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Mission statement:
We pray that Robin's Nest will provide a nurturing, loving, safe,
Christ-centered atmosphere in which all children will grow at their own
speed --physically, mentally, and spiritually -- so they may develop
their own individual gifts, talents and abilities and become the person
who God intended.
Blessings to all the friends of Robin’s Nest Children’s Home,
God
is good, very good! Over the past 3 years, we often wondered if the
day would come when we could actually say that we own property in
Jamaica for the children of Robin’s Nest. As with everything
else in Jamaica, it has been a very bumpy ride, one with lots of
twists and turns and above all, waiting on God. Our timing is
not His and our American timing is not the same as Jamaica’s timing.
This month we received the news that we have title to the property
we have occupied for the past three years. We also received news
that after arriving in Jamaica in December, the container has
finally been opened and emptied safely. And, a precious little
girl named Martika Joy landed on U.S. soil with her new family after
a long, patient wait. For all of this, we give God all the
glory. His timing is perfect and we are humbled again to
remember that this is totally HIS ministry and He will take care of
these children that He has entrusted to us.
Last year we celebrated our 10th anniversary and shared
our long-term vision to expand God’s work in Jamaica. At the
end of 2007 we were presented matching funds to help us begin our
long-term goals. The first is to build a boys’ dormitory which
will be called “Jake’s House.” As you may remember, Jake
Anderson, a young man who had a love for the children of the Nest
went home to be with His Lord 3 years ago. In our newsletter
that year, one of his friends was quoted: “We know that Jake
would love nothing more than to be able to have his memory continue
to spread joy to these children. What an amazing testimony of
God’s love for all the children of the world and a legacy of one who
had the Father’s heart for them.”
Now, we need to begin raising funds to multiply each cement block as
the first 4 rooms are constructed in “Jake’s House.” This will
initially consist of a kitchen, bathroom, bedroom for the dorm
parent, and a bedroom for the first group of boys. Eventually,
more rooms will be added. So now, we wait on God again, this time to
provide the finances to move forward with the vision of “Jake’s
House.”
If
you would like to be a part of this wonderful project and have your
gift matched, please fill out the gifting form here on the website
and send it to Robin's Nest Children's Home, PO Box 122, Lake Elmo,
MN 55042-0122. Please write matching funds on the memo line
to be sure it is matched. With God’s help, together we can
make a difference in the lives of the children. Please take
note of my speaking schedule here also while I am home April 22-June
5. I would love to see many of you in person if at all
possible. Come join me at one of the places where I will be if
you are near there. Contact Paula Merkouris,
salem@alliancecom.net if you want me to come and speak to
your church or organization.
God
bless you richly for your support through your gifts and prayers,
Michelle Robinette and
The board of directors of Robin’s Nest:
Marian Edelen, Trudy Hochradel, Richard Diehl, Marguerite DeFore,
Kim Ellenbecker, Brian Brynell, Scott Lacher, Carol
Taylor, Paula Merkouris, Gayle Diggins, Amy Ledermann, Jaime
Kane, Wayne Anderson, Missy Seekel, Laura Chapeau
Michelle’s Spring
Speaking Engagements, 2008
Please join
Michelle if you are able at one of the following churches to
hear an update on Robin’s Nest and also support her as she
shares. If your church would like to have her come, please
contact
Kris Killian,
k.killian@att.net.
Sunday, April 27
Hope Lutheran Church, 5729
Cedar Ave S, Minneapolis, MN; Worship at 9:30 a.m.; Sunday
School at 10:45 a.m. Michelle will be sharing during the
Sunday school hour & briefly at service. (612) 827-2655;
www.hopempls.org
Contact: Mary Peterson;
marybbpeterson@hotmail.com,
952-929-0747
Sunday, May 4
Water's Edge Church, 341 W. Walnut, Ogden, IA; 10:15 a.m.
Worship Contact: Judy Swanson,
cjswan@wccta.net,
515-353-4345 home; 515-298-0616 cell; Pastor, Rick
Summerhays; 515-275-4434 church or 515-275-3016 home
Sunday, May 11
Oakwood Church,
1388 S.
Point Douglas Road, St. Paul (by Hwy 61 and
Bailey Road) Worship 10:30 a.m., Sunday School 9:30 a.m.
