Hello,

We pray that you had a good February and Leap Year Day. February kept us busy, so I didn't get a chance to write. This letter will get you up to date on how the Lord provided for us in February.

First, our new principal, Avery Stewart arrived. This is a tremendous blessing, now that we have someone back in the "driver's seat". Avery and his wife, Vi, left the frozen tundra of the Great White North (Canada, ay!) to come down here to hot and humid Suriname. They've seemed to settle in and Avery is busy at the helm. Just keep the Stewarts in prayer as they continue adjusting and pray that God helps Avery in the direction of the school.

Another personal blessing just happened this past week. Another teacher came on board to personally help me. Feliz O'Tero is the new seventh grade teacher and has dramatically enhanced my quality of life!! I've had the Sixth and Seventh Grades combined all year--and I desperately needed some help. I mean, these "little angels" are at the pre-pubescent stage of life where those hormones start raging. My class should be up for a couple Emmy Awards, because there is enough drama in my classroom to have our own soap opera! On several occasions, I've had the urge to say "That's a wrap" and then 'walk off the set'. But thank God, He heard my secret prayer and Feliz has come to my rescue. My day is so much better that I actually look forward to get to school in the morning. For this, I'm thankful. Please pray for Feliz to have a successful 3 months. He is only here until the end of the school year.

Another blessing in February--I've applied to several seminaries and I have been accepted to one and we're just waiting to hear from the other one. Please pray for us as God has placed seminary on our hearts. I hear the clear calling of full-time Youth Ministry in an overseas setting--kind of what we are doing now. The emphasis would be placed more on the youth ministry aspect rather than the class-room teaching aspect. I know that seminary will strengthen my foundation, enhance my leadership, strengthen any weak areas, and show me what I've been doing right and what areas I can improve on. We are both excited and saddened at the same time--excited about the opportunity of seminary and saddened to say good-bye to some wonderful friends. Please pray that God makes the path clear and continues to meet our needs as we make preparations for seminary.

Here is a praise--I've begun a youth bible study at the local Guyanese church that we attend. It continues to go well. This past month, we took our Saturday evening small group and integrated them with the youth group at the local church--with smashing results. I can recall a time 3 years ago when this particular Guyanese group visited our school youth group. That time did not go well at all. However, this time, our kids made an effort to fellowship and were eager to get to know one another. It was exciting to see how our core group of kids have grown in the Lord these past 3 years. It was really encouraging. We plan on getting the 2 groups together again in March. Please pray for continued growth for both of these bible study small groups. What a privilege I've had leading these 2 groups.

Here is some exciting news that we want to share with you and prayerfully you can help with this endeavor. If you recall, in December we had some guests come down. The 2 girls, Ashley and Sarah really bonded with one our students, Jenny. Jenny is originally from Trinidad and she has attended all of our bible studies and youth activities from day one. Sarah and Ashley were sharing with Jenny about summer camp--Camp Lurecrest in North Carolina. Sarah is a camp counselor and Ashley is a former camper there and soon-to-be counselor. Well, they put 'the bug' in Jenny's ear; especially since Jenny goes to NY every summer with her family to visit relatives. We've all prayed about it and it so happens that God has opened the door to let Jenny go to camp this summer. This is a $500 a week camp--and the camp is allowing her to go at NO COST to her--praise God! This will be an awesome opportunity for Jenny to grow spiritually and fellowship with some 'new' brothers and sisters in Christ. Since Jenny will be in NY, we will need to fly her down to Raleigh. Patricia and I are going to pick her up at the airport and take her to Camp Lurecrest and pick her up at the conclusion of camp. We will then take Jenny to New Bern and around the NC area to see some of the sites and hopefully even bring her to a couple of the churches we plan to visit. What we would like to request from you is a little financial assistance for Jenny. We are going to purchase a round-trip plane ticket from NY to Raleigh for just under $200 and then we would like to raise some additional funds for her spending money. She says that she can't wait to experience Bojangles and Krispy Kreme! This would be an awesome opportunity to help one of our kids experience God in way that she will never forget. All donations raised will go to us in our support account at the Network of International Christian Schools. In turn, we will give Jenny the funds that are donated to "The McClung Project". Funds that exceed the projected amount of $400 (Plane ticket=$200, Spending money=$200) will go on to assist our ministry and our relocation costs at the end of June. Read and Print the form below if you would like to assist us in this endeavor. To read more about Camp Lurecrest, please visit <http://www.camplurecrest.org>

Another bit of news...Our good friend, Rob Krieg, is doing something amazing in two weeks. He and his buddy are attempting to set a national record by taking off and landing at 100 airstrips in the Commonwealth of Virginia in one day. This is an effort to assist a non-profit organization called Angel Flight. I ask prayer for safety as Rob and Lindy attempt this feat. To find out more about this amazing event, go to <http://www.angelflighteast.org/Lindy.htm>

And finally, we do have a special prayer request. Many of you are familiar with Samaritan's Purse-Operation Christmas Child shoe box project. Last year Patricia and her students were able to assist with organizing the shoe boxes. It is a wonderful ministry project. We ask that you pray for the shoe boxes for this year. The boxes arrived into Suriname the first week of January. Unfortunately they remain sitting on the docks of Suriname. The Suriname government is refusing to release the boxes unless a customs fee of $10,000 USD is paid. Several individuals in the missionary community and the embassy community have appealed to the government to release these non-profit gifts. Please pray with us that the government will have a change of heart, and allow the boxes to be released. Last year, there were some difficulties with customs and duty issues, however the government released the boxes upon inspection of various shoe boxes. Pray with us that a similar resolution will occur. Pray for the spread of the gospel through this project. Each shoe box contains the clear message of Christ.

Thank you for continually praying with us and standing with us. Feel free to drop us a line with any question or comment.

In Him,

John and Patricia

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McClung Project #01421

Thank you for assisting us. Your gift will go into the McClungs' support account at the Network of International Christian Schools. Please make checks out to NICS and place the project number 01421 in the memo section of your check. You will receive a tax-deductible receipt.

I am pledging an enclosed one-time gift for the McClung Project in the amount of:

____$5 ____$10 ____$20 ____$50 _____Other

Name:___________________________________________

Street Address:____________________________________

City:____________________________________________

State:___________________________ ZIP:____________

Mail to: NICS

Finance Department

PO Box 1260

Southaven, MS 38671

Thank you for your assistance in this endeavor.

In Christ,

John and Patricia