Hi Everyone!

It has been awhile since you heard from me so I want to give you an update!

I am ready to head back to Nepal again and be "On the Mission" once again! 

I was last there Nov and Dec of 2014. In that 7 weeks we were able to enclose level 2 of our new facility and get doors and windows installed. Hurray!

 I was able to confirm that the 2 paraplegic women were settled in their new space and free of rats, condensation and rain coming the in  roof ... Woohoo no leaks! They seemed very happy although Digri was sick and too weak to do any knitting for us this time. She did agree to try out the new wheelchair we had brought her the previous year but alas was only able to tolerate that position for about 5 minutes before wanting to be returned to bed. I doubt she has tried it in my absence but will offer her another chance to get used to it this trip too!

We were disappointed to be denied access to the prison this trip... security had been tightened due to escape attempts by some of the incarcerated so we took the warm mittens up to Anar Kholi, a church of 45+ members about 18 KMs up on the north ridge where it is always cold so our brothers and sisters in that community benefitted although the prisoners couldn't.

We also had a set back with the FM radio ministry and had to discontinue our programming due to technical issues.

Otherwise we had 18 women and 2 men participate in our skill training and product development program. These and many others are very excited to see level 2 of our building be completed and see us open the Education Center where we will offer literacy training in both Nepali and English, skill training, computer training, financial  and business training and then offer microloans to qualified widows and single moms and handicapped individuals to start their own enterprises. Pray for $3000 to complete the plumbing, electrical and carpentry work and lay carpet and outfit a small kitchen and boutique. Pray as we begin to recruit the future leaders and teachers for this Training Center. 

Level 3 has the concrete floor laid and the pillars with rebar up. We are praying for $8000 to pour the concrete roof and enclose it with brick walls and the needed doors and windows. If God should provide this now, I'd love to supervise the completion of this level this time while I am there!!! If you recall level 3 is to be a guest house so we can bring teams of folks to come network with this Nepali community and catch the vision of what God is doing in Nepal.

I got an email last month that the local church has been given the local FM  radio station complete with a broken transmitter requiring 15 lak to fix it ($15,000). Pray the total need for repairs will come in quickly.

If we can scrape together $1500 of that, the church is willing to let us resume daily programming in the Dotiyali language for 2 years! What a wonderful way for the 140,000+ people in these remote mountains to hear they are loved and valued and that God wants a personal relationship with each one. We gear our programs to illiterate women and children who typically have poor self worth and low cultural value. We want them to realize how very much they matter to God! We hope to add additional children's and health programming.

Here are a few additional prayer requests:

*Pray for each of our 9 ministries as we assess the damage caused by the 2 huge earthquakes and the                 subsequent 330+ aftershocks ( registering 4.5 or > on the Richter scale)

*Pray for our 31 orphans-  they slept outside under tents and tarps all summer due to fear of more quakes. We will try to assess for Post Traumatic Stress issues. The youngest is a 23 month baby girl whose mom was killed in the quake and the father can't care for a baby and keep his job as a bus conductor.

*pray for the prisoners - at last count 55 men, 6 women and one child. 5 have become believers and desperately need encouragement. Pray for the remainder to catch a glimpse of how much God loves them... no one else in that culture loves these social outcasts or remembers to visit them! Pray we will be allowed to visit and encourage. We plan to have the production team knit scarves with our yarn scraps to give to them as a Christmas present. If you are burdened for them contact me as I would like to buy something locally to add to these as a blessing to the prisoners. I will get them fruit for sure ( a rare treat for them!).

* I am taking a lady named Linda from Idaho with me on this trip. Pray for her adjustments and that we will be able to accomplish a lot together. We plan to tile, paint and organize the training center and look for whatever divine appointments the Lord should put in our paths!

*Pray God will show us where we should become involved with ongoing relief efforts from the earthquake disasters. We have some solar lanterns and have been given 30 wind up flashlights. Pray we'll know what families to disperse these to and if we should collect even more.

On a personal note : I returned from my last trip to Nepal in January ( had a delightful Christmas with my sister and family in Indonesia!) to an unpleasant surprise of a massive flood in my basement and a break in my pipe line 300 feet below my home. Insurance would not pay for a dime of either! It took me 8 weeks and a team from my wonderful church to clean up the mess! Talk about PTSD! pray for my house to be protected in my absence. 

I finally got a job ( it's been 2 years without!)  and I start tomorrow with orientation! It is" per diem" so I tell them when I am available! I will eventually be working 12 night shifts at the Franciscan Hospice Care Center. They only require I work one shift in a 90 day period so they are ok with my being gone already for 4 weeks. I was able to get 12- 8.5 hour shifts in the next 15 days before I head out to Nepal! The kicker is it's 7AM - 3:30 pm and I am a night owl... so starting tomorrow - Monday through Friday I must hurl my body out of the bed and drive 40 minutes to Tacoma and try to look alive and focus so early in the morning! "Brutal" for me as I rarely can sleep before 3 or 4 AM. Please pray for grace, energy and vibrancy to get through these next 2.5 weeks!

A Joy! I have a new baby grandson "Greyson Fox" he is 5 months old and such a cutie patootie! OML I didn't think it was possible to love anyone this hard!  

SO I challenge you to faithfully pray for Nepal and those the Lord would have us bless these next 6-7 weeks! Pray for safety as there is some political unrest over the constitutional drafting and implementation. One town along our travel route had violence and several deaths. India has gotten involved and blocked fuel deliveries over the border into Nepal creating great hardships which may pose problems in our travel. We may need to skip the 30 hour bus ride ($21)  and fly to Dhangadi ( $175 each way) followed by a 5 hour van ride up into the mountains. Pray we will find a way to get all the needed supplies out west.

