Tag Archives: Rio Branco

Update on Flooding

Several weeks ago, I wrote about flooding that is going on in our state. The flooding still continues and is causing more problems. Nearly 2,500 families in the capital city of Porto Velho have had to be relocated to schools and other places. The river has hit a record high. As imagined, this has made travel very difficult.

Next month I will traveling to Porto Velho. I will be catching a plane to Rio Branco. The stretch of highway between Porto Velho and Rio Branco is flooded for miles. This is the only access road from this part of the country. Below are some pictures that show what is going on. These pictures were taken around the 21st of February. The water has risen another 4 feet since then!

Please pray for the churches in Porto Velho! Though we are not aware of any directly in the flooded area, there are definitely families and lives affected by the problems caused from the flooding.

— Jeremy

Ponte que atravessa o Rio Madeira na BR-319, em Porto Velho

Distribuidora de botijões de gás foi tomada pela água do Rio Madeira

Botijões boiam em distribuidora de gás, após área ser tomada pela cheia do Rio Madeira

Casa foi tomada por água do rio na Comunidade São Sebastião

Casa tomada pela enchente em Porto Velho

Casas na Comunidade São Sebastião estão inundadas por conta da cheia do Rio Madeira

Comunidade São Sebastião foi tomada por água do Rio Madeira

Galpão da Feira do Cai N'água no Bairro Baixa União, tomado pela cheia do Rio Madeira

Moradores chegam de barco em suas casas no centro da capital

Comércios tomados pela enchente na Avenida Rogério Weber

Acesso ao Tribunal Regional Eleitoral tomado por água do rio

Moradores se arriscam ao atravessar rua tomada pela cheia do Rio Madeira

Pictures are links from THIS NEWS SITE

Family Trip to Rio Branco

Just a few weeks ago we had an opportunity to travel as a family. It was the longest trip we have ever taken in Brazil. We traveled over 1500 miles round trip. Taking into consideration the road conditions, this was quite a long trip. We found that the worse stretch of road on the whole trip was the first 25 miles from our house.

We have much to praise the Lord for! This trip would have been much more difficult had it not been for our new vehicle. Though we did not need the 4 wheel drive on this trip, we did need the larger tires and higher vehicle. I am not sure our previous car would have made the entire trip without incident, but we must praise the Lord that this one did. The only damage to the car was all the bugs on the front. Some just do not want to come off!

The road conditions to Rio Branco were much better than we expected. Amanda volunteered to drive! Now that is saying something! She hates these roads. We even had to cross the river on a ferry, which was a first for our boys.

Ferry Crossing
Our whole family spent about 31 hours together in the car on this trip. That gave us plenty of time together. This car has a CD player in it! We listened to quite a few Patch the Pirate and Adventures in Odyssey episodes. The boys were looking forward to listening to some new things.

Once we arrived in Rio Branco, we were able to spend a few days with the Doolittles. Our boys enjoyed meeting their two younger boys (Joshua and Benjamin) and the five of them had a great time together. The Doolittles were also a great encouragement to Amanda and me.

Friends - Rio Branco

Friends - Rio Branco


We were able to see the new location they have been meeting in. It is on the edge of town. Though a few people were not all that excited about the change in the beginning, it seems as though things have picked up and people are enjoying it now. The Lord is using the church to reach many people in the area.
Church - Rio Branco
Amanda and I also sat in on one of the Bible Institute classes. They have four students and the courses are all done through videos.

One of the days we were with them, we enjoyed an afternoon playing ball with some of the young people in the church. We also had a good time eating pizza afterwards.

Friends - Rio Branco
It is always refreshing to spend time with other missionaries. There are many things we share in common that other people do not understand. It is also exciting to see how God works in the lives of other missionaries.

–Jeremy

Rio Branco – Acre

I have finally come to the point of blogging about the conference in Rio Branco. I was very surprised when I arrived in the city because it is so clean. At least compared to anything else I saw it was very clean. I really enjoyed the city. Things are quite modern for being so far out.

I spent a night in Rio Branco before leaving for Brasiléia. When I returned I spent another night, then went to Porto Velho. Finally after I returned from Porto Velho I was able to spend at least two more nights in Rio Branco. So, I guess I can say I have been to Rio Branco three times already.

Rio Branco
The Governor’s Palace – Unfortunately it was closed!

What a blessing it was to spend time with the Doolittles. Stephen and Kelly Doolittle are planting a church in Rio Branco which they hope to have completely in national hands within a few years. They have four children, Philip, Hannah, Joshua, and Benjamin. The time spent with them was quite a bit of fun.

Rio Branco
The Old Woman’s Shoe – I managed to fit in the shoe with Joshua and Benjamin.

Through the last few years, I have communicated with Stephen Doolittle by e-mail. If we had met each other in the past, it was very briefly when I was just a kid. However, the Lord saw fit to bring our paths to cross again when he invited me to this conference.

Rio Branco
Mission Conference – Preaching at the Conference

The Lord has put many things in our hearts and minds that would allow us to work together in some way to help further the work of the Lord in the northwest corner of Brazil. He is also interested in training laborers and in developing literature to be used for this. This is wonderful being there are not many fundamentalist missionaries and churches up near Porto Velho. Though Rio Branco is not right next door, it is one of the closest missionaries we know to that area.

The Lord has given the Doolittles a very nice facility to use training laborers. They have several class rooms and are working on developing the property for what they need. Here is a look at their property which was formerly some sort of daycare center run by some German women.

Rio Branco
Playground – This is the Doolittle’s front yard.
Rio Branco
Classrooms – There are about six classrooms in this little pavilion.

Stephen’s church was quite a blessing. The people were eager to hear the Word being preached. They listened very well. Please pray that the Lord would raise up laborers out of that church.

It was such a blessing to see the church people get involved in singing, preaching and teaching. The Lord has blessed the church with some wonderful people. They have given to the Lord and are committed to missions around the world.

Here are a few pictures of the conference and the people singing.

Rio Branco
Rio Branco
Rio Branco
Rio Branco
Rio Branco

One of the highlights of my trip was sitting down with Bro. Stephen and his wife Kelly before I left and talking about the need in Acre. There is such a great need. We talked about the colonies, river villages, and tribes. There are so many opportunities to reach out to people who have never heard the Gospel. May the Lord send laborers into his harvest.

— Jeremy