Christmas Party!

Tonight we had the board Christmas party......we didn't have as many as we usually do so it was kind of different this year. We had to cancel last week because of the roads and rescheduled for this week. We did our usual tradition of writing a couple stories. We have everyone go around the room and give a one liner and I write it down and then read them our story. We do a funny one and then a serious one about the reason for the season. Here is our serious one this year:

The angel appeared to Mary and Mary said, "I am the Lord's servant." Proud mother was stricken with joy and happiness. She had a baby in a manger and then there was a bright star in the sky. The shepherds fainted -well it scared the heck out of them. The reason the baby was born in the manger was because there was no room in the inn. Thus fulfilled what the angel had said to Mary when she was stricken with joy and happiness. Remembering the long journey and that there was no room in the inn they found shelter from the weary journey. There were animals...MOO...oink...neigh...neigh (this came from a 2 1/2 year old) a humble place for our humble King of Kings and Lord of Lords to be born. For there were three wisemen that brought gifts. They all came to see him and gave him frankincense, gold and myrrh. The END!

Just thought I would share a fun tradition that we started several years ago at our board Christmas Party's for the ranch.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

We, Jim, Cathy, Andy & Hector would like to wish you all a very MERRY CHRISTMAS! The boys will be going home for a pretty long Christmas break with their families so pray for them. Pray that they make wise choices and that they help out wherever they can at their family gatherings. Pray that they continue to show their family the changes they have made in their lives because of their relationship with Jesus.

Jim and I are excited to hopefully see one of our past boys over this Christmas break. I wrote about him in the newsletter that I just posted on the website. After I sent this newsletter out he contacted us again and will be in Iowa for Christmas and wants to come out to see us and bring his daughter out to meet us. This is why the heartaches of this ministry are worth every bit of it.

One of our boys and I was having a little heated discussion the other day and he said why do you love us? I said because I do and I will continue. Please pray that this boy will continue to accept this love instead of trying to push it away at times. God's love is unconditional and that is what we have to teach these boys. Some days I will have to say it is not easy but that is what we are called to do and as long as God continues to give us the strength and peseverance we will continue on in this ministry.

Thank you all for your continued support in this ministry.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Thankful hearts,

Thankful HEARTS!

Jim and I are so thankful for our supporters....its' at this time of the year that we reflect on what God has done to build this ranch. To think that Jim carried me into a rat infested trailor house when we first started that looked a little like this...... To living in a beautiful log cabin for the next 13 years......

And now living in the 2nd log cabin that was built on the ranch so that we could bring on a family to help us continue on in this ministry as Jim and I are ready to move into the stage of not having boys live right with us and just being the administrators. There is lots of work to do to keep the doors open of a faith ministry.....so it's time we train another family to work with the boys. We will still work with the boys because on the other families days off we will have the boys at our house......so pray for us as we are making this adjustment. The biggest adjustment is moving into a much smaller home...but God is good.....


This is a picture of the small house after we have made it our new home.....we continue to thank God for his goodness in all he has brought us through. As we have been on this journey he called us to 17 years ago.

God Bless you all and may you have a very Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!

Thankful Servants.......

My poster add for next years MCH Challenge Bike Ride!

Today was our 4th Annual MCH Challenge Bike Ride thanks to Dick Grimm and his wife Karen. Bikers come from all over to ride either 25, 50, 72 or 100 miles. This young man, Cliff Warner, age 70 has not completed a 100 mile ride for 15 years.....until TODAY! Wow can you imagine being 70 and riding 100 miles...I can't even imagine riding 100 miles at my age. But, there are several dedicated men and women out there that ride all over. We had a great turn out....74 bikers. This is just a start of pictures from our bike ride today....I will be posting more on the original website on the Special Event page. Keep checking back if you rode you might see your picture. Thanks so much all you supporters for riding in the MCH Challenge and all you who donated through this fundraiser. We brought in $3369.65. We serve an awesome God that continues to keep our doors open through people like this who participate in our fundraisers. If the doors don't stay open we can't help boys feel good about themselves because of success.

So again....thanks so much and don't forget to check back in the near future on the Special Event page for more pictures from the Bike Ride.

So Thankful,

Where does the time go?

Well the M & M Fest was a great success we raised $3,796.00 with donations, horse plop and silent auction. We had some great groups out sharing the God given talent with all of us here on the Ranch Property; it was a beautiful day!

