Uganda Trip 2009

I thought I'd post a copy of our 2009 Uganda Trip Support Letter. We've got less than 4 weeks to go until our jet plane takes off from Atlanta. There is LOTS to do to get ready. Please read and keep us in your prayers.





Dear Friends and Family,

Greetings in Jesus’ Name! We hope this finds you well and enjoying this beautiful spring weather. As many of you know, for the Laslo family the arrival of spring means we can begin counting down the weeks until our annual trip to Uganda!


This year marks our sixth consecutive summer trip. We are gearing up and getting ready to visit our home away from home. It brings us great joy to fellowship in person with our friends at Ranch on Jesus Orphanage Ministries and to celebrate together in what God has done for us even as we anticipate what lies ahead. Each year the children grow by leaps and bounds, and it is always thrilling to witness their developing maturity.


We are departing for Uganda on the 21st of May and will spend four weeks ministering at Ranch on Jesus. Much of our time will be spent in administrative tasks, planning sessions, meetings, fellowship and prayer. Jamie will devote a large portion of her time to updating the Child Sponsorship Program. In addition to his tasks with Ranch on Jesus, Scott will have the opportunity to preach on Sundays.


This year we are excited to be bringing a small team of individuals along with us to Uganda. One of our teammates is a young photojournalist, Hannah Copeland, who will help document the ministry in Uganda with her camera. She will also spend a portion of her summer with us in Birmingham as an intern for Pearl Ministries. Ashleigh Luther is another intern who will spend time working for the ministry both in Uganda and the States. A Community Development major from Covenant College, Ashleigh has gifts and training that will be of great value to the ministry. Another exciting teammate is our dear friend, Amy Hudson, who spent 2005 through 2007 serving as a missionary with World Harvest in western Uganda. Amy is excited to return to Uganda and will be a great help acting as a second set of mommy eyes and arms for our one year old daughter, Vivian.


There are many things we still need to prepare and settle before we depart. As in years past, we are aiming to raise 10,000 dollars for our short term trip. Our trip is broken down into $4,500 for travel, $2,500 for living expenses and $3,000 for ministry needs. (See attached Prayer and Budget Sheet). It would be an honor to have your family as a part of our support team. We’re aiming to raise our support in increments of $100 to reach our goal as swiftly as possible. A gift of any amount is welcome and goes a long way in helping us reach our goal and get to Ranch on Jesus!


Your prayers are very valuable as well. Please pray that we are able to make all the necessary preparations and have a purposeful visit to our beloved partners at Ranch on Jesus. Our family will be doing a lot of travel this summer. We hope to have the opportunity to see many of our friends, family and supporting churches to share pictures and updates from our trip. We truly appreciate your prayers and hope you will consider assisting us as we minister overseas to advance the work of the ministry and the kingdom of God.

Our Love in Christ,

Scott, Jamie and Vivian



Tax deductible donations can be mailed to:

Pearl Ministries

PO Box 610537

Birmingham, AL 35261

Magnolia Festival

Today Pearl Ministries set up shop at the Magnolia Festival in downtown Gardendale, AL. This isn't the first time we've taken our Ugandan wares on the road...and it definitely won't be the last. Its a great deal of work, but generally worth it overall. Every dime we raise for the Orphanage is a felt blessing.

Unfortunately the location of our booth at this festival wasn't prime, so sales weren't as steady as usual. You win some, you lose some. But Praise the Lord we did raise $429 from jewelry sales and $55 dollars for Belk coupons. Not an exciting total, but as Scott says "a learning experience and not a waste of time."

Many thanks to my tireless husband and father who stood on the street all day peddling jewelry. They put me to shame. I've mentioned here before that I am not much of a shopper. Even worse, I am not much of a salesman. I am timid and reluctant. But Scott and my dad went out of their way to talk to anyone and everyone who happened to stroll past our stall.

When foot traffic was little less than a trickle, Scott slung a handful of necklaces over his arm and headed out into the crowds to attract buyers. He actually sold a necklace this way...and a few Belk coupons. Pretty impressive. He's fearless. Something I don't understand.

