Obed Bazin

Over the next few weeks, I hope to introduce you to our Seminary and Bible Institute students here in the DR. We start with Obed Bazin:

Obed was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on September 19, 1977. He studied Economic Sciences in college, but moved to the DR before finishing. In Santiago, he worked in the "zona franca" (free trade zone) where he sewed polo shirts for a clothing manufacturer.

In May 2003, a friend of his told him about English classes that our mission was offering, and he decided to participate. The teachers (who were WELS Kingdom Worker volunteers) invited him to attend church services. He liked the doctrine he heard and decided to join the congregation.

As a member of the Haitian congregation, he attended church and Bible studies, and participated in evangelism efforts. He started studying Bible Institute courses and then graduated from the BI in August 2005. He has been studying in our seminary ever since and should graduate in 2009 or early 2010.

We thank God for Obed and his service.

The Lord bless you with his peace,
NW

September Birthdays

September is a busy month of birthdays for our mission family:

• 19 Sep -- Obed Bazin, one of our Haitian seminary students
• 19 Sep -- Sam Monday, son of Missionary Shiloh and Molly Monday (he turned 5!)
• 21 Sep -- Kiero Guerra, a Dominican Evangelist, currently studying in the US
• 24 Sep -- Vanessa King, one of our WELS Kingdom Worker volunteers teaching English as a Foreign Language classes
• 27 Sep -- Freddy Aquino, one of our Dominican seminary students
• 04 Oct -- Julio Corporan, one of the Dominican pastors/seminary student (it's *almost* in Sept)

We enjoy celebrating another year of God's grace with these, our brothers and sisters in Christ. May he grant them all many more years of his grace.

The Lord bless you with his Peace,
NW

Hanna and Ike updates

The following reports were copied from www.dr1.com:

The Center for Emergency Operations (COE) has lifted the Tropical Storm watch for the DR, explaining that tropical storm Hanna is no longer a threat. According to COE director Colonel Juan Manuel Mendez Garcia, Hanna isolated 51 communities, caused the evacuation of 10,745, damaged 2,149 homes and destroyed 4 bridges and damaged two main roads. The government has set aside RD$300 million to assist victims of Hanna. The Presidency's Social Plan will also distribute 884,000 pounds of food throughout the country. Hanna caused the most damage in Monte Cristi, Dajabon, Azua, San Pedro and San Jose de Ocoa.

COE officials have also called for the mandatory evacuation of families located near the Sabaneta Dam in San Juan de la Maguana. Monte Cristi Civil Defense regional director Maximo Ventura explained that 1,1090 families in that region have been evacuated.

Authorities are now monitoring Hurricane Ike that is expected to bring rains. National Meteorological Office director Gloria Ceballos explained that by Saturday Ike is expected to be near the DR's north coast, but sufficiently north to not cause major damage. However, close monitoring of the storm is cautioned. Officials are also keeping their eye on Tropical Storm Josephine, which has formed off the coast of Africa and is headed towards the Caribbean. It is too early to tell the path that Josephine will take.

To follow seasonal storms, see http://www.dr1.com/forums/weather-beyond/...

Thank you, brothers and sisters, for your concern.
The Lord bless you with his peace,
NW