Thomas Cribbs

Homes of Life in Central America

October 2012


In This Issue
Burglarized Again
Need to Complete the Security Wall
Thank You Rafa

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Burglarized Again
Tim and Dena April 2011
Tim and Dena

Tim and Dena took the family including a niece for an overnight at the beach before Ben and Josh departed for another year at Pensacola Christian College. That night, a group broke into the Stromstad's house (again). The thieves entered by a neighbor's property, opening his gate and closing it again so that no-one would notice. The intruders put blankets over the windows so they could work without anyone noticing. Not even the police that passed by in the night knew that the thieves were busy on the inside. They stole Tim's ATV-quad which served as his "legs" and as the mission farm tractor. The booty also included a new flat screen TV, two newer laptops and two older ones, extra hard drives and computer accessories, the Wii, an Xbox and all the games, and 2 helmets. The thieves made off with a good supply of expensive creams and lotions used as gifts for staff. Possibly the greatest insult from a father's perspective, they took Maria's $200 in savings that she had collected in a � gallon jug.

 

A rough estimate of the total loss is around $10,000 with the ATV alone valued at $7,000. The Costa Rican equivalent of the FBI came, but found no evidence that proved to be helpful.

 

A week later someone was seen hanging around House 3 at night. Later, with the couple in House 3 away for their two days off, the "tias" heard a cell phone ringing. From the kitchen window, they saw a guy leaving while talking on his phone. The police found that the screws holding a screen on the kitchen window were removed or loose, but they caught no one.

 

Our immediate, but interim response was to obtain two young guard dogs - a German Shepherd/Rottweiler cross. Having them loose at night helps the staff sleep better.

 

The Lord has not left us alone. At a recent mission conference at Life Gate Church in Omaha, He spoke strongly to Tim. Rather than taking this beating from the enemy, Tim has sprung into action and has formed a group of disciples to start mentoring them. He is also working on defining our mission statement to serve as a guide for workers and visitors. What is Hogar de Vida? First and foremost, we are a family. Understanding this will promote unity, respect, and a desire for all to succeed. Secondly, we protect & nurture children. Understanding this will help promote love for the children, a sense of belonging and help us to use correct discipline. The third has yet to be defined.

 

The burglaries compel us to press ahead and focus on protecting the children, including the urgent need for the security wall around the whole property, and more security cameras with all the expensive equipment. We are not in imminent danger because the Lord protects this place, but doing nothing is NOT SMART! When the east wall is finished, we will begin the south wall.

 

Tim does not want sympathy! He wants support for the mission. We need dedicated people to work hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder with us, like Nehemiah did when he built his wall. We need your help to build ours!  

The Need to Complete
the Security Wall
Current
Current "Living Fence"

The need for better protection for the Hogar de Vida property is clear. In Costa Rican culture, anything not protected in a significant way, like a tall strong wall or iron bars over windows and doors is perceived as fair game for someone else to trespass or take ownership. Most Costa Rican properties are visibly secured in one way or another. With 20/20 hindsight, we now know we've depended for too long on the living fence and barbed wire combination.  

 

I have engineers and architects working on our plans as I write. We're looking at a 5-panel pre-cast concrete wall that's very common in Costa Rica. My hope is to eventually do the whole perimeter, plus upgrading the front gate, the retaining wall and miscellaneous drainage works. 

 

  • Phase 1 is complete. We've previously written about the north wall that now secures the property line along the road, our greatest vulnerability. This 4-panel pre-cast concrete wall is 6 � feet tall, 100 meters (325 ft.) long, and cost $10,000. We are so grateful to those who contributed to this project.
Wall Example
Conrete Wall Example
  • Phase 2 is the east border, the entry point of the most recent burglary. I will be sharing the plans with our two bordering neighbors, especially to reassure them that we'll retain the existing drainage as water flows across their properties. Then we'll need a back hoe and dump truck to clear trees and the current living fence. Then we purchase the prefab wall panels, cement, sand and rock, hire a crew and start the project. Estimated cost for a 317 meter wall is $30,000. We currently have $5,700 in our mission account designated for the east wall.
  • Phase 3 will be a 100 meter south wall with a projected cost of $9,000.
  • Phase 4 is the southern end of the west border, not including a complicated wall between Hogar and the public soccer field. $21,000.
  • Phase 5 is a new entrance design, main gate, intercom and electronic entrance capabilities. Cost to be determined.
  • Phase 6 is a security wall between Hogar and the soccer field. Need additional professional insight for this complicated phase. Cost to be determined.

 

Sometimes I feel like Nehemiah who had an urgent need to build a wall. He had a good bunch of guys who worked with a trowel in one hand (cooperation) and a sword in the other (protection and unity.) Our wall is a major project for us, too. We need your prayers, for finalizing the plans and for the financial resources to complete it. If the Lord leads, we would welcome generous contributions designated to Costa Rica Security.

 

For more information, call me at 904-410-7441 or send me an Email at [email protected]. I'd love to answer your questions about the project.

 

Tim Stromstad 

 

Thank You Rafa
Rafa
Rafa

Rafael Rodriguez Nunez, known to us as Rafa, has been going the extra mile for Hogar de Vida since the beginning. He began in 1995 singing songs and playing his guitar for the kids in House 1, the only house at the time. Since then, he has also managed all the details in accounting, served as a long-standing member of the Board of Directors, and been ready at a moment's notice to cover any contingency. He's remained a vital asset to our ministry, even while assuming responsibility as Chief at our local fire station and completing his degree in French, English and Portuguese. Rafa's recent job reassignment to San Jose, the capital city, means he won't be coming around as much. All of us want to say, "THANK YOU VERY MUCH RAFA!"  

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