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hristian mission
DUNGAN APDO. POSTAL 741 OUERETARO, QUERETARO, MEXICO

September 17, 1979

Brethren in Christ:

It has been many a year since I last sent this kind of letter. But I feel
that it is time to do so again.

First, I want to say a V7ord concerning the blessings that the Lord has
brought into our lives. Just recently He sent the means by which we were able
to buy a home here in townsomething that, humanly speaking, was an absolute
impossibility for us; and He also gave the means by which we were able to
trade cars. In everything, over the 10 years that we have been here, the Lord
has been generous beyond any telling of it; and we are full of thanks. So
what I am going to mention next does not reflect a request for us personally
or for "our" work.

It does reflect a need, a challenge, an opportunity that

involves the entire ongoing work in Central Mexico.

Some information. Over a year ago, we of the congregation here in Queretaro decided that if we were ever to have a building, we needed to begin with
land. So v;e stepped out on faith and purchased two lots in a development at
the edge of town.

The decision has proved to be a good one, as property

prices have continued to soar;

but the congregation is still far from being

ready or able to afford putting up any kind of a building on the property.

A second piece of information. Earlier this year, one of the national

Bible Institutes in Mexico determined to move to Queretaro and to build its
permanent facility here; so it began to look for land. Hoping to be able to
both help the Institute and at the same time get a building in which to meet,
the congregation offered the Institute the use of the congregation's land in
return for use of one of the Institute's buildings. But the property owned by
the congregation was just too small for the needs of the Institute, v/hich is
planning for a 100-student~capacity campus.

The result is the following: the Institute is in the position of having to

buy property way out of towntoo far from town for the congregation to use it
in any way and too far from town for the students to share in the work of
evangelism there or to pursue additional college work with their Institute
classes. But it is willing to buy the land because the price is cheap; for
they do not have enough money both to buy good property and to begin to
build their buildings. At the same time, the congregation will be faced with
the continued lack of a building;

and then, when it does build, it will

probably have a typical church houseused two or three times a week for only
a few hours each time.

September 17, 1979

page 2

There is still, however, another possibilitybut one which will take a

miracle to bring to pass. Which is why I writeto see if you might be the
means God would use to bring about that miracle. You see, there is still
land for sale in the same tract where the congregation has land, land which
when added to the property already owned by the congregation would provide
sufficient space for both the church and the institute. If it could be
purchased by the Institute, then the cooperative project could be carried
out, and the buildings and the land could be put to maximum use, while the
Institute's students could be close enough to town to make an impact upon it.
But the land costs money, more money in cash than any of us around here
missionaries, congregations and Institutehave. So the need is for a loan
of $20,000 dollars with which to purchase the additional land. Repayment
would be made by the Institute in yearly installments; and the loan itself
would be underwritten by several of us (missionaries) who labor here on the
field.

The need is for a LOAN of $20,000.

Please pray about it.

Then, if you

are led to help with any part of that amount, please communicate with me
immediately here in Queretaro. My phone number is 4-20-32, and your local

long-distance operator will help you put the call through. What I am talking
about now is a commitmenta statement of willingness to help, to commit a
certain amount as a loan for the purchase of the land. To be sure, yours
would have to be a "faith" commitment, for there is no security to back up
the loan other than the word of the brethren here, including the missionaries,
that the loan will be repaid.

Am I dreaming unreasonable dreams? Is the plan too unwieldy, too risky,

too expensive? Only time will tell. The Lord may close the door; and if
He does, all loan money will be immediately returned to the lender. But it
is my belief and hope that the plan is workable and that it would benefit
both the Institute and the congregation in their desire to be good stewards
of God's gifts and to evangelize.

I will be prayerfully awaiting His answer.

Thank you for listening. I

covet your prayers for the situation and the need.

Yours in the All-Giving Lord Jesus Christ,

rm Dungan

35"^7

ALuaas!
THE

BILL HOFF

THE
NORM DUNGAN FAMILY
APARTADO POSTAL NO.
QUERETARO/ QRO.
MEXICO

FAMILY

APARTADO POSTAL NO. 57

QUERETARO/ QRO. MEXICO

NEWS OF

The IHniLinGG OF CHRIST IN CENTRAL MEXICO

OCTCBER,1979

VOL. 11, NO. 2

PUBLISHED QUARTERLY

^ RHDIO PROGRnm HOTEi ^

since our radio program,"Dulces Memen
tos" (sweet mementos), was first broad

sermon-sandwich,
appeals
mostly
toChristian listeners, while our prime

cast almost 10 years ago,

it has become

purpose is to contact the unevangelized.

the means by which tens of thousands

have been contacted by the gospel of
Jesus Christ. The program has also been
almost the only source of nurture for
many illerate Christians, and has held

sider changes is that the people we

visit respond better to men they already
know.
If an evangelist goes to a home

forth sound doctrine,

loud

while others with

self-proclamation

of

being

the

However,

these

the program.
is true

achievements

there'is no

do

not

need to improve

In fact, the very opposite

and there are

many reasons for

The greatest reason

been a proliferation

is that there has

of religious pro

grams in the past few years.

opposed

to

(Some di

biblical teaching).

