Guatemala Mission Trip 2010
New & Improvd Friday Update - Plus Saturday & Sunday
Friday’s update is compliments of Dr. Jori.
We rode the bus….
Sometimes travel has a way of slowing your down – found reflections of some sort. Today is one of those travel days. We left El Atlantico about 3-1/2 hours ago – plenty of time to make it to the new destination Antigua – yet we are far from making it there. I’ve been thinking about the week, here in the midst of a Guatemalan traffic jam (first an accident, thankfully not ours, then some construction and now pure congestion). A number of things come to mind from the week; most unrelated to each other, having only geography in common. The first is that the stench of poverty is strong and uneasily overlooked; dirty people, diseased animals, rotting garbage, heavy diesel fuel and primitive sewage systems hang in the air. As we drive through the absolutely gorgeous countryside of mountains and rivers and lush greenery, I can’t help but wonder if our sin is as appalling to God as the stench of poverty is to us. Does He look on our “beautiful” cities, selfish plans and complacent hearts in much the same way we, the developed world, look on the developing world? Thought #2: God has a sense of humor. It’s cool to see a bunch of random people from various stages of life working for a cause beyond ourselves. How often do you see businessmen dig out bus tires from a river crossing? Or a hairdresser takes nurse orders? Or college kids lay pavers? Or 22 year olds pop capsules of antibiotics into fourths to give to a sick child who doesn’t have clean water to take the pills? Or engineers do VBS with kids who don’t speak his language? Thought #3: Are we there yet? 4 hour marker? J Thought #4: Kids are really resilient and we can all learn from them.
Saturday update – back to Ken’s perspectives – thanks for sharing Jori!
Today is our free day in Antigua. It is a beautiful city high in the mountains. It is much cooler and is mostly bug free. It is surrounded by several mountains/volcanoes. Fortunately, we none of them erupted while we are there.
Some of the folks went to the open air markets to try their skill at bargaining and negotiating a better price for their souvenir. Stef was particularly adept. At one point, she is willing to only pay $4 for an item that started at $15. The shopkeeper says it must be $5. Stef’s response is final offer $4, it’s all I have. The shopkeeper reluctantly agrees. Stef pays with a $5 bill and asks for change.
A highlight in Antigua is lunch. We go to McDonald’s and eat American burgers and fries. Not a single bean in sight. Joe poses with a statue of Ronald. As we are eating lunch a couple of women sit down next to us with the intent to steal/pick our pockets. Fortunately, we were on high alert as it did not feel right. Another local woman gets McDonald’s security and the women quickly leave the restaurant.
Cheryl, Joe and Kay are nearly involved in a TukTuk accident. A TukTuk is a three wheeled taxi about the size of a golf cart – not a good match against a bus.
Joe, Cheryl, Helen, Lynne, and Brian visit a coffee plantation to see the lush mountains. All of them, except Cheryl, get adventurous and go zip-lining through the plantation.
In the late afternoon, a group visits a Nunnery. It is a building that houses nuns since the 1500s. It has a beautiful rotunda and grounds with vibrant flowers and plants.
Sunday early in the morning, we make one more visit to the open air market. We go to the old part of the market, where the locals go grocery shopping. Fresh cut meat/chicken, vegetables, and eggs all out in the open with flies swarming and no refrigeration. The stench causes several to gag – looking to escape the smell we ask for the nearest salida (exit).
After the trials of traveling through three airports and customs, we arrive safely home. Thank the Lord that there were no serious injuries or long-term illnesses. It will be back to the “real” world tomorrow morning. Thank you for keeping us and the Guatemalans in your prayers.
I will be posting pictures late Monday from the weekend.
Injury/Illness report
Ken, Helen and Lynne went down for the count. Fortunately, we are bouncing back and looking forward to sleeping at our own homes.
We rode the bus….
Sometimes travel has a way of slowing your down – found reflections of some sort. Today is one of those travel days. We left El Atlantico about 3-1/2 hours ago – plenty of time to make it to the new destination Antigua – yet we are far from making it there. I’ve been thinking about the week, here in the midst of a Guatemalan traffic jam (first an accident, thankfully not ours, then some construction and now pure congestion). A number of things come to mind from the week; most unrelated to each other, having only geography in common. The first is that the stench of poverty is strong and uneasily overlooked; dirty people, diseased animals, rotting garbage, heavy diesel fuel and primitive sewage systems hang in the air. As we drive through the absolutely gorgeous countryside of mountains and rivers and lush greenery, I can’t help but wonder if our sin is as appalling to God as the stench of poverty is to us. Does He look on our “beautiful” cities, selfish plans and complacent hearts in much the same way we, the developed world, look on the developing world? Thought #2: God has a sense of humor. It’s cool to see a bunch of random people from various stages of life working for a cause beyond ourselves. How often do you see businessmen dig out bus tires from a river crossing? Or a hairdresser takes nurse orders? Or college kids lay pavers? Or 22 year olds pop capsules of antibiotics into fourths to give to a sick child who doesn’t have clean water to take the pills? Or engineers do VBS with kids who don’t speak his language? Thought #3: Are we there yet? 4 hour marker? J Thought #4: Kids are really resilient and we can all learn from them.
Saturday update – back to Ken’s perspectives – thanks for sharing Jori!
Today is our free day in Antigua. It is a beautiful city high in the mountains. It is much cooler and is mostly bug free. It is surrounded by several mountains/volcanoes. Fortunately, we none of them erupted while we are there.
Some of the folks went to the open air markets to try their skill at bargaining and negotiating a better price for their souvenir. Stef was particularly adept. At one point, she is willing to only pay $4 for an item that started at $15. The shopkeeper says it must be $5. Stef’s response is final offer $4, it’s all I have. The shopkeeper reluctantly agrees. Stef pays with a $5 bill and asks for change.
A highlight in Antigua is lunch. We go to McDonald’s and eat American burgers and fries. Not a single bean in sight. Joe poses with a statue of Ronald. As we are eating lunch a couple of women sit down next to us with the intent to steal/pick our pockets. Fortunately, we were on high alert as it did not feel right. Another local woman gets McDonald’s security and the women quickly leave the restaurant.
Cheryl, Joe and Kay are nearly involved in a TukTuk accident. A TukTuk is a three wheeled taxi about the size of a golf cart – not a good match against a bus.
Joe, Cheryl, Helen, Lynne, and Brian visit a coffee plantation to see the lush mountains. All of them, except Cheryl, get adventurous and go zip-lining through the plantation.
In the late afternoon, a group visits a Nunnery. It is a building that houses nuns since the 1500s. It has a beautiful rotunda and grounds with vibrant flowers and plants.
Sunday early in the morning, we make one more visit to the open air market. We go to the old part of the market, where the locals go grocery shopping. Fresh cut meat/chicken, vegetables, and eggs all out in the open with flies swarming and no refrigeration. The stench causes several to gag – looking to escape the smell we ask for the nearest salida (exit).
After the trials of traveling through three airports and customs, we arrive safely home. Thank the Lord that there were no serious injuries or long-term illnesses. It will be back to the “real” world tomorrow morning. Thank you for keeping us and the Guatemalans in your prayers.
I will be posting pictures late Monday from the weekend.
Injury/Illness report
Ken, Helen and Lynne went down for the count. Fortunately, we are bouncing back and looking forward to sleeping at our own homes.