Contact Scott or Peggy Peters:
cephasinc@msn.com or
petersmom02@msn.com;
651-730-0341
Monday, May 12
Michelle
will be speaking at the Country Inn & Suites in Woodbury,
located on Hwy 94 & Century Ave. at 7:00 p.m. A local Mary
Kay group will be meeting that night and they are doing
Makeovers with a mission during the month of May and
donating to the Nest from these. Anyone is welcome to come
to listen to Michelle. If you are interested in
participating in the makeovers, please come at 6:00 p.m.
Please contact Cindy Anderson,
canderson12@marykay.com, for more information.
Tuesday, May 13 - Board Meeting
Sunday, May 18
Trinity Lutheran Church, 1250 Broadway, Hammond, WI at 9:00
a.m.
Pastor Mike
Briggs,
pastormike@baldwin-telecom.net 715-796-2788 or 715
-246-4691. Hammond is about 16 miles east of Hudson on I-94. Go
north on the Hammond exit (Cty Rd. T) to the town of Hammond.
Turn left (west) at the only stop sign onto Broadway (also
called Cty Rd TT). The stop sign is next to the Hammond Hotel.
Trinity is about 1/4 mile on the left.
Sunday, June 1
Trinity Lutheran, 513 Madison St SE (PO Box 1177), Watertown, MN
55388. 8:30 and 10:00 a.m. worship church phone:
952-955-1891 For a map, go to:
www.trin.org.
Contact Pastor Beth Johnson at
bjohnson@trin.org
Michelle
returns to Jamaica June 5. Please pray for a restful time
in the states and as she goes out and tells the story of Robin’s
Nest.
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SPECIAL NOAH -
(From a recent teen visitor to the Nest)
Before we left for Jamaica, I was thankful for the pictures of the
kids at Robin’s Nest we were given to pray for. I took
them just about everywhere with me and I’d find myself saying a
quick prayer often. One of the pictures was of Noah.
As soon as we arrived, little Noah caught my attention right
away with his easy smile. It didn’t matter that he was in
a wheelchair; he was always happy and willing to learn.
His favorite song was Jesus loves me, and we sang it many times.
I learned a lot from Noah: like how to live one day at a time
and how to always face each day with a smile.
It is wonderful to be about my Father’s business. When Jesus said, “My
burden is easy and My yoke is light,” He wasn’t
kidding! Sure, I went to bed absolutely exhausted each night,
but nothing compares to the joy I felt inside. You’ve got to
give ‘til it hurts, and then it won’t hurt anymore because you’re so
full of love to even notice. I’m ecstatic at the news that
Noah and Martika are in the United States. What blessed
families to have adopted such special children. All of the
children of Robin’s Nest will always be in my prayers. I know
I’ll hold tight to what I learned and the memories of Jamaica
forever.
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In 2006, we began a new program, “Sponsor a child.” We are so
grateful to the many of you who have faithfully given to this
program which helps us to provide board and room for our children.
For only 50 cents a day or $15 a month, you can help the children of
Robin’s Nest. If you desire to be a part of this program or want
more information, please fill in the area concerning it on the gift
form (click
here for the gifting form). You are free to choose any of the
children listed on the
Children's Page. We are so grateful to have Cindy Anderson now
handling the sponsor a child program, so please contact her at
canderson12@marykay.com.
Please note: We would like to do this program primarily by e-mail
and automatic deduction. However, if you are unable to do this,
please do not hesitate to sign up.
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THE CHILDREN OF ROBIN’S NEST
(oldest to youngest)
Jodi-Ann:
learning to accept being cared for, getting used to acting like the
lady that she can be
Isha:
sensitive with babies, willing to help, bright in school.
Shana Kay:
helps cook on weekends, enjoys the learning process, very helpful.
Peter:
always surprises you with some funny remark about his view of the
world around him.
Chantoie:
can make everyone smile & laugh with his dance moves; needs constant
attention.
Chavar:
great helper, sets an example of proper behavior to the other kids
when they know they're supposed to sit nice and not trouble each
other.
Evian:
bright girl, good reader and athletic. She is always willing
to pray and so open with God.
Denisha:
helpful, plays well with little ones, likes more mellow situations,
learning to swim.
Timar:
big imagination, pray for adoption to be finalized, stressful time.
Shaquille:
willing to help, so good with wheelchair Ion.
Wheelchair Ion:
gets very excited when he's included in activities, loves riding in
the bus!
Walking Ian:
very gentle with the little ones, will keep them entertained.
Brittney:
Denisha's sister, bright, talkative, likes to be with her pod mom.
Dean: favorite
thing is to pretend that he's driving a bus & taking passengers all
over town.
