Dear Family and Friends,

The staff here at Morning Star Ranch has looked forward to this time of the year. Eric and I moved here in mid-October.  Since we were the new “Director’s in Training”, we looked around with fresh eyes and saw all the possibilities. So we were fairly excited to kick off our camp/retreat season last month.

Morning Star Ranch is about 560 acres. Our entire staff has been busy getting the camp grounds, lodge and cabins into shape for this year’s camp/retreat season. It has been a lot of fun trying out new recipes, planning the menus, painting / redecorating the dining hall and getting the cabins ready for company. Eric and I both love hospitality ministry, we love creating a welcoming and relaxing place for people to visit.

Our first group this season was a group of RA’s from a local college. They spent the weekend focusing how to be good leaders and examples to the students they would be in charge of for the year. The following weekend we had a church board out to the camp for a time of prayer and meetings. They were gearing up for the New Year, and wanted to discuss how their church could grow and how they could be effective ministers to the congregation.

All of the retreats so far have shown me how important it is to have a quiet place for people to visit and recharge. We all need a place to go to  get away from our very fast paced lives, and refocus on what is important in ministry. Here at Morning Star Ranch, we have the opportunity to provide ministers a place to reflect, and plan their ministry opportunities for the future.

As Eric and I have settled into life here, we have met several people who have their own stories to share about Morning Star Ranch. Stories that have changed people’s lives. We are looking forward to all the opportunities God will give us to minister this year. As the year continues on, we will have church retreats, youth and kids camps, men’s and women’s retreats, and family reunions. Each group of people is a open door to minister.  

Prayer Requests:

~ Please pray that we can find a full time maintenance and camp caretaker.

~Please pray that we fill all our summer staff positions.

~Please pray that our new dining hall will be open for the camp season.

Peace & Love,

Eric, Sunshine & Colton

Welcome MSR Interns!

As Christians, we learned early on from the Book of Genesis in the creation of Adam that it is not good for man to be alone. God gave him a companion in Eve. Fast forward to the New Testament, and look at Paul on his missionary journeys with Timothy and Barnabas alongside him. In today’s church, we use catch phrases like “doing life together” or “community” to show the importance of having other Christians to help shoulder the load. That is why we are excited to have two new interns join us at Morning Star Ranch for the coming year.

Michael and Courtney are coming are coming alongside us in ministry at the Ranch for the 2013 year. In an interesting twist, they grew up as classmates in high school. They are from the Whitewater, Kansas area and learned about World Impact from missionaries in our Wichita ministry. As is true in the body of Christ, they each have unique skills that will make a huge impact this next year. Michael grew up on a farm and is very resourceful. He has also spent the last two summers working at a camp in Colorado. Last year he even headed up a week of kids’ camp. Courtney has the gift of hospitality, and she will be a great addition in making sure everyone’s needs are taken care of. She also has a servant’s heart and loves to cook.


It is great to have others help us out this year. It is a daunting task managing the Ranch and all the aspects of ministry. Their presence and work will help move the camp in the right direction. In addition, we have a passion for investing in others on a deep level. We are excited to be living and working with, investing in, and doing life with them.

Come summertime, our staff will expand to handle the demands of weeks of kids’ camps, youth camps, and teen camps. We are currently accepting applications for the summer months, so if you know of anyone looking for a more meaningful summer job than working at the local fast food restaurant, please send them our way. In the past, some of the best people we have worked with were referred by friends.

We always covet your prayers; this month, please pray for:


1. The groups using the Ranch next month that it will have an impact on their lives.

2.Michael and Courtney’s adjustment to life at the Ranch.

3. God’s provision of financial resources to finish the new dining hall.

Peace & Love,
Eric, Sunshine and Colton Leach

Sprucing Things Up

This time of year, as the weather turns cold and the camping season slows down, provides us with an opportunity to focus on other important things. As you can imagine, maintaining a 560-acre ranch takes a great deal of manual labor. Two big projects that Eric has been finishing up are winterizing the remote out-buildings and learning the water system. He is now a certified operator in training for small-water purification and waste-water management. He has become well-versed in all of the Kansas state regulations for water monitoring and testing. Most days, he comes back and gives me a debriefing. I learned today that you have to flush the waterlines to the toilets and put antifreeze in them so that the pipes don’t burst!