The Nester family moved on to a different job, after finding out houseparenting wasn't for them. We thank them for helping out while we were going through our unthinkable circumstance. We are looking forward to a family from Texas to join us as soon as they sell their house. Please join us in prayer for the Clawson family and the selling of their house. They will be moving into the cabin Jim and I have lived in for the last 13 years and after being here for a short time we will fill their home up with 4 boys on the waiting list; along with their own 4 boys.

Jim and I will be moving into the smaller cabin on the ranch property, with the two boys that are living with us right now; Andy and Hector. They are doing great right now, just getting started back in school. Here is an awesome picture of them as we went horse riding one night.

We have been speaking at churches a lot lately but could always use more churches or groups to share what great things God continues to do at the Boys Ranch.

Continuing to Trust HIM,

M & M Fest

Hey all we are getting ready for the Miracle & Music Fest on the Ranch property this Sunday; August 9th. We would love to have you. We will start off at 10:30 with Keith Nester Preaching the word of God, then right into.....good ole' Gospel Music. Food will be served on the grounds the whole day for nothing but a free will love offering all proceeds go to Miracles Can Happen Boys Ranch. The actual music will start at 12:30 with Oscar Perales starting off. Also sharing their gifts of music that day will be The Graves, Country Friends, Allegory, Jimmy J and the Son Rays and All Things New. We will probably be going until 6:30 or 7:00 in the evening.

Bring a lawn chair, sit back and enjoy the fresh country air, (cow pooh and all). Listen to music, take a tour of the ranch, and listen to stories of boys' lives that have been changed. We will have a silent auction with several items to auction off. The biggest thing to bid on will be a getaway to Branson, MO. (3 days and 2 nights motel room, 4 tickets to Dixie Stampede, 4 tickets to Shepherd of the Hills........ that is just some of it) Come on out to find out what else is included in the package.

We are excited to share with you what God has done out here at the boys ranch in the last 17 years, come see for yourself what he has done.

1614 300th Street; Wilton, IA call if you need directions 319-930-2806 (Cathy's Cell phone).

Take care and hope to see you.

Serving Him,

Golf Outing 2009

Our Golf Outing was a huge success again this year. We had at least 41 sponsors that helped tremendously. We had 21 teams playing, only 2 dropped out because of the rain, the other 19 were great sports and played after they got wet.

We had a lot of volunteers helping out and we appreciate everyone of you. Thanks so much.

Hope you enjoy watching some of the fun we had that day on this youtube video.

Thanks so much all of you that helped the ranch raise $7,500.00.

God is good!!!!

You all have helped put another piece together of broken pieces out in our world.

Trusting HIM,

Please Forgive Me!

I'm so thankful that Jesus died on the cross for ME so that I might have forgiveness. I told you last August, eight months ago, that I will try to get back in the swing of things of keeping you updated. Wow I really failed at that! So please forgive me!

We are still here working with boys. We are so thankful that Keith and Estelle Nester joined up with us last August working full-time for the ranch. We have been blessed to have them help us through this last year. This last year (plus) has been a difficult year with a very unthinkable circumstance happening in our personal life. That unthinkable was February 8th, 2008 our 21 year old son was arrested for 2nd degree murder. His trial just ended in March 2009 and his verdict was read April 3rd, he was convicted of voluntary manslaughter. If you want you can read the judge's verdict of his case so you can understand why this was such an unthinkable just click on over. We are so thankful for the prayer support that we have had through this journey. We could not have pressed on without the support. Thanks so much to all who were praying!

God is still on the throne and now we await for Curtis' sentencing which will take place May 7th. We know God is in the middle of this, he has already used Curtis' story and will continue to use Curtis' story to reach more young lives. Curtis has helped several young men while sitting in the county jail for the last 15 months and will continue wherever God sends him after May 7th.

Today, I had the privilege to sit in our church and look to the left to the front row, and look at the back of 4 young men. Two of these young men are past boys that lived here at the ranch, the other two were friends of these past boys. The one young man that was here about 4 years ago, said to me today, "After this whole thing with Curtis, and my last stay in county jail, I can't do it any longer without HIM! I need to get right with God." One of their friends said to me, "He brought me here last week on Easter and I have been looking forward to this day all week to come back again today."

We will continue to claim the verse that we claimed at the very beginning of this unthinkable, 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."

Please continue to pray for this ministry that God would continue to give us strength to continue being the tools he uses to reach young men.

Trusting HIM,