Thursday Report
Today we continued the black beans at every meal. No meal is complete without some legumes.
There two teams medical/VBS and construction.
The construction team was scheduled to dig the footings for a foundation. The future building would be a daycare in El Arco. We could not break ground due to the pending rain storms and the large volume of rain that already fell.
El Arco is the village where Chely and Denis live. We met Chely and Denis last year at the nutrition center. Chely and Denis were not home, but we did visit with their grandmother. We think we also saw Chely mom. In addition to grandmother, we met Chely’s half brother. We learned a little more about the family and some of their challenges.
Unfortunately, Denis is not doing well and has been in the hospital in Guatemala City. He is malnourished, losing weight, anemic and not thriving. It was reported that potentially he would be able to come home in the next week.
Chely was at the daycare center a few blocks away. We were able to spend about 20 minutes with her. It was great to see her again, this time with pigtails. Some of the construction team did not understand why we were so excited to see her and see that she is doing well.
We played some Frisbee and tossed a vortex around with the kids for a short period of time. We then shared some fruit snacks and granola bars. It was a bit sad to leave, but Chely and Denis stay in our thoughts and prayers.
We met up with the VBS and medical team. They were working on the other side of the Motague River (across from the Gualan nutrition center). This side of the river is lower than Gualan. As a result, entire portions of the village were wiped out by the flooding. A tent city was built up on a hill. This tent city is where HIM was providing the medical and VBS. Most of the people here did not have any belongings other than what was in the tent. They had a shared kitchen for the entire group. They did not have adequate bathroom facilities or food. Dr. Jori had to use the porta-potty. Many people don’t use te porta-potties and defecate/urinate around the tents. It is ripe for dysentery. Dr. Jori said that they were filled to within inches of the seat. She looked down and the contents were moving (it was filled with maggots). She said that she was gagging.
HIM provided the village with 300 pounds of corn today. Unicef provided some tanks that held water. The tents were tarps and a few scraps of metal. The government has not been able to adequately respond.
The medical team saw many patients this week. Some of the patients only needed vitamins, while others were so severely injured that we were not able to assist, and in those cases often take to the hospital. The medical team saw 18 month old that weighed 17 pounds. The mother agreed to have the baby weighed again in one month and if it did not gain any weight, she would allow the baby to go to the nutrition center.
The construction team only stopped for a quick visit and then went to the Gualan nutrition center. More tables and paver blocks were the project of the day. In addition, Helen, Brian and Ashley worked to fill in wash outs from the storm.
Overall, I am really proud ofthe team of people we had with us. Everyone worked really hard. Bert was surprised at how much we were able to complete. We did Elena’s project in two days when he was expecting it to take three. We also got farther on the tables and pavers. They will be finished up be the next team. However, we were faithful in our assigned tasks.
Tomorrow we will be heading to Antigua. We will not be able to go to the Pacaya volcano as it is still active. However, we will be seeing Pasabien Falls before we go to Antigua. It is very likely that this will be the last posting before we return. Last year, the internet did not work in Antigua and I’m anticipating that it will not work again.
Tonight we had a mini-fiesta. Another excellent dinner by Norma/Luis. We also had some of the volunteers share the impact of this past week. Everyone was operating outside of their comfort zone. Everyone was surprised at what they were able to accomplish. God moves in mighty ways.
Please continue to keep us in your prayers for safe travels and continued health. Some of the folks from Kentucky got violently ill, but we did not. Please also keep the Guatemalans in your prayers. There is so much that needs to be done. Although we did a lot of work, it is a very small dent.
Thanks for catching up and supporting us this week, in the past and in the future.
INJURY REPORT
Trevor cut his leg in the tent village on some scrap metal. Neosporin and band aid.
Joe also got a couple of slivers that had some puss. A little extra hand sanitizer and he was all good.
There two teams medical/VBS and construction.
The construction team was scheduled to dig the footings for a foundation. The future building would be a daycare in El Arco. We could not break ground due to the pending rain storms and the large volume of rain that already fell.
El Arco is the village where Chely and Denis live. We met Chely and Denis last year at the nutrition center. Chely and Denis were not home, but we did visit with their grandmother. We think we also saw Chely mom. In addition to grandmother, we met Chely’s half brother. We learned a little more about the family and some of their challenges.
Unfortunately, Denis is not doing well and has been in the hospital in Guatemala City. He is malnourished, losing weight, anemic and not thriving. It was reported that potentially he would be able to come home in the next week.
Chely was at the daycare center a few blocks away. We were able to spend about 20 minutes with her. It was great to see her again, this time with pigtails. Some of the construction team did not understand why we were so excited to see her and see that she is doing well.
We played some Frisbee and tossed a vortex around with the kids for a short period of time. We then shared some fruit snacks and granola bars. It was a bit sad to leave, but Chely and Denis stay in our thoughts and prayers.
We met up with the VBS and medical team. They were working on the other side of the Motague River (across from the Gualan nutrition center). This side of the river is lower than Gualan. As a result, entire portions of the village were wiped out by the flooding. A tent city was built up on a hill. This tent city is where HIM was providing the medical and VBS. Most of the people here did not have any belongings other than what was in the tent. They had a shared kitchen for the entire group. They did not have adequate bathroom facilities or food. Dr. Jori had to use the porta-potty. Many people don’t use te porta-potties and defecate/urinate around the tents. It is ripe for dysentery. Dr. Jori said that they were filled to within inches of the seat. She looked down and the contents were moving (it was filled with maggots). She said that she was gagging.
HIM provided the village with 300 pounds of corn today. Unicef provided some tanks that held water. The tents were tarps and a few scraps of metal. The government has not been able to adequately respond.
The medical team saw many patients this week. Some of the patients only needed vitamins, while others were so severely injured that we were not able to assist, and in those cases often take to the hospital. The medical team saw 18 month old that weighed 17 pounds. The mother agreed to have the baby weighed again in one month and if it did not gain any weight, she would allow the baby to go to the nutrition center.
The construction team only stopped for a quick visit and then went to the Gualan nutrition center. More tables and paver blocks were the project of the day. In addition, Helen, Brian and Ashley worked to fill in wash outs from the storm.
Overall, I am really proud ofthe team of people we had with us. Everyone worked really hard. Bert was surprised at how much we were able to complete. We did Elena’s project in two days when he was expecting it to take three. We also got farther on the tables and pavers. They will be finished up be the next team. However, we were faithful in our assigned tasks.
Tomorrow we will be heading to Antigua. We will not be able to go to the Pacaya volcano as it is still active. However, we will be seeing Pasabien Falls before we go to Antigua. It is very likely that this will be the last posting before we return. Last year, the internet did not work in Antigua and I’m anticipating that it will not work again.
Tonight we had a mini-fiesta. Another excellent dinner by Norma/Luis. We also had some of the volunteers share the impact of this past week. Everyone was operating outside of their comfort zone. Everyone was surprised at what they were able to accomplish. God moves in mighty ways.
Please continue to keep us in your prayers for safe travels and continued health. Some of the folks from Kentucky got violently ill, but we did not. Please also keep the Guatemalans in your prayers. There is so much that needs to be done. Although we did a lot of work, it is a very small dent.
Thanks for catching up and supporting us this week, in the past and in the future.