Preparations are underway for outlining retreats and camps for 2013. It takes a tremendous amount of preparation and planning to host as many camps as we do. From preparing curriculum, activities, maintenance, and cooking, it is quite a large undertaking. As most of you know, preparation and prayer is vital for setting up success. Coming up in the next two months, we have a pastor and deacon retreat and a college retreat. We are also excited that two one-year interns will be joining us this month. Both of them are eager to get started and have a great love of God and hearts for service. They will not only provide much-needed assistance in daily ministry, but companionship as well.

After living out here on the ranch for several months, we have adjusted quite well. It took a little while to adjust to the fact that the closest Target is over an hour away. But it hasn't taken us long to find out where the go-to spots are nearby. In all of the quaint, small towns, everyone has been very friendly and willing to help us out as the ‘new’ people in town. God’s beauty is all around us. We have a full bank of windows in the front of our house. I have enjoyed sitting at the kitchen table having tea, and watching the deer parade across our front lawn in the early morning hours. Colton and I go exploring at least once a day. There are several trails to walk, fields to explore, and a lovely golden retriever here named Abby that we enjoy playing fetch with. We love the peaceful atmosphere out here, whether it is walking down to the lovely old wind mill or crossing the Cottonwood River. We can feel God’s presence all around us, and we take comfort in that.

Please be in prayer this month for the following:

1. The new interns joining us. 

2.That God provides us with volunteers for service projects.

3. Financial resources to finish the new dining hall and minor improvements on existing buildings.

Peace and Love,
Eric, Sunshine, & Colton

War of the Worlds Men's Retreat

From Dallas, Denver, St. Louis, Topeka, and Wichita, the men began to check in at the Morning Star Ranch registration table. Some showed up in full fatigues. Some came hungry, others nervous, and some so excited they couldn't stand still. It was our family’s first retreat with World Impact, so we shared their emotions. I was nervous and excited; I paced back and forth, shook hands, introduced myself, and even tossed out a few man hugs. With all of the energy bouncing around, you knew something big was happening, and it was--we were on the cusp of Men’s Retreat 2012!


The theme for the weekend was War of the Worlds, one that really hit the men right where they were. The tone was set for an energy-intense weekend. After dinner on Friday night, we were off to the first session. The bonding began immediately as we crammed 120 men into the pavilion. The praise band rocked it out as did Dr. Don Davis with the teaching. You know it was good stuff when the teaching ran over by an hour and the men came out talking about how awesome it was.


There were three main sessions, some breakout groups about church planting in the city, games, fishing, softball, high ropes activities, a campfire with s’mores, and sharing some great meals together. As is often the case for me, the best part about the weekend was watching the men engage with one another in meaningful conversation late into the night. There were men at various points in their spiritual journeys, non-Christians and rock-solid believers. To see two men talking and praying together about Christ is the picture of true manhood.

As the weekend wrapped up, I was encouraged to see how the camp can be used for effective ministry. It provides an opportunity for those who come from urban environments to encounter God in a unique way. It also revealed three specific prayer requests that come with every camp and retreat.

1. For the pastors and leaders of those who came out to the retreat: please pray that God keeps them filled up for the work at hand.


2. For those who attended the retreat: please pray that their lives and hearts are a reflection of God’s calling in their lives. Also pray for protection as they head back into the urban areas.

3. For our volunteers and staff: please pray that they are encouraged in their work for His Kingdom. Also pray that God continues to provide the camp with those ready to serve.

