Burundi

We Give Praise For:

• God’s protection over the staff, their families, and the entire Plant With Purpose global team during this month of August 2024
• Various cases of illness were cured for our staff and family members and some of the cases were hospitalization for surgical operations. God has been on our side, and everyone is well now.
• The tree nurseries are being established, as well as community participation in this work. This is very encouraging, and we hope for good results this silvicultural year.
• The good continuation of our activities despite the challenges linked to the lack of fuel in our country. Let us also pray that our country can overcome this and other challenges related to the economy.

We Pray For:

• More protection for our staff, their families, and the entire Plant With Purpose family. May this month of September be happy and productive for the glory of our Lord and for all of us.
• Good growth of the seedlings in nurseries located throughout our watersheds. May God continue to strengthen the good hearts of the participants who help in the maintenance and care of the nurseries.
• The trip to Burundi that was made by a Plant With Purpose team and representatives of the Plant With Purpose Africa countries. May the Lord grant the team a safe journey and a pleasant stay in our country, and may the workshop be a success.
• Bush fires which are frequent during the dry season in which we are. These bush fires are ravaging both trees planted and nature either by accident or by simple ignorance and have already inflicted enormous losses on our initiatives.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

We Give Praise For:

• The health and security of our staff in all watersheds where the program is implemented.
• The safety of our participants from monkeypox. There is an increase in cases of monkeypox within our region, but all our participants are still safe.
• The monitoring and evaluation supervisor was sick for many months, but he is now available and ready to start work this week.
• The good progress in establishing tree nurseries, and we thank God that the participants and staff have worked hard to start these tree nurseries on time.
• The participants in the Kakumba watershed who, though on the brink of official graduation, continue the work without our support and maintain regular meetings of Purpose Groups.

We Pray For:

• The family of one of our Purpose Group members and cashier of a group in the Luvubu watershed who died after giving birth.
• The Plant With Purpose Africa regional meeting is taking place in Burundi. We pray for the Plant With Purpose DRC team, which will be traveling to participate.
• The graduation readiness assessment for five watersheds is planned for next month. We pray for the successful completion of these assessments.
• The peace and reconciliation meetings organized by the spiritual renewal development leaders. In all program watersheds meetings of church and local leaders will be gathering for peace and reconciliation.

Dominican Republic

We Give Praise For:

• The abundant rains that are enabling the planting of trees and continue to sustain the communities we serve. 
• The 40th anniversary of Floresta which has made possible the remarkable transformation of the quality of life of farmers living in conditions of poverty and the restoration of the environment across the Dominican Republic.
• All the farmers who have managed to improve their quality of life through participation with Floresta.

We Pray For:

• A community pastor who had eye surgery. We pray that God will help her in her recovery process.
• A member of a Purpose Group in the Nizao watershed, who recently lost a son in a traffic accident.
• The protection of the Plant With Purpose DR staff who travel difficult roads every day.
• The new areas where we have begun work. We pray that the community members will welcome the team and our program.
• The sister of one team member, who was recently diagnosed with bone marrow cancer. May God provide the family with the strength to face this process.

Ethiopia

We Give Praise For:

• The successful completion of fiscal year 2024 where Plant With Purpose Ethiopia operated and completed all planned activities including afforestation amid insecurity.
• The completion of annual reports for the Agency for Civil Society Organization and the Bureau of Economy.
• The successful completion of the annual audit by Agency for Civil Society Organization (ACSO) and Private Organization Employees’ Pension in Ethiopia. Thanks to God we scored best achievement recognition certificates.
• The staff protection and security while working under an insecure situation.
• A very good rainy season which favored smooth agricultural activities.

We Pray For:

• The successful recruitment of a monitoring, evaluation, and learning officer, procurement officer, and environmental restoration officer.
• The safety and security of Plant With Purpose Ethiopia staff and property. Recently the district we are operating in has been taken over by militant groups.
• The peace and security of the Amhara region and Ethiopia at large.
• Market stability. Currently the staff and the citizens are suffering due to high inflation associated with a new initiative of macroeconomic policy resulting in the devaluation of local currency.

Haiti

We Give Praise For:

• The safety and security of the staff and farmers despite the increasing insecurity in the country.
• The resilience and courage of farmers, even when their harvests are being wasted because the main roads to the markets in the cities are blocked by gangs. Furthermore, they continue to plant trees and crops for a better future for their family.

We Pray For:

• The ongoing rain in some regions where farmers are planting trees to reach first quarter targets.
• The freedom of the people imprisoned by politicians and gangsters so that they can get back home and live freely in the country.
• The empathy of the international community, particularly the countries that consider themselves friends of Haiti, to take meaningful action in halting the flow of firearms and ammunition that fuel gang violence.
• The police and the authorities supported by the international community that they may fulfill their responsibilities and create hope in the face of widespread food insecurity, while also addressing the isolation of Port-au-Prince, the capital, from the rest of the country.