I also challenge you to prayerfully come before God and ask Him to give you a #  (of $) that He wants you to offer back to Him for His causes in Nepal. We are so aware that the opportunity to make HIM known is a small window so pray for us to allow His grace to flow through us for His glory! Pray we will recognize the divine appointments He puts before us and be sensitive to if/ when we should stand aside and get out of His way if we ever get to thinking this is somehow about us!  #INAM (it's not about me) #all about HIM

Thanks for standing in the gap with us!

Good news!!

GOOD NEWS! I am returning to Nepal on November 5th and returning to the USA Dec 20thLORD willing!

I am soooooo excited and so am having a HOLIDAY NEPALI BAZAAR to raise the needed funds to make this trip effective. Please open the attachment for the flyer and print off several copies. Keep one on your own fridge and give the others to friends or better yet post them in your workplace, church, library, grocery store, gas station or where ever they will allow you to put one up to promote this great cause!

Update: Last spring when I was in Nepal for 10+ weeks we ensured the paraplegic girls were in their new space. They moved in in November and were loving it, although some condensation problems with the wet cement caused dripping on the girls and it was very cold last year. A few electric heaters and a squeegee and teaching them to open their windows just a few inches during the day solved those problems and now that the cement has cured it should no longer be an issue this year.

 We began the second level which will be an educational center where we offer literacy, skill and financial training to widows, single moms and the handicapped and offer them micro loans to start their own business. The pillars and new roof were up when I left. The funds from a successful vendor booth at the Lavender Festival in Sequim, WA went out in August to complete the bricking in of the walls, so that should be done now. I am going to pick out windows and doors this trip and try to finish this second level. We need $5000 to do this including interior electrical and plumbing and furnishings so we can open the training center.

If we could raise an additional $15,000 I could go ahead and finish level #3 of this building which would become our guest house so I can start bringing teams of people from the States to network with this community and become involved in these peoples lives in tangible ways. Pray with me for minimum completion of level 2 and ideally completion of level 3!!! I firmly believe God has huge ways He wants to impact the lives of the impoverished in far western Nepal through these units of this facility HE has started and will work a kingdom difference through!

SOOOO to that end I am doing my part. I just finished assisting a couple on Whidbey Island have a huge Estate Sale this last 5 day weekend. We put out our Dare to Care products out and raised just over $1100 with that. So between  this coming Bazaar and personal donations we are steering towards a goal of $4000 . My airline ticket was $1880 for those of you who have asked. This time of year flights are most expensive due to several big holidays going on in Nepal.  I have not had an official job since last January so am also concerned about how to pay my mortgage for the 6 weeks I'm gone. I am trusting the LORD  for that as well. He has always come through for me! So now you know the needs.

Please pray about what your part might be. If you live in the Seattle area please come to the bazaar with your Christmas list as these are the most unique gifts each with their own story. Your gift dollars have double value here! Bring a friend and get a free handmade gift! Gift wrap also available on request. Could it get any easier???

If you are outside the Seattle area please consider a gift of any size designated to the ministry ( we have 9) of your choice. For sure we need all of you to lift us and the people we serve, up in prayer. Many hearts are ripe and I believe the Lord will use me and my Nepali teams as we love on these, His precious children. Especially pray for those in prison ... we will be trying to visit them in love again and are collecting stretchy warm knit gloves ( dollar store!) for them. I have a needs list, if any of you care to call me to help out with a few needed items I want to get out to them. 

I just want to thank each and every one of you for your faithful prayers for me and the many God is bringing to Himself in rural Nepal.

 Pray for the continuation of the radio ministry... 3x a week we have 15 min to share God's love over the airwaves. I'd like to take the back fees we owe for that as well, should any of you care to specify donations for that!

And for those of you that have financially invested your resources to make a kingdom difference there, I want you to know how blessed I am that you would care to sacrifice and serve with me to bring God Glory!

Till all have heard!

Dawn Didi

WWW.DARETOCAREINC.COM    ( check out our new updates and follow on our blog the next few months!)

 Paypal donations can be made through this site!!!

Send donations to "Dare to Care" at one of 2 addresses: PO box 4646. So, Colby, WA 98384 or 

435 N Alfred St, Elgin , Ill 60123

Phone  630 272 0512

Next flight booked for Nepal.

Just booked a flight to Nepal for Nov 5th with a return Dec 20th. Next weekend I am having my big Holiday Nepali Bazaar from 10 to 6 pm each day at my home in Port Orchard. NEED $4,000 BEFORE  I go. Please pray for God's merciful abundance.

Save the date~October 10-12 and 16-19

I am planning on returning to Nepal the end of October ( Halloween?) ... still have some important work to finish up over there! 

So to that end I am having 2 events:

A big Fundraiser Garage Sale on Whidbey Island in Coupeville October 10th, 11th and 12th

and a Holiday Nepali Bazaar at my home in Port OrchardOctober 16th - 19th!

You are all invited to either or both.10 am-6 pm all days but Sundays 1-5pm

Please bring lots of friends and tell everyone you know! Free prize for everyone that brings a friend!

We are praying for $4000 or more so I can complete level 2 of the new building finishing the training center and hopefully opening the doors for training!

I also have an appointment on Tuesday the 7th to meet with the head of a store in Pikes Market called "Ventures" who are interested in carrying some of our product line in their store. They seem very excited on the phone about Dare to Care and our concept. Pray they will be as interested in person and seal a deal. They would consign our products!

