La Luz de Cristo para Perú
Volume 5 Issue 10
October 2010
Running the Race | Kenyi
I had the distinct honor of watching the 50 yard dash today as
run by a field of 3 and 4 year olds. Okay, I know that doesn’t
sound like an amazing way to spend the morning for most of
you, but it was truly nothing short of AMAZING for me. You
see, my favorite competitor is definitely the underdog in the
field - definitely the “long shot” on the course. And, true to
form, he came in last. But what a glorious “last” it was!!!
Kenyi (pronounced ken-jee) is a student in the Kuyay
Talpuy—Iscos program. We met Kenyi last March (7 months
ago) when his mother timidly approached our program and
asked if we might consider allowing him to enroll. “You see,
the other school programs in The Valley won’t take him. In
fact, he might not ever be allowed to go to school. He has
hydrocephalus. He can’t walk. He wears a diaper because
he can’t control his urine or bowels. One eye is damaged
from the pressure…”, she rattled off all of his ailments to our
staff as the precious little boy with the giant eyes smiled at us
from his position wrapped in the manta on her back. “I prom-
ise to come to school every day and sit with him and help
him. I have to carry him. He needs support. But I promise to
come if you’ll let him enroll,” she pleaded. The staff ques-
tioned us—”What do you think? Can we take a disabled child
into the program?” Our response was immediate—”Why
not!? Our program is for everyone. God loves Kenji, and so
will we.” And so it was. Kenyi was enrolled in the Kuyay
Talpuy program.
Hydocephalus is a condition that Kenyi was born with. He
has an abnormal amount of fluid surrounding his brain. The
excess fluid presses on parts of the brain and causes a myr-
iad of symptoms. In Kenyi’s case, before he was diagnosed,
the fluid caused damage to his ability to walk, to the function
of one eye, and to his ability to control his urine and bowels.
He has been through countless numbers of surgeries and he
can name every hospital and clinic that he has received treat-
ment. He now has a shunt to drain the fluid from his brain.
This is not a cure, it is a way to treat the symptoms. As he
grows, he will continue to need surgeries to extend and re-
place the shunt.
Kenyi’s mother was true to her promise. She carried Kenyi
to school every day and she stayed in the classroom with
him. But it wasn’t very long before the teachers told her that
she didn’t need to feel obligated to stay, they could take care
of him. Kenyi was bright and a quick learner and was rap-
idly trying to do the physical things that he hadn’t ever done
before, like walk.
Literally, step by step, Tania and Rocio walked alongside
Kenyi and helped him to build strength and confidence. He
wanted to play at recess, and so they helped him to learn
how to play the games. He wanted to dance at Kid’s Club,
and so they have helped to teach him to dance. And he
wanted to run in the 50 yard dash in the Kuyay Talpuy Olym-
pics this week.
Seven months ago, Kenyi couldn’t walk. Seven months ago,
Kenyi’s mother begged us to enroll him because no one else
would take “a disabled child”. Seven months ago, we said
“YES!”
Today, Kenyi ran the 50 yard dash, unaided by any human
being, but carried on the wings of angels and blown by the
breath of God Himself. He never faltered. He never looked
back. He never fell. He just ran his little heart out and
smiled the whole way to the finish line. And everyone
cheered him on… that’s what the love of Christ was all about
today. The perseverance of Kenyi and the love and faithful-
ness of God...
...and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for
us. ~Hebrews 12:1b
All photos in the header of this page are of Kenyi… Please
join us in praising God for Kenyi’s miraculous life and please
pray for Kenyi’s continued improvements in his health.
 “Now what will we harvest?”
From sewage to salvation!

Wilfredo Veli is a local gourd artisan. We became friends with Wilfredo two years ago when we first met his family in Cochas
Chico, Perú. Wilfredo is the oldest son in a small “empire” of Veli artisans… literally every member of the family works in the
business. But Wilfredo has another calling… In his heart, he is a missionary.

