Spelling Bee and Seminary Graduation

Hello Everyone,
It has been a cool week weather wise here in San Jose. It feels like an Iowa fall which is making us a bit homesick for a good college football game. Our ESPN does not show any of those games, but they sure like soccer. Actually, we are getting more used to watching soccer and enjoy a good goal. We have been able to watch bits and pieces of the World Series and once in a while a Monday night NFL game which has become a weekly tradition for Dad and Joshua to catch a least a few minutes of whatever game is showing that night.

This week Kayley was chosen for the 4th grade spelling bee. This is an honor as only 3 kids are chosen from each class. Kayley did not win, but performed well under the pressure of many eyes. She is now encouraged to read even more to learn more words so she can do even better next year.



There were many visitors to the seminary campus this week with a weekend retreat, education leaders' meetings and graduation all rolled into one long weekend. We participated mainly by making trips to the airport to help pick up folks. The graduation ceremony was great with representation from 9 countries including Brazil, Peru and Cuba. Many of the grads could not attend because of visa issues, but we enjoyed meeting those who were there and clapped for those who could not make it.



Our next door neighbors are the rectors of the seminary. They are Ruben and Monica Fernandez who both have doctorates and teach and administer SENDAS. They are wonderful neighbors and we enjoy them when they are around. Here they are being congratulated on another year of great work educating students throughout South and Central America.



We hope your week is a great. We are glad to hear the fires have died down in California and our friends in Carlsbad are safe and well.

Until next week,
The Webb Family

ICS - International Christian School

Hello Everyone,
This week we'd like to tell you a bit about the school that Joshua and Kayley attend. It is called ICS which stands for International Christian School. It was started as a missionary kid school but has since developed into an English language school attended mostly by Costa Rican kids. It goes from Pre-Kindergarten to 12th grade.

The school is about a 10 minute very bumpy, pot-holey ride with some of the prettiest scenery you can imagine. One hill is so steep, I many times must shift down to 1st gear to make it up. (I'm sure that grade of slope would be illegal in the USA!)


Do you see those potholes? Let's just say, you weave yourself down the road!

The school has 5 main buildings. One for primary, one for a chapel and lunch room, one for administration, one for secondary and the last for a beautiful new gymnasium. (Joshua is hoping for a basketball team later this fall). The primary and secondary buildings have three wings each attached by outside walkways. There are 3 soccer fields of which Joshua is famous for finding the muddiest, dirtiest hole to fall in during his lunchtime tackle American Football game.



The kids are pleased to have a short week of school this week. They did not have classes on Monday because of Dia de la Raza (Cultural Day) and tomorrow (Friday) is parent-teacher conference day so no classes once again. Three day week....could it get any better? Well, maybe so since Kayley has a friend overnight tonight and Joshua is off visiting his new Russian friend Mike, shown in the picture below.


Tey, Mike and Joshua in front of the secondary wing.




Kayley and Jasmine ready for a sleepover.

Last weekend, David led training sessions in the North part of Costa Rica, an area not far from a pretty and active volcano called Arenal. Shelley, meanwhile, attended the Costa Rica Central NMI (missions) convention, much like what Nazarene churches celebrate each year in the states with some official voting along with reports of what has happened during the year. Unfortunately, neither Webb family member managed to remember to take photos, so we're nothing to show you for our efforts. But, it was all good!

This next week will be busy with lots of meetings here on campus. There is a retreat for Pastors and wives as well as seminary graduation. It will be fun to see many leaders here from the three countries.

Our schedule for 2008 is booking up already, but if you are interested in taking a missions trip to our area, please let us know as soon as possible. Already we have teams booked for January, February, March, May, July and two in August! We'd love to see you! Email us at dwebb@nazmac.org or swebb@nazmac.org.

God bless you all!
The Webbs
David, Shelley, Joshua and Kayley

Weekend Activities

Hello Everyone!

Well, it has been a an uneventful week with our normal routine of office work, phone calls and plans for the future, so there is nothing too exciting to report this time around. The kids are in school and will receive their first report cards later this week, so they are preparing for some tests and projects.

Kayley and Joshua have both enjoyed our "adopted" dog, Tawny who has handed down to us from the Rice family who in June left the field and are now in Oklahoma. Tawny is a quiet, patient dog who sleeps on average 18 hours a day, so she is not too much trouble, except for the hair that is everywhere! She puts up with Kayley pulling on her and dressing her up so Kayley loves her.


In other news, on Sunday, David led a workshop to prepare a new church plant for their upcoming Maximum Mission, an event to reach out to the community and raise awareness of the Church of the Nazarene in the area. It started with an afternoon church service and afterwards a two hour training time.


The church is in the town of Alajuela, just north of the airport, and this particular part of the town, Santa Rita, was declared by La Nacion, the most prominent Costa Rican newspaper, as the most dangerous section of Costa Rica. There are lots of drugs and other problems that come along with that, but the new Pastor, Pastor Marco, feels led to plant the church in this neighborhood to make a difference in the people's lives. It is difficult work, but he has courage and strength to carry on. You can pray for him as he recently lost his job because of being a pastor, so he is looking for other work. He is not worried, even though he has a wife and baby to care for. He is a testimony of trusting in the Lord for all things.


The man with the smile is Pastor Marco, along with others in the new church.

