Help A Neighbor Report Nov 2, 2015
Help A Neighbor, Inc.
3505 Horse Run Ct.
Shepherdsville, KY 40165
(halbrook@twc.com / 502-955-1748)
November 2, 2015th Year of Our Lord
Dear brethren and friends,
Help A Neighbor began in July of 2007 to provide for others what they cannot provide for themselves in the spirit of Matthew 22:39: “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” Help A Neighbor (H.A.N.) exists for humanitarian and charitable purposes as defined by section 501 (C) 3 of the IRS Code. All donations are legally tax deductible. This is simply a legal means for individuals to extend aid to individuals. No church donations are accepted – H.A.N. is not an ecclesiastical organization.
This annual report covers the period November 5, 2014-November 2, 2015. Our main focus is helping Christians in the Philippine Islands, but occasional help is extended to Christians in other parts of the world including the U.S. Our aim is to help people who demonstrate their willingness to help themselves. During this time period donations amounted to $321,389.47. Most donations are modest amounts with occasional larger gifts.
The generous gifts of brethren made it possible to repair or construct about 20 church buildings and make a few payments for lots. This includes sites on the islands of Luzon, Mindoro, Negros, and Mindanao. In response to a special appeal, $16,000 was sent to Davao City on Mindanao to purchase land at a prime location for a new church building. Juanito Balbin has been sacrificing to make payments on the property for years and is in the process of finalizing the deal. The wheels turn very slowly and there is still the danger of someone else finagling to get the land in a country noted for corruption and backdoor dealing. If this purchase fails at the last moment, he has another lot in view. I will give an update after my upcoming trip (Nov. 30-Dec. 21). A total of $27,300 was used for church buildings in many places.
Appeals for benevolence were answered to aid brethren suffering all sorts of injuries, health issues, and medical problems. Some were given as little as $50 or $100. At times brethren need simple over-the-counter medicines and at times emergency surgeries. Dr. Teresa Toreja has a small clinic in Navotas, Metro Manila where she serves the needs of very poor saints and other citizens. $4,760 was provided to her to help in some of the most serious cases of our brethren. Dr. Cathy Forelo who lives in Tuguegarao, Cagayan Province on Luzon likewise often serves the needs of saints and over $1,300 was provided to her. All in all, $22,210 went to medical emergencies and needs throughout the islands.
In about 60 cases brethren struggling with all sorts of personal and families problems were given aid. Damaged homes were repaired. Motorcycles and other vehicles desperately needed repairs or registration renewal. There are times Filipino brethren can eat only twice a day and children are crying from hunger. The needs are so vast and so varied it is mind numbing. Filipino saints often lack the most basic things we take for granted. On one occasion a van was purchased for a brother serving the needs of brethren in several provinces.
Sierra Leone was hard hit by the Ebola plague in 2014-2015. It got so bad that on several occasions the government enforced a complete shutdown of all industries and businesses and required people to stay in their houses. This hit our poor brethren very hard because their income was lost in addition to not having access to vendors for food. H.A.N. sent over $30,000 to saints for benevolence during all this disruption. Fortunately, we had no reports of Christians dying from this plague.
In about a dozen cases limited help was extended to aid brethren serving the needs of saints in India, Moldova, Zimbabwe, and Canada. In a few cases benevolence was provided to saints in the U.S. facing dire circumstances. The amount used for all these various needs is $176,464.30.
Special emergencies involving mostly typhoons are addressed whenever possible. Help with such emergencies as burial expenses for poor saints is also included. Typhoon Koppu entered the Philippines October 12 and was given the Filipino name Lando. The heavy rains affected several parts of the Philippines, but the brunt of this monster storm was felt on Luzon, especially some of the eastern, central, and northern provinces. It left in its wake 58 dead, hundreds injured, and 100,000 displaced from their homes. Corn, banana, and rice crops were destroyed and thousands of houses damaged or destroyed. Damage especially to agriculture is estimated at 7.33 billion pesos ($157.6 million). Many people are now hungry and seeking food and shelter, including our brethren. Since our brethren are among the poorest people in the Philippines, they have suffered greatly.
Funds sent for special emergencies amounted to $36,649.86 during the past year.
Funds used for my travel and related expenses on preaching trips to the Philippines, New Zealand, and Australia added up to $4,872.76.
Bibles and Bible study literature distributed on my trips or shipped to various places amounted to $42,806. More Bibles have been provided during 2015 than ever before, thanks to the generous help of our donors. Hundreds of Bibles in various local dialects have been purchased at a discount in Manila and shipped throughout the Philippines.
Miscellaneous expenses during this time period were $11,956.70. Most of this is the cost of wire fees and of shipping huge boxes filled with songbooks, Bibles, study materials, food, clothing, and personal items. As brethren have learned I can ship door-to-door a box of 60-90 songbooks for about $125, they have sent me hundreds of used songbooks which I continue to ship to the Philippines.
The total amount of donated funds ($321,389.47) was utilized with nothing left over. There is virtually no overhead because I work out of my office here at home and no compensation is taken. Fowler Durham CPA’s & Advisors files the necessary papers each year with the I.R.S. to document that H.A.N. functions as a non-profit charitable organization. This allows donors to take a legal tax deduction.
God willing, I will make my 60th trip to the Philippines November 30-December 21. Jim Barnett who preaches in Hope, NM and Steven Saunders who preaches in Macon, MO will be making their second trip with me. These men are competent evangelists and excellent song leaders. They will teach singing classes in three parts of the Philippines: 1. at the Kapitbahayan church of Christ, Navotas, Metro Manila; 2. at the Laoag City church of Christ in the Ilocos Norte Province (northwest Luzon), and 3. at the New Matina church of Christ in Davao City (southern Mindanao). After Jim and Steve return to the U.S. on December 17, I will extend my stay a few days to teach denominational preachers who will come to General Santos City from the remote mountains of the Saranggani Province in southern Mindanao.
Additional donations can be applied to many needs and here are a few targets:
(1) FILIPINO BIBLES. I will continue to visit the Philippine Bible Society in Manila to purchase Bibles in Filipino dialects at a discount which will be shipped directly to the brethren.
(2) SHIP SUPPLIES. Shipping companies load cargo ships with truck-size containers, including door-to-door deliveries of special boxes which ship for about $125 regardless of weight. I have shipped well over 150 boxes filled with Bibles, songbooks, study materials (much donated by Guardian of Truth Foundation), clothes, food, and other needs. I hope to ship more boxes soon.
(3) SONGBOOKS IN FILIPINO DIALECTS. Filipinos love to sing the praises of God using English songbooks, but English is their second language and they also want to sing in their own dialects. The cost is about $2.00 per small paperback book if printed 500 copies each time. Pleas for these books come to me repeatedly, but there have been no funds donated for this purpose.
Many other needs such as church buildings, medical treatments, and vehicle repairs continue.
H.A.N. is a labor of love. No one takes compensation for this service. Every penny donated goes to needs we have identified in some way as reflected in this report. Thank you to all who make it possible. Visit www.HelpANeighbor.net to learn more (thanks to Thomas and Jacob Keese). Truly, “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35)!
In Christian love,
Ron Halbrook
(halbrook@twc.com)
To see good Bible study material, go to: