A very poor school in a very poor area – December 3rd

This school was only technically only 30 miles away from us, but it took us over two and a half hours because of the traffic and bad roads (Thats like the norm here). We almost turned back when we were about two miles away because the last stretch of road was so bad. IT was all mud, massive potholes and we were afraid we would damage our van. But since we had already come so far, we decided to take it real slow, walk ahead of the van and just crawl along. When we finally got there, it was a…

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Dance Event in a Theater – December 2nd

We got a request to perform at ballet/hip hop dance show in a theater that was located at the foot of a really dangerous slum. They were having a Christmas celebration for all the dancers and we got to close the event. The little ballerinas were so sweet and it broke my heart when a little girl, no more than five, starts telling me about the shooting outside her house last night and how afraid she was. They want to know if it is safer in America and if we ever are afraid there. The dance instructor told us that…

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Walking through villages – December

Often as we travel to and from different schools, prisons and events, we take time after to walk through the surrounding area and go door to door. In certain places we can’t drive in and there is no real center, so to reach the people we just spread out and walk to reach the “houses” (not that you can call them houses) and share the Gospel with them. Sometimes we give them little gifts, toys for their children, bibles and things to read, but mostly we give the the good news of the Father who sent His Son Jesus to…

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Large School – November 26th

It was raining when we left and we were concerned the roads would be too flooded, but we proceeded cautiously and it was ok. When we got to the school, chaos would be the word to some up the scene waiting for us:) Literally kids running everywhere, zero discipline, teachers who had completely given up and barely greeted us…so yeah, cool:)! Anyway, we set up, got organized and kind of just took control of the situation. Around 500 very loud, hyper, unruly kids and teens poured into the gym and the caustics were horrible. My brother grabbed the microphone and…

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Event with the Brazilian Army – November 24th

We received a request from the Brazilian army to perform at an event they put on for the people in a very poor area. They provide health care, job services, food ecs and they asked us to put on the show. There were around 5,000 people there throughout the day and it took a lot of work to get it all organized. But it went really well and we were able to reach a lot of people who live in the middle of nowhere, as well as many soldiers from the army. Part way thorough our performance, a commander came…

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Large School – November 22nd Happy Thanksgiving:)

This school was about a two hour drive in bad traffic. The directer who set up this event, had seen us perform at a different school months ago and really wanted us to come to this school. We were greeted by a bunch of excited students and teachers and they helped us carry our equipment to the gym. Originally they had told us it was going to be younger kids, under 13, but it ended up being 15 to 20 year olds which is usually more of a challenge:) The Lord Jesus was with us and gave us the wisdom…

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Event for the homeless at a Catholic Parish – November 18th

We performed an event for the homeless at a Catholic Parish. They provided a meal for around 150 families that came and went throughout the day, and we performed a show of magic, dance and theater. I love to make them laugh in all their sadness and then plant a seed of hope that even though they have nothing, they can find a place in Jesus, a man who was also homeless.

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Packing and preparing to return to Brazil – November

The fall went so quickly I can’t believe it. The time flew, but in another sense, it seemed like five years. I feel like I have learned so many things and touched a deeper level of the Fathers profound love. So now here we are, once again packing and getting ready to head back to Brazil. We already have a lot of events scheduled there for Christmas and after, so we are definitely going to hit the ground running. Our first event, which is three days after we land,  is for a large group of homeless at a Catholic Parish….

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Chicago – Working with the homeless – Early October

We had the idea after the Chicago marathon, to pick up all the coats and sweatshirts that the runners had discarded. It was raining so they were soaked and we took them home to was them, dry them and then gave them out to the homeless throughout the city. They were so grateful to get a coat or sweatshirt of such high quality, since most of this stuff was on brand athletic gear:). I met a homeless man in a wheel chair named Punchy. He had been through so much in his life it would be a really long story…

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Grand Rapids – September

In one of the prisons we were were working, we were not scheduled to perform till the evening, so we took a day trip to visit Grand Rapids, the city where my dad grew up. We got to visit his house, grade school and high school, all the places he used to go, the park and also his mothers grave. I never had the privilege of meeting Rose,  my dads mom, she died of cancer when my dad was 20, but I am grateful to her for giving me my dad:) It was special to see so many places that my…

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Working in Denver – September

We spent time down town Denver helping the homeless. In each city we visit we make up lunch kits and care packages that we give to the beautiful men and women who have come on hard times and ended up homeless. So many stories. I was also able to make a good contact with the head of some of the prisons in Colorado and we hope to be able to work with them in the future.  