Malawi

We Give Praise For:

• God’s grace and mercies upon Plant With Purpose Malawi and our families.
• God’s provision for Plant With Purpose Malawi.
• The good work God is doing in transforming the lives of the people of the Lwafwa watershed.

We Pray For:

• The new monitoring, evaluation, and learning officer who will be joining Plant With Purpose Malawi on September 2, 2024.
• The recruitment process for a program director. We pray that God will grant Plant With Purpose Malawi the right candidate to fill this position.
• Ownership of all program activities by the farming communities in the Lwafwa watershed.

Mexico

We Give Praise For:

• The willingness of the authorities and farmers of the municipality of Santo Domingo Nuxaá, to continue reforesting varieties of forest plants in the Piedra de Cal area. So far 2,200 have been planted.
• The rains in the Mixtec region that continue to fall and benefit the growth of crops in most of the watersheds, and the reforestation that has been carried out.
• The attentiveness of the staff, both in the office and in the field, who ensured our safety from road collapses and landslides while traveling to the field. 

We Pray For:

• Rain for the communities of the Coatecas Altas watershed, where it has not rained for weeks, and crops are beginning to suffer from the lack of water.
• The constant blockages in the Mesbiljá watershed, derived from long-standing socio-political conflicts. We pray that they find a way to dialogue and resolve these issues so we can advance in our field activities.
• The poor health of a community pastor’s son. This pastor has supported our work in a positive way and helped spread it in sister churches in Los Altos de Chiapas. We join his cry for grace and mercy for his son.
• Grace and wisdom as we expand our work into new communities so that more families can participate in the stewardship of creation.

Tanzania

We Give Praise For:

• God’s protection throughout August, safeguarding our staff, families, participants, and supporters.
• The successful Vision Trip, where we had the privilege of sharing our program’s progress with our visitors, including ongoing restoration activities in the Sanya River watershed.
• The fruitful Training of Trainers (ToT) program conducted for our new staff members, equipping them for their roles.
• The continued positive response in the Mbakwe watershed, with the establishment of four new active Purpose Groups and another fourteen groups in progress. We thank God for these milestones and pray for success as we strive to achieve our targets.
• The complete shift to digital reporting during field activities which has greatly simplified the monitoring of our program.

We Pray For:

• Healing for a facilitator from Shengena West as she recovers from her accident.
• Continued protection and guidance for all our staff, especially as they carry out their work in remote and less accessible areas.
• The upcoming Vision Trip to the Hai West watershed in September. May it be successful and impactful for all involved.
• A successful and smooth quarterly data collection exercise during the last two weeks of September as we assess our program’s progress.

Thailand

We Give Praise For:

• God’s guidance for the travel and the video production of the media team during their visit in August.
• The new born child of one of our staff financial officers. He was born on 31 July 2024. Both mother and son are healthy.
• The implementation in tree planting activities in the target community in Mae Ta Chang and that we were able to obtain tree seedlings that met the needs of the farmers. 
• God’s care of the staff's health and travel and the work of every team member.
• The last month, which went well. Thank God for the collaboration of community volunteers and farmers in the activities.

We Pray For:

• The implementation in the new community and the establishment of Purpose Groups in Mae Ta Chang and Mae Yang Mint. 
• The implementation of the tree planting activities in the target community in the Mae Yang Mint watershed. 
• Safe travel to do activities in Mae Yang Mint and Mae Ta Chang watersheds, despite difficult and dangerous travel in the rainy season. May God guide us in collaboration with the community. 
• Every staff member's health. 
• Tree transportation in the rainy season over slippery roads. May God lead in the travel and give safety in the implementation of the activities. We pray for the tree planting activities in the community forests. We pray for the work and the nurture of the trees.

United States

We Give Praise For:

• A productive and effective board meeting this past month. We are thankful for our engaged and committed board members who volunteer their time, energy, wise counsel and resources to support the Plant With Purpose mission.
• The signing of our new office lease. Our current lease expires in October, and we are grateful for the opportunity to move to a new office space that will accommodate our future needs.
• The staff and volunteers working behind the scenes to ensure a successful and 40th anniversary gala on September 14 and more than a dozen 40th anniversary roadshow events across the US this fall.

We Pray For:

• Continued good health and full recovery from illnesses for our team. This is a busy time of year, and we have had several of our staff out with illnesses or taking care of sick family members.
• A fruitful and inspirational and well-attended Planting Hope Gala and an evening filled with joy, connection, and committed purpose. 
• Safe travels for several of our leadership team members heading to Burundi this month for a strategic multi-country planning initiative that could result in significant future programmatic benefits. We pray that all participants arrive safely and stay in good health.