INJURY REPORT
Trevor cut his leg in the tent village on some scrap metal. Neosporin and band aid.
Joe also got a couple of slivers that had some puss. A little extra hand sanitizer and he was all good.
Wednesday Report
Praise the Lord!! Yesterday at the medical clinic one of the patients was a 17 year old. She was 3 months pregnant. She also had an 18 month old baby. The baby was extremely malnourished. This was obvious as the baby’s hair was red and very thin. We convinced her to come back to the hotel to get a good night’s rest and some food. Her eyes really lit up when we gave her a blanket, burp cloth and bib (thanks Cindy D). She was so excited to receive something new. However, the mom was not very excited about the baby. We wanted to have the baby given to the nutrition center. The grandmother said it would be better for the baby to die. In Guatemala, it is very common for children to die. If they go to the nutrition center, it harms the reputation of the family. Jose spent time talking with her. With prayer and his help, the mom agreed to give the baby to the nutrition center. Kay and Rachel rode with the mom to bring her home. The mom cried a fair amount, but was at peace with the decision. Praise the Lord!
This morning we had black beans again! Thank goodness we have Jose’s hot sauce to liven it up.
Update on two of the boys at the Gualan nutrition center last year. Jeremiah and Joshua were just taken to the center our last day there. After 2 weeks the children started getting better. However, the father picked the children up and took them home. 10 days later, one of them passed away. To hear that we did not save this family is sad. As Jose reminded me, we may not be able to help everyone. However, for those that we do help, it means the world of difference to them.
We all went to the Gualan nutrition center today. We started by doing some construction and preparing for lunch. We provided lunch for 100 needy children. Joe and Ken were at the door. Joe was perceived as a doctor. One young male dropped his trousers and wanted him to look at his hernia. Joe said it looked fine. It was sad that we had to turn hungry children away. Similar to yesterday, the phrase was, “Lo sciento, no mas.”
When we were feeding the children, a couple would ask for an extra tortilla or fruit. They would then try to hand it to a family member outside a window.
On the construction project, Joe was the foreman of the table toppers. He was working with all of the women building tables for a hospital. The table top team consists of Danielle, Lynne, Stefanie, Ashley, Mallory and Brenda. They are master wood craftswomen and can sand, router, drill, drive screws and use mortise and dowel. We have many built, but more to go. We won’t be able to finish them and next week’s team will need to see the project to completion.
Jori, Mallory, and Ken worked on a paver block path from the nutrition center to the orphanage. We definitely hit sweat level five today. We were able to wring out our shirts with sweat and the shorts were dripping wet.
There was a 12” lizard near the paving blocks. A large group of the table toppers stopped work to take a look. It was hiding between the blocks. With a little prodding, it came running out. The table toppers became the scream team.
Jose worked as a translator at the medical clinic. He acknowledged that it is hard work to pay attention and translate accurately. At the end of the day, a lady came to say that she was congested (there are a lot of people with athsma/allergies as a result of cooking over open fires). Jose promptly told the nurse that the patient is constipated. Fortunately, he realized the error based on the medicine being prescribed.
It is neat to see that we are part of a small world. Rachel and Tony are two young adults from Munster that are on the HIM trip. Tony plays soccer for Millenium Vardar U17. Trevor plays for Millenium Vardar U14 with the same coach. They have been such a joy to work with every day.
Jose prayed at lunch for all of the children. The children repeat each sentence (which we forgot to tell him). He did a great job – prayer is clearly one of his spiritual gifts
Brenda was looking to love on a baby at the nutrition center. Unfortunately, they were all being held. She turned and started to walk away when she heard a splat. Fearing the worst, she turned around to see that it was two geckos that fell from the ceiling.
Don’t worry if the pictures of Ashley look like she is sunburned. It is rojo only. She was wearing her hat for a short period of time when it was borrowed by a Guatemalan.
A storm started to blow in again tonight. We were told to get on the coaster (bus) right away. It took a while to load everyone. The roads in Gualan were starting to wash out. A Tuktuk (basically a 3 wheeled golf cart used as a taxi) was stuck in the road and the bus was barely able to get around the Tuktuk without getting stuck itself. The rain was coming down hard, so Cheryl had the window cracked only a little bit. A semi-truck coming the other way splashed her and soaked the left side of her body.
EXTRA PICTURES TODAY – GOOD SERVICE J
INJURY REPORT
Danielle injured her hand with a hammer. She required Neosporin and a Bandaid, but will make a full recovery.
Angela, a nurse from Kentucky, slipped in the bathroom. She tried to catch herself on the sink. The sink came off the wall and shattered. It cut her foot and required 10 stitches. She was not able to work today and is in quite a bit of discomfort. Please pray for a speedy healing and relief from pain.
This morning we had black beans again! Thank goodness we have Jose’s hot sauce to liven it up.
Update on two of the boys at the Gualan nutrition center last year. Jeremiah and Joshua were just taken to the center our last day there. After 2 weeks the children started getting better. However, the father picked the children up and took them home. 10 days later, one of them passed away. To hear that we did not save this family is sad. As Jose reminded me, we may not be able to help everyone. However, for those that we do help, it means the world of difference to them.
We all went to the Gualan nutrition center today. We started by doing some construction and preparing for lunch. We provided lunch for 100 needy children. Joe and Ken were at the door. Joe was perceived as a doctor. One young male dropped his trousers and wanted him to look at his hernia. Joe said it looked fine. It was sad that we had to turn hungry children away. Similar to yesterday, the phrase was, “Lo sciento, no mas.”
When we were feeding the children, a couple would ask for an extra tortilla or fruit. They would then try to hand it to a family member outside a window.
On the construction project, Joe was the foreman of the table toppers. He was working with all of the women building tables for a hospital. The table top team consists of Danielle, Lynne, Stefanie, Ashley, Mallory and Brenda. They are master wood craftswomen and can sand, router, drill, drive screws and use mortise and dowel. We have many built, but more to go. We won’t be able to finish them and next week’s team will need to see the project to completion.
Jori, Mallory, and Ken worked on a paver block path from the nutrition center to the orphanage. We definitely hit sweat level five today. We were able to wring out our shirts with sweat and the shorts were dripping wet.
There was a 12” lizard near the paving blocks. A large group of the table toppers stopped work to take a look. It was hiding between the blocks. With a little prodding, it came running out. The table toppers became the scream team.
Jose worked as a translator at the medical clinic. He acknowledged that it is hard work to pay attention and translate accurately. At the end of the day, a lady came to say that she was congested (there are a lot of people with athsma/allergies as a result of cooking over open fires). Jose promptly told the nurse that the patient is constipated. Fortunately, he realized the error based on the medicine being prescribed.
It is neat to see that we are part of a small world. Rachel and Tony are two young adults from Munster that are on the HIM trip. Tony plays soccer for Millenium Vardar U17. Trevor plays for Millenium Vardar U14 with the same coach. They have been such a joy to work with every day.
Jose prayed at lunch for all of the children. The children repeat each sentence (which we forgot to tell him). He did a great job – prayer is clearly one of his spiritual gifts
Brenda was looking to love on a baby at the nutrition center. Unfortunately, they were all being held. She turned and started to walk away when she heard a splat. Fearing the worst, she turned around to see that it was two geckos that fell from the ceiling.
