Pastor David Alvarez (pastor of the church in Guatemala City) and his wife, Fabiola, were recently in a severe car accident while returning from the villages near Rio Dulce.  Fabiola had to undergo major surgery as a result and is still in the hospital recovering.   Please pray for their family and all of the church family in Guatemala.

I (Joe) went on my first trip to Guatemala on June 10.  What a blessing to meet Pastor David Alvarez and to see the work that the Centro Cristiano Cultural de Guatemala (the church) is doing in their country.

We joined Jeff Whittle and the team from Ecclessia Construction, who were on a short term trip.

We traveled to Rio Dolce, about 6 hours by car from the City.  Over 600 children were fed by the feeding ministry that day, after being given a hygiene lesson and having a Bible lesson.

A man from my home church, Catalina Foothills Church in Tucson, Arizona, traveled with me on the trip.  Jaime Gibbons was born in Guatemala, and had not been back for a visit in nearly 10 years.  God made it possible for Jaime to join me, and as we shared with the as great as we shared with the church about IYT. 

Jaime, me, and Otoniel (one of the pastors at CCCG) in front of a fountain in Central Park, Guatemala City.

Earlier this year the Board of Directors invited Joe Atkinson to be IYT's first Executive Director.  Joe and his family  (wife Tina, Emily (13) and Max (10) ) currently live in Tucson, Arizona, where they have owned and managed a custom cabinetry manufacturing and contracting business that has been in the Atkinson family for 38 years.  Joe serves the local church in many capacities, and supports several para-church organizations with fund-raising and mentoring.  He is looking forward to working full time with IYT, using his business experience and skills to further kingdom work across the globe. 

Welcome to IYT's new website.