This clamor for the listener's attention

has

to teach the Word, he will be better re

ceived if he has been in the home pre

viously via radio.

So using the voices

Hopefully this would improve

reduced

the

specific

interest in

At a meeting,the evangelists presented

a number

of concrete ideas

Another reason is

cost effectiveness.

Prices
years,

have tripled in the past three

and if we are to justify the ex

pense,

there must be more contacts made

Still another reason

which

We will start a week with Tomas, who has

been the voice of Dulces Mementos for

the past 10 years, preaching a sermon.

The next day will be a program of music
and commentary; then one of letter read
of the

sage;

and the

have three

which

the day afterward

evangelists

one

preach a mes--

last day we will try

short

we hope

will

devotional

to get

put

to

programs,

into

prime

time.

with the non-believer.

sent format

for our new

Dulces Memen

tos "head and shoulders" above the rest.

ing and prayer?

Dulces Mementos.

their out-

reachr.

format which should place

this.

rectly

which has made us con

of men who work here seems advcintageous.

voice of God have come and gone.

mean that

A final factor

is that our pre

consists

of a hymn-

Radio still is an effective tool,

it must be used wisely.

but

|bh

Family

Affairs

sister." This

Our summer really flew by, but it

was an enjoyable one.
After two
weeks of camp here, we spent a couple

is the phrase

of weeks in the

Hark has used

and I visited with

my folks while
Norm and Heather spent one week in
camp in Prescott, Arizona and another
in V.B.S. in Phoenix. The gas crunch

"She's
my
pretty
baby

over and over

c o n c e rning
Rebecca Marie

in the U.S. also

who
joined
our family on
July
18

weighing
at

it

mother

and my slater

her family {the Bedcers)

and

came to see

Rebecca and help us for a couple of

weeks.
We had a busy time in owe

small house

but enjoyed the fellow

ship. Rebecca has logged many miles

as we went sightseeing and shopping,
Mark

is now

was

to be

What a pleasure

able to

relax

as we

drove.

ozs.
She has light eyes and dark
hair and is a real joy to us.
Bill's

station wagon be

fore we came home.

.foj-

Nathan

allowed us to get a

good deal on a new

in

7 lbs.

States where

attending

a kinder-

Norm's dad and sister accompanied

us hone and spent 10 days with us.
After

their

initial

the border, all went

their stay.

nervousness at

smoothly during

So you see, the water's

not so bad herel

We certainly en
joyed their visit.
Now Nathan says,
"Granpa bye-bye," every evening when

he^s handing out good-night kisses.

School got off to a beautiful

garden that is only a block from our

start

house.

sixth grade,and I am a teacher's aide

once again. We've had the additional

He

has

already

made

new

friends. Within a couple of weeks I

will be teaching him reading and
writing in English though a corres
pondence school. Mark is a real help
in the house and talks to Rebecca in

order to keep her entertained.

We are looking forward to our trip

to the States.

We plan on attending

this year.

pleasure of having

Heather is in

Becky

with us for these first

Our Thanksgiving theme for

summer, then,has been

and hope to see many of you there,

From the convention we will be going

in Christ.

to Phoenix

in our lives I

Nevada
the

before

last

part

on to

Calif,

returning

and

stay
weeks.

She is planning to move out next week

to house-sit for Bill and Marge while
they are in the States, however.We're
going to miss having her around*

the Missionary Convention in El Paso

then

Ray
few

the

this

for families

our physical families and

our family

ssrng
What a blessioc

both are

to Mexico

of Novtanber.

Lord

L SUMMAI
DUNGANS' FINANCIAL
SUMMAR'

willing Hark and Rebecca will be

seeing three ^Mak-grandparents dur

On Hand 3/31/79

ing our stay.

Expenses 4/1 - 6/30/79

Let's thiutk jaflw for his love.