Thanks for your faithful interest and ongoing support! You have been a constant encouragement to me and I want to thank all of you who have invested in these impoverished Nepali women for believing in them and helping give them not just a hand out but a hand up. They are soooooo excited to think people in America like what they make! It really boosts their self esteem and creativity not to mention gives them added financial blessings through the labor and earnings. You have blessed them more than you realize!

I look forward to seeing you at  hopefully at one of these 2 upcoming events! Shop early for best selection and think how great it will feel to be ahead of the Christmas shopping fiasco! And all while supporting a life changing cause!

Blessings!

Dawn Didi

Tis a lovely day for ducks....

Tis a lovely day for ducks.... its raining cats and dogs!

But the doors are open and the Chai and Tibetan fruit tea are hot  for our Mother's Day Nepali Bazaar!

You didn't forget did you?

And I have a stack of animal tapestries ( rhino, lion and elephants) and over 20 new monkey hats and even a sheep and owl one too!

So although it sounds like a menagerie.... they are all benign except Achilles, my own cat... and he'll love on every one of you!

Come pick out something unique for Mom for Mother's day! Bring the kids and let them pick out something great for her and Grandma!

LOTS of new items!

One free raffle ticket for coming.

Each extra raffle ticket $2.00

Raffle prize  is a gorgeous tapestry valued at $65 or 3 pillow covers.

Bring a friend and get a free gift.

Bring your mom or daughter and getanother free gift!

So now is the time... dodge those raindrops( and cats and dogs)  and get on over here for best selection! Please avoid stepping on the ducks getting here too!

Blessings!

Dawn Didi

9850 SE Southworth Dr., Port Orchard, WA

Call 630 272 0512 for directions if you need to.

Benefits for the new training center for impoverished widows and single moms in far west Nepal.

Get the latest updates on the 2 paraplegic girls now happily moved into their new abode!

Thanks for changing lives with me... for His glory and kingdom!

Save the date

 

Save the Date! I am having a Grand Mother's Day sale... A Purchase with a Purpose! Since every one has a Mother consider making your Mother happy with a dual purpose benefit for your $!

Bring a friend for a free gift. Bring your mother for another free gift in one of our new jewelry designs!

Please consider printing these flyers out and passing them out to all your friends and acquaintances this week and even putting one up in a highly visible space to invite your community to attend!

Thanks for all your support and prayers!

Dare to Care

Dawn Didi

630 272 0512

PS are you on our Dare to Care FB contacts?" Like us" there!

If you are not in the Seattle area please pray us up and feel free to place a phone or email order any time. Orders placed prior to May 4th should arrive on time to honor your mom by the official day.

If you missed emails while I was in Nepal January through March and would like updates let me know. 

Homeward bound once again..

Hi my friends,

I am in Korea now gearing up for the last leg of my journey home. My flight to Sea Tac  boards in about a half hour and I'll have 13 plus hours in the air. Pray for safety ... for Angels to keep me air born and for all birds to stay far  away for the runways and therefore our engines! ( It was disturbing to read the paper on the flight from Dhangadi to Kathmandu to learn this is a frequent calamity at the Kathmandu airport! My flights in and out of there were uneventful and free of all flying objects... by the grace of God!

It had never occurred to me to pray for that!)

God has answered my prayer before it was uttered... for a dear friend to scoop me up from the airport tomorrow so I am praising Him for that! Of course I put out an emergency plea for that before I read all my emails to discover God had already prearranged it! So thanks to those of you who put up with me begging then 10 minutes later retracting my urgent request!

The last 3 days in Kathmandu were a whirlwind connecting with college kids, friends and business contacts. My connection with Lokta Paper Crafts was really beneficial netting a large future order as well as them consigning a large bag of our newer products. They loved our new merchandise which motivated me to try a new company called Dhukuti in Kupandole, K-du. Thanks to Debbie Martin's referral and her handy habit of putting every body's phone # in her trusty I- phone,  I was able to get an immediate audience with the manager there and show him our product line and discuss our philosophy and motives. He said he was very impressed and wanted me to meet his production boss on Sunday but unfortunately he was too busy. They really want me to email them and send photos so they can consider contracting with us as wholesalers for their huge store. Pray for good results to come of this contact and connection. This would be ideal for us on many levels!

Instead I spent Sunday buying 30 Kilos of new wool and arranging to get it out to Dadeldhura again, and shlepping and packing 75 kilo's of our products with a new shipper who promises to have it to my door in Seattle within a week!

I also picked up Yam's jewelry the  Brick makin' widows in Godavari have made, and managed to work in visits to several old friends and have dinner with a bunch of college students!

The day before I had the joy of meeting with Meike from YWAM who will be a new bride on April 14th... she is marrying Doyl from OM. Both have been serving in Dadeldhura much of the last 4-6 years. She allowed me to take her to a local florist and help her choose her wedding bouquets and florals! I wish I could be there for the wedding but will suffice to enjoy whatever pictures they send.

Please continue to pray for the people of Nepal and for all the seeds that have been planted both spiritual and physical. Pray for a taxi driver I had a chance to share Jesus with... he says" he want's to follow Jesus someday soon". I asked him why not today and he says he is worried that his wife will not approve and follow too. Pray for breakthroughs in the spiritual darkness and growth in those saplings struggling to grow up into the light.

Pray for a readjustment for me to our Seattle lifestyle again.

I need a job again. Hum... Mortgage is due!

I am considering opening my own design business and hope to meet this week with a friend designing my business cards and a web site for this. I need clear direction from the Lord if this is the way I should go.