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Notre Dame – Go Irish :)!

We were ministering in South Bend and got the chance to visit the university and see all the special places that meant so much to my dad back when he was 20. It was in the Notre Dame football stadium, looking out at touch down Jesus, where he gave his life to the lord, and here we are 40 years later! Very special.

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Atlanta – Schools, Streets and with the homeless- Late August

We visited some of the universities and schools in Atlanta as well as down town. I met a beautiful family that was homeless. A mom, her sister and four small children. They were so open to the Gospel and grateful that someone would talk to them and care about them. I got them a pizza and some fries which made the little boys so happy:). The oldest boy was only 9 but so eager to help his mom and take care of his siblings. I held the little one for a bit to give the mom a break and he…

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Military Police Event – Aug 18th

This was an event of over 10,000 people who were all apart of the military police or family members of them. It was an honor to be invited and we had a large crowd that kept changing over for hours. We were able to reach so many people, many of whom had seen us working in the favelas and at other events. These people are constantly in danger and their lives are at risk, so we were grateful for the opportunity to reach them with the love of the Father and the hope of the Gospel .  

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Military Police Prison, Brazil – Aug17th

We were not allowed to take any pictures here and the security in was tight. There were about 200 men in the prison and we reached them all at the same time. They all looked liked cops out of a tv show, cool, tough and together. They were a bit wary of us when we started and had no idea what to expect, but after we got started the realize we sincerely wanted to help them and encourage them and they completely opened to us and let us in. They are all still currently cops, but had committed a crime…

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Down Town Centers in surrounding cities, Central Brazil – June, July, August

Besides all of the many events we have been performing at, we also constantly go down town to the city centers. Because Rio is so huge, there are at least 10 areas where it is just packed for lunch and dinner. We are able to reach people from all walks of life and all the surrounding areas. There is a ferry that crosses the channel that everyone uses every day to get to and from work. 2000 people get off and on every 20 minutes. So if we are in that plaza for a few hours, we reach a lot…

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International Marathon, Brazil – Aug19th

We got the chance to run in a half marathon race of 20,000 people! It was really cool and we were able to talk to so many before and after it. Many of the runners recognize us from doing events in their schools, community centers and other places. My brother ran the whole race with a banner that said, “Don’t Give Up. Talk TO Jesus”. Many told him how much those words picked them up during the race. My other brother who did not run in the marathon, set up our speakers to play music for and cheer for the…

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Hospital/Prison, Brazil – Aug16th

This was a very special event. It was a prison/hospital for people with mental disabilities who had committed crimes. The director was a kind, tender man who treated the patience as his children not as criminals. Most of the men had the mentality of children and were very simple so we kept everything we did simple and clear. It was visiting day today so some of the prisoners families were able to watch the show as well and we were able to help bring healing to them. In one magic/dance routine we do, I an act as a child playing…

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Community Event in Favela – Aug 15th

This event was in a community center at the bottom of a huge, very dangerous favela. The organizer invited multiply schools, foundations and comities to one area for us. Around 700 people showed up and it was very loud:) The kids and families came from very poor backgrounds and were so grateful to get a special, high quality show for free. They loved the magic and too many were quick to volunteer:) When I mad my bunny appear, literally the whole crowd screamed:) It was cool. Many of the kids knew Capoeira and were excited to see or fire/Capoeira act….

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Down Town School – Aug 14th

This school took  some work because the kids had no discipline. You can always see the teachers reflected in the students and in this case, to be honest, the teachers had pretty much given up and cared very little about the kids. After some time and work, the kids came to respect us and listen attentively which was really cool to see. We have large posters we use to teach different points and we used a poster that explains the metamorphosis of a butterfly after we did our dance of a caterpillar becoming a butterfly. WE taught the kids how no…

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Local Family Park – Aug 11th

Today was my parents 39th wedding anniversary and thus a very special day for my family. Of course the wanted to spend it giving to others, just like they have done all their lives. My brothers and sisters and I did a special dance in their honor and gave them flowers. It was a special day. We touched so many people as the crowd kept changing over. Young, old, rich and poor we are all the same, children who need our Father.

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Community event in a Slum, Brazil – Aug 10th

We had to make it up a reeeaalllyyyy steep Doctor Seus type hill to get to this one (later realized this hill was the last straw in a damaged hose we had in our van. My brother found the problem and repaired it or it could have been serious). To get to the spot we had to ask to gang leaders with machine guns if we could pass. They were really cool, grateful and helped us out. It is just amazing to see how so many people, I mean millions of people, live every day. They have to hike up…

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High School in a Ghetto, Brazil- Aug 7th

It was pouring in the morning and we had to leave at 6am to get to the school by 9. We were afraid the roads would flood out and considered canceling, but after texting the school workers we decided to go and they told us they had a covered area where we could perform. This school was soon far in the middle of nowhere, when we pulled up I thought it was abandoned and we were at the wrong address, but it was right and all the kids were waiting for us. The streets around it were just covered in…

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Local Family Park – Aug 5th

This park is right near where we live and super busy on weekends! It is a really good spot to reach people from all walk of life as they enjoy a day at the park. We have a wide range of acts that we do from acts with puppets and costumes to get the kids, to Capoeira, Tae Kwon Do, Hip hop for the young people, and then songs, cultural dance, and theater for the older people. Of course everyone loves magic:)! In each act we have different messages that we weave through about love, family values, forgetting our past,…

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Community Event with the Military Police, Brazil – July 28th

So this event started out as…how do you say…COMPLETE CHAOS! 🙂 Tuns of people , burning hot sun, no space to set up, ecs. We found an area where we could do a small scale show and it worked out:)! These people were very poor and it meant the world to them that we would be there. The event was organized by a cop in the military police who was very grateful we came (and didn’t bale when everything was going south:)). So many beautiful people came up at the end to talk and to tell us their stories. We…

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Event for the children of the Military Police – July 27th

For my birthday my sister gave me a rabbit. Its a special breed that is super furry and super cute:) I made a magic trick out of a box, some felt, elastic and a drum stick that I use to make the bunny appear (I made the trick for about 10$ compared to a few hundred it would have cost). I have a volunteer blow up a balloon, draw a rabbit on it then put the ballon in the box. They then pop the balloon and Abracadabra, there is a live rabbit:)!! Literally every time I do it there is…

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Event in Brazilian Ghetto – Sunday, July 22

Maybe you have heard of or seen the movie, “City of God” about one of the worst Favelas in Brazil. Normally it is very dangerous to go in or out but we got the opportunity to work with a group who had permission from the gang to put on a party there. It was an incredible experience. There were massive piles of trash on the roads leading to it which they deliberately put there to keep the police out, so we couldn’t drive in but had to walk and carry all our equipment and props in to the Favela. As…

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Community Event in Central Favela, Sao Joao, Brazil – Saturday July 21st

This was a special event at a park in a favela. The lady who organized it invited different small foundations and schools for disabled, special needs and elderly people. There were a lot of kids so we did all of our magic routines, played a cool game with a giant ball and used our costumes and puppets. In one of the magic routines, I start by playing with a jump rope by myself, my brother is playing the song “Fragile by Sting on his guitar. I then stop jumping rope and say that I am so sad, I feel like…

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Juvenile Detention Center, Double Presentations, Sao Joao – July 20th

I perform Irish step dance and before I start I show an Xray of my leg which I broke a few years ago. I have a rod and 8 screws in my leg and spent time in a wheel chair. I share how we each have an “X-ray”, we each have scars, some on our body, some on our mind or heart. I then show an Xray of a hand with a nail in it and share how Jesus suffered and bore our pain. He knows what we are going through and can heal us. Afterward I put the X-ray…

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Juvenile detention center – July 13th

Here the acoustics were a real challenge and the echo made it hard, but we figured it out. Again we did two different groups of about 150 kids each. We always give out a bunch of candy as they first come in and its cool to see them light up like little kids and realize this is going to be fun. We do a theatrical act where my brother is on stilts, dressed all in black. He is holding on to my sister who is wrapped up in  a black piece of fabric. As the hip hop song progresses, she…

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Juvenile detention center outside the city, Brazil – July9th

This juvenile detention centers was in a northern city and took a while to find but so worth it. We did two presentations for two groups. My brother designed and printed a number of different large posters that we use as teaching tools to help give the kids visual, practical things to help them. We use the idea of a car to parallel with their life. There are a lot of analogies we take from that such as steering your life, breaking (saying no and stopping bad choices), putting it in gear (starting to think and engage your mind) ecs….