Income 4/1 - 6/30/79

Balance 6/30/79

$1481.29
6179.17
6003.97

$1656.49

n Ray of Hope
Why do
miss ionar i e s

program moving beautifully the first

year;
and then last year Becky Ray

leave

came to take over the work.

their

field

of

vice?
the

most

quently
reasons

of

fre

cited
is

absence of

quate

Becky, a 1976 graduate of Johnson

Bible College and a 1978 graduate of
Fort Hays Kansas State University,
has 18 students this year, ranging
from second through eleventh grade,
so her job is a real challenge. But

ser

One

the
ade

she brings to her work both skill and

schools

for their

dedication;

chil

and she and her six vol

unteer helpers (mothers of the child

dren. That certainly would

apply
to the situation in much of Mexico,
where a mushrooming population re

ren, who

sults in overcrowded

(70

vidual attention to each student, and

to 80 students per room), a break

down in discipline, and a reticence
to admit "foreign" students to the
program beyond primary levels, these
in addition to the universal problem

each student progresses at his own

pace, according to his abilities.
Yet for all its quality,the school

of the

classrooms

absence of the classes neces

sary to prepare a child for U. S.

collegesor even to be able to func

tion adequately in English.

Since national schools are usually
inadequate or unavailable, and be
cause private schools are either non

existent or prohibitively expensive,

the missionary family is often faced
with the options of teaching their
children at home, sending them away
to a boarding school, or returning to

the States until the children gradu

ate from high school. In Queretaro,
however, we have
tion:

found another solu

create our own school.

Now in its third year of operation,

work in teams

of 2, a week

at a time) are able to provide

has

been

able

to hold

indi

costs

to a

minimum. The key is that Becky is a

missionary, a
missionary
helping
missionaries.

Because

several

con

gregations
and individuals
have
underwritten much of Becky's living
needsseeing
her
work
as
the
missionary labor that it istuition
here need cover only rent, utilities,
supplies and a portion of her salary.
In the
both

classroom, Becky has

mentor

children.

and a

And

been

friend to our

even

outside the

teaching situation, she has been a

positive addition to the work. She
has been active in the English-speak
ing congregation. And this summer
she
took
two
intensive Spanish
courses

to enable

has provided quality education in

English, and at a reasonable cost.

Lord's

The key to the school has been the

teacher.
In the three years, the

the Missionary "team" here in Cen

tral Mexico.
And we praise God for

Lord has
teachers,

those who have seen her

provided
two
excellent
Mr. John Huffman got our

We

the

work more

fully
people.

with

her to

the Queretaro Valley Christian School

are

Spanish-speaking
grateful

sending her

to be a

worthy of their support.

for

the

part of

ministry

as
ND

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The 1979 camping season is history.

And one of the most striking features
of this year's experienceand one

which gives a clue as to the progress

X
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of the work in the Bajiowas its

smoothness. There was an air of pre

V)
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paredness about camp

JO

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this year.

For

each task to be done, there was some

one to do

it.

The national

leaders

planned, directed and recruited work

ers. They also oversaw the economics;
thus, camp again this year paid its
own way, with income being generated
by tuition,the camp store, and offer
ings by congregations and individuals
here in Mexico.

The measurable fruit of camp this

year was impressive: over 200 camp
ers from 20 congregations represented
in the two weeks of camp, with about
25 baptisms. The general impression
was that there was a greater spirit
ual depth among the campers this year
and

a greater-than-ever

spiritual

things.

concern for

Thus, spirit

was

excellent in spite of the severe

water shortage occasioned by the de
creased output from the orphanage
well from which the camp draws.
As the camp committee meets this
year, it will be with a sense of
satisfaction with progress thus far;
but it will be looking to the future,
too, for there are still things to
be improved and decisions to be made
(chief among which is the question of
how to house the increasing number of
campers). As a missionary looking at
Z "0 -<

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the

situation, I know

national

it

church

willseek

now that

the

canand I believe

the improvements

and

prayerfully make the decisions neces

sary to keep the Bajio camping pro
gram one of the best in Mexico.
ND

November 9jj 1979

P. 06 Box 628

luma^ Arizona 8536A

Dear Christian Brothers and Sisters:

We are Norman Diingan's forwarding agents^ and are writing this to add
information we thought might be Important to you concerning the enclosed letter of

petition dated September 17 Norm sent us his letter last month as a special
mailing to all those who are interested in the Lord^s work in Mexico However, due
to various circumstances including illness and family emgergencies here in Yuma,
there has been a delay in getting the mailing out, and we apologizeo When we first
received Norman^s letter Joe and I felt that recipients might want clarification on
some points that raised a question in our own minds* We wx*ote to Norman, and excerpts
from Norm's reply follow:

"October 23, 1979

Queretaro, Mexico

"Regarding the Institute letter: isn't it strange how a letter can seon so
complete at the time of writing and so inacequate after an 'outsider' has had the
opportunity to read it? Your questions are absolutely right and necessary* It was

just that we are so close to the sittiation that we forgot that nobody else knew about
the Institute, its history, its potential, its problems, etc*
"The Mexican Bible Institute was begun four years ago in San Luis Pdtosi, by
Mexicauis, to prepare Mexican preachers for the interior of the country* At the time
of its beginning, the only preacher training school for Mexico was Colegio Biblico,
Eagle Pass, Texas, nearly 1,000 miles from the Bajio* This excellent school is just
too far from us to attract the number of students needed (or who can afford to go so
far away to leam) to begin to evangelize here in this vast country*
"So the Institute filled a very necessary vacuum* Unfortunately, early in the
work there was a disagreement that caused a split so that two Institutes began to
operate in San Luis Potosi* One was basically a missionary-style program on the
orphanage grounds, with missionary-teachers and sponsors, and one basically a Mexican
program, with Mexican teachers, Mexican congregation support, etc* VTe here in Queretaro
maintained a neutral stance and refused to take sides* The Mexican evangelists in the
area, however, were solidly with the Mexiccm-style Institute*

"For 2 years, both Institutes existed in the same city** **Pinally, last year, the
Directors of the 'Mexican' Institute determined to move from San Luis and into the

Bajio - and Queretaro was selected because of its centrality, because of the abundance
of evangelistic fields nearby, and because of the availability of part-time teachers in

the area (6 Mexican men and 3 missionaries potentially)*

T^he Institute has had an enrollment of 30 students, although this year it is
possible that the number will be less because of the uncertainty of just where "Uie
Institute is going to be*Last year the Institute tumed out A graduates in its
second graduating class*

'^Financially, I do not know just what the Institute's monthly income is* I do
know that the bulk of the support for the school itself comes from Mexican congregations.

althoxigh the President is supported by a gro>up of independent churches in Virginia

and Kentucky through M.E,N (Mexican Evangiism Now) The bulk of the faculty is

unpaid by the school^ that is, they receive their support individually from other

sources, as I do, and donate time to teachiii

^ position regarding the school is lAiss I support any attempt to establish

an ^digenous school - one that is Mexican ^ outlook, in support, in direction..oI

continue to sup^rt both institutesj but it happens that Just one of them is coming to

^eretaroi and I can see both a great need tod a great future for the college here in
town. The school can be a boost to evangeld.sm in the BaJioj and we have the opportunity
o elp the school get the facilities it ne<ds to function to its very top potential
*The school is going to buy property sci:imewhere in Queretaro. Of the two possible
locations, one is far superior to the other - both for the Institute's needs and for

the work of evangelism^s needs here in town If it locates on the land where the
church has property, it will be close to th^ University, close to town itself, in
the heart of growth - in a place where its students can both take classes beyond the
Institute tod->rtiere they can evangeliae^ tod serve as they study, aral toere Christians
from town can go to take classes and share in the program of the school....

"How solvent is the Institute? I don't know. I believe that Mexican support
will cont^e to grow for the school,...An of us who are missionaries here in town
back the school, as do a number of other miis.sionaries in the country....Incidentally,
we have Just learned that Bethany Fellowship is preparing to establish a preacher
training institute here in Queretaro also. They are basically Pentecostal in outlooks

"In all, I recognize that by throwing a y support to a school that is 'Mexican')

there is a risk. The school may not do evepything Just the way I would do it.
Since it is Mexican, and since it is a new ^enture, there may be many mistakes made
along the way. But I personally believe thaIt the risks need to be taken....

'The school was given land in a place qailed Sandia el Chico, and they are in
to get additional funds for the buildings
themselves. They expect to get about $20,
for the land. They could not put the

the process now of trying to sell the land

Institute there, as the location is unsizitabL

"So, that's where things stand Just now This year, the school is meeting in
rented facilities about 3 miles from our hoiise. The plan is to buy and build before
September 1980. So there is still time to py to raise the necessary funds to
purchase the good propei^yi"
~
"In Christ. Norm"

We earnestly recommend that you consider

this appeal, and trust liiat the Lord

will lead some of you to help in this worto^iile
project. Norm is hoping to hear

from you in regard to this need, whether or hot you can help financially.

As forwarding agents, we would like to remind you once again that we do appreciate

hearing from you in advance concerning any ^Idresa change. Each returned "Saludos"
with a change of address costs 25^. Also, Iv is best to send any support checks
directly to Joe Green, P. 0. Box 628, Yuma, ibrizona 8536A, for prompt banking and
less risk of delay and/or loss. Thank you for your cooperation, prayer, and Christian
love and concern.
In His service,
n