Pray for a successful Nepali Bazaar soon. Keep the weekend before Mother's day open for another huge Nepali Bazaar at my house... Huge new shipments of new merchandise! Funds will go to the completion of the 2nd level of our building... the Educational center.

Pray for an open door for Namrita ( Tara Datt and Sundari from the Bakery's, daughter) to get accepted into Chiropractic School  here in the US and get grants to get her in. She is brilliant. If she cannot get in, she is considering going to Velore, India for Occupational Therapist school while her 2 friends ( Maya and Ceju) will go to the same school for med school. Entrance exams for Velore are in May and classes would start in July.

Pray for what God would have me do next... I just want to be obedient.

Home tomorrow! Call me soon or drop by for chai!

Thanks to all of you who have had my back on this last adventure!

Blessings

Dawn Didi

It's a wrap....

All good things must come to an end, I'm told... so must a good adventure to far western Nepal. I can hardly believe how fast these last 9 weeks have flown by! But we have accomplished a lot, really, when you look at the overall picture.

The second level on the building is well under way. They poured cement pillars and then poured a cement layer connecting them that is the roof of level two and the floor of level three! It took 3 weeks for this 8 inch thick cement to dry and set up. We have been looking at posts placed every 2 feet supporting this "lantern" or ceiling for the last few weeks. The wooden posts came down yesterday and today so it looks like a big open tent now. We were able to track down the Tharu mistri/ contractor that did the work for us last year. He did a good job and we want him to build the stairs for level 2, build the pillars for level 3 as the rebar is sticking straight up. We have 22 bags of cement and some sand and gravel left over from construction. He will also build 2 more retaining walls at the back of the building for level 3 and the foundation for level 3 with this.

 I have been advised by many here to use up these materials now before they are washed away by rain and wind. I have also been  advised to fill in with the brick work and windows later as we have more funds. It seems prudent so I am going with it after considerable prayer.

Tomorrow Bhaggi, a neighbor will start digging the hillside of the back wall. We need to go another 12 feet back into the hill to pour the remaining foundation of level 3 and the 2 remaining retaining walls. Pray the neighbors , (Jeet') wall can be negotiated as he built his retaining wall without mortar or cement and the water has pushed the mud and stones onto our property about 8-10 inches too far. Either the whole thing will collapse onto our new "lantern" or we will be able to push it back into place where it should be so our wall can be straight and properly supported.

Pray Bhaggi will find a suitable place to throw all that mud an dirt and haul it away. He is asking $600 to manage all that!

We hired Lila to come fix all the little things the Dharamsala girls felt they needed: extend a faucet so Rama can reach it, cover every conceivable surface with "carpet" (vinyl linoleum stuff) because it all gets wet... they had 2 layers of dilapidated "carpet" and a layer of cardboard box over perfectly good tin surfaced cabinets. They set their gas cooking stoves on top of all this. And all three layers were continually soaking wet. Should this ever have dried, it would be the fireman's freakish nightmare! So I got all that off of these wooden cabinets and tried to convince them it was a fire hazard. But NOOOOOOOO they had to have more "carpet!" I laid down the law at more cardboard under there and Lila and I used my new staple gun and fixed them all up... for now. They are happy. and dry.. and now that the weather is cooperating... warm.

 Digri is her old self again...s till weak and doesn't want to try out her new wheelchair ye,t but is smiling and able to knit when she wants to. She does this laying on her stomach in a waterbed mind you!

We got the jail to open up one Thursday and allow us to install the new "library" shelving and books donated by Prison Fellowship! Some of the big wigs from the gov. offices, including the CDO, attended the opening ceremonies and Pavitra had a chance to share in Nepali what this was all about and the love that accompanied it. P-ray the seeds that were planted will sprout.

Speaking of seeds, I was given a lot of Moringa Olefera seeds this week by a good friend and I have felt like Jonny Appleseed distributing them to everyone I meet. When I was in Senegal the 2 times I had the chance, we called this the "miracle tree" there as  the leaves are very powerful nutrition/vitamins and healing agents! I am hoping they will grow at this altitude. I also sent a lot down to Sheshia to the Hansen's disease colony there as I know this is a tropical tree and has a better chance of producing down in the terrain.

I had a chance to teach a session at a YWAM DTS last week! That was really a treat and the class was so attentive. My 4 points: You matter to God, He already loves you to the maximum so you don't have to try to impress Him or get Him to love you more, On the flip side... You cannot get Him to un-love you so don't test Him, An He has a plan and a purpose for you ...it is unique to only you... so just be yourself and discover how He has wired you.

Last week for 5 days, Sundari and I put in 15 to 18 hour days at the bakery as she had a class of 20 taking "tallim" ( training) at the church and they contracted with her for 3 meals a day plus chia at 4 PM for them all. On top of that she had several NGO's send groups to he bakery for meals or pizza or soup of the day. One was the Finnish water works team of 12.  And then there is the usual 7 men from the UN plus our large extended family! So Thursday night we served 48 people dinner!

That was the night I had to pack as well, (took me till midnight!) as Debbie Martin was leaving the next morning and there was a possibility she could get one of my bags in her vehicle headed for Kathmandu.

Turned out she could only get my small bag in but not the suitcase. A few prayers and bagels the next am, Jukka on the finish team offered to take my suitcase with him as he had a flight to K-du the next day!

So great how our big God, worked that all out for me!!!!!!

The last few days I have spent paying all the laborers in the OON ( yarn) factory. We had 18 women making woolen goods and 2 men making handmade wooden buttons! These were all so grateful for the work and pay for these last 9 weeks!

