Summer Newsletter

Dear Prayer Partners,

After spending the summer in the States I returned to the DR two weeks ago and I am now preparing to start my third year serving here in the DR. In this update I'll share some of the highlights from this summer as well as some praises and prayer requests going into this new year.

June

• June brought the end of my second year teaching. The last few weeks we got to celebrate the end of the school year with class parties and award ceremonies.

• Once we had said goodbye to the students the staff had a lunch to celebrate the end of the school year. At this lunch I was honored to be awarded the elementary Teacher of the Year award. All glory to God. I'm thankful for the passion He has given me to teach and the opportunities He has given me here to invest in the lives of these students and their families.

• Mid-June I was able to fly back to Ohio. I got to spend time with family and had a few weeks to rest and recharge.

July

• July was a pretty busy month. I was able to visit three different churches in Ohio that have each been my church home at some point in the last 10 years. It was so good to be able to see many familiar faces and meet many new people as well. I enjoyed sharing about my ministry and what the Lord is doing through DR Vision.

• I started online classes to get a TEFL certification (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). I am looking forward to using the information I am learning in these classes to help me be successful in teaching my students English, and I am hoping these skills will open more doors for ministry in the future as well.

• I was able to reunite with some friends from college while I was home in Ohio. I'm always so grateful for time to catch up and make new memories with old friends.

• Mid-July I flew to Texas to visit my roommate, Lamour. It was so sweet to reunite and for her to be able to show me around her hometown. I am beyond blessed by the friendship the Lord has given me with Lamour and I am so grateful we get to serve with and encourage one another in the DR. Lamour and I had the opportunity to visit a handful of churches together to share about our ministry and raise additional support. Between traveling to visit churches and continuing my classes I stayed pretty busy, but we were able to make time to have some fun and explore during our time there as well.

August

• On August 8th I packed up my things and flew back to the DR. It was great to be able to spend a few months in the States, but I was excited to come back home to my own apartment in the DR. I was able to jump back into serving on the praise team at my church and leading worship for chapel Sunday night. It was so sweet to see everyone again and to be able to participate in these ministries again.

• On August 19th we started in-service at the school. Lamour and I were able to help lead worship welcoming the staff back for a new school year. This week of in-service we had a few meetings but also had a lot of time to spend in our classrooms setting up for the new year. I have a new teaching partner this year and we seem to get along and communicate well. My classroom is all prepped and I am excited to meet my new students soon! Meet the teacher night will be on the 30th and the first day of school will be on September 2nd.

Praises

• This summer, while we were visiting churches, Lamour and I shared that we had a goal of raising $10-15,000 to help us purchase a reliable vehicle to help us get to all of our ministry commitments this year. I am excited to share that the Lord provided in big ways, and we were able to raise around $13,000 towards the car this summer! Thank you to any of you who gave money towards this goal. I am always humbled by the way the Lord provides for all of our needs so we can continue to serve Him.

• On August 22nd I had a residency appointment scheduled in the capital. I was a little nervous to go since I have had many appointments where they told me I was missing documents or had to get different legalization on the documents. But, after two and a half years and thousands of dollars of working to get legal status in the DR, I was finally given my residency card this week! This is an answer to many prayers. Thank you to all of you who faithfully prayed over the last few years for this process. God is good.

• I posted a classroom wish list on social media this summer that had many classroom supplies and resources that I wanted to add to my classroom this year. I had multiple individuals and churches that were so generous in donating to meet these needs. I was able to buy almost every item that was on my wish list as well as cover almost all the shipping cost to pick up the packages. Thank you so much to those of you who purchased items or sent me money towards this as well. These resources will be a huge blessing to my students and I this year.

Prayer Requests

• The next few months Lamour and I will be looking for a reliable vehicle to purchase. Please pray that we are able to find the right vehicle at the right time that fits in our budget and can provide us safe transportation.

• Pray for the start of the school year. The start of a new year can be a chaotic and stressful time. My students often come to me speaking little to no English which is an additional challenge. Please pray that I am able to connect well with my new students and their families and that their hearts will be open to what the Lord has for them to learn in my class this year.

• I am looking for additional monthly supporters for this coming year. Please pray that the Lord would provide for me financially in this way. If you are interested in joining me as a monthly supporter or increasing your monthly support, please send me an email at n.dobson@dbmi.org. You can find more information about signing up to give a one time or monthly gift here.

Thank you for continuing to follow along with my ministry updates. I am excited to continue to serve here in the DR and continue sharing with you the great work of our God. Thank you for your faithful support and prayers.

Blessings,

Natasha