A letter from Debbie and Harry Horne in Peru
October 2011
Dear sisters and brothers,
We want to begin by saying "Thank you" on a personal note for all the love, support and prayers during the past year. This past year has been very difficult and sad for our family. As many of you know, in June 2010 we found out that our son, Eddie, was battling advanced melanoma. Debbie left Peru to be with him in mid-November when it was discovered to have metastasized in his lungs and her stay ended up being extended to approximately eight months. In February of this year Debbie’s mom died after an extended illness. Then, after a valiant struggle, Eddie passed away on April 18 of this year. The grief has been and is constantly with us. We have deeply appreciated the support and prayers we have received from sisters and brothers both by birth and in Christ. Please continue to pray for us as we continue this journey of profound sadness with the void left in our family and in our hearts.
Harry and Debbie with the 2011-2012 Peru YAVs taken at our first YAV retreat in October
As for work, on August 30 Debbie received her new group of six Young Adult Volunteers. They are in their placements now, helping out with churches, with environmental and agricultural projects, with Fair Trade, with abused teenagers and women, and with special needs children. Hannah Schonau-Taylor is working in the area of social and psychological attention with abuse victims in Huánuco. Mary Morrow is working with environmental and development issues and with young people in Huancavelica. Sean Delaney works with a team on the prevention of violence against children in the Lima district known as San Juan de Lurigancho. Kaley Anderson works with the PC(USA) partner Joining Hands in its various campaigns, including La Oroya and Fair Trade. Shane Webb does pastoral work with two churches of the Iglesia Evangélica Peruana in an area of Lima called Comas. Sarah Webb, a speech pathologist, works with special needs children at the Ann Sullivan Center in Lima. It is a joy to know them, and we want you to share in the hope we have for our church as we see them live and work with our sisters and brothers here in Peru.
We want to mention last year’s YAV group as well. We shared laughs, friendship and work with Rachel Hudson, who worked with victims of abuse in Huánuco; James Lantz, who worked with coffee growers near Moyobamba; and Lisa Hermann, who worked with survivors of the years of violence in the department of Ayacucho. All three worked with different branches of Paz y Esperanza, a nonprofit organization that is a partner of the Joining Hands Perú network and has done a great job of receiving YAVs and finding places for them to contribute to the work here. Rachel, James and Lisa returned home with fresh perspectives and newly honed skills, including fluent Spanish, and are finding places to use these in serving people back in the USA.
Harry continues to teach at the Recinto Universitario Teológico, a theological education program related to the Universidad Bíblica Latinoamericana, which is also a hope-full activity. Teaching the Introduction to the Bible course allows him to get to know group after group of new students. Their enthusiasm and deep desire to know the Bible in order to better serve the Lord, their churches, and their community helps keep this old man going as retirement looms in the not-so-distant future. We hope and pray that all we do as professors will support and inform their ministries.
Debbie and Eddie, Thanksgiving 2010
The Recinto continues to grow, in part due to new programs. It has instituted a program of Saturday studies for people whose work prevents them from taking courses at the normal times, Monday to Friday nights. It has also begun offering courses via the Internet. In this program, graduates of the Recinto and upper-level students who are now living and working far from Lima convene groups of people who are interested in pursuing university-level theological study. These are primarily people who have university degrees in other fields, are active in their churches, and want to pursue the kind of university-level Bible study we offer. Students join classes in Lima via SKYPE. The conveners are in place as a kind of group of graduate assistants to follow up on homework and other matters.
We also want to express our appreciation for your continued support for our ministries here in Peru. Through your support, both prayerful and financial, you are a real part of our ministries and our personal lives. We are grateful.
Shalom,
Debbie and Harry Horne
P.S. If you would like to support us and our ministry, here’s how you can do so:
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To give to our sending and support, you can through ECO E200364. Please use the link below
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To support scholarships for our students, you can through ECO 052331 (also see the link below). You can fund a scholarship for a year with $300, $400, or $500. Just indicate clearly that the money is being sent for scholarships for the Recinto Universitario Teologico in Lima, Peru
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To support the YAV program, go to the PC(USA) website, www.www.presbyterianmission.org/ministries/yav.
The 2011 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 300
The 2012 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 23
Write to Harry Horne
Write to Debbie Horne
Give to Harry and Debbie Horne's sending and support
Donate to Latin American Biblical University in Lima, Peru
Donate to the Young Adult Volunteer program
