The establishment of the
Romanian foundation of Calea Adevarului was seeded into its
founder, Rita McClure, after extensive short term
missions trips to Romania. In 1995 she
answered the call of Christ to missions. She later left their home
in Alabama and came to Romania to minister to the poor in March,
1998. Through faith in Jesus Christ, she has committed her life to
servanthood, knowing that above all
Christ must increase and that she must decrease in order for the
Gospel of Christ to become more effective. Therefore, the vision of
Calea is that Jesus be manifested in the lives of all which
God will permit them to reach. Under the direction of Christ, she
has worked for years to develop an open and trusting relationship
with the governmental officials in Cluj and
Salaj Counties. Such trust has opened the door to the
ministry of the Word and spiritual teaching through many ministerial
teams that have come to extend the hand of Christ to the Romanian
people. During her early contacts with the orphanages in
Cehu and Jibou,
the Rita McClure envisioned the need of not only ministering to the
orphans in institutions but also through a transitioning program
that would prepare orphans leaving the institutions to become
productive and independent Romanian citizens. Christ has opened the
door to that original vision and subsequently other Calea
programs by extending a like call to others to be co-workers with
Him here in Romania. The desire to minister to the poor and hurting
of Romania has been, and continues to be heavy on her heart. Despite
the hardships that accompany living in Romania, she has purposed to
continue ministering here and press forward to the mark of the high
calling of God. She continues to seed rays of hope in the lives of
the Romanian people so that the bonds of accepting poverty as a way
of life will be broken and that the ethnic prejudices that have
plagued Romania for generations will disappear. She is confident
that all things are possible through Christ and that it is not by
man’s power that change will come to Romania but by the power of
Jesus Christ.
In answer to an
invitation to follow God’s leading, missionaries, Rita McClure, came
to Romania in 1998 to perform the work that He was offering – to
become a veritable relay station to give to those in need. Her
motto, James 1:27,
became a standard – “to visit the fatherless and the widows in their
affliction.” God promised that He would be their supplier if they
would respond to His call. Later in 1999 she formed the
humanitarian foundation, Fundatia
Calea Adevarului, to better facilitate the receipt and
distribution of humanitarian aid. Donations of
second-hand clothes, hygiene items, and food packets began arriving
in 1999 from individuals, churches, and organizations. God was
truly fulfilling His promises. The door opened and packages and
boxes came through regular mail, over land by transfer truck, and in
2004 a container loaded with used medical equipment and hygiene
material arrived by boat and then overland to Cluj-Napoca.
God was materializing the vision He had given years before. That
single container from Convoy of Hope and the
continuous flow of boxes from Manna Ministries have
provided humanitarian assistance to hundreds of individuals, medical
facilities, and other humanitarian organizations.
The year 2005 was a year
of shoring up the foundations of Calea Adevarului.
Romania is mid-stream of its transition from a poor, isolated
post-communist country into a European satellite. The foundation has
spent the past nine months putting a framework together that meets
the rigid standards that have been imposed by the Romanian
government this year on all types of foundations and institutions.
Many foundations had to let go and shut down their activities,
missionaries have returned to the States for lack of funding or for
inability to comply with government standards and requirements.
Truly, Romania is in transition. But this foundation feels it is
not time to slow down or stop, but rather time to gear up and press
down. The foundation is fully confident that all the paperwork,
meetings, and exorbitant costs for this year’s process will be
essential to continuing in its mission in Romania and is equally
confident that God does not orchestrate such a work that has been
completed this year without a plan. The foundation is awaiting the
revelation of that plan that we are sure lies just beyond the
horizon. “Let go of the old and embrace the new,” was God’s
challenge to the foundation this year.
Year 2009 promises to be a
year of tremendous opportunities in ministering the Gospel, the
field of humanitarian aid distribution. Calea is
strongly committed to our ministry outreach program,
Copiii
Regelui, Youth/children
programs, ladies Bible studies, construction endeavors, and the
continued collaboration with the Cojocna “Board of Education” to
allow the facility to be used as the public school.
OFFICIAL MISSION STATEMENT
Fundatia
Calea Adevarului
is a non-governmental, not-for-profit organization that operates and
performs humanitarian services aimed at responding to the Christian
commission of remembering the poor and defenseless in the time of
their need (James 1:9…to visit the fatherless and widows in their
affliction…). The core of Calea’s
humanitarian activities is to apply Christian principles to the
deficiencies which impair the quality of life for Romanian families
and limit the ability of individuals, organizations, or communities
to rise above situations of economic hardship, distress, emergency,
or natural disaster, and to assist in lessening or eliminating those
deficiencies in an attempt to heighten the quality of life of the
people and the institutions at risk by focusing on Christ’s answers
to personal or corporate difficulties.
Short Term Specific
Humanitarian Objectives:
1.
Facilitate
missions and ministerial teams in the Cluj and Salaj areas.
2.
Continue
renovation on the Ferma Larga plant a church.
3.
Continue to
provide support and education for the child in the care of the
foundation in Cluj.
4.
Continue to
collaborate with Christian churches in Cluj and Salaj Counties to
provide assistance in meeting their ministerial, material, or
financial needs.
5.
Conduct
hygiene and health sessions in Messeni
de Jos for the
Rroma people and to plant seeds in the community for future
ministerial teams.
6.
Continue
humanitarian aid activities of clothing, medicines, food and hygiene
packets, and financial assistance to those in need.
Long Term
Objectives:
Each and every outreach
activity is performed to present the Gospel of Christ by addressing
physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of the people.
Specific Plans for the Next Five Years
-
Renovate a building to
accommodate planting a church/school in the rural, isolated area
of Ferma Larga, and for shepherding a congregation.
-
Plan and perform
programs that propagate the Gospel of Jesus Christ and minister
to people’s critical needs and situations of distress.
ON-GOING PROJECTS
Humanitarian Distribution:
In 2004-2009
humanitarian aid has been distributed to 1,074 individuals and
families in the form of second-hand clothes, food packets,
medicines, school supplies, eyeglasses, financial assistance, and
construction projects.
Organizational Support:
In 2004-2009 Calea Adevarului
provided equipment and supplies to 20 humanitarian organizations,
schools, churches, medical facilities, and state institutions.
Youth/Children Programs:
Copiii
Regelui---teaches weekly summer
program in Ferma Larga and Ferma Cojocna.
Adults
Bible Studies:
In
Ferma Larga and Ferma Cojocna on the “What is Salvation”.
Consruction
Project Ferma Larga:
Renovate a building to accommodate planting a church in the rural,
isolated area of Ferma Larga, and for shepherding a congregation.
NEEDS
-
Prayer
-
Construction /
renovation teams for the church building.
-
Monthly financial
support to operate our daily ministry.
-
Funding to repair the
building we purchased in Ferma Larga to plant a church.
-
Materials for our
children’s programs. (Such as, crayons, construction papers,
pens, pencils, scissors, backpacks, and notebooks, etc.)
-
Office materials.
(Such as: pens, notepads, and file folders, etc).
-
Volunteers
