2025 Rancho 3M trip

In October we headed out on our favorite road trip to Chihuahua, Mexico and our annual mission outreach to the orphanage of Rancho 3M! For almost 10 years we have been coming and working together with their staff and blessing the amazing and beautiful children of R3M. Talk to any OTTOMer and they will quickly tell you, R3M is very special and holds a special place in the hearts of all who have visited this wonderful place.

Our week was filled with work projects plus daily VBS games, crafts, snacks and Bible stories with the kids. We had beautiful times of worship with the team in the evenings, and went to church with all the kids. Throughout the week the nurses on our team updated each child’s file with a current health assessment and developmental milestones. On Friday we set up a medical clinic for the kids, the staff, the school, and the community. It was a busy, but wonderful, week!

The highlight of VBS, as we talked about God’s faithfulness to David, was our life sized Goliath! Claire did an amazing job of drawing him for us, the kids colored each piece of his armor, and we were able to take their pictures beside the giant for their personal photo albums. Throughout the week, through the life story of David, we were able to encourage the kids that God is with them even when life is hard. He has made them strong and courageous. As always, we were so impressed with the Bible knowledge the kids have!

Work projects included the playroom cleaning and organizing and covering the new well water lines. The new well has blessed the Ranch with a water bill that went from over $1,000 per month to $13 the first month after it was installed! We were super excited to be just a tiny part of a project that will have so much of an impact on the Ranch every single month.

One sweet blessing this trip was the honor to deliver over 70 handmade bears to the kids. There were so many bears that each child was able to pick out the one they liked the best. We immediately added each child’s name to the bear to further individualize the gift. It was so fun to watch the little girls immediately lavish their bears with snuggles and hugs and to watch the boys compete to see who could throw theirs the highest into the air and catch them with a quick hug!

R3M is a place that touches you and marks you for life! Every child and every story impact you and you quickly discover the amazing job these quiet heroes of the faith do with every child they care for. We hope and pray to continue coming to Rancho for many years to come.