Well I'm packed and ready for leaving dodge tomorrow! My friend Khem, will pick me up about 1 pm at the bakery and we'll head over the next 6 ridges and down the mountains to Dhangadi. I plan to spend the night with my good friend and brother, Balwa and his adorable family. I have a flight on the Yeti tin can ( twin otter... hold 19 passengers I think) at 1420 on Thursday to Kathmandu.

I have 3 days to wrap up all my work there and have a flight booked to Seoul, Korea on Monday. I'm looking forward to the Regency Hotel free stay as I have an 18 hour layover there and then the 13 hour direct flight to Seattle on Tuesday, April 1st. Funny... I arrive in Sea Tac before I even have left Korea!

I am so looking forward to my own bed, an actual shower vs a pour bath and a really amazing salad! and maybe a treat of a little ice cream!

Funny what you miss after a steady 3 meal/ day diet of dal/ bhat! 

So I'll see some of you next week and can take phone calls after I recover from jet lag about Thursday!

Thanks for seeing me through to the end of this adventure! You prayers continue to sustain me!

I'll try to keep you posted of any high adventure.

Blessings... It's a wrap!

Dawn Didi

We are building yet again:)

Hi Everyone,

Just want to thank you for your prayers! Some of them are already being answered so keep praying please!

Our Radio programmer is out in India studying to become an ophthalmologist. He wrote me that his wife and 2 small kids ( 5 and 1yr) are lonely and want to join him in Chandighar. He has 2 full years left in his courses. He attends a Nepali chu-rch there and if they are together as a family he and she can both work together on the programming. I think it is a good idea for their family to be together.

I want you, our prayer supporters to know about this so you can begin to pray for this. We will pray more funds will come in for programming so I can give them a blessing more before their planned transfer just a month from now in March. We have paid up their salary through January 2014. It would be so great If I could give them their salary for the next 11 months. It is only $100/ month.  Praise God for their faithful service of producing quality messages and programs in the local Dotiyali dialect that reach 140,000 or more 3 x per week in their own tongue!

The building is progressing. The pillars are finished for this next level today so they are collecting "Kaat" ( wooden supports) to build the structure to support the "lantern" (cement slab roof of level 2 and floor of level 3).

 Pray for Sundari.  Her husband is my general contractor on all the building we are doing here. She is very sick these last few days and He is somewhere in the terrai. She is wondering if she should go to a hospital in Dhangadi, Nepal Gang or Kathmandu??? is it just a virus or more serious?  She has been to this local Gov Regional hospital 2 x in 24 hours and still the Dr. did not examine her! She has a history of Lupus and a fragile immune system so it is hard to know what is really going on in her body. But the LORD knows!

SO sad there is no adequate medical care here now!.

Digri is slowly getting better and was able to find strength to knit me 5 hats in 2 days. I send her a piece of fruit everyday and occasionally a piece of cake to encourage her. It seems to be helping along with your prayers and encouragement! Some of you have sent specific words for her and she has taken them to heart! Pray for her full recovery from this UTI

Little Laxmi ( Rama's niece and caregiver - only 10 years old) also has some serious health concerns but there is no Dr. to diagnose her condition. I took some video we hope to send to Dr. Caleb, a pediatrician in Kathmandu, to see if he can help with his opinion.

Sundari's father occupied the bench in the bakery and took pills to try to lower his BP for about 10 days. Both Tara Datt and I tried to teach him how important it was for him to drink water, that his blood is like dhahi ( yougurt) and one glass of water  per day is not enough to keep his BP down and flush out his kidney and bladder stones. He would not listen and simply would not drink water. But he would get up most bitter cold mornings and go up to the old outdoor kitchen, change into a thin dhoti ( sheer gauze like fabric) and sit in the cold and make his own fire and his own rice and eat it before changing back into his Nepali suit.  He is HIndu: Bhramin and cannot eat rice from anyone else's hand.Then he would return to the Bakery Café bench and demand blankets and hot water ( but to wash not to drink!) He ended up with 3 thick Korean plush queen size blankets and a heavy sidik ( comforter) and my extra heater I had lent the family.. all for his personal use in the bakery so he could be near a toilet. So 5 other members suffered with cold for the 10 nights he was here hogging all the blankets! But he is the grandfather after all. 3 days ago he suddenly decided the BP medicine was not bringing his BP down fast enough - he was going to Kathmandu. An hour later he was on a local vehicle down the hill to Dhangadi. He vomited the whole way down the hill and went straight to the hospital in Dhangadi as by the end he was vomiting blood. He spent 2 nights there and yesterday got a flight to Kathmandu. He needs your prayers on many levels.

I must admit I was amused... the one night I made spaghetti for the family, he decided to abandon his Hindu restrictions and ate 2 bowls of my salad and 2 big slices of garlic bread! I'm pretty sure he wasn't supposed to eat from my caste less hand! 

Still no word on the repair for the FM transmitter. Raj is due back tomorrow so hopefully he will have some answers. 

I took a walk for 4 KM's today to view a new house some of our community neighbors have just built. I sunburnt my nose! I'm sure you wanted to know this valuable tidbit of info. It does verify the sun does shine here and yes it is starting to warm up! PTL

Well it is late so I will close this for now.

Keep those prayers coming please!

Dawn Didi

Snowy and cold but feeling better:)

Hi everyone!

Just wanted to give you a few updates on life from this side of the world!

The weather has been very nasty here. It has been super cold here the last 3 days with rain, hail, snow and sleet.  We are all bundled in multiple layers trying to keep warm!