David had a wonderful time in the United States in September and attended conferences in Ohio and Oregon as well as visits to Tennessee and Iowa. We were glad to have him home after that nearly two week trip. (Sorry, no pictures as the camera is left behind somewhere!)

Well, that's all for this week. We hope and pray you are well.
God bless,
The Webb Family

Webb Page Newsletter September 07

The Webb Page

September 2007

The months of July, August and September have been filled many adventures for the Webb family.

Read on to learn more…

Teams and More Teams

We were privileged to work with two different work and witness teams during these three months. The first was a group from Carlsbad, California who worked very hard in children’s ministries and in construction of the new MAC Area Leadership building. They are already planning a youth trip for August of 2008. We can’t wait!

The second was a group from Michigan that worked in the north part of Nicaragua on a new church building in La Carbonera. David enjoyed his time with this team and in addition much headway was made on the new structure.

Children from La Carbonera helping with the construction.

The other team during this period was a Jesus Film team that brought equipment and helped with showings in Panama. David had a great time getting to know those on the team and looks forward to seeing some of them this coming weekend in Portland at the Work and Witness conference.

Time with Family

We did manage to sneak in a few days of rest in the midst of all the activities. In July, David’s mom and sister from Iowa made a visit to Costa Rica. We had a great time exploring La Paz Waterfall Gardens, which we highly recommend to everyone visiting here. And of course we saw the amazing Poas volcano. It is not everyday you can look down into a volcano!

David’s mom, Virginia, then David and his sister Tina.

In August, we took a few days off to spend at the beach. We had promised the kids a beach trip before school started and we nearly ran out of time, but finally we found 3 days in a row to get away. The beach was great and even though we got some sunburns, it was great fun to ride the waves and walk on the beach.

Trouble in Paradise

In September, Hurricane Felix decided to make his name known in Central America. David was visiting the area of Puerto Cabezas to prepare for a Jesus Film team that will visit in February 2008 when Felix decided to make landfall. It was quite an experience for him as he had not been in the center of a hurricane before, but God protected David and the other leaders from harm. The devastation is vast from this storm and people there will be rebuilding for a long time.

A photo of the devastation from the airplane

Back to Class
The kids returned to school after summer break and are now back in the routine of things. Kayley danced in the Costa Rican Independence Day Celebration and Joshua is considering going out for basketball later this fall. They have both enjoyed the school more this semester probably because they are more accustomed to it and know more kids. We’re thankful.

Kayley’s class dressed up for the event. Kayley is on the far left near the back.

Upcoming Events
Well, David is in the states now for Work and Witness conventions in Ohio and Portland as well as a quick trip to Tennessee to preach at our home church. After that trip there are plans to visit different places within Costa Rica to do some Evangelism Training. Then another trip to Southeast Nicaragua to minister there. In November each district will have their conventions. Not sure if we’ll make it to them all, but at least to some of them.

Shelley would like to visit the north part of Nicaragua in early December to visit the two Child Development Centers there, but those plans are still in process.

Deputation Services 2009

Yes, I know 2009 seems a long way off, but already we are booking dates for services in June, July and August of 2009. If you are interested in having the Webb Family visit your church or district, you can contact us directly at swebb@nazmac.org or dwebb@nacmac.org. Dates are filling fast and June is already nearly full, so let us know so we don’t miss your area in 2009.

This has been a good three months of ministry. We especially thank you for your prayers for David while in Puerto Cabezas. We were sure glad to see him arrive home from that trip!

God bless you all,

The Webb Family

Costa Rican Independence Day

Hello All,
This week has been busy making preparations for the teams that will arrive in 2008 as well as getting ready for David's trip to the US (Ohio, Tennessee, Iowa and Oregon). We did mange to find time to visit the American Embassy here in San Jose, not just because we wanted a taste of home, but more because David had run out of pages in his passport. They added them fairly quickly and we only spent a morning there.

Today is Independence Day in Costa Rica. The kids' school held a ceremony including the singing of many Costa Rican hymns and anthems as well as typical dancing. Here is Kayley showing off the outfit we borrowed from a new friend. She looked darling.



Afterwards there was a short parade in the dark with lanterns that the children had made. (Seemed like a fire hazard to me with these little paper boxes holding lit candles while small children swing them around, but that was just my perspective and no one else was bothered by this danger.) There were lots of typical Costa Rican foods, like rice and chicken, beans, tamales, and even hot dogs with cabbage on top (strange!). Here is Kayley standing in front of the food price list with her make up and hair fixed with flowers.



And then the special surprise of fireworks. They were really quite good and we all enjoyed them, especially since there was no rain. It was a beautiful night.

We hope your week has gone well. We ask you to continue praying for those affected by Hurricane Felix. It is easy for us to forget, but the people there are still trying to pick up the pieces. We are excited that a team will be headed to Puerto Cabezas in February to assist in whatever way they can. Personally, we are thankful that the kids have gotten off to a good start to the school year, much better than last semester.

We are already making plans for our deputation services we will be holding during our home assignment in 2009. We will be available from June-August of 2009 but the month of June is already full, so if you are interested in having us speak at your church in 2009, please contact us immediately to make these arrangements. You can email us at swebb@nazmac.org.



God bless you all. Have a great week!

The Webb Family