History

Multifunctional

The office served as an administrative center and workshop for the ministry of ROH Spain. From there we kept in touch with the Spanish churches and official organizations. Jobs like bookkeeping, administration, graphic design, production of club lessons, preparing presentation materials for churches, making projects for subsidies etc. were done. Other team activities were: meetings for planning and prayer, team meals, while the center was also used for board-meetings, special days for interested people. The annual garage sale "Rastrillo" served not only to raise money but also promoted contacts with the neighbourhood. The center has also been offered to the local neighbourhood association for some of their meetings.

Closure of the center in June 2007

Collaborating

Since January 2004 we collaborated with the Christian association “Mosaico” and shared the center with them. They took upon them to work with those teens that outgrew the club. The program of the “Club de Amigos” was geared to ages between three and eleven years. For the youngsters that came to the “Club de Amigos” for years, the program became less attractive. Mosaico offered car mechanics and computer classes and organized every 2 to 3 weeks an attractive thematic program for youth called "La Teen Jaus"

The neighbourhood “El Saucar”

Storage in the YWAM basement

The center after an activity

Group photo before the center

The beginning

The first activities of Rainbows of Hope formed the basis for the current way of working and the work was a model for what God could do in other places. Therefore an overview of how the work began and has developed since 1998.

Arco Iris Center

In October 2000 the Lord gave in a special way a perfect location. A rented space on the ground floor to house a proper office and the “Club de Amigos”.. This "neighborhood center" was in excellent condition and suited the activities very well and was named “Centro Arco Iris” (Rainbows Center). With this step the first social and evangelistic project took on a more solid form.

Home office

Since 1998 the Rainbows team worked for two years from their own homes. The office for ROH was shared over bedrooms in two different flats of the team members while a children’s club under the name "Club de Amigos” took place in different locations.

Tool in Gods hand (looking back)

Center Arco Iris with it´s activities has been a great tool in God´s hand to reach out to the children of the neighborhood of “El Saucar” and other nearby communities with the good news. But that was not all. We also saw it achieved other objectives... The Center served as a bridge for the gospel to the parents and the wider community offering them "a positive activity for their children" It was also a model of one of the things God could do in other places. Volunteers from churches who visited the center or joined the work for a while said: "we want this but we want it in our own church to reach the children of our neighbourhood" And that process, to assist the churches with the ROH team instead of doing most of the work our self, is gaining momentum. Combined with the Rainbows team in southern Spain, four churches are now being helped to set up their own projects to reach children around them.

Goodbye to Center Arco Iris

In June 2007 the center was cleared and closed. Most stuff was stored in the basement of the "Youth with a Mission" base diagonally opposite the former center. From there the "underground" work of Rainbows continues. The center has played an important role to reach children from some neighborhoods with the Good News and also in the development of the vision and methodology and as a model and training site for the current work. Currently, however, many more children are reached by the local churches where the ROH teams may serve through support, encouragement and training.

Program expanded

After we moved into the center “Arco Iris” the weekly program was expanded to include other activities like English classes, computer classes, theater classes, “drop-in” hours with crafts, computers, games and sports. The number of children regularly visiting at least one of the activities ranged between 10 and 40 children from three to seventeen years. According to the number of workers more activities were offered during the week. The weekly program was further adapted according to the talents, language capabilities, time and energy that could be offered by the available team members and volunteers.

A picture of one of the first clubs

January 1996 Phyllis Kilbourn started Rainbows of Hope International
1998 Rainbows of Hope Spain begins
Rainbows is an official association
The first edition of prayer boletin "Noticias de Esperanza"
1998 - June 2007 Club de Amigos "El Saucar"
October 2000 Arco Iris Center opens
January 2004 Collaboration with "Mosaico"
May 2004 former team leaders "Hunds" become directors of ROH international in USA
2004 - June 2006 weekly support "Club de Amigos" program in Fuencarral
Transfer of association papers to Church Fuencarral name changes to “Enredate”
January 2007 Start kids club Calvario "Aqui Cabemos Todos"
June 2007 Closing Center Arco Iris and storage of goods in Basement YWAM
March 2008 Launch of Kids club Manantial the Esperanza
October 2007 - April 2008 Renovation separate basement workshop YWAM

Historical overview

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