Blessings,
Eric and Sunshine Leach

In The Starting Blocks

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. -Acts 20:24

We are so excited that this past Thursday we were given the “green light” to make arrangements to join World Impact.  It has been quite a journey the last two months, an emotional roll coaster that we weren't expecting.   The thrill of a new ministry, frustration of not having enough support, excitement of new people joining our ministry team to exhaustion of moving from place to place can be so draining.  As always, there are the many lessons that God has been teaching us and new relationships started that will be huge assets for His kingdom.   We are ready and willing to continue the race that God has set out for us in this next chapter and…did we mention that we are pretty excited as well?  Here is the latest update on where we are at financially and the time line for our ministry.

We have been blessed to have spent the last several months meeting old friends and making new ones on the fundraising trail.  We are currently at 82% of our needed monthly support to be fully funded.   What does the other 18% represent?  It is $740 per month.  We have a reserve of “one time donations” that we have received that we can draw monies from to make up our monthly short fall. We don’t want to continue to draw from that reserve fund as we have those monies set aside for ministry projects. These are funds that Sunshine & I can use to improve camp activities, men’s & women’s ministry, outreach and so much more.  We are continuing to meet and share what God has laid on our hearts.  If you want to or know anyone who is interested in missions please send them our way.  We also started the 81=Impact project has gotten some traction over the last several weeks and we are expecting a long term results from that.  Will YOU sacrifice $10 a month to help us reach our financial goal so that we can continue to do ministry next year?

On the fundraising side of things you can help us out three ways.

1.       Become a financial partner of our ministry.  Push the “Click Here” button on the right hand side to sign up today.

2.       Be willing to introduce us to your Church or small group.  We have found that without a personal introduction it is extremely difficult to open some doors.  Will you be our opener?

3.       Kroger, Bakers, Dillons, King Supers, Loaf N Jug, City Market & Quick Shop cards!  By putting your gas, grocery & pharmacy purchases on the gift card you can help us earn 4% of everything you purchase.  We have had 9 faithful users so far and it produces $200 every other month.  Could you impact 50 faithful users?  You already shop, why not use it?

This week will be a busy one for us as we are getting everything out of storage from 4 different locations.  On October 12^th we will be picking up the rental truck and trailer.  The game plan is to load the truck and get to Morning Star Ranch in Florence, KS on Monday October 15^th.  Both Sunshine and I are eager to start with training and learning.  We will be at Morning Star Ranch until August of next year at which point we will be moving to Deer Creek Christian Camp in Bailey, CO.    While in Kansas we will also be spending time at the Wichita ministry hub of World Impact for training and building relationships with the staff and families there.  We have a lot to learn from Church planting to computer systems so it will keep us busy.   We will be jumping in with both feet as one of the largest retreats of the year at the Ranch is the last weekend of October.  This will give us a great opportunity to experience camp life first hand and to learn from the Wichita camp staff who are already there.

As always we covet your prayers for our family and ministry.  For the next month here are some specific prayer requests.   Thank you again for all your love and support!

1.       For the move to Kansas. Patience, safety and ease of travel.

2.       The men’s retreat at the end of October.  That God prepares their hearts for an incredible weekend and that we listen and serve.

3.       That Colton will once again adjust well and that we find a toddlers group for him to continue to interaction with other children. 

4.       Sunshine finding the balance in setting up our home, learning new ministry tasks, and being a good wife and mother.

5.       For Me as I learn new ministry tasks, conferences, and for me to be a good husband and dad in  balance with everything else going on around me. 

81=Impact Project

We were making the 12 hour drive from Omaha, NE back to Louisville, KY as a flood of ideas rushed into my head about World Impact and Deer Creek Christian Camp.  At the next diaper change stop I quick jotted down some notes and it hit me, I can’t wait to get started!  Every time that I start talking about it makes me even more excited about what lies ahead.  We were set to move next week and start with World Impact on October 1st, but that has been placed into a holding pattern and hopefully a short one.

We are in a holding pattern because we need to raise an additional $810 per month in support so that we can help reach the urban poor for Christ.  In the transition from the Dominican to State side missions we have naturally lost some support and had others decrease their ability to give leaving us with a shortfall. That is where the 81=Impact Project comes in.  We are looking for 81 of our friends, or anyone willing to help, to support us at $10 per month so we can start our work with World Impact.

