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The Owls Roost a SuccessBy Jiryis Shaheen

This update is for you who, we have found, really care for us. Some of you we may have met once, others, we have known our entire lifetime. We understand that we could just as easily use facebook, twitter, or email to write you individually. However, we want to offer a more personal touch in updating you about how our lives together, by the will of God, are

progressing.

SHAHEENUPDATEFe

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Well it has been about 6 months since we decided to help out Ed and Ronda on their coffee shop/ bookstore adventure, and now it is finally finished. After a week of being open, the response has been amazing. People of all ages are constantly heading back to the “OR”, as some have labeled it now. I remember the first day we walked past that empty building when something in me said to go in and talk to the people working inside. The place was torn down and broken into. Turned out, Ed

and Ronda were looking for friends, just as we were, in more than one way. These two are a very close part of our hearts now. We, along with my Spiritual formation group, have spend many hours building, taping, mudding, moving, and marketing. I truly believe this little nest of a place will draw curious crowds and offer a place of love, warmth, openness, and good coffee. Many amazing conversations have sprouted up between Ed and Ronda and I. I am just happy that I am able to

converse in an appropriate manner with an ability to know what to say. This is why I am so happy about our relationship with “the owls roost people” as we called them for the longest time. Now we are their children, and they are our lincoln parents, offering caffeine, books, and cinnamon rolls to perk us up when we are down in the dumps. I thank God for relationships such as these. I thank God for opportunities and clear discernment. I pray that you too have moments like these.

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We are currently waiting to get our dates approved. Once that happens we will buy the tickets and head on down May 21st. This is the first time I personally have led a missions trip on my own, with my wife. I think it will be a great experience. Haiti has always been a place of great distress, yet now seems the most appropriate time to lend a hand. Even though things did not work out with the Israel trip, we acknowledge the change as being out of our control and in the hands of God.

HAITI:UpdateBy Jiryis Shaheen

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010 Last Semester of Classes

I am currently about half way done with my last semester of College. Once this is over, I will be the only member of my entire family to have graduated college. I know this doesn’t mean much, but I am very happy for the opportunity that my father, and God have offered me. This semesters classes include; Special Issues in Counseling, LifeSpan Development, The Modern and PostModern World, and Preachers Inner Life. These classes are offering me so much insight about our current world, both interior and exterior. A BA is no MA, Amanda’s got me beat on that one, but in due

time I will be attending, hopefully, UMSL to reach for bigger dreams. As for now, I will keep writing all those papers, taking all those tests, presenting all those Keynotes, and reading all those books. So thank you February, for passing faster than I had thought you would. You made the time manageable.

In March we hope to focus on the YMCA core values. Each week we will have one speaker from the community come in and describe their job and how their particular core value is important and lived out. We hope to have a police officer, a firefighter, a businessman, and a weatherman. We believe this will be a great experience for the kids. Thank you for you time and trust.2010

BUILDING STRONG KIDS, STRONG FAMILIES, STRONG COMMUNITIES

YM

CA

WASHINGTONMONROE

FEBRUARY 2010

UNITY IN DIVERSITYWe thought our awesome Y kids might like to learn about other cultures around the world...

Sabrina and I decided that our Y kids would greatly benefit from learning about other cultures around the world. Every Thursday each week in February we learned more about a new country. The first week we discussed China. We drew the Chinese flag, learned about the food, and learned a few phrases. We also discussed what education is like as well as what children’s daily lives look like.

Other countries we learned about were Spain, Uganda, and India. We really hope that this project will allow our Y kids to understand how diverse their world is.

$$ Y- Bucks $$

Hardees T-Shirt! 10

Yo-Yo/ 2 pencils/ games! 2

Free Hardees burger coupon! 5

Fruit snacks! 4

YMCA kids hold up their “Unity in Diversity” booklets. On this day we learned about the Chinese culture.

Kids bank @ the Y

What’s To Come

Sometimes it is hard to appreciate what the world has to offer when we only see a small portion of it.

Each week the kids drew out what they learned. We took these notes and attached them together. This way they will always remember the fun and educational times they had at the YMCA.