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Special event for children of the Favelas, Brazil – July 8th

This was a very special event called, “Day of Dreams”. A catholic foundation organized a huge festival for 1,500 poor children from different favelas throughout the state. They chose 1,500 volunteers, one for each child, and paired them up so each child got special attention and care. They asked us to do two performances, one for the volunteers before the children arrived, and another one for all 3,000 people at the close of the event. It was an awesome day! At our first performance we did things to pep up and inspire the volunteers to really love the kids and…

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Juvenile detention center – June 29th

When the guys first come in, the are brought in with theirs hands behind theirs backs, in a single file line, in small groups at a time. They don’t really smile and are wary of what we are going to do. Often the assume we are going to either lecture them, preach at them or do some kind of social reform program which they have had 100 times. But after we start playing some cool, electronic type music that they love, maybe doing a rap that my youngest brother wrote, magic, funny clown acts, then they realize this is something…

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Government event for the World Cup, Brazil – June27th

This event was at night which always adds to the challenge of it all:) But once again, the Spirit of our Father took over and we were able to touch thousands with His love. My parents have been married for almost 40 years and are able to teach many things to help these families. MY sisters and I do a cool magic routine about making our moments count and taking time for the things that are most important. We communicate this idea while performing  magic tricks, like making and empty bird cage appear, a steal ball float and clocks appear…

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Government event in a Favela – June 22nd

We met with the state wide Secretary of Culture and again, the Lord gave us favor and doors opened. During the world cup, they put on events in different Favelas to show the game and give the people a big party. Well they asked us to participate and perform at each event. They would set up a huge stage and invite crowds of up to 5000 people that we then performed for and were able to share the message of the Gospel in a creative way. These are people we could not normally reach because many of the favelas are on…

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Juvenile Detention Center, Brazil – June 21st

We met with the director who is over all the juvenile detentions centers in the state. The Lord gave us favor and he was moved by the work we do. He ended up asking to do multiply performances at all the centers in the city so we would eventually reach all 2,000 kids. These young men have been through a lot, most of them have only one parent if any and have grown up in gangs and violence. Here in Brazil, adolescents under 18 can not be charged as an adult. So even if a 17 years old commits a…

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Marathon – June 2nd

Right near where we sere staying the international marathon was being run. We were able to touch many people as we cheered them on at the race and held banners to encourage them.

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Catholic Festival, Sao Gonzalo, Brazil – May 30th

They had a really cool Catholic festival in a small town near here. Everyone comes out and arranges colored rice to make these amazing murals on the streets. They are real works of art! This was a great opportunity to reach a lot of peoples and families from the surrounding favelas who came down to enjoy a free event.

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Traveling to Brazil – Truckers Strike, May 25th

After we crossed into Brazil, a nationwide truckers strike started. All the gas stations ran out of fuel and when there was a gas station with fuel left, the lines were insane! We use diesel and found enough stations that were not out, plus we got some extra tanks and loaded up before we hit the stretches in the middle of no where. Stores ran out of food, fast food restaurants like McDonald’s closed (serious tragedy 🙁 )and a lot of cities had no public transportation or trash service the strike caused serious problems. For about three weeks you couldn’t…

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Leaving Paraguay, On the Road, May 24th-30th

It was a long trip back to Brazil but every long drive is an adventure and fun in our family. We pass the time talking, listening to music, planning new acts and performances, and those of us not driving work on making bracelets that we can give to the people we touch. We can get thread and little charms pretty cheap, much less expensive than buying bracelets already made. But I will tell you it takes a long time to make 500 which are then gone after one performance 🙂

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Return visit to prison in Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay – May 23rd