Sunshine and I feel that we are getting close to exhausting our “list” of people that we know and Churches in trying to raise the last amount that we need.  Between Sunshine and I we have over 1,200 friends on facebook, so that is why we are turning to social media.  Just think if 6.8% of our friends respond we will be able unload our storage unit into a truck and be on our way! If you are already a supporter of ours would you consider sharing this with a family member, small group or friends who are interested in missions?   Together we truly can Impact the World! If you would like more information about World Impact visit www.worldimpact.org or about what we will be doing visit www.impactthenation.blogspot.com.

You can start today by:

1.  Clicking here: Donate Now!  Just select change destination and select staff by name, then select Leach, Eric & Sunshine.  You can set up your monthly donation right there.  
2. Simply facebook Sunshine/Eric or email us at ericleach@juno.com / sunshine.leach@gmail.com and we will send you the printable form to fill out and mail in.

When Plans Change..

I have learned many things over the last 4 years of living and working in the Dominican, one of the big things is that plans change.  You almost always have to have a plan A, B & C and often times plan C gets scrapped for something else.  For me personally I love order and structure in everyday activities, but also love to problem solve with multiple options in my head.  It is fun for me to run through possible solutions and come up with options.  Here in the Dominican that skill has proved useful every single week.  Many times we have become so used to it that the teams that we work with don’t even know that we have had changes.   

Now when it comes to my personal life I have enjoyed moving around the country and world experiencing different places.   I have moved a lot the last 15 years, but it has been fun to learn regional and international cultures, customs and styles.  The one thing about all those moves is that I have always had control of them.  I chose to move, I could make plans A, B & C and if I didn’t like it I could always leave!  So what happens when plans change and we have little or no impact on the results?  Ugh! 

I find myself in a place of usual frustration, agitation and tension. 

Life was rolling along for us and looking good for our family.  As far as transitions go, it couldn’t be smoother.  We were finishing up the last two months with G.O., getting ready to start with World Impact on October 1^st.  We needed to raise almost the exact same amount of money to be missionaries with World Impact and most of our supporters had given us the thumbs up that they were on board.  We were excited about Sunshine being pregnant with our second child and everything was lining up perfectly.   That is when the plan changed and the question for me became how to not just survive but grow. 

Within days we found out that the baby was having problems and Sunshine needed to go back to the States.  As most of you know by now we lost the baby.  Sunshine had surgery and returned to the Dominican.  Between the airline ticket and medical expenses we racked up a healthy $3,000+ expense.  Right before that we got word that some of our missionary support had changed and now we needed to raise $600+ per month.  Between all of these things I quickly felt that my perfect little plan had completely spun out of control.  There was no plan that I could execute to resolve losing the baby, no strategy to implement; there was nothing I could do.   I became very tense and frustration set in.

God has been clearly trying to get my attention about turning to Him in my times of trial.  It is one of those things that I have always known, but seldom do.  As a problem solver, my normal reaction is to dive right in and not take the time to turn to God in prayer.  This time however, with the baby, there was nothing that I could do except to turn it over to Him.  As a result it lead to many times of prayer and not asking for the baby to live but that we would be able to give Him the glory in all that we do.  I Peter 1:3-9 brought me great comfort.  It just reminded me that as Christians we will suffer grief in all kinds of trials, but that our inheritance can never perish.  How comforting that is!  Pain, sadness and grief are all things that we experience and I have shed plenty of tears, but those are short lived in that eternity with him will be such a delight. It is in that knowledge that I find my comfort and joy.  Now the challenge is to remember the lessons from God and continue to apply them each and every day.

   Sunshine and I would love your prayers for three specific things right now.

1.       We have two weeks to sell our car here in the Dominican and right now we have no viable prospects.  

2.       For the transition back to the States.

3.       That God will provide us with new supporters to help us cover our $600 per month short-fall.