! A couple months ago we began a system to improve behavior. It was called the star system. Each day, if the child was being good, they would get a star. If the child wasn’t being good, then he/she would not receive a star. At the end of the week, whoever was able to get up to a gold star would receive a prize from the treasure chest. After considering other options, we figured this wasn’t the best approach. We have

now started a new system. Anytime a child portrays good behavior, they receive a Y-Buck. On Fridays, we unpack the Y-Store and they can ‘buy’ price marked items based on how many Y-Bucks they have acquired. This will teach responsibility, money management, control, and appropriate behavior.

UNITY IN DIVERSITY About a month ago I faced the harsh reality of how uncultured my YMCA kids were. I decided to take matters into my own hands. Every week for the past month we have taken one evening at the Y to discuss the culture of a different country. The first week it was China. The second week was Spain. The third week was Uganda. This last week is India. Each child learned about the countries flag, religion, food, education system, language, and fun facts. Any time they picked up on something interesting, they would color it or write about it. I didn’t want them to view this as homework. At the end of the month we will staple their papers together, and they will have a book of cultures. I pray that this experience opened their eyes to the world and allowed them to spark a future interest in travel as well as discovery.

In March we hope to focus on the YMCA core values. Each week we will have one speaker from the community come in and describe their job and how their particular core value is important and lived out. We hope to have a police officer, a firefighter, a businessman, and a weatherman. We believe this will be a great experience for the kids. Thank you for you time and trust.2010

BUILDING STRONG KIDS, STRONG FAMILIES, STRONG COMMUNITIES

YM

CA

WASHINGTONMONROE

FEBRUARY 2010

UNITY IN DIVERSITYWe thought our awesome Y kids might like to learn about other cultures around the world...

Sabrina and I decided that our Y kids would greatly benefit from learning about other cultures around the world. Every Thursday each week in February we learned more about a new country. The first week we discussed China. We drew the Chinese flag, learned about the food, and learned a few phrases. We also discussed what education is like as well as what children’s daily lives look like.

Other countries we learned about were Spain, Uganda, and India. We really hope that this project will allow our Y kids to understand how diverse their world is.

$$ Y- Bucks $$

Hardees T-Shirt! 10

Yo-Yo/ 2 pencils/ games! 2

Free Hardees burger coupon! 5

Fruit snacks! 4

YMCA kids hold up their “Unity in Diversity” booklets. On this day we learned about the Chinese culture.

Kids bank @ the Y

What’s To Come

Sometimes it is hard to appreciate what the world has to offer when we only see a small portion of it.

Each week the kids drew out what they learned. We took these notes and attached them together. This way they will always remember the fun and educational times they had at the YMCA.

! A couple months ago we began a system to improve behavior. It was called the star system. Each day, if the child was being good, they would get a star. If the child wasn’t being good, then he/she would not receive a star. At the end of the week, whoever was able to get up to a gold star would receive a prize from the treasure chest. After considering other options, we figured this wasn’t the best approach. We have

now started a new system. Anytime a child portrays good behavior, they receive a Y-Buck. On Fridays, we unpack the Y-Store and they can ‘buy’ price marked items based on how many Y-Bucks they have acquired. This will teach responsibility, money management, control, and appropriate behavior.

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“They were overcome with fear and asked each other, "Who is this man? Even the wind and the sea obey him!"Mark 4:41

Prayer Requests Upcoming EventsWhat’s to come

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Prayer:

- My grandmother is very ill, to the point of hospitalization. My grandfather is getting a back operation.

- My brother, as he finishes high school.- Our transition back to St. Peters, my wife moves

this weekend, I move in June- My parents, that they are able to handle things- The Trip to Haiti- The Owls Roost, that it may be blessed by many.

MARCH 2nd- Amanda starts new position at Starbucks in O’Fallon, MO.

MARCH 17th- HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIRYIS!

MAY 15th-

GRADUATION!!! 11 a.m. -Jiryis’ Undergraduate Graduation 1 p.m.- Amanda’s Graduate Graduation