Newsletter - September, 2006

The Least of These My Brethren

September, 2006

Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me." Matt. 25:40

Published by the Society of the Good Shepherd, P. O. Box 122, Amberson, PA 17210

Tragedy Strikes One of Our Beneficiaries

Jorge Vasquez-2005

One of the small business loans we made several years ago was to Jorge Vasquez, a brother who lives in Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras. He has been serving as the senior pastor at one of the evangelical churches in Tegucigalpa. Since the support from his church was not quite enough to meet his family’s needs, he applied for a loan from the Society to purchase a van to carry students to and from one of the private schools in the city. He had a goodly number of students who subscribed to his service, and this part-time business helped to support his wife and family.

The business was intended to be only a temporary enterprise, as the longer term vision he and his family had were to serve as missionaries in Romania. This past year, they had completed their one year of missionary and language training and were making all of the final arrangements for their move to Romania.

Jorge, Daisy & their family - 2005

Jorge had not been able to make very many payments on his loan, as his business was only part-time. However, the agreement was that when he was ready to move to Romania, he would sell the van and pay off the loan at that time. Everything worked according to plan. Jorge recently sold the van and he was all set to pay off the loan.

Meanwhile, Jorge and his family were traveling throughout Honduras and neighboring El Salvador to raise support from churches for their intended missionary work in Romania. Six weeks ago, he and his family were in El Salvador for this purpose. They were staying at a house in San Salvador, the capital. Jorge’s brother-in-law, Carlos, was driving him to a nearby town where Jorge was going to be speaking at a church.

Part of the highway on which the two men were traveling was under construction. There was an enormous amount of dust and dirt in the air, which made it extremely difficult to see. Suddenly, Carlos saw a huge pile of sand on the road directly in front of them. (There had been no warning lights or barricades.) Carlos quickly swerved to miss the pile of sand, but they were struck head on by a dump truck carrying sand.

Jorge today

Both men were seriously injured, although they have both survived. The force of the crash broke Jorge’s upper leg and pushed it out of the bone socket. This has pinched a nerve on his spine, paralyzing that leg. Because Jorge had little money and was not a Salvadoranian citizen, he could not stay at the hospital there for more than a few days. Instead, the doctors sent him to the house where he and his family were staying in San Salvador.

The doctor has said that with surgery (which in this case is risky), the pinched nerve can be freed and Jorge should be able to walk again—although he will almost certainly have a limp the rest of his life.

Deborah and I have just returned from Honduras, where we learned about this tragic accident. I told the brothers and sisters there that I’m sure our donors will want Jorge and his family to simply keep the money with which he was going to pay back his loan, to help towards his expenses and to help support the family while he is immobilized. This will help him to pay for the medical bills that have accumulated so far. I also wanted to let all of you to know about Jorge’s situation in case any of you would like to help in any way with his coming surgery and family needs. He and his family would also covet your prayers. Please share this prayer need with your church as well.

Any donations to the Vasquez family can be sent c/o The Society of the Good Shepherd, P. O. Box 122, Amberson, PA 17210. Donations can also be made directly on our website, www.scrollpublishing.com. Simply scroll down to the button that says “Contributions.” Please make a note on your check or with your credit card payment that the donation is intended for the Vasquez family. As is always our policy, 100% of all donations will go directly to Jorge and his family. Nothing will be deducted for overhead.

Receiving get-well cards would be a huge encouragement to Jorge and his family as well. The postage for a one ounce card is 84¢. You can send cards directly to the family at:

Jorge and Daisy Vasquez
Col. Ex-Sol Pje 3 #10
Mejicanos, San Salvador
El Salvador, C.A.