Savannah la Mar
Be Not Afraid of Success
Editor’s Note: Missioner Brandon Newland reflects on the past two years in Jamaica as he looks ahead to his return to the US where he will start a new chapter in his life. With only a little more than a month left of my time on mission in Jamaica, it is time to deal with…
Read More
Be Not Afraid: Finding the Possibility
Editor’s Note: Missioner Patrick Montine shares how moving past the fear of failure while in Jamaica made it possible for him to find the right ministries for the Savanna-la-Mar community. As we enter the season of Advent, we enter a season of preparation and anticipation for Christmas. For some people, Christmas can be a time…
Read More
Challenging the Kids
Editor’s Note: Missioner Brandon Newland reflects on the past summer in Jamaica and the various activities that he arranged for the kids. The summertime is a wonderful time for students to rejoice and enjoy their freedom from school and homework, but to adults it can be a time to build patience and bonds with the…
Read More
Care for Creation at the Beach
Editor’s Note: Missioner Patrick Montine shares how a trip to the beach with some of the kids in Savanna-la-Mar, Jamaica, created a great opportunity for a lesson and experience of care for creation. Usually our summers in Savanna-la-Mar are pretty uneventful and most of our ministry shuts down because we work with kids and the…
Read More
A Breath of Fresh Air
Editor’s Note: Missioner Janice Smullen shares her reflections on mission and culture after a recent visit to Savanna La Mar, Jamaica, to visit fellow FMS missioners Patrick and Brandon. After numerous times of re-scheduling dates, I finally got to travel west and visit with FMS missioners Patrick and Brandon! It is a four hour bus…
Read More
Creating a Space for God
Editor’s Note: Missioner Patrick Montine reflects on the camps in Jamaica that he helped out with this summer and how the camps created a space for children to learn more about God and invite Him into their lives. This summer, I was able to help out at a couple of summer camps. The first one…
Read More
Relaxation Is Not Always What the Doctor Ordered
Editor’s Note: Missioner Brandon Newland shares how a particularly bad month in June gave him a deeper appreciation for his blessings as well as a greater awareness of the lasting effects of many people’s struggles in Jamaica. Relaxation is not always what the doctor ordered. Before June started, I felt pretty good about the upcoming…
Read More
A Supportive Presence
Editor’s Note: In light of Father’s Day, missioner Patrick Montine reflects on the role of father figures and how he’s seen them represented in Jamaica. Last weekend I was able to witness the baptism of several little babies out at Saint Mark’s in Grange Hill, Jamaica. There were about seven or eight babies that got baptized;…
Read More
Communal Living and Surviving Pat
Editor’s Note: Told through stories from his time in Jamaica which highlight some of the lesser-known qualities of his friend and fellow missioner, missioner Brandon Newland reflects on the vital importance of community while on mission. A year and four months have passed on my journey in Savanna-la-Mar, so I thought it would be a…
Read More
Making it Rain
Editor’s Note: Missioner Brandon Newland reflects on the arrival of spring in Jamaica and the deeper life lessons that can be found in gardening. Despite the somewhat mild temperatures of winter in Jamaica, spring is still the beginning of the growing season for many crops. Last year we attempted a rather grandiose garden with one…
Read More
Servant Leadership
Editor’s Note: Missioner Patrick Montine shares how an opportunity to attend a leadership workshop corresponded with his own understanding of servant leadership. A little while ago, I was afforded an opportunity to travel with some of the youth from my parish to a youth leadership workshop in Trelawny, Jamaica. I was able to participate in…
Read More
Letting Go: Lent and Larry II
Editor’s Note: Missioner Brandon Newland reflects on letting go of feeling responsible to help others who do not yet want to be helped and learning how to meet people where they’re at instead of where we want them to be. It has been almost a year since we arrived here in Savannah la Mar and…
Read More
Letting Go of Expectations
Editor’s Note: Missioner Patrick Montine shares a story from mission that stresses the fact that no matter how much we plan and prepare ahead of time, life often does not follow these plans. In these moments, it is important to realize that we can’t do it all by ourselves. A couple of months ago we…
Read More
Health Care in Jamaica
Editor’s Note: Missioner Brandon Newland shares the challenges that he’s seen in the health care system in Jamaica and how it has broadened his views in this area. A few weeks ago, I woke up and headed to church as usual. When I got there, the guy who opens the church every day told me that Danzies was over…
Read More
Comfort and Joy: Looking out for the Other
Editor’s Note: As part of our “Comfort and Joy” Advent/Christmas blog series, missioner Patrick Montine speaks to the power of companionship and shares how his time working in a food kitchen in Jamaica has led to a deeper realization of the importance of relationships. I spend some of my time each week helping out at the…
Read More
Cultivating Compassion
Editor’s Note: Lay missioner Brandon Newland shares how he acted as a bridge-builder between two ministries where he serves in Savanna-La-Mar, Jamaica Even though there was no Bible study over the summer, I still wanted to stay involved with the students as well as keep them connected to the church. I invited the children to…
Read More
Learning To Be A Farmer
First-year missioner Patrick Montine shares an update from the field. Right now it is summertime here in Jamaica, which is about the same as any other time of the year:hot and humid. The schools are out for the summer (as well as any other ministries we have with children) so instead I have been working on…
Read More
Nature vs Nurture
Starting in the month of May, Pat and I will begin our endeavor of raising chickens from a day old chick to adulthood. They will be completely reliant on us for the first two weeks of their lives while they live in the brooder we built for them until we place them in the larger…
Read More
Lest we forget
I was recently given the unique opportunity to attend the opening mass for the Antilles Episcopal Conference, a meeting for all the bishops from French, English and Dutch territories, except Haiti, of the Caribbean. To show how big of a deal this is, there were 26 bishops there, one cardinal and a papal nuncio (Ambassador…
Read More
Lent and Larry
As we are still in the Easter season, we remember the many opportunities to reflect on one’s self and determine how to grow as a person beyond the 40 days of preparation during Lent. The sacrifices Jesus made so many years ago afforded the human race a second chance for redemption and the convenience to…
Read More
Eternal fulfillment
Last week we celebrated a funeral for one of the parishioners here in Jamaica. The woman had been sick for a long time, so she was now free from the pain and in God’s loving embrace. The Jamaicans have interesting traditions for funerals. Since most people in Jamaica are not Catholic, the mass is separate…
Read More
The Dippas
After the long wait, I finally arrived in Jamaica, and it has not failed to impress. Immediately I notice the unspeakable beauty of the island. Lush jungles, incredible coastal vistas, soft sand beaches, and cooling gentle breezes whistling through the palms. I also took note of the massive houses speckled around the island hills. Alongside…
Read More
At Long Last!
Well I finally did it. I made it to Jamaica. After about a month of being at home and ending the sadness of the Superbowl, I have arrived to this beautiful country of Jamaica. A country known for it’s beaches , resorts, and heat. The week that I came to Jamaica was the start of…
Read More