Marla’s Minute: Paid In Full!

Marla’s Minute: Paid In Full!

September was a month for the ACE record books. Because of the goodness of God and you, our partners, we can joyfully say that our Green Life Farm, where all the micro-businesses develop, has been PAID IN FULL! 

That’s right, we no longer have a mortgage to pay on the land! For the past five years, Allen and I have been sharing our vision and heart with so many of you about the importance of having land to use as ministry outreach for the local community, like the Peace House and the ACE Office. A location where many micro-businesses can be incubated so that Jamaican families can earn a living and get out of the generation of poverty. 

We are thrilled to reach this milestone, and we are so grateful to each of you that have given their treasure and prayers to this legacy campaign. We made it, and we did it together! ACE now has the foundation we needed to ensure the land is ours for generational building and demonstrating to the community just how active God still is among His people.

Please join us in celebrating these moments in ACE history as we now move forward with the Fosters at the helm of ACE. We are excited to see what else God will add to this property as a witness to His goodness. Plans are in the works to build a professional stage on the farm, where performers will be able to share the Gospel through music and talent. The greenhouse is being rebuilt to supply pure, clean food to the community, as well as hotels that have a large demand. And there’s also going to be a Green Life Learning Center for high school students who have come through our program but still need help getting up to par in reading, math, english, and the arts. This last phase of development is only possible now that the farm has been paid in full.

Thank you, friends! Truly, thank you for believing in the vision of hope and opportunity in St Mary, Jamaica through ACE. Now, let’s continue to pray for a pastor to come along at the Peace House and help guide our staff to reach the next level. 

Paying off the Farm

Paying off the Farm

Remember the ask ACE made to all of you the last quarter of 2021 to help us pay off the Green Life Llanrumney Farm? As you know, the farm is the place where all our micro-businesses will flourish to keep us hiring more and more Nationals. We want to keep you posted on how we are doing in raising the $700k needed by 2024.

Take a look at the graph to see how it’s going. Pretty impressive, we think. It’s also a faith-builder for ACE and, hopefully, for all of you who gave the funding to help us reach these goals. So far, with the help of many generous sponsors, we went over the $100k mark in 2021. Thank you!

If you are led to help us get to the $350k mark by summer and $500k by December, we would be grateful. After all, seeing is believing – and seeing is always a confirmation that it was completed in the supernatural world before it became visible in the natural.

Just watch what God will do this year… and it’s all good!

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Farming with the Family

Farming with the Family

Every day, something new happens on the farm that we didn’t know could happen. We find hidden skills we didn’t know we had, as well as hidden treasure in the bushes or creeks.  All of us have enjoyed having this new property in St. Mary to share with our neighbors and friends. We are leasing out land for farming crops and for raising goats, chickens, and pigs. It’s all the little guys – our families and local farmers – that need a place to make a living, and we get to build relationships that go deep.

In the meantime, we are learning so much. Just this week, as we cleaned out waterways, we uncovered what appears to be an old water wagon. The wheels and wagon were covered up with bamboo and debris. Huie, our farm manager, commented, “Hey, we could make some tables out of that for the restaurant.” That comment alone instantly started us reminiscing about all the “free material” we have found on the farm that we are using to improve the property.

Old windows, metal pieces, doors, blocks, great pieces of timber – you name it and we’ve found it. We thank God that He continually reminds us of His presence. We are also continually reminded of His little pests’ presence, as well… called ticks, but that’s why we have lemongrass (or as they say, “fever grass”), a natural deterrent.

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