We were able to return again to this prison since it was not far out of the way as we traveled to the Brazilian border. The guards, staff and prisoners were so happy to see us and so grateful we came back. The director here is a third degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and since my brothers and sisters and I are all second degree black belts, it was cool to do our Tae Kwon Do choreography that communicates the idea of not giving up the fight. We use it to show the discipline and focus that is…

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Prison in Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay – May 18th

It was a long journey to get here. One lane, narrow winding road the whole way. A storm was moving in so we were on the clock. By the time we arrived we knew the rain was near and were afraid we would have to cancel. We were so glad to find that they the director decided to allow us to use a covered area in the interior of the prison which they usually do not allow. Just as we were unloading everything, the storm arrived and it poured on the tin roof. I thank God it worked out to…

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Problem School, Paraguay, – May 16th

It was a challenge to keep all the kids under control, sitting still and listening. They all brought their chairs out of their class rooms and arranged them in the court yard to watch us. These kids live in the poorest area of Asuncion, Paraguay. Most have no fathers and even the little ones have to work or beg to eat. It is really sad. At stop lights you see small children, trying to do cart wheels or juggle, or stand on their hands to try to beg money off the traffic. Mostly they are completely ignored. The other day…

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Government event for independence day, Paraguay – May 14th

We were asked to perform for the opening of the Independence day celebration here in Asuncion, Paraguay. It was large event on a stage broadcasted on live tv, and it was an honor to participate in Paraguay’s most important day. The event was well organized and because of the quantity of performers, everyone had to be on a tight schedule. It was a very special day for my family and I, we each got to perform our act. My sister performed ballet, I did Irish step dance, by brother performed a song he wrote, we did an act with fire…

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Return to juvenile center to have a party – May 11th

We went back to the juvenile detention center again to give the boys a very special party. For a day, we transformed a prison, into a playground and even though they are here because the are criminals of some kind, inside, like all of us,  they are children.  We wanted to celebrate their birthdays and bring them some fun, so we planned some games, piñatas, a magic show and got some prizes and treats for them all.  We divided them up into 6 groups, one for each of my brothers and sisters and I and made up teams with each a…

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School for at risk children, Luque, Paraguay – May 9th

This school was run by the same foundation that runs the orphanage we went to. There are 900 kids here and most of them are foster kids, orphans or have been through something traumatic. We performed for about 500 of them, which, if you know kids, is A LOT of kids:) They had fun bouncing a massive ball above them as we set up and then all set down and were very respectful and well behaved. We taught them many things to help them and comfort them in all their suffering. We wrote a children’s story about a giant frog…

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Orphanage – Luque, Paraguay – May 4th

Most of us weren’t feeling good this morning and we’re really tired. We thought about canceling, but there was no way we could let these kids down:) It was a smaller group but, wow, they were so precious! It just breaks your heart to see the pain and sadness in their eyes and know they have seen things and gone through things well beyond their years. At one point in our show, in the middle of a clown act where my brother is crying because he has no one to celebrate his birthday, all the kids came up to him…

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Large mens prison, Emboscada, Paraguay – May 2nd

This prison was about a two hour drive away, out in the country. The directer was so cool and allowed us to perform right in the main area so we were able to get the whole prison. As we started, there was some fire nearby that began to blow think smoke and ash into us. I thought we were going to have to leave but then as quickly as it started it stopped, and I thank God we could continue. Literally the entire crowd of 700 to 800 guys were so engaged and listening to everything. I do a skit…

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Women Prison, Paraguay – April 30th

We had a very special evening at the women prison here. This prison was built to house 200 women and now holds over 500, so it is a very difficult situation for the women. I was able to get chairs so they could all sit close and they were so grateful and engaged in everything we did. I sing  a song about a wounded bird that flies again and I share how we are all in a sense, “a bird with a wounded wing” and in our broken state, the Father is by our side and lifts us up so…

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Government Event, Boardwalk, Asuncion – April 29th

It was really cool to have government support for this event and since they put out flyers, and social media advertising, a very large crowd showed up. It was so beautiful, behind us there was a stunning sunset, and in front of us a full harvest moon was rising. A lite breeze came off the river and it was just a beautiful night. The crowd grew so large that many could not fit in to see. We were supposed to be on a stage, which would have allowed a lot more people to watch, but the crew that set up…

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