We had snow here today. The ground was covered as church let out.The snow in the passes on the surrounding mountains sure makes the hills a pretty sight when the clouds lift! The kids made a small snowman with spoons for arms and coal for eyes and a lellow toy for a nose!

Last night the storm hit us with lightning and struck the transmitter out on Afno FM, the tower just above us...please pray for quick repair so the Christian programming can continue. 

Yesterday we were able to narrow down a contractor for the construction of the next level of the building. We were able to negotiate a good price for the labor and started ordering supplies today though delivery of them was obstructed by the inclement weather! We are still finalizing the contract with the guy so it is just as well.

We are also working with the local Ch-urch and the NGO they have formed- they are finalizing their constitution and proposals but it looks to be a good thing for us to place our interests under their registration otherwise we will have to create our own NGO here in Nepal.( a long arduous process full of beaurocratic quagmires with the existing Gov. ) Please pray for wisdom in this decision and clear direction in this regard.

Thanks to those of you who prayed for my health... it took  a whole week  but I am better, rehydrated and energetic again. Thank God for Tinidozole!

Thanks to those of you who prayed for my cell phone. I bought a new one complete with sim card in K-du 2 weeks ago and on my first week out here had it in my pants pocket. A baby peed all over me and I took them off and plopped them in a bucket forgetting that I had put water in that same bucket earlier... uh huh... 5 hours later I went around in circles looking for my phone! I found it all right- just where I had left it!! I immediately took the thing apart and dried it out but being sick, it was a whole week till I had the energy to walk to town a mile each way to see if it could be saved! Yesterday I took it to the NCell office and presented it to the clerk with the words "now don't laugh..." they were able to fix it and use my same battery and sim card and so there was no charge! PTL! There was considerable laughter amongst all the clerks in spite of my admonition!

About 10 days ago... Tuesday I think it was, I went with Megh Raj and met with the CDO to ask permission if we could go to the jail and bring the gifts we had, to the inmates. He approved ( turns out he was the assistant CDO... the antagonistic one, head CDO, was away in Dehli)  That same afternoon, 4 of the YWAM girls, Megh and I went trotting off to jail. Turns out the "jailer" was in Dhangadi with his very pregnant wife awaiting the birth of their child and the "assistant jailer" was reluctant to let us all the way into the inner court as they had had a recent escape and he did not want to be held responsible for anything going amiss. So we were let into the first passage but had to pass the socks and mittens one by one into the guard through a double set of iron bars and all the male inmates were lined up inside to receive them. We could see most of them and talk to them. They all remembered me and were joking with me. They were all very grateful for the warmth and thanked us for the gifts and remembering them. One of the Ywam girls, Rochelle, had a few minutes to explain why we were there and why we had brought these gifts from our church and that many people were praying for them and it was all because of the love of Jesus. He loved them inside those bars as much as He loves us on this this side of the bars. She did an eloquent job and Megh interpreted very accurately. So they heard the truth and we pray it will set them free... at least spiritually! Thanks to those of you who donated those socks and mittens! They have reached their destinations.

We are praying for another opportunity for Follow up and to take them 2 radios so they can listen to our Chr-ist-ian programming. again pray the transmitters can be repaired!

Turns out Pavitri that came with me to the jail 6-7 times last year has decided to take this prison ministry seriously and took some training and got herself a " get into jail free" card from Prison Fellowship Ministry. She can take me and whoever she wants right into the inner courtyard any time the jailer oks it and has built up a nice relationship witht he jailer. They are allowing PFM to create a small library inside the jail. PFM donated 11,000 rupees for the bookcases and she had them made up already and are ready to install! PFM will then donate all the books those shelves can hold! The inmates have asked for a few books they knew to ask for and those will be obtained as well and the remainder will be Ch-risti-an.... hummm Crazy huh!

So I am waiting to hear the jailer is back in town and we will follow up! (with a present for the new baby of course!)  

I am having guests for dinner tomorrow night... maybe 6. The Leaders and the staff of the Ywam team are to come for spaghetti and garlic bread. They are not sure if they have ever had this before... it will be a new experience for them and a pleasant break from dal/bhat for me!

The paraplegic girls are still cold as we all are here. It just feels impossible to get and stay warm in spite of layers of blankets and triple layers of socks!

 Digri is still very sick and feels she cannot knit or crochet anymore. She is very thin and feels she is slowly dying. The AB and treatment did little to help her feel better and we are trying another AB but she is resistant to so many from frequent and often continuous AB use. The young "green" Dr still has yet to come examine her! Please pray for her. She has been so close to death so many times but by the grace of God, keeps somehow hanging on!

Well I think that covers the picture for now.

I will keep you posted! Could you keep us all in your prayers?

Dawn Didi

Flying through the rails on this trip:/

So grateful to finally have internet! I have been here since Wednesday PM but couldn't get the internet to function! The World Link office was closed for three days and yesterday I was busy keeping the YWAM volunteers busy on 5 different tasks so didn't make it to the office before they closed. ... funny - went and paid up the bill for 2 months in advance and lo and behold the internet suddenly works!

The bus trip from Kathmandu was brutal. The last 4 hours of it was in pea soup fog so thick you literally could not see 2 meters in front of the bus. I suspect the driver switched  with the conductor guy about that time so he could snooze, cause the driving suddenly became erratic and it felt like we were speeding around the corners. Fortunately these were smaller hills, not the actual "mountains". I tried to doze myself, after about an hour of white-knuckling it and just about succeeded when the driver slammed on the brakes and I went flying through the rails. I had had my legs extended on the rail as my seat was just inside the door above the stairs up into the bus. The impact lurched everyone forward and there are no seatbelts on these buses! So I found myself hanging with one arm on the top rail and the rest of my body suspended over the steps. I surely was wide awake now! No real harm but the wrenched muscles when my right arm flew up to catch the rest of me!