Don’t worry if the pictures of Ashley look like she is sunburned. It is rojo only. She was wearing her hat for a short period of time when it was borrowed by a Guatemalan.
A storm started to blow in again tonight. We were told to get on the coaster (bus) right away. It took a while to load everyone. The roads in Gualan were starting to wash out. A Tuktuk (basically a 3 wheeled golf cart used as a taxi) was stuck in the road and the bus was barely able to get around the Tuktuk without getting stuck itself. The rain was coming down hard, so Cheryl had the window cracked only a little bit. A semi-truck coming the other way splashed her and soaked the left side of her body.
EXTRA PICTURES TODAY – GOOD SERVICE J
INJURY REPORT
Danielle injured her hand with a hammer. She required Neosporin and a Bandaid, but will make a full recovery.
Angela, a nurse from Kentucky, slipped in the bathroom. She tried to catch herself on the sink. The sink came off the wall and shattered. It cut her foot and required 10 stitches. She was not able to work today and is in quite a bit of discomfort. Please pray for a speedy healing and relief from pain.
Tuesday Report
Pictures will be posted in the morning. Having some technical difficulties.
This morning, they surprised us with no black beans. We had some great pancakes!
We started the day as a large HIM team. We all went together to Elena’s eldercare center. This is where we have been working on the kitchen. She provides lunch twice a week to the area seniors. It is also a shaded area to fellowship together. It is her 92nd birthday. We all made birthday cards for her. We brought them to her and sang happy birthday. Each person gave them their card and received a hug from her. She was especially attracted to Brian. Helen stepped in to set the record straight and let her know that Brian was married.
We then split into two teams. The construction consisted of Tony, Joe, Danielle, Stef, Kay, Brian, Helen, Mallory, and Ashley. The rest of us went to San Pablo for medical and VBS.
One of the first families that we saw today was a group of ten. We usually limit it to 5 in a family. However, in order to get to the clinic, they swam/waded across a river. It has continued to rain just about every evening and they really wanted to get into the clinic. Unfortunately, they brought an infant that was approximately 18 months. The child did not have any cognitive skills and was choking on its spit. The mom thought that maybe we would be able to help the child walk/eat, etc. Karen personally told the mother that the child would never be able to do those things by themselves. The mother said, without missing a beat, “that is alright, we have Jesus.”
Given the high river and part of the town could not come to the clinic, we did not have as many patients at the medical clinic so they released many of early. We saw 365 people on Sunday, 348 people Monday and today we saw 148. That is a lot of people with only four nurse practitioners.
Rachel has been doing an excellent job of being a translator. Each medical team consists of a nurse, translator, and runner. The runner brings medicine back to the patients.
We then sent some of the folks to meet with the construction team at the Gualan nutrition center. I am happy to report that the wall we built last year is still standing.
The bus got stuck in a washed out road. Jose jumped right into solving this problem. After all, he is an automotive expert. We jacked up the bus and put stones under the tires, as well as dug out the rear bumper. We also saw several cows in the street.
Helen won $5 from Kay. I’m not at liberty yet to report on how. Stay tuned.
The construction team at Gualan was building tables for a hospital in Guatemala City. It was one of the highly encouraged projects (i.e., required).
Returning to Gualan was quite an experience. The orphanage is completed. There is a new outbuilding that stores all of the tools and equipment. The fence encircles the entire property. Last year, there was a lumber yard/mill on the other side of the river. The staff watched it wash down the river during the flooding. The river went up 25 feet in less than 3 hours.
Helen and Brian are celebrating their anniversary today. Helen wanted to prove that she still falls for Brian. See the injury report for more details.
We had the opportunity to share some lovin’ with the kids at the nutrition center. We ran into some delays (like getting stuck in the river).
We ended the night at the HIM house for dinner. We even had anniversary cake.
INJURY REPORT
We had to quickly pick up the supplies and wood and carry them to the supply building due to a rain storm that blew in. Helen was carrying some of the material Brian was using. It is not quite clear what happened, but it is alleged that Brian tripped Helen. She fell for him again. Unfortunately, she landed on the concrete walkway. She scuffed her hand drawing some blood. Most importantly, her nails still look good J
We had two people with rumbly tummies. They took some Cipro and made it through the day with no further issues. Keep praying for our health.
This morning, they surprised us with no black beans. We had some great pancakes!
We started the day as a large HIM team. We all went together to Elena’s eldercare center. This is where we have been working on the kitchen. She provides lunch twice a week to the area seniors. It is also a shaded area to fellowship together. It is her 92nd birthday. We all made birthday cards for her. We brought them to her and sang happy birthday. Each person gave them their card and received a hug from her. She was especially attracted to Brian. Helen stepped in to set the record straight and let her know that Brian was married.
We then split into two teams. The construction consisted of Tony, Joe, Danielle, Stef, Kay, Brian, Helen, Mallory, and Ashley. The rest of us went to San Pablo for medical and VBS.
One of the first families that we saw today was a group of ten. We usually limit it to 5 in a family. However, in order to get to the clinic, they swam/waded across a river. It has continued to rain just about every evening and they really wanted to get into the clinic. Unfortunately, they brought an infant that was approximately 18 months. The child did not have any cognitive skills and was choking on its spit. The mom thought that maybe we would be able to help the child walk/eat, etc. Karen personally told the mother that the child would never be able to do those things by themselves. The mother said, without missing a beat, “that is alright, we have Jesus.”
Given the high river and part of the town could not come to the clinic, we did not have as many patients at the medical clinic so they released many of early. We saw 365 people on Sunday, 348 people Monday and today we saw 148. That is a lot of people with only four nurse practitioners.
Rachel has been doing an excellent job of being a translator. Each medical team consists of a nurse, translator, and runner. The runner brings medicine back to the patients.
We then sent some of the folks to meet with the construction team at the Gualan nutrition center. I am happy to report that the wall we built last year is still standing.
The bus got stuck in a washed out road. Jose jumped right into solving this problem. After all, he is an automotive expert. We jacked up the bus and put stones under the tires, as well as dug out the rear bumper. We also saw several cows in the street.
Helen won $5 from Kay. I’m not at liberty yet to report on how. Stay tuned.
The construction team at Gualan was building tables for a hospital in Guatemala City. It was one of the highly encouraged projects (i.e., required).
Returning to Gualan was quite an experience. The orphanage is completed. There is a new outbuilding that stores all of the tools and equipment. The fence encircles the entire property. Last year, there was a lumber yard/mill on the other side of the river. The staff watched it wash down the river during the flooding. The river went up 25 feet in less than 3 hours.
Helen and Brian are celebrating their anniversary today. Helen wanted to prove that she still falls for Brian. See the injury report for more details.
We had the opportunity to share some lovin’ with the kids at the nutrition center. We ran into some delays (like getting stuck in the river).
We ended the night at the HIM house for dinner. We even had anniversary cake.
INJURY REPORT
We had to quickly pick up the supplies and wood and carry them to the supply building due to a rain storm that blew in. Helen was carrying some of the material Brian was using. It is not quite clear what happened, but it is alleged that Brian tripped Helen. She fell for him again. Unfortunately, she landed on the concrete walkway. She scuffed her hand drawing some blood. Most importantly, her nails still look good J
We had two people with rumbly tummies. They took some Cipro and made it through the day with no further issues. Keep praying for our health.