Last year, during his travels to purchase materials for the family business, Wilfredo happened upon a town in northern Perú.
They were hospitable and offered him a place to stay and made friends with him quickly. In Wilfredo’s words, “It was like they
hadn’t ever seen anyone from ‘outside’ before.” He stayed for several weeks, enjoyed spending time with the town’s people,
and his heart began to tell him that the “harvest” was plentiful here… that this was where God wanted him to work.

But the town’s people had a very specific problem… they had very fertile ground and they could grow just about anything, but
they didn’t have water. The little bit of water that they had was needed for drinking and cooking. That only left sewage water
to use in the fields—and that was exactly what they did. They grew crops with sewage water.
But they soon found out that the government wouldn’t allow them to sell their harvests because
of the sewage water. “Now what?,” they worried. They are very poor and there is no business
or industry. Now what would they do?

Wilfredo had an idea… what about growing gourds? They aren’t for consumption, so they can
be grown with sewage water. And they are in high demand by the gourd artisans throughout
Perú. And it just so happened that Wilfredo is a gourd expert! So the town began to plant
gourds. This past month, the town harvested and sold their first crop, with 80% of the crop
meeting the “top quality” standards for market!

During this venture, many town’s people have gotten to know Wilfredo much better, and
Wilfredo has gotten to share his faith with them. Wilfredo is realizing his dream of becoming a
Wilfredo, Ash & Billy
missionary… he has led many in the town to Christ and continues to do so by sharing life with
them, working the fields together, and sharing the Love of Christ with others.

From Persecution to Transformation —

Kuyay Talpuy one year later...
It just doesn’t seem possible that it was just one year ago (August 2009) that the Kuyay Talpuy project began
in the community of Iscos! It has been an incredible year, with lots of bumps along the way, but with incredi-
ble transformation as a result.
Last year:
 Only a handful of people trusted us and
would enroll their children.
 At our Parent Teacher meetings, two parents
attended.
 The public school tried to kick us out of
town.
 The mayor tried to kick us out of town.
 Our center worked with 18 students.
This year:
 We have a waiting list for students who wish
to attend the Kuyay Talpuy education center.
 The parents elected PTO board members.
Parents show up and participate in every ac-
tivity. Parents help in class, help clean the
classrooms, plan activities… they are com-
pletely involved and active.
 The public school of Tinyari invited us in to
teach Bible classes in their school every
week. We reach 80 students and their fami-
lies each week through this joint venture.
 Not only did the mayor not succeed in kick-
ing us out of town, but we were invited to
open a second center in Patarcocha (an annex
of Iscos) and teach Bible classes in Tinyari
(another Iscos annex)!
 This year, we work with 120+ students and
we have three education centers. The com-
munity of Patarcocha has a new church plant.
The community of Iscos begins a new church
plant/disciple group this week. There are
countless new believers in the area… 550+!
Historically, under times of persecution, the
church and Christianity has GROWN, not dimin-
ished… once again, this has rung true. Transfor-
mation and growth have resulted!!!
 DEAR BILLY AND LAURIE,
 I will pray for you. Please send me your newsletter
by e-mail: ____________________________________
 As God provides, I plan to partner with you by giving
$ _________ Per month / quarter / year for _____ years.
 I would like to donate a one-time gift of $ _________
 I would like to sponsor a child’s education for $25/mo. ($300/
year). (Please write Special Project on your check)

Name (PLEASE PRINT) ______________________________________

Address _________________________________________________
City____________________ State__________ Zip _______________
Phone _____________________ Home Church __________________
Email Address: _________________________________________

TAX DEDUCTIBLE GIFTS MAY BE SENT TO:

The Mission Society
PO Box 922637
Prayers
Norcross, GA 30010-2637 USA
DESIGNATE GIFTS: “DRUM SUPPORT 5/321” and Praises
Praises and Prayers for the new

