Dear Family:

I have created a site through CaringBridge that is dedicated for cancer patients. Please visit the site to see my journals and post your responses. When you visit the site, http://www.caringbridge.org, you will be asked to enter Website Name. Please type "Mickie" without the quotes. 

I have just returned from the Ramadan Tent at the Ritz Carlton, and you will see some photos from that. The holy month of Ramadan began September 1 and continues for 30 days. People fast and pray from sunrise to sunset, and foreigners are also expected to observe the culture (no food or drinks in public). But at night, family and friends gather for a feast at sunset and may go on until morning hours.

Mickie Mathes

On October 11, 2008, ROW friends and supporters will gather for our annual fund-raising event and we will be honored to have Lt. General Jerry Boykin speak and minister to the group about his experiences and his passion for sharing the Word of God. You can learn more about his ministry here. There will be a precision drill team, color guard, and the ROWArt Gallery/Museum store. Snacks will be served. Tickets will be limited and purchase information can be obtained by emailing 'Wuk' or by calling 850-832-6377.

LTG (Ret) Jerry Boykin was one of the original members of the US Army's Delta Force. He was privileged to ultimately command these elite warriors in combat operations. Today he is an ordained minister with a passion for spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ and encouraging Christians to become Warriors in God's Kingdom.

A team from Omaha, Nebraska, was in San Ignacio, Belize, in August. They saw a number of patients at medical clinics, but there was one little girl who especially touched their hearts. Marianne, who was examined by Dr. Hal Huff in Bullet Tree, outside of San Ignacio, would turn blue whenever she cried. Dr. Huff detected a loud murmur, was certain that she had a large hole in her heart. When he returned, Dr. Huff made a couple of phone calls to a friend, and As it turns out, the Pediatric Cardiologists from Omaha go to Belize City twice per year as part of an outreach clinic sponsored by the Rotary Club. They will actually have a Pediatric Cardiologist there soon. They are now making arrangements for Marianne to be seen in Belize City. 

Pastor Kevin McDonald says, "We can give praise to God for working through our mission team members like Hal and in situations like this one and others that our mission team was confronted with in Belize. In the case of Marianne they brought hope and soon healing to this little girl and her mother amidst the despair they were in when they came to the clinic at Bullet Tree as Dr. Huff examined her under a tree and when everyone thought there was little chance of survival because of the condition of her heart. Thanks to prayer and the persistence of people like Dr. Huff and others on the team she will now be having heart surgery soon to correct the problem! 

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

ROW had a team in Cambodia.

There is also a team from Covenant Presbyterian Church of Omaha, Nebraska which took a
medical missions trip to Belize. They sent us updates via ROW Radio and you can listen to updates from their trip below:

At the same time, Ben was in Venezuela! Listen to his ROW Radio updates below and see the pictures here. If you missed the updates from Ben's trip previous trip to Nicaragua, you can see photos and listen to ROW Radio updates by clicking here. 

Drew lead a ROW team to Honduras in July and the Trident Health System Medical Volunteers had a nice article written about them in The Post and Courier Newspaper in Charleston, SC. 

Click here to read the story.

ROW has just received word that the well being installed at the orphanage in Kinshasa is now working and they have plenty of water for the very first time! They have provided us with pictures of clean, fresh water pouring out of the pump. 

Click on the pictures below to see full sized versions!

Check out the interview of Ben & 3 on Atlanta Live in July. It's about 30 minutes, but well worth the time.

In early March, seven adults traveled to Fortaleza, Ceara to learn about the business enterprises
of PRECE. This is the educational program with which we are partnered. Graduating students
from rural communities have no job possibilities back home. PRECE is helping them to start
small businesses in rural towns. This mission group helped to give business and funding
advice. We have business plans for sheep growing, irrigation, eco-tourism, goat raising, and
several others. This is a new endeavor for PRECE and ROW Brasil. It has very exciting
possibilities for community development beyond just education!

Donate today and specify 'Fortaleza' or 'PRECE' to have the funds go directly to our works in Brasil.

The February well project for the Kinshasa Orphanage is being completed this week (August 2008). The ROW Congo-Kasai Chapter furnished $15,000 and ROW completed the funding with another $7,500. These children will soon be drinking clean, healthy water and enjoying
a building that has been re-roofed and furnished. They no longer are having to sleep on the
floor. 

The sewing school in Tshikaji is still going strong. Twenty ladies are scheduled to graduate at the end of November. The knowledge and skills they learned will enable these ladies to viably support themselves and their families. On graduation, each group of two women will receive a manual sewing machine and start-up supplies to begin their own business. We need 10 machines by November for the graduation grants. 

Donate today and specify 'Congo' to have the funds go directly to our works in the Congo.

ROW is all over the place! 

'3' led a team to the Dominican Republic last month and you can hear updates of their trip below!

• Update #1

• Update #2

• Update #3

• Update #4

• Update #5

Drew led a team to Honduras last month and you can hear updates of their adventures below!

• Update #1

• Update #2

• Update #3

It appears that our very own '3' has a fan club in Monkey Point!

Check out all the photos here!

ROW has partnered with The Church of the Epiphany in Dohar, Qatar to help raise funds to build their church on land provided by the Emir of Qatar. 

Learn more about this exciting project here!

John Eve of ROWKids.org needs your help! 

Check out his story here.  

His task is a familiar one, but his goal is a great one. It will take both you and John to reach his goal, but a lot of kids will be helped if he does!