Monday Report
Praise the Lord, no one is ill or seriously injured – for a full injury report see the end of today’s posting.
A late reported story from Sunday before we get to today’s report.
Dr. Brink, after all she does work at a hospital, was providing medical consultations with the nurse practitioners. In what was reported as one of many consultations, the patient had a bug in the ear canal. After several attempts to remove it with a tweezers, they brought in the doctor. She prescribed a regime of using a syringe filled with water to evacuate the canal – waalaa success.
Ken, Cheryl, Jori and Lynne ran the pharmacy and sorted drugs. Kay and Katie were runners/traffic control (bringing meds to the patients and directing patients where to go). Jose was a translator again for the patients. Unfortunately for him, they don’t speak Mexican (although they both speak Spanish, they speak really quickly down here and use different phrases and words).
One of the cool things about the medical clinic is that we were able to serve people that lost everything in the flooding. The mayor gave us a list of people that were ill or lost everything in the flood. While we could not help in all of their needs, at least we gave everyone of them two sets of clothes. Several of them cried. Thank you everyone at home for sharing items with the Guatemalans. They know that these gifts came from Christians – awesome – what a witness.
Danielle, Ashley, Trevor and Stef helped with the VBS. The glitter on the animal masks (after all they went up 2 by 2 in the ark) were much better controlled today. Only a handful of sprinkles per person today! The medical clinic went all day so there were extended games of poto, poto, gonzo (duck, duck, goose). A highlight was when they were throwing overfilled water balloons into the air and the kids would catch a bursting balloon.
Jose and Ken provided one of the neighbors some medical assistance. An elderly lady had a broken wrist. After the cast set, her hand swelled. It was so swollen that it was cutting of the circulation to the thumb. We removed a portion of the cast to allow the blood to flow and gave her some anti-inflamatories.
Lynne and Cheryl have new names (BB1 and BB2). They are our bano babes. They had to monitor the bathroom (bano) at the clinic. The door locked if it was shut and you could only open it with a key. Also, the water quit working on the toilet. As a result, to flush the toilet, they would pour a bucket of water into the toilet bowl.
Ken was asked to be the door guy. This was a two part task. First, he needed to keep the people out of the building until we called their number. Second, more people would come without a number. We could accommodate some, but we had to cut it off. The phrase he would say to each individual arriving was, “Lo sciento, no mas.” – I’m sorry, no more. He would then escort them out the gate of the yard. It was very sad to see such need and not be able to help everyone.
At the end of the clinic we were packing up the meds and VBS supplies. Walking towards the mini-van, one of the boys asked for the soccer ball. It was given to him and Jose made it clear that it was to be shared. In pretty good English, the boy said, “Thank you, son of a @*!#” with a big smile (we don’t think he knew the meaning).
The construction team consisted of Mallory, Joe, Helen, Brenda and Brian (Tony also). They continued to work at Elena’s eldercare center. They finished blocking two walls for the kitchen. The also poured the counter tops / stove surfaces. This was some heavy lifting work. The mortar and cement are all mixed by hand.
Bert split his pants during the action today. For those that know him, this was very funny. As one of the leaders, he quickly drove to town to buy a new pair.
Helen was asking some of the elderly ladies to sing her a song. Her Spanish is good, but not quite that good. They thought she said that she was going to sing a song, which she did for them. Then they sang for her. Some of the neighborhood girls wanted to express their appreciation for the work being performed and gave Helen and Brenda manicures. This was Helen’s first manicure in many years and she had to come to Guatemala to get one.
Mallory and Brenda where listening to the sounds around the eldercare center. There were roosters, chickens, sheep and dogs barking. Mallory commented that it made her feel at home.
Helen commented that Joe met a new friend. Cheryl was surprised to learn that it was not a woman (however, his name was Arial).
Rain continues off and on. Hopefully there is no additional flooding. The destruction in some of the low lying areas is really pervasive.
INJURY REPORT
Brian’s black eye is not as swollen, but has gotten darker.
Jose was stung by a flying insect. Fortunately, Ken was able to remove the stinger and applied some Benadryl.
Joe was also stung in the foot.
A late reported story from Sunday before we get to today’s report.
Dr. Brink, after all she does work at a hospital, was providing medical consultations with the nurse practitioners. In what was reported as one of many consultations, the patient had a bug in the ear canal. After several attempts to remove it with a tweezers, they brought in the doctor. She prescribed a regime of using a syringe filled with water to evacuate the canal – waalaa success.
Ken, Cheryl, Jori and Lynne ran the pharmacy and sorted drugs. Kay and Katie were runners/traffic control (bringing meds to the patients and directing patients where to go). Jose was a translator again for the patients. Unfortunately for him, they don’t speak Mexican (although they both speak Spanish, they speak really quickly down here and use different phrases and words).
One of the cool things about the medical clinic is that we were able to serve people that lost everything in the flooding. The mayor gave us a list of people that were ill or lost everything in the flood. While we could not help in all of their needs, at least we gave everyone of them two sets of clothes. Several of them cried. Thank you everyone at home for sharing items with the Guatemalans. They know that these gifts came from Christians – awesome – what a witness.
Danielle, Ashley, Trevor and Stef helped with the VBS. The glitter on the animal masks (after all they went up 2 by 2 in the ark) were much better controlled today. Only a handful of sprinkles per person today! The medical clinic went all day so there were extended games of poto, poto, gonzo (duck, duck, goose). A highlight was when they were throwing overfilled water balloons into the air and the kids would catch a bursting balloon.
Jose and Ken provided one of the neighbors some medical assistance. An elderly lady had a broken wrist. After the cast set, her hand swelled. It was so swollen that it was cutting of the circulation to the thumb. We removed a portion of the cast to allow the blood to flow and gave her some anti-inflamatories.
Lynne and Cheryl have new names (BB1 and BB2). They are our bano babes. They had to monitor the bathroom (bano) at the clinic. The door locked if it was shut and you could only open it with a key. Also, the water quit working on the toilet. As a result, to flush the toilet, they would pour a bucket of water into the toilet bowl.
Ken was asked to be the door guy. This was a two part task. First, he needed to keep the people out of the building until we called their number. Second, more people would come without a number. We could accommodate some, but we had to cut it off. The phrase he would say to each individual arriving was, “Lo sciento, no mas.” – I’m sorry, no more. He would then escort them out the gate of the yard. It was very sad to see such need and not be able to help everyone.
At the end of the clinic we were packing up the meds and VBS supplies. Walking towards the mini-van, one of the boys asked for the soccer ball. It was given to him and Jose made it clear that it was to be shared. In pretty good English, the boy said, “Thank you, son of a @*!#” with a big smile (we don’t think he knew the meaning).
The construction team consisted of Mallory, Joe, Helen, Brenda and Brian (Tony also). They continued to work at Elena’s eldercare center. They finished blocking two walls for the kitchen. The also poured the counter tops / stove surfaces. This was some heavy lifting work. The mortar and cement are all mixed by hand.
Bert split his pants during the action today. For those that know him, this was very funny. As one of the leaders, he quickly drove to town to buy a new pair.
