March 2020 PAMI Bulletin and impact of COVID-19
Click on the following for the latest PAMI bulletin: March 2020 PAMI Bulletin. This bulletin illustrates the 2020 vision and goals of various partitions/churches of PAMI as of the end of February. Perhaps these plans will have to change now that the whole world has shut down due to COVID-19 social restrictions. As of March 26 there are 707 confirmed cases and 45 deaths in the Philippines, but none yet in our area. But our area is still included in government mandated lock-down, so church services, EBI classes and internships, graduation ceremonies, Compassion activities, etc. have been temporarily suspended. Please pray for protection, adjustment, & recovery.
Prior to government mandated restrictions, EBI was planning to graduate 4 on April 3, and an all-PAMI fellowship/summit at EBI was being planned for April 26. And a new modular study program was going to commence in four churches in June, with various EBI teachers teaching weekly Friday afternoon classes and rotating monthly. But all this is now on hold. It’s sort of a double whammy to have this COVID-19 happen right after the December typhoon, and we pray that some measure of ministry can continue. Although big group gatherings have been suspended, a few pictures of small-scale efforts can be seen below. Pastor Gumer says, “Glory to God for the opportunity to share God’s word even in hard time due to community quarantine because of ncov19..and I pray that our God be glorify in our lives. Jesus is above all name..Phil.2:9-11.” Read More
Ministry updates Dec 2019 to Feb 2020
Here are some ministry reports from December 2019 to February 2020:
Report from Ptr Vir Fulo of Bulan December 2019 Activities
Additional Pictures to the recent Report from Ptr Vir Fulo of Decemeber 2019 Activities
Bulan Christian Church Minutes of the Annual Mtg., Vision 2020 and 2019 Accomplishment
Bulan Christian Church First Quarter Report Feb 2020
PAMI Patag church quarterly report from October to December 2019
PAMI Matnog Jan Report from Histas–received Feb 2020
PAMI Matnog Vision 2020, Accomplishments 2019, and Feb Report by Histas
2019 Summary, January 2020 PAMI Bulletin and Typhoon Recovery
By the end of January, year-end statements and a January 2020 PAMI Bulletin were mailed out to those that made 2019 contributions to PAMI. The year-end statements included the following summary of PAMI ministries in 2019:
Dear Friends:
Thank you for your gifts and prayers for PAMI in 2019. They are fitting of Hebrews 13:16 that says “And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”
This has been another fruitful year of ministry. About 65 people were baptized! Three graduated from Emmaus Bible Institute on April 3rd. Two of the three were added as workers, along with a couple that graduated in previous years. We were able to distribute another 500 Operation Christmas Child boxes and carry out a lot of discipleship along with that. 160 Compassion sponsored kids were served weekly at EBI. An all-PAMI youth camp was held in April and a crusade in May, with a couple hundred attending each. Churches were started in Culasi Matnog and San Jose Bulusan. Other gatherings, retreats, and workshops were held. Film showings, Christian radio, Bible study outreaches, children’s feedings, and VBS continued. Weekly Values Instruction Classes were done in several public schools and Family Development Sessions were held with government welfare recipients. Several balikbayan boxes were sent with books, CDs, games, toys, school and office supplies, hygiene supplies, clothes, laptops and projectors. Some building refurbishment/improvement and typhoon relief/repairs were done. It’s through the partnership of dedicated Filipino workers and faithful supporters like you that all this is possible.
Regarding the January 2020 PAMI Bulletin , it includes before and after repair pictures of two of the worst hit PAMI buildings–the PenaFrancia Church near EBI and Candumaay Matnog Church. It also has some pictures of distribution of typhoon relief goods. And page 2 is a January 7 report from Sis Ofel that praises God for batches of typhoon relief from different sources along with corresponding ministry opportunities. For more info and pictures, see below: Read More
Aftermath of Typhoon Tisoy
Actual path of the eye of the typhoon.
A few hours before it made landfall, it looked like the eye of Typhoon Tisoy was going to pass through Legazpi, just a little to the north of Sorsogon Proivince where PAMI is located. Unfortunately, the eye actually made landfall in Gubat about midnight on Dec 2-3 and passed east to west right through northern Sorsogon Province at category 4 strength (140 miles per hour). It was accompanied by a storm surge of about 10 feet and about 16 inches of rain. It practically went right over EBI in Sorsogon City and Castilla. It greatly affected the whole Province and almost every town where PAMI has ministry. Many places are still without electricity over two and a half weeks later. PenaFrancia and Candumaay Matnog churches were halfway destroyed, and sustained over $500 damage each. EBI had a collapsed classroom cottage and a falling big tree knocked over the property wall and fell on another classroom (denting the corrugated steel roof and breaking rafters). Several other PAMI churches/parsonages had damage as well. Plus there’s probably about a hundred PAMI member homes with damage. Some homes lost roofs, some were flattened, and some were washed away. With water levels coming up to window level, people hoped to save valuables and electronics by placing them on top of tables. Many took refuge in stronger built church buildings and schools. Afterwards, people waded through hip deep water in streets in some areas. Thankfully no PAMI people got hurt, and no one in Sorsogon Province died. However, I read a newspaper article that said four lives were lost in other parts of the Philippines. The following pdf files show a sampling of the damage.
