MOURNING THE LOSS OF TWO SPECIAL MEN OF GOD

A dear friend, mentor, and prayer partner passed away on April 27, 2023. Pastor Reuben Mamatsinya, known by many in South Africa as Moruti, died suddenly in the Mabopane Central Baptist Church—his humble dwelling place for many years. His entrance to Heaven was bittersweet news—happy for him but so very sad for the many people—young and old—who had come to know him as their father.

Pastor Reuben gave his life completely to Christ in 1973. He served with passion, sharing the Good News with everyone with whom he came in contact. He loved the Lord with his whole heart, spending countless hours on his knees praying each day and night. Among his many accomplishments were the following: He started a church in Mabopane, out of which Love in Action, a ministry for street children was born; Go for the Goal, a pregnancy counseling ministry, and Jesus For Schools ministry where he Preached the Good News in all the local schools. He was instrumental in starting skills training which included computer training, dress making, gardening, and pig and cattle farming. He also started a girls’ soccer team providing him an opportunity to share his faith with many. He participated in the Global Children Foundation initiative which addresses world hunger

Pastor Reuben’s obedience to follow Christ to America in 1997 was the beginning of the Mabopane Love Story. During his testimony at her local church, Becky Young felt God calling her to go to South Africa and offer God’s love and hope to children in need.

Becky and Stanley had the privilege of participating in Pastor Reuben’s Celebration of Life which was held Wednesday, May 3 through Saturday, May 7. Hundreds of people, including all the Love in Action kids from the past, gathered to pay loving tribute to this humble man whom God used to change hundreds of lives, including Becky’s. Pastor Reuben’s legacy continues through the lives of these young men and women who, against all odds, have accomplished wonderful things—becoming engineers, teachers, business owners, and more. The legacy also continues through the work God has called Becky and Stanley and the Mabopane Foundation to do. Countless lives have been and will continue to be changed as a result of Pastor Reuben’s willingness to move out of his comfort zone many years ago and come to America to share all that God had laid on his heart.

(The above photograph of Pastor Reuben was taken at Ya Bana Village in October, 2022. He made a point to always visit Ya Bana Village when he knew that Becky was going to be there. He not only looked forward to spending time with her but also receiving the John Maxwell books that she made a point to bring him. Pastor Reuben’s books will be contributed to a Memorial Library in his honor and made available for the community to enjoy.)

Becky and Stanley had been home from South Africa for less than two weeks when they were notified that George Msiza, the Ya BanaVillage Father had passed away during the early morning of May 25. He was only 42-years-old. He leaves behind a wife and three children along with an entire village of children and colleagues who loved him and thought of him as a pastor to the staff, a a father to the children, and a friend to both. He was admired not only within Ya Bana Village but throughout the Winterveld community for his strong faith, caring spirit, benevolence, and willingness to serve his God and his community. George had been associated with Ya Bana Village for 17 years.

Becky returned to Ya Bana Village on Monday, May 29 for a three-week stay to help the Ya Bana Village community deal with this devastating loss. Please pray for George’s wife and children, his Ya Bana Village family, and Becky during this very difficult time. A closer look at George’s life and legacy will be shared in a future newsletter.

(The above photograph of George was taken in December, 2022 when he served as Choir Master at the Capital Singers Concert. He was well known for his love of music and beautiful singing voice.)

BLESSED BEYOND BELIEF

WOW! We have been blessed beyond belief this year by our local churches who have come to the Mission House to help with beautification projects, repair work, pop-up sales, and behind-the-scene tasks. And some of this work would not have been possible without the mulch donated to us by the school property developers next door. We give all of these groups our special Hearts and Hands recognition this month.

January: A group of youth and their leaders from Apex United Methodist Church covered the bake sale at one of our pop-up-sales, cleaned and organized work areas, and sorted donations.

February: A group of youth and their leaders from Apex Baptist Church priced items for future Christmas sales and switched out winter clothing for spring clothing for upcoming sales.

April: A group of middle and high school students from Green Level Baptist Church were involved in maintenance and landscaping tasks to include digging a trench, spreading mulch, building a covering off the back of the shop for painting furniture, and repairing the ceiling in the clothing sorting area. They also baked goods and filled many of the service positions including jewelry, bake sale booth, cashier holding, and floating at one of the pop-up sales

May: After receiving a HUGE pile of mulch donated to us by the school property developers in charge of the project under construction next door, Apex Baptist Church volunteers spread mulch throughout the wood line of the Mission House.

Fairview Baptist Friends prepared, planted, and mulched an area on the front left side of our Mission House. They also helped our regular volunteers in the clothing room and jewelry boutique prepare for upcoming sales.

Olive Chapel Baptist Church recently served the Apex community through nine different “Love in Action” service projects. Two groups of Church members and Scout Troop 205 served at our Mabopane Mission House. One group beautified the front of the Mission House with mulch. Another group made wreaths with donated artificialto be sold at the Pop-up Sales.

Mulch Pile

Apex Baptist

Fairview Baptist

“Many hands make light work.”
John Heywood

Green Level Baptist

Fairview Baptist

Apex United Methodist

Green Level Baptist

Olive Chapel Baptist

We believe that volunteering is an enriching experience and appreciate the efforts our local churches have made to include their youth whenever possible. If you are interested in scheduling a group to volunteer at the Mission House, please coordinate with Ashley at (919) 362-8974 or admin@mabopanekids.org.

HONORING JOHNNY AND RHEA ROSS

This month we are both honoring and saying goodbye to long-time Mabopane volunteers Johnny and Rhea Ross who, for health reasons, have just moved to the Morganton area to be closer to their family.

Beginning in 2003, Johnny was a member of our first Board of Directors where he served for eight years. He and Rhea have continued their involvement in our ministry through prayers, volunteering, and giving.

He and Rhea have faithfully provided soft drinks and bottled waters year after year for our bake sales and for our hard-working volunteers who serve at the Mission House throughout the week. All we had to do was give them a call or email, and the drinks would quickly appear. In addition, they have volunteered at the Mission House along with their Sunday School class members on special occasions.

Johnny and Rhea, we send our love and blessings to you and thank you for all that you have done for us.

SPECIAL SALE JUST FOR TEACHERS COMING SOON

On Thursday, June 22nd, we will be having an awesome sale from 4:00—6:00 p.m. just for teachers. Teachers receive small budgets, which means the majority of our educators are forced to dig into their own bank accounts to purchase learning materials for their classrooms. We have been setting aside supplies at the Mabopane Mission House that teachers will need to start a new year. We are so excited to have them come to shop for the supplies they need at a fraction of what they would spend at a traditional store. Thanks so much to everyone who has sent in supplies for this sale. We can still use additional supplies in case you are able to contribute.

BLESSING OUR MINISTRY OUTSIDE OF THE BOX

Did you know that we are able to recycle most of our office supplies, cleansers, and kitchen supplies? These products are collected from donated items that are dropped off at the Mission House and used here. This makes it possible for us to send every possible cent to our Ya Bana Village.

Would you consider blessing this ministry outside of the box? Below is a list of items that must be purchased:

• Stamps (another price increase is expected in August)
• Computer Paper
• Black and Red Sharpies
• Blue Painter’s Tape (Narrow)
• Clear Packaging Tape
• Coffee (Regular & Decaf)
• Half ‘n Half Packets
• Durable Hot Cups With Lids (for coffee/tea/hot chocolate)
• Individual bottled waters and canned soft drinks
• Paper Towels
• Toilet Paper

And don’t forget to save and bring us your empty ink cartridges which will save us money when we purchase office supplies.