Helen was asking some of the elderly ladies to sing her a song. Her Spanish is good, but not quite that good. They thought she said that she was going to sing a song, which she did for them. Then they sang for her. Some of the neighborhood girls wanted to express their appreciation for the work being performed and gave Helen and Brenda manicures. This was Helen’s first manicure in many years and she had to come to Guatemala to get one.
Mallory and Brenda where listening to the sounds around the eldercare center. There were roosters, chickens, sheep and dogs barking. Mallory commented that it made her feel at home.
Helen commented that Joe met a new friend. Cheryl was surprised to learn that it was not a woman (however, his name was Arial).
Rain continues off and on. Hopefully there is no additional flooding. The destruction in some of the low lying areas is really pervasive.
INJURY REPORT
Brian’s black eye is not as swollen, but has gotten darker.
Jose was stung by a flying insect. Fortunately, Ken was able to remove the stinger and applied some Benadryl.
Joe was also stung in the foot.
Sunday Report
I did not give an adequate report yesterday. I struggled with finding some of the right words to express some of the feelings of the day. I will try again today, but it is difficult.
Teculatan nutrition center is run by several catholic nuns. The head nun is Sister Edna. She shared some of the success stories. Several of the children were there last year when we visited the center. Habenero has CP and is 16 years old. He has been in the nutrition center for 3 years. When he arrived he weighed 27 pounds. He is now up to 64 pounds.
One story in particular was shared with us. It is the story of Antes. He came to the nutrition center at the age of 18-24 months. At that time, he weighed about 8 pounds. He is now a healthy happy 3 year old. We loved on many of the kids in the center and gave the nuns a short respite.
We started the day with a church service at the hotel. We were not able to go to Pasabien Falls. For those that went last year, this was a disappointment.
The message centered on 3 things we can learn from David in a mission trip, as well as life mission. 1. We are being trained for a predetermined role. 2. It always happens according to God’s timing. 3. We are called to be faithful – not necessarily successful. This last point was one that could be very relevant this trip as some work may not be completed.
Brian, Helen, Joe and Ken (Tony too!) worked on construction. We worked at an eldercare center (Elena’s). We were turning a pig pen into a kitchen. We needed to bust a couple of walls down and then add to the existing walls. This required masonry skills, rebar rodding and general demolition.
Joe almost became “Little Joe.” He was chopping a tree down with a machete when it slipped out of his hands. Fortunately, it hit the outside of the wall and did not take out his leg. Joe killed a 3 inch spider.
After some serious work and sweating, 15 elderly ladies and a few men came to express their appreciation. They serenaded us followed by some firecrackers. To make sure we knew they liked our work, every one of us were individually hugged – even though we were hot and sweaty.
We completed moret than Bert expected us to complete. We finished a wall to separate the kitchen from the "bathroom" - see the pic.
Jose, Stefanie, Danielle, Mallory, Ashley, Trevor and Brenda helped lead VBS. The story this year was Noah’s Ark. Jose interpreted the story which was very helpful for the Guatemalans to understand. Making face masks was the highlight for the kids and our helpers. The part the kids seemed to love especially was the “grio” (glitter). Stefanie’s group particularly liked it… By the time they were done with their masks, there was a huge pile of glitter on the ground. This led to the Glitter War. When you look at the pictures, you will understand what exactly this all entailed. No doubt everyone had a lot of glitter all over their body.
Another part of the VBS involved just hanging out and playing with the kids. Trevor especially helped lead the group in playing soccer with them.
Kay, Lynne, Jori and Katie (Rachel too!) worked in the medical clinic. How this all went down was that the Guatemalans were given numbers and they would then see the nurses. However, it ended up becoming extremely chaotic with the people wanting to make sure they were seen by the nurses. A lot of lice were found on the children. Kay said they gave out lots of pre-natal vitamins as well as lots of antibiotics, such as amoxicillin. Rachel was a great translator.
Because of the overflowing amount of people needing to see the nurses (365 total!), Jose went over and helped translate from the Guatemalans to the nurses. Once they saw the nurse, they would be led to another room to see Cheryl and Katie. Our two women would hand them a bag of clothes that we had divided up into different sizes earlier in the morning. The people were overjoyed to receive the bag that included two or three outfits and hygiene products. One lady in particular was so thankful that she continually gave Cheryl hugs and kisses.
Off to the HIM house for dinner and an early bed time!
INJURY REPORT
Danielle got a handful of glitter in her mouth from her adoring brother Trevor.
Ken worked construction and no one was injured J
Teculatan nutrition center is run by several catholic nuns. The head nun is Sister Edna. She shared some of the success stories. Several of the children were there last year when we visited the center. Habenero has CP and is 16 years old. He has been in the nutrition center for 3 years. When he arrived he weighed 27 pounds. He is now up to 64 pounds.
One story in particular was shared with us. It is the story of Antes. He came to the nutrition center at the age of 18-24 months. At that time, he weighed about 8 pounds. He is now a healthy happy 3 year old. We loved on many of the kids in the center and gave the nuns a short respite.
We started the day with a church service at the hotel. We were not able to go to Pasabien Falls. For those that went last year, this was a disappointment.
The message centered on 3 things we can learn from David in a mission trip, as well as life mission. 1. We are being trained for a predetermined role. 2. It always happens according to God’s timing. 3. We are called to be faithful – not necessarily successful. This last point was one that could be very relevant this trip as some work may not be completed.
Brian, Helen, Joe and Ken (Tony too!) worked on construction. We worked at an eldercare center (Elena’s). We were turning a pig pen into a kitchen. We needed to bust a couple of walls down and then add to the existing walls. This required masonry skills, rebar rodding and general demolition.
Joe almost became “Little Joe.” He was chopping a tree down with a machete when it slipped out of his hands. Fortunately, it hit the outside of the wall and did not take out his leg. Joe killed a 3 inch spider.
After some serious work and sweating, 15 elderly ladies and a few men came to express their appreciation. They serenaded us followed by some firecrackers. To make sure we knew they liked our work, every one of us were individually hugged – even though we were hot and sweaty.
We completed moret than Bert expected us to complete. We finished a wall to separate the kitchen from the "bathroom" - see the pic.
Jose, Stefanie, Danielle, Mallory, Ashley, Trevor and Brenda helped lead VBS. The story this year was Noah’s Ark. Jose interpreted the story which was very helpful for the Guatemalans to understand. Making face masks was the highlight for the kids and our helpers. The part the kids seemed to love especially was the “grio” (glitter). Stefanie’s group particularly liked it… By the time they were done with their masks, there was a huge pile of glitter on the ground. This led to the Glitter War. When you look at the pictures, you will understand what exactly this all entailed. No doubt everyone had a lot of glitter all over their body.
Another part of the VBS involved just hanging out and playing with the kids. Trevor especially helped lead the group in playing soccer with them.
Kay, Lynne, Jori and Katie (Rachel too!) worked in the medical clinic. How this all went down was that the Guatemalans were given numbers and they would then see the nurses. However, it ended up becoming extremely chaotic with the people wanting to make sure they were seen by the nurses. A lot of lice were found on the children. Kay said they gave out lots of pre-natal vitamins as well as lots of antibiotics, such as amoxicillin. Rachel was a great translator.