I was awake the rest of the trip so yah, 3 AM till we arrived in Dhangadiat 8:30 AM on Tuesday. We spent  a full 32 hours recovering at Balwa's house there before we got a private vehicle to bring us the rest of the 4 -5 hours up the hill on Wednesday. Santos this driver calls me "mom"

It was great to have a traveling companion this trip! Pratiksha, (Shibi's daughter, aged 22) finished her exams in K-du Monday morning so I waited for her so we could travel home together. She has 10 days off and was returning to Dumada, her village, to see her family. This is the same village I grew up in about 6 KM from here. I have known her family well for 46 years and call them my Nepali family  All these kids call me "Mom" as well!.

I went to Dumada today! Joined the YWAM team on their village excursion and we did some prayer walking  and I did a lot of reminiscing and greeting old friends in the village! We had lunch at Bhuwan"s  ( leader of YWAM ) house as his mom made a special feast for us all! Yum. I am praying there will be no negative repercussions to my intestinal tract!

I have had a chance to assess the "sitchyation" at the new paraplegic house and evaluate all the problems over there. Yes it is very cold in that building cause the sun doesn't hit the building but for 1 hour this time of year. The ceilings do drip continuously with "rain" which is definitely condensation from the warm air in the room hitting the cold cement ceilings. The squeegee I brought from K-du  quickly relocates the water  but of course is only a temporary solution. Yesterday amongst other helpful acts of kindness, the YWAM team boys helped me stuff cotton around the windows to fill in the 1/4 - 1/2 inch gaps between windows and walls ( no trim has been applied inside or outside so cold air just poured in through these big gaps). They then used up my precious roll of duct tape and the weather stripping I just brought to seal up on the insides and a tube of "bath and tile sealer" I had in my tool trunk to seal the outsides so that should improve things a little.

We are also suggesting the girls keep the windows open about 3 inches in the day time when the air is warm and their doors open to get  warmer air in the room to dry them out a little but close them promptly when the sun goes down  and the air gets chilly. This makes little sense to them but they have done it now for a few days and it is helping! 

A consensus of everyone from general contractors to the person on the street is: A) this is the worst it will ever be. B) this happens in every new building the first year and will likely be minimal if any issue next year after the cement has set up properly. C) this is not water coming through the cement roof... it is condensation. D) the weather is already warming up E) the single most effective thing we can do to remediate this is to build the next level of the building.

Sooooooo that is the plan. We will build the educational center... at least the pillars and  the next roof!  4 pillars and the back retaining wall are already in place. We need 8 more pillars and at least the nexk roof. We can then fill in with brick walls as we have the funds. We have $ 5000.00  that should cover the pillars and ceiling but will need to collect for the brick walls.

Many of you have written to ask how you can help so I have prayed and want to share the thought I had in response. I call it the "power of 10"

I appreciate that many of you feel you don't have much to contribute financially... and having been broke myself most of this last year I can relate. But if everyone that gets this email could send in just $10 in this next month - we could have this educational center done in the next 8 weeks I am here.  And if each of you could talk to others about this need till each of you can find one other person who could do the same -and send in $10 then we can complete the interior and furnish it as well and get it functional! now if you can convince 10 others instead of just 1, think how we could exponentially impact the potential here.  Who do you know that you could share this need with?

We envision this as an educational center where literacy, skill, computer and spiritual training could take place and we would have a small library as well as a small boutique where these women could sell their fine products locally.

So could you pass on a Starbucks coffee just twice this week and make a difference in this community with those same resources? I know some of you will want to give more and we certainly won't object! But by us all pulling together with just "10" we will make a huge difference in the lives of hundreds who will use this place to learn and grow. Perhaps you know of a philanthropist or foundation who would assist us in this? Please share with them and clue me in if you know who we could approach to help us improve thousands of lives through this center. We know that every impoverished woman we reach in this learning center will exponentially impact 4-5 lives in her home if not in her own community! If you give a man a fish you feed him for a day. If you teach an man to fish you feed him for a lifetime. If you teach a woman how to fish she will feed her whole family and community  for a lifetime and teach that man how to clean his fish!

Will close for now and give you more updates later on our other ministries. Tomorrow I go to talk with the CDO ( chief district officer) to explore what I can do to continue the prison ministry. There are 40 very cold prisoners and I have socks and mittens for them all but am told this CDO ( new since I was last here) is very negative about Christians and has created resistance about allowing ones from the chu-urch in of late to visit. I need the favor of man to proceed. It is a spiritual battle we fight... not against flesh and blood but against principalities...Pray for me please.

Thanks for standing in the gap with me.

We need your prayers !

Oh and please pray for Digri, One of the 2 paraplegics... 

she is running a fever and seems to have another UTI. She gets so very sick with these. We started her on antibiotics yesterday... she needs the Lord's touch of healing! So does a 6 month old baby here in my landlord's home with fever and vomiting for 3 days. The hospital is empty... only a few patients and no supplies. Is there even a doctor? When I was there a few days ago he was due to arrive but hadn't yet!

Thanks for prayerfully considering your part in this educational center for HIs glory!

All for now!

Keeping faith!

Dawn Didi

Donations may be sent to:

Dare to Care

345 N Alfred St.

Elgin Ill., 60123

www.daretocareinc.com    has a paypal link for cc use

One of our young ladies learning to knit

A small group of our ladies learning knitting

More ladies learning to produce product for a source of income to support their families

Safe in Kathmandu

DHi Everyone!