RebuildingPeniaFrancia
Matnog typhoon damage
Bulan-list-and-pictures-of-some-victims-of-Tyhoon-Tisoy
Read More
Dec 2019 PAMI newsletter
Click on the following to see the latest PAMI newsletter: Dec 2019 PAMI newsletter . It includes a remembrance of my aunt Izzy Allen, who was the sister of my uncle Norval Thorud (the founder and first missionary of PAMI). It also includes info about Typhoon Tisoy that went through our area on Dec 2-3.
PAMI field report updates
Click on the following to read field reports:
Bulan Christian Church 3rd Quarter Report
Montical Vario Church and Candumaay Additional Report
Matnog Report Third Quarter Oct2019
MatnogSept2019Report
Matnog August report 2019
PAMI IrosinCC 3rd Quarter
Quarterly Report Activity in Buhang Christian Church
Patag Quarterly report August to October 2019
Gubat Third Quarter 2019 Report from Ptr Benjie Camar
Castilla Church Third Quarter 2019 Report from Ptr Redgie Bonifacio
In honor of the 14th anniversary of Living in Christ (LINC) Church –formerly known as Brampton Community Christian Church–of Brampton, Ontario, this is a five minute presentation of video and pictures from the PAMI ministries that they have supported the last two years. This includes support in 2018 that funded construction of a new building for Fabrica Church in Bulan, Sorsogon, Philippines. And it also includes support that began in 2019 to fund the ministry of Pastor Michael and Michelle Hista in Matnog, Sorsogon, Philippines. The Histas have a church in Candumaay, Sta Isabel, Matnog that celebrated its 2nd anniversary in April 2019. They also have a daughter church meeting in the home of Sister Joyce Manabut in Culasi, Matnog, that began after a May 2019 crusade in Culasi. Philippine-Asian Missions, Inc (www.pamimission.org) wishes to express a big thank you for this partnership.
Sept 2019 PAMI News
Click on the following to see the latest PAMI News: Sept 2019 PAMI Newsletter . It mentions financial needs (for reroofing the ECF church at EBI and adding new workers), as well as includes exciting news and pictures of a crusade, new EBI students, Youth Development Team Building, and a lot of baptisms.
Ptr Virgilio's reports of Bulan Church and a wedding he officiated
Click on the following pdf file to see photos of: Bulan Christian Report Summer Activities 5-10-19
Click on the following pdf file to see photos of: Newly Added Families in Bible Studies
Click on the following pdf file to see photos of: Bulan Christian Church Report 6-29-19
Click on the following pdf file to see photos of: Bulan Christian Daughter Churches Report 7-16-19B
Matnog and Irosin 2nd Quarter Reports and Culasi 1st Worship Service
Click here to see: PAMI IROSIN CHRISTIAN CHURCH 2nd Quarter Report 7-2-19
Click here to see: Hista Candumaay Matnog 2nd Quarter 2019 Report
There’s been a lot of good ministry happening in and around Matnog and Irosin. Ptr Gumer and Ofie Gile live in Irosin and have a church there (in the former Fortes compound provided by Jing Danielson), but Ptr Gumer is also a PAMI partition head that supervises other churches, including the one in Candumaay, Sta Isabella, Matnog. Ptr Gumer was the one who had started ministry in Candumaay Matnog a few years ago, which was turned over to Ptr Michael and Michelle Hista two years ago. Ptr Gumer is sort of like the Apostle Paul, that travels around evangelizing, getting places ready for church plants (e.g. Candumaay, Gubat, Culasi, Juag Island, San Agustin). Ptr Michael has been a protege of Ptr Gumer. Like Ptr Gumer, Ptr Michael is also reaching beyond his homebase in Candumaay to other places like Culasi and Caloocan. After conducting a May 27-28 Evangelistic Crusade in Culasi, Ptr Gumer and Ptr Michael recently initiated the the first worship service in Culasi in the home of Sis Joyce Manabat, and plan to go back there each Saturday. Sis Joyce and her mother were among the five baptized in Candumaay on April 28. Read More
Mabini Youth Help Teach 5 Day Club to Anog Children
Making use of curriculum and training provided by Christian organizations Matthew 18:14 and Child Evangelism Fellowship, Sister Espie Fresto enlisted youth from Mabini to help teach a 5 Day Club to children in neighboring Anog. The youth attended training, prepped, and then helped with the event. Read More