Because of the overflowing amount of people needing to see the nurses (365 total!), Jose went over and helped translate from the Guatemalans to the nurses. Once they saw the nurse, they would be led to another room to see Cheryl and Katie. Our two women would hand them a bag of clothes that we had divided up into different sizes earlier in the morning. The people were overjoyed to receive the bag that included two or three outfits and hygiene products. One lady in particular was so thankful that she continually gave Cheryl hugs and kisses.
Off to the HIM house for dinner and an early bed time!
INJURY REPORT
Danielle got a handful of glitter in her mouth from her adoring brother Trevor.
Ken worked construction and no one was injured J
Saturday Report
Trevor was looking for some snacks last night. People kept saying buenas noches. He was convinced that they had good nachos.
At this morning’s run, Jori was not concerned about the guy with the machete. She was not concerned about the longhorn cattle. DW was concerned about the dog about the size of a rat. She was quite the pace setter.
Started today with some frijoles negro & eggs, as well as some fruit. Jose’s Mexican hot sauce turned out to be not that hot. We had some of the green pepper puree – that was smokin’ hot.
This morning Karen went over the “rules” and approach for the rest of the week. In everything that we do we are representing HIM and Him – Jesus. We were told that we would not be going to the dump. The reason is with the flooding, the people are desperate and we would not be safe to distribute the goods. Later we sorted the clothes so we will be able to share the clothes with people that have nothing. Some of the homes were washed away. Others showed water marks at 6 feet high.
Speaking of desperate, Ken’s hat was soaking wet from sweat during this morning’s run. Fortunately, Dolly and Andy V. gave us a hat for sharing. I will leave it with the Guatemalans, but for now he is going to borrow it.
After breakfast, we went to Maria’s daycare. On the way there, people were washing clothesn the creek and hanging them on the barb wire fences to dry. The fences keep the skinny cows corralled.
A team member asked about the buildings on the side of the road and whether they were storage buildings. Why would they have storage buildings given the lack of items? In actuality, these were homes.
We played with the kids at Maria’s Daycare. Marie originally came to HIM as she needed surgery. She came to the U.S. for that surgery and later returned to Guatemala. She leads the daycare that allows single moms to work while there children are safe. The concept is feed man with a fish and you feed them for the day. Teach a man to fish and you feed them for life. It’s cool to see people taught how to fish.
Maria’s daycare had very primitive electric. The wires coming off the box had some electric tape at the splices. The stove consisted of an outdoor fire and a large pan over the fire.
Teculatan tax update. A tienda (store) pays approximately 15-30Q ($2-$4) per month in taxes. A house would pay around 40Q per year and there is a headcount tax of 15Q per year.
Jose has a new nickname – “Padre.” Some of the Kentucky people thought that he was a priest. At lunch, they asked Padre to give grace – after all he is a “Father.” He prayed a great prayer.
Mallory needs lessons on toy distribution. She attempted to hand a child a stuffed animal. The girl said “NO.” She gave it back and dug through the bag and found a Power Ranger. Much better.
Right before lunch Lynne was checking out the wild life at the HIM house. She was pooped on by a bird!
Ashley claims that she is an innocent girl but, the truth is coming out. Dave we need to talk when I get back.
We went to a couple of towns to see some of the devastation from the flooding. The water line was at 6 plus feet on some of the homes. Other homes were completely washed away. The government was handing out some corrugated roofing at one of the cities.
We saw the “drug town” on the other side of the river. It was interesting to see the big houses. They lost some things to the flood, but still have plenty.
We also went to Los Anomas. It is a small town that was pretty well destroyed. In less than a few hours, the water raised 25 feet and destroyed homes. Really it was very sad. However, the kids did not seem to know that they had nothing. They happily played tag with barefeet.
Joe will always be known as the Sentry. He protected Lynne as she "watered" a tree.
We ended the day by sorting clothes. We grouped things into bags to make it easy to distribute. We hope to share your donations with people that literally have nothing.
Thank you!
INJURY REPORT
Danielle injured a child at the Daycare center. She threw the child into the air smashing her into a tree branch. Later Ashley acknowledged that she did the same thing.
Brian T has a black eye from Mallory. Good job Mallory! See the picture.
It is claimed that Padre tripped Cheryl. Cheryl exhibited the fire escape procedure. She dropped, rolled and came to a stop. Her injury was very minor as a result of this incident.
At this morning’s run, Jori was not concerned about the guy with the machete. She was not concerned about the longhorn cattle. DW was concerned about the dog about the size of a rat. She was quite the pace setter.
Started today with some frijoles negro & eggs, as well as some fruit. Jose’s Mexican hot sauce turned out to be not that hot. We had some of the green pepper puree – that was smokin’ hot.
This morning Karen went over the “rules” and approach for the rest of the week. In everything that we do we are representing HIM and Him – Jesus. We were told that we would not be going to the dump. The reason is with the flooding, the people are desperate and we would not be safe to distribute the goods. Later we sorted the clothes so we will be able to share the clothes with people that have nothing. Some of the homes were washed away. Others showed water marks at 6 feet high.
Speaking of desperate, Ken’s hat was soaking wet from sweat during this morning’s run. Fortunately, Dolly and Andy V. gave us a hat for sharing. I will leave it with the Guatemalans, but for now he is going to borrow it.
After breakfast, we went to Maria’s daycare. On the way there, people were washing clothesn the creek and hanging them on the barb wire fences to dry. The fences keep the skinny cows corralled.
A team member asked about the buildings on the side of the road and whether they were storage buildings. Why would they have storage buildings given the lack of items? In actuality, these were homes.
We played with the kids at Maria’s Daycare. Marie originally came to HIM as she needed surgery. She came to the U.S. for that surgery and later returned to Guatemala. She leads the daycare that allows single moms to work while there children are safe. The concept is feed man with a fish and you feed them for the day. Teach a man to fish and you feed them for life. It’s cool to see people taught how to fish.
Maria’s daycare had very primitive electric. The wires coming off the box had some electric tape at the splices. The stove consisted of an outdoor fire and a large pan over the fire.
Teculatan tax update. A tienda (store) pays approximately 15-30Q ($2-$4) per month in taxes. A house would pay around 40Q per year and there is a headcount tax of 15Q per year.
Jose has a new nickname – “Padre.” Some of the Kentucky people thought that he was a priest. At lunch, they asked Padre to give grace – after all he is a “Father.” He prayed a great prayer.
Mallory needs lessons on toy distribution. She attempted to hand a child a stuffed animal. The girl said “NO.” She gave it back and dug through the bag and found a Power Ranger. Much better.
Right before lunch Lynne was checking out the wild life at the HIM house. She was pooped on by a bird!
Ashley claims that she is an innocent girl but, the truth is coming out. Dave we need to talk when I get back.
We went to a couple of towns to see some of the devastation from the flooding. The water line was at 6 plus feet on some of the homes. Other homes were completely washed away. The government was handing out some corrugated roofing at one of the cities.
We saw the “drug town” on the other side of the river. It was interesting to see the big houses. They lost some things to the flood, but still have plenty.
We also went to Los Anomas. It is a small town that was pretty well destroyed. In less than a few hours, the water raised 25 feet and destroyed homes. Really it was very sad. However, the kids did not seem to know that they had nothing. They happily played tag with barefeet.
Joe will always be known as the Sentry. He protected Lynne as she "watered" a tree.
