Update from Chris Fry, GreatCities Missions:

I spoke with Luis, our Aid coordinator, last week. Since late May, we have distributed 800 bags of food among 35 churches. Now these bags of food are not small bags. Each bag costs $20 and has enough food to feed a family for a month. Luis tells me that many churches take the bags and split the contents among multiple families in the church. So we calculate that we have helped at least 1200-1500 families, or around 5,000 – 6,000 people. That’s pretty awesome for just 5 months worth of work. 

We’ve also distributed medicines to those churches and families. We’ve bought medicine for cancer, diabetes, blood pressure, asthma, respiratory issues, and over the counter medicines. In sum, we’ve been using the money at a rate of $4,000/month for food and $4,000/month for medicine. We now have a balance of just under $20,000. That means we have enough for October, November and part of December. We continue to fundraise for this effort and are confident we can continue—possibly scaled down from the current rate, if we don’t have the funds. 

There have been so many amazing stories coming from this aid distribution. I truly believe lives have been saved because of our efforts together. We’ve had Venezuelans travel as long as 22 hours to get to Cucuta for help. For some churches like Barquisimeto, direct support may be best. For the many Venezuelans that don’t have a church in the US to support them, we have filled an important gap.  

So, thank you for your generosity and for your heart for those suffering in Venezuela. We will continue to serve and help as long as we can. May God bless us to make an impact for His glory. 

In Him, 

Chris