So overall, not our most stellar event. But profitable all the same. We're headed to Atlanta tomorrow to set up shop at Clayton State College and University this Tuesday and Wednesday. Then on Saturday my folks are headed to Auburn, AL to sell Ugandan crafts at a major festival. Pray for sales!

Belk Charity Sale

Charity Sale

Saturday, May 2, 2009

6AM-10AM

A morning of SPECIAL savings to benefit local CHARITIES and SCHOOLS!

On Saturday, May 2, 2009 Pearl Ministries will be participating in a nationwide fundraiser through Belk Department stores! For four limited hours Belk will put their ENTIRE store on sale 20-50% off, including rarely discounted brands.

How does this go to help Pearl Ministries?

We're selling Coupon Tickets for the sale. The coupon costs five dollars and is good for five dollars off your first purchase during the Charity Sale! Not only is that a great deal for you, it is a great deal for our ministry as well! Pearl Ministries gets to keep 100% of our ticket sales! For every five dollar off coupon we sell, we keep five dollars to further our cause of helping children in Uganda!

Representative for Pearl Ministries will be able to sell Coupon Tickets in several Belk Stores prior to and during the sale. We'll also earn a percentage of the revenue from coupon's sold by Belk cashiers the morning of the sale!

This is a super easy fundraiser and with your help we'll be able to earn alot for our children!

To purchase a Five Dollar Off Coupon for five dollars email pearlministries@gmail.com.

If you'd like to help sell coupons to your friends, family, neighbors, coworkers, etc. just request a few at no charge to yourself. Sell what you can and send in your earnings!

With your help we can really raise a bundle!

A Weekend with Oak Mountain

Over the past few months I've had the privilege of getting to know some fantastic women from Oak Mountain Presbyterian Church here in Birmingham. They've been enthusiastic and helpful in promoting the Ugandan jewelry we sell for the ministry. Thanks to one of our gracious Child Sponsors at the church we got an invitation to sell our Ugandan crafts at OMPC's Yard Sale this past Saturday.


The Yard Sale was specifically organized to raise funds for the church's adoption fund. I have been truly delighted and encouraged by the obvious heart the body at Oak Mountain demonstrates toward the fatherless child, both in their community and communities across the globe. In my years of ministry experience across the U.S. I would have to confess that advocacy and care for orphans is something that is not prominent or explicit in many congregations.


I think there are a lot of reasons for this. It is a big topic, and one I'll save for another time.




The sale itself was a blast. I wish I had had the foresight to bring my camera! Just imagine Scott wearing a bright red, blue and yellow Ugandan shirt surrounded by dozens of colorful necklaces in an open parking lot. (Later that day Scott's skin would match his shirt...at least the red part.)

The day turned out to be lovely, and traffic through the sale was steady and good. It was truly great getting to meet and reconnect with so many kind and gracious brothers and sisters in Christ. We were truly encouraged by their interest and support of our ministry. Even if we hadn't sold a single necklace I think we would have still departed blessed.


For me the absolute greatest part of the yard sale was that we weren't in charge! (I started helping Ranch on Jesus is 2004 with a church wide yard sale and we have done a few since.)

But although yard sales are a lot of work, I always think there is something refreshing and early churchish about them. Folks from the congregation giving up their day to sell their possessions to benefit the poor. Working (physically) side by side to benefit others is something we church folk simply don't do enough of.

The hard work and effort paid of big time for this band of believers. Oak Mountain made a whopping $8,600 in their one day sale! Praise the Lord. And surprisingly we were able to raise just short of $670 for Ranch on Jesus in our jewlery sales! That is surprising considering most yard sale shoppers are looking for deals. (Much of our profit is due to the generous members of the church who shopped our display.)




After our Saturday experience we decided to attend Sunday worship with the folks at Oak Mountain. They were celebrating Palm Sunday with a special worship concert presentation, Hallelujah. It was a special blessing for us to experience. As I sat surrounded by the sound of drums, electric guitar and bright songs I thought, this is about as close to Uganda as I have gotten in a while. And that brought me the most joy overall last weekend.