We ended the day by sorting clothes. We grouped things into bags to make it easy to distribute. We hope to share your donations with people that literally have nothing.
Thank you!
INJURY REPORT
Danielle injured a child at the Daycare center. She threw the child into the air smashing her into a tree branch. Later Ashley acknowledged that she did the same thing.
Brian T has a black eye from Mallory. Good job Mallory! See the picture.
It is claimed that Padre tripped Cheryl. Cheryl exhibited the fire escape procedure. She dropped, rolled and came to a stop. Her injury was very minor as a result of this incident.
PTL - Safe Travels to Guatemala
Praise the Lord. We made it to Guatemala safely. Everything worked flawlessly. Jose and Kay met us in Mexico City and then we went the rest of the way as a group.
Special thanks to Mora girls, Rod and Mr. & Mrs. G for driving us to the airport.
Jose was dressed in a very dapper yellow golf shirt. The rest of us were in gray t-shirts. When we got through the airport to customs, Luis met us to point us in the right direction. In Spanish Luis asked Jose, “Are you with them?” Jose responded, “No, they are with me.”
We loaded up the Toyota Hiaces with the entire luggage on the roof. Yes, all of our belongings, as well as the donated clothes, etc. It was quite a sight to see. We have over 1,000 pounds of donated clothes. Mexicana waived the 2nd bag fees, so that was wonderful. God had a way to make that work.
At the airport, portions of the tarmac still have evidence of the volcanic ash. Right outside the airport there was a very large hill piled high with ash and rock. Some of the roads and sidewalks were black.
The team was surprised by the number of American stores and restaurants. The best received was an AutoMac (McDonald’s drive thru). Mallory found a store that specialized in au natural clothing. She will have to tell you all about it when she returns.
Joe almost lost his right arm by hanging it out of the van when a motorcyclist drove past. We have the very best drivers. The traffic is a bit nutty. It is a long drive from the airport to our accommodations. The mini-vans are less comfortable than the planes. All together we were in the jet for over 6 hours and followed that up with a 3+ hour ride in a mini-mini-van.
Some of the work that was planned can not be done. Safety is our foremost concern and some people are desperate given the flooding that happened earlier this month. The flooding destroyed some of the villages near our HQ.
We were able to catch up w/ some of our friends from Kentucky. It was great to see them again.
Please keep us in your prayers. Especially pray that Karen and team have discernment on our work.
You can add comments/messages on the blog tab. I will pass on comments to the team. (got your message Mrs. G.)
See pictures on “Traveling” tab - hopefully soon -- internet connection is spotty.
Special thanks to Mora girls, Rod and Mr. & Mrs. G for driving us to the airport.
Jose was dressed in a very dapper yellow golf shirt. The rest of us were in gray t-shirts. When we got through the airport to customs, Luis met us to point us in the right direction. In Spanish Luis asked Jose, “Are you with them?” Jose responded, “No, they are with me.”
We loaded up the Toyota Hiaces with the entire luggage on the roof. Yes, all of our belongings, as well as the donated clothes, etc. It was quite a sight to see. We have over 1,000 pounds of donated clothes. Mexicana waived the 2nd bag fees, so that was wonderful. God had a way to make that work.
At the airport, portions of the tarmac still have evidence of the volcanic ash. Right outside the airport there was a very large hill piled high with ash and rock. Some of the roads and sidewalks were black.
The team was surprised by the number of American stores and restaurants. The best received was an AutoMac (McDonald’s drive thru). Mallory found a store that specialized in au natural clothing. She will have to tell you all about it when she returns.
Joe almost lost his right arm by hanging it out of the van when a motorcyclist drove past. We have the very best drivers. The traffic is a bit nutty. It is a long drive from the airport to our accommodations. The mini-vans are less comfortable than the planes. All together we were in the jet for over 6 hours and followed that up with a 3+ hour ride in a mini-mini-van.
Some of the work that was planned can not be done. Safety is our foremost concern and some people are desperate given the flooding that happened earlier this month. The flooding destroyed some of the villages near our HQ.
We were able to catch up w/ some of our friends from Kentucky. It was great to see them again.
Please keep us in your prayers. Especially pray that Karen and team have discernment on our work.
You can add comments/messages on the blog tab. I will pass on comments to the team. (got your message Mrs. G.)
See pictures on “Traveling” tab - hopefully soon -- internet connection is spotty.
Over 1,000 Pounds of Clothes Going to Guatemala & Getting Ready - June 6
The team is ready to go. The team includes Joe & Cheryl, Brian & Helen, Ken & Brenda, Jose, Trevor, Danielle, Lynne, Kay, Stefanie, Ashley, Mallory, Katie and Jori. Thanks for all of the donated items. They will be put good use in Guatemala!
Today was the commissioning service at Grace Church. It was a very relevant service. It also recognized graduates that were entering a new phase in their life. Pastor Andy used the story of Joseph as the basis of the message. Joseph definitely had some set backs in his life and the reasons why he experienced certain things were not clear at that time. This included being uprooted and experiencing a different culture. In short, we were challenged to be bold as we go out in Christ's name.
We also sorted clothes and packed them in the trailer for Friday's departure. See the next tab for additional photos!
Today was the commissioning service at Grace Church. It was a very relevant service. It also recognized graduates that were entering a new phase in their life. Pastor Andy used the story of Joseph as the basis of the message. Joseph definitely had some set backs in his life and the reasons why he experienced certain things were not clear at that time. This included being uprooted and experiencing a different culture. In short, we were challenged to be bold as we go out in Christ's name.
We also sorted clothes and packed them in the trailer for Friday's departure. See the next tab for additional photos!
Fundraising Dinner - THANK YOU - $3,000 Raised
Thank you to everyone who helped out during the dinner and donated money. Your assistance is greatly appreciated. Special thanks to Ken and Nancy for going above and beyond!! See more pictures and get all of the details on the fundraising dinner tab.
Grace - Lansing Info
This website will be the source of information and updates for people from the Chicago area participating in the Hearts In Motion mission trip to Guatemala June 11 to 20, 2010. Read all the way down as more info has been added.
Pictured above are members from Pathway druing the June 2009 trip. Front Row: Ken, Brenda, Dee, Sandy, and Mark. Middle Row: John and Bill. Back Row: Trevor, Danielle, Joel, Kat, Kylie, Jaclene and Ally.
Pictured above are members from Pathway druing the June 2009 trip. Front Row: Ken, Brenda, Dee, Sandy, and Mark. Middle Row: John and Bill. Back Row: Trevor, Danielle, Joel, Kat, Kylie, Jaclene and Ally.
What will we be doing? Whatever we are asked!!!
MEDICAL We will be supporting medical care providers (nurses, nurse practioners). We will be helping the patients get to the right person and gathering supplies for the medical staff
VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL We will be providing VBS activities while siblings and parents are meeting with medical providers or as part of a community services
Construction We will support the orphanages/day care centers in manual labor. This including building walls, play pens, beds and cribs. We also did some clean up of the landscaping at the nutrition center. Our exact tasks for 2010 have not been set.
Hearts In Motion
We will be going to Guatemala with Hearts In Motion. Many of the other volunteers will be from Kentucky druing the week we are in Guatemala. We love our friends from HIM and Kentucky! For more information about HIM, check out their website at: http://www.heartsinmotion.org/
