Dear Friends at First UMC in Portland:

We thank God for all of you and your faithful mission work.

We are so grateful for your years supporting our United Methodist Missionaries by giving in our names – Miguel and Nan. Thank you!

We have been blessed to serve five years with Give Ye Them to Eat, GYTTE – a really wonderful ministry that focuses on human development through health, community development (and promotion of appropriate technologies like wood-saving stoves, ecological toilets and rope pumps, just to name a few), agricultural and livestock development. Church and Faith Development helps Mexicans deepen their faith and learn about stewardship of the environment. And AWARE (Alternative Work-Study and Reality Experience) provides United Methodists with an international mission service opportunity to work and learn about GYTTE, Mexico, the root causes of Migration, as well as fascinating educational tourism!

Attached you will find pictures of GYTTE’s 2022 work – please share!

We hope you will consider this Mission/Study Opportunity with GYTTE in Puebla, Mexico from Nov. 10 – 19, 2023. You will never be the same.  Join team leader

Rev. Marian Hartman for a 9-day Mission trip with Give Ye Them To Eat.

AWARE (Alternative work/study and reality experience) teams make a difference in the lives of rural families as well as of the staff of GYTTE.  

Working with the staff and missionaries, Nan McCurdy and Miguel Mairena, you will experience the culture and the working lives of our Mexican brothers and sisters. Almost three days of educational tourism includes the colonial city of Puebla and the archeological wonder that is the Cholula Pyramid. For about 6 days you will be learning, working and building relationships near the small town of Tlancualpican, Puebla, where GYTTE’s Tree of Life Training Center is located.

There are projects for all skill levels and physical abilities. Work days are 5 hours followed by other educational activities. Recent projects have included repairs and improvements at the Tree of Life Training Center as well as home building (with mud and straw) in neighboring villages. If you tire easily, that’s ok. Take a break. If you like hard physical labor, we probably have some rocks to move. If you’re somewhere in-between, there are opportunities to learn new skills or use the skills you already have.

The areas where you will travel are safe, the food is great, and the water is bottled. Staff in Mexico are fully vaccinated against Covid. Accommodations are comfortable with a hotel in Puebla and dormitories at the training center, hot showers and Wi-Fi.

Dates: November 10-19, 2023

Cost: $1,050 – which includes almost everything, plus $300 towards a work project. You pay your roundtrip airfare to arrive in Mexico City on November 10 by 3pm at the latest; and leave from Mexico City on November 19 at 10:30am at the earliest. With Rev. Marian, you will travel to Puebla on a very comfortable bus.

It would be wonderful if a few people from your church could join this mission team!

In Christ,

Nan and Miguel