Shantara:
does so much better in new big sturdy crib that came in container,
loves her therapy time with pod mom and her big stuffed animals.
Shanice:
really enjoys being with pod mom, makes funny faces a lot and likes
to laugh.
Avalee:
likes to play dress up. Pray that she will form a bond with
pod mom.
Tamara:
likes to watch the babies asleep in the crib, very energetic and
bouncy.
Akiem:
can be very funny and tries to use his cuteness to get out of any
kind of trouble.
Zoe:
plays well with her younger pod brother, is very helpful with him,
bright shiny eyes.
Usian:
very good in pod family, a happy kid, likes to go wild at bedtime
with Enoch.
Enoch:
very energetic, smiley, and talks a lot, even when hard to
understand.
Evonne:
does very well with pod family, is really showing her character, a
clapper.
Joli-Ann:
happy girl, plays well with big pod sister, loves to sit with pastor
for meals.
Shammoy:
smiles a lot if he catches your eye, very coy, hefty laugh and plays
clapping games.
Keishmar:
really loves being with his pod mom, cute but can be rough with
younger ones.
Javal:
likes to be active, does really well in pod family setting rather
than in large groups.
Neyo:
has first two bottom teeth, is learning to crawl, happy and content
most of the time.
Dimair:
does best with pod mom, sometimes can't even finish a bottle because
he giggles too much.
Matthew:
a fighter; after much time in hospital, coming along slowly, needs
to gain weight, but still happy & wins everyone over with his big
eyes.
Tavar:
lots of curly hair, probably the loudest baby in the house, does
best with pod mom.
Donte:
is really coming along after a stint in the hospital when he first
arrived, a mellow baby, gaining weight & growing.
Click
Here to see Snapshots of the Children at
the Nest |
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GET YOUR ORDERS IN FOR
THE ROBIN’S NEST COOKBOOK
Robin's Nest Children's Home is sponsoring a new cookbook this year
featuring favorite recipes including those from our “Robin’s Nest”
cooks. Cookbooks can be pre-ordered. Please fill out the following
form and mail it in the enclosed envelope.
Please include the number of cookbooks you would like reserved for
you, along with your name and address.
Please reserve _________ cookbook(s) for me.
Name ____________________________________
Address___________________________________
City_______________ State____Zip __________
Phone__________________________
Email address if you would like email updates from Robin’s Nest
____________________________
Please include $15.00 for each cookbook plus $3.00 for shipping and
handling per cookbook.
Questions can be directed to Marguerite DeFore at
defore1@usfamily.net or
to Sue Anderson at
andepete@pressenter.com.
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BLESSINGS COME TO THE
NEST
Recently a friend of mine called from Montego Bay and asked if I
would be home as she wanted to stop up at the Nest to see me. She
surprised me by bringing along a mission team that had visited us
before. They were back in Jamaica on another mission trip and had a
surprise for us. Their previous visit to the Nest was terrible; no
electricity, a generator that was hard to start, no gas to keep it
running, and a car that was broken down so we couldn't get more gas.
Yet God used this mess to do an amazing thing! That team went back
home to their church and shared the bleak story with their
congregation. This January the same team returned and blessed us
with a huge generator that has the capability to run the whole
house! It runs on propane fuel and when the electricity goes out, it
comes on automatically just like a hotel! (Our old generator will be
tuned up and used for the new boys' dorm, Jake's House.) Now for
the rest of the story…
Before they could even get the new generator unloaded, a fire
was seen in the valley and it looked like it could be headed our
way. The men in the group went with us to assess the situation and
by the time we got back, the electricity had gone out. Since the new
generator was far from being hooked up yet, much less unloaded, they
tried to start our old generator for us, but the rope to the pulley
broke. The team stayed, took it apart and fixed it before leaving
that night. They returned the next day to begin the process of
installing the new generator which is now complete and stands
outside of the house where the noise no longer bothers us and the
propane tanks to run it are right by it, safely away from the house.
Once again we saw how God knows all our needs and what He does is
an affirmation to all involved. God demonstrates His faithfulness
to us and shows us that He is a trustworthy God whom we can rely on
to meet our needs. Our job is to trust and obey and place our hope
in Him, the unseen God who makes Himself visible to us in the most
unique ways. All praise and honor to Him for this blessing.
Romans 8:28-“And we know that in all things God works for the good
of those who love him, who have been called according to his
purpose.”
God
is always there in the background setting all things in order and
providing for us even when our faith is as small as a mustard seed.
Blessings, Michelle |
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