Miracle

First, thank you for reading this post and being a part of our journey. We so appreciate knowing others are in this with us and feeling your prayers.

I wanted to expound on a few things that are happening... I recently put out a Facebook post asking people to become monthly donors so we can get back to Mexico in January.

This is what I said:

Why 200 by January?

When we moved to Mexico in June of 2023, we had a plan.

With the money we received from selling our house in Utah, we would build a home in Mexico (for the price we were quoted), pay for the equipment for a ropes course (the labor and more was donated), and have savings to live off of until we started getting traction with the ropes course business.

While we did that, we would share our cause and get donors to help us build the homes and school for the kids so we could start providing them with a safe home and education.

Things, as they tend to do, didn't go as planned.

Our home cost more than we were quoted, the road to our home and the ropes course kept getting flooded and having problems. We tried providing English lessons for income but many could not afford it.

There was an unprecedented mosquito outbreak after a particularly wet season that prevented anyone from stepping outside without being swarmed.

Better Than Planned

But some things went better than planned.

The ropes course turned out so perfect after finding trees in the perfect places.

Benjamin Allen not only donated a month of his time to build it, and much of his family came out too, but he also donated his trucks! Without the trucks, we would not have been able to access our house during this rainy season.

It was an incredible blessing to have them.

We were able to help start a family group for church in our area so that many who had not attended church in a long time could start attending. Missionaries were then sent to our area too, whom we got love, learn from, and serve with.

We had amazing groups, families, and interns do so much. With their help, we got trees planted, landscaping that prevented erosion, biodigesters installed, and more.

The volunteers also made friends in the community through service projects, summer programs, and classes. People in the community came and served as well.

The Biggest Issue

Because we did not have any savings after all of the unexpected expenses, and ended up having to use a credit card for solar panels (the city does not have electric wiring where we are), my husband, Bill, felt an urgency to provide for his family quickly.

He decided to take up contract work in the US so we could have what we needed.

He ended up being gone almost nine months out of that first year.

We realized this was not sustainable.

What now?

We flew to Utah in August because our oldest two children were getting married that month (a week apart from each other).

After the weddings, we drove to Texas to stay with my parents and figure out where to go from here.

This is what we knew:

• We could not make enough income in Mexico without fixing the road and doing some heavy marketing for the ropes course. We do not have the means to do either.

• God would not want us to sacrifice family for a cause, no matter how good the cause... we needed to find a way to live together, at least most of the time.

• We could not live with my parents, borrowing my brother's car, for an indefinite amount of time. We can't encroach on their generosity past January. If we do not have what we need by then, we will rent a house and buy a car. All of this will make getting to Mexico much, much harder.

• Bill is not sure if living in Mexico is the right thing for us after such a hard year. I told him that if God wanted us there, He would provide a miracle to get us there. Getting 200 monthly donors before January would be a miracle.

• I did some math. To build the first home and provide food and supplies for the first set of youth (one home will house 12, but we will start with less) we need an income of about $5000 monthly for ongoing construction costs, teacher pay, and basic living expenses. If each monthly donor averages a $25 donation (knowing some can do more and some less), we would be able to run the program at a basic level. This would be a doable start.

• From there, we could get the ropes course going to provide some income, start selling the guided journals (that I am almost done writing), and find other entrepreneurial projects like a store and merchandise, as well as more donors, to help us have the resources to grow this work to reach more youth and families.

But, like I said, to get to the basic level starting point where we can live out there and get this going, we need some support from people who also want to see these youth break cycles of addiction, abuse, and poverty and use their gifts to make a change for good in this world.

Can you help? Do you know anyone else who might be willing to help? Please share the website and introductory video with them and help us reach 200 monthly donors by January.

Become a Monthly Donor

Save the Date

Also, in December, we have a fun service opportunity for your family.

You could make a craft together to sell or a food item.

Or just come to do some Christmas shopping.

All proceeds will be donated to building the first youth home in Mexico.

We are so thankful for the beautiful people putting this together.

Again, thank you for being a part of this with us, for sharing this with friends, for donating, volunteering, and just being awesome people. We love you.

With gratitude,

Karen Bates

P.S. We are so so grateful for our current monthly donors! As of Sunday, we have reached 26! Thank you for believing in this cause and helping move the work forward!

Become a Monthly Donor