I arrived in Kathmandu last Saturday although several hours late due to snow in Korea.

The usual challenges have been an adjustment... electricity only 3 -4 hours a day ( affects my internet access considerably!) and we have had the pump go out here at the house I'm staying at so no ( ok very limited) water! But life goes on!

 It has been an eventful week shopping for yarn, cheese, groceries to haul out west and researching various solar options for the Para girls home.

I also visited the Brick factory women's project and left them  a large order of jewelry to make while I'm out west and I'll pick it up on my return.

Friday I hung out at the orphanage for a few hours and blessed them with socks and games and a good donation so they can buy shoes for all the now 25 kids! They all look healthy and robust! Full of smiles!

I returned Saturday and went to church with them and then followed them back home to the orphange to share Dal/ Bhat ( lunch) with them. It was great to get to know some of the kids on a more personal level! 7 of the girls are all in grade 9! Please pray for them all in these teenage years! Two new little girls ages 3.5 and 5 came a few weeks ago. They seem happy and adjusted already but pray for them!

Internet has been the pits with the electrical shortages so will close this here and hope I can press send before it cuts out on me again!

Plan is to take the AC deluxe night bus with Pratiksha on Monday. She has exams today and tomorrow and then 10 days off so we will travel the 30 hour bus ride together with a stop for one night( after about 22 hours of it)  in Dhangadi with my friends to catch up on their lives. It will break up the trip!

Pray for safe travel... this is the grueling part but necessary if I am ever going to get there!

I miss my kids already but am enjoying Nepal again so much. The weather is sunny and the Himalayas are gorgeous this time of year!

So glad you have my back with your prayers!

Dawn Didi

Ready To ROCK AND ROLL! 😄

I think I am finally packed and ready to go!

I'm going to try to head to bed and sleep now... for just a few hours and then get up and care for a few housekeeping needs that have piled up since I worked 4 days this week and dealt with a flooded basement on top of all my shopping and packing chores. Funny those dishes just didn't do themselves! That, and a little laundry that shouldn't sit here dirty for 10 and a half weeks!

Thanks to those of you that donated socks and stretchy gloves for the prison ministry inmates and our orphans! It will really bless them!

I'll keep you posted on my adventures! It is always Crazy Wonderful doing life with God this way!

Anne will be here at 12:30 to take me to the airport so will keep this one short!

Longer ones will follow to be sure!

Blessings!

Dawn Didi

Save the date!!

This next weekend is our Jolly Nepali Bazaar!

Where else can your Christmas dollar buy sooooo much and bless sooooooooooo many!

You think you are buying a gift for Aunt Susie but in reality, it touches the lives of needy precious people deep in the Himalayas of Nepal to change their poverty into self sufficiency and enrich their lives and that of their impoverished children as well. Dare to Care offers" not just a hand out, but a hand up" to countless needy women and their families in Nepal.

Thank you for coming and bringing your friends!  I hope to see you there if you are in the Seattle area!

 If you are not... Please lift us up in prayer!

 Please know you can SPONSOR an orphan ($30/ month), buy a whole month of radio programing( $200/ month), or adopt a widow and her family ( food for a month for 5, plus warm clothes for the kids and shoes on their feet and a hen to lay eggs... all for $100  one time donation)This can be in your loved ones name with a card for you to deliver to explain your gift on their behalf! Gift certificates for our products are also available. Microloan sponsorships are also available.   

Thanks to all of you who have supported us in prayer, encouragement and financially in the past! You are awesome and we Praise God for you every day! You have blessed us and this ministry in countless ways! At this Thanksgiving Season please know our hearts are busting with gratitude for His moving  in your lives as well and are thrilled you have chosen to partner with us in what God is doing in Nepal.

May He continue to bless you and yours!

Dawn... for all of us both here in the US and in Nepal at Dare to Care!

PS Please put up on or more of these fliers in your place of business or life lived out ( church, gym, grocery, library!) Or forward it to 10 people right now ... though nothing will happen if you don't... except you might miss out on how God intended to bless you as He moves His kingdom forward! His blessings are amazing!

Nepali sure is Bazaar!

So here's the story.  We are trying to get the paraplegic building completed.  All that needs to be done is the septic system.  Once completed we can then move the first phase of handicapped women into the house.  We are have a Nepali Bazaar sale beginning tomorrow , Thursday the 25th through Saturday the 27th from 9am till 6pm. 

Would you please stop by and see all the fantastic things I brought back.  Maybe you will decide to make a donation to help us meet our goal and take something home for a kingdom cause.  Check out the flyer attached for more details.  Hope to see you at the bazaar.

Join us at the Music Festival July 19-23

If you would like me to come visit your neck of the woods and speak/ share about Dare to Care please let me know.

If you have any leads of foundations that might respond to our requests for grants to enable us to complete the educational level and the guesthouse level of our facility or even this level for the disabled (LOL) please let me know. We have a couple people who have offered to write the grants for us if we can find appropriate foundations interested in our causes.

 I will be at the Photosynthesis Music Festival in Neah Bay, WA for July 19-23! I just confirmed a complementary 10x10 space. Pray I can be salt and light to the thousands visiting that weekend and for some manpower help that weekend and of course, HIGH DONATIONS!. This is an event put on by my son and his business partners which has made me aspecially excited.

Any more fundraiser ideas and muscle is always appreciated!

Happy 4th of July. Be safe and blessed.
Dawn