The Drums | HOW TO CONTACT US disciple projects in Iscos and

Patarcocha. We have new work-
MAILING ADDRESS: LAURIE & BILLY DRUM...JR. SAN JOSE 278…URB. SAN CARLOS...HUANCAYO, PERU ers and a new effort to teach the
Bible and to usher new believers
TELEPHONE: 979.985.5268 (TEXAS PHONE NUMBER—RINGS US IN PERU)
into relationships with others so
EMAIL: BILLY@DRUMSFORCHRIST.ORG OR LAURIE@DRUMSFORCHRIST.ORG they can grow and learn more.
NEWSLETTER: VISIT THE WEBSITE AT WWW.DRUMSFORCHRIST.ORG AND CLICK “NEWSLETTERS” Pray specifically for Darwin, Rocio
SUPPORT US: USE THE FORM ABOVE, OR GO TO http://www.themissionsociety.org/people/drum and Pastor Beto as they lead this
effort.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, KUYAY! Pray for the Kuyay Talpuy school

projects and for the communities
of Iscos, Patarcocha, and Tinyari.
KUYAY TALPUY BEGAN IN AUGUST 2009 AND JUST HELD THEIR FIRST ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION...
Pray for our teachers as they
Kuyay Talpuy celebrated the First Anniversary of the program strive to teach and help people to
on September 23-24 with a celebration consisting of art com- apply Godly principles in their
petitions for both parents and children, cooking competitions lives. Pray that they find new and
(complete with typical dress and presentations), a parade exciting ways to make the Bible
through the streets of the region of Iscos, and the first ever
come alive and become relevant
Kuyay Talpuy Olympics! We’ve come a long way, Baby!!! Our
parade stopped traffic and was so long that the entire parade in the life of the communities we
line wouldn’t fit in my camera lens… it was absolutely incredi- serve.
ble! Take a look at our photos and see for yourself. And if that
isn’t enough for you, we’ve uploaded a video of the festivities Praises for transformation in
at http://animoto.com/play/Cbv9rQawj6DHDFoHHfwRvQ communities, families and indi-
vidual hearts!

Pray for our sons in Texas, Ryan

and Miles. Pray for God to con-
tinue to move and do mighty
things in their lives.

Pray for us as we begin to transi-

tion to the USA for a few months
of speaking engagements and
relationship renewal .

We continue to pray for all of YOU

as you continue to support us
through your prayers and your
financial support. Thank you!!!
 Six months into his fragile life, a young child was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, a
The Power of Prayer debilitating disease involving a drainage malfunction of cerebral-spinal fluid from
the brain cavities. The news was devastating and the young family did their best to
stand strong as they went through the proper steps to prepare themselves for a life-
time of surgeries, beginning two short weeks from that date. It hit his parents hard,
The Faith of a Child having to deal with such an unexpected complication in the life of their youngest,
but no one was more devastated than his oldest sister, barely past her ninth birthday
A true story … at the time. She became physically ill with worry, her sick brother occupying her
every thought. In a house full of non-believers, where the word God was never men-
tioned, let alone the word prayer, the small girl stayed up for nights on end praying
as hard as she possibly could without having any clue how. Squeezing her little
(Names have been omitted)
eyes shut she would not stop pleading with God to please let her brother live a
healthy life where she could run and play with him and their little sister, where they
could laugh and jump and swim together, “Please God,” she prayed, “fix my little
brother!” Twelve days later, in a consultation just two days before the infant’s first
scheduled surgery, the doctor admitted to the young family that he could not be-
lieve what he was seeing. The fluid that had been consistently building up in the
child’s brain had miraculously drained. No surgery was necessary. It was unex-
plainable, or so he thought. The family was well aware though, that a little girl had
been working non-stop asking for a miracle, and God had answered her loud and
clear with a blessing that would change all of their lives forever.

~submitted by Meghann Lau

SHARE THE LOVE OF CHRIST WITH THE PEOPLE OF PERU.

WWW.DRUMSFORCHRIST.ORG | 979.985.5268

Laurie & Billy Drum

PRESRT STD
3907 Old Oaks Bryan, Texas 77802 USA US POSTAGE
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E-mail: billy@drumsforchrist.org
laurie@drumsforchrist.org