Final day in Antigua

Today we departed for Antigua, Guatemala.  This was our free day for shopping and a final dinner out together.  We all shared the impact of the trip and how our lives will be different going home.  As always many lives were changed this week including our own.

Thank you to our supporters for all the prayers and sacrifices so that we could be here.  We look forward to next year's trip so be praying as to whether you will be coming to Guatemala!

Last work day here in Guatemala...off to Antigua tomorrow

Thank you to all our supporters.  We've had great weather, great new connections and a wonderful experience here in Guatemala.  Thank you Mayan Families for helping us serve the Mayan people of Guatemala. Read about today from one of our participants Fernando below.

Today was a great day but a sad day because it is our last day in Pana, but it gave me so much hope and desire to come back next year.

Our morning started with visiting the local preschool, which makes you realize how blessed we are to have the schools we have in the USA compared to what these children have to face.  Thankfully, being sponsored to go to preschool also means they are fed breakfast and lunch and get their teeth brushed too.  Privileges they might never have.  We witnessed their cute faces lighting up in happiness when we delivered shoes to those little feet. We also provided activities for them including stickers, cross necklace making and coloring.

In the afternoon some of us visited other families that we have sponsored; another group stayed at Mayan Families to complete the mural, which have to say: Good Job!!.  And we hosted our last day of medical and gynecologic clinics, providing primary care to another 20-30 patients, including some complex Gynecologic visits and lots of parasite infections.

The bonds that we have created within the group from Faith Methodist Church in this trip has been such a great blessing that I am sad that our trip is almost coming to the end.  Thank you to all of those who prayed and were with us in spirit!

Be blessed!

Another busy day in Guatemala

We started the day with a boat ride across Lake Atitlan to have breakfast at a village called Santa Cruz.  It was a nice break but then we got back to work.  Today we continued to paint the mural on the side of the mobile library, we saw sponsored students and our doctors saw more patients.  Rich and Jennifer went to see the house which Faith's team built in February and visited with the family.  The team gave out chickens and more shoes.  Mandy won the competition to grab the most chickens and Jeanne came in second.  It was quite a show for the families waiting to get their chickens watching us Gringos wrestling down chickens!

God is so good!  We have had many "God sightings" where we know He had to have his hand in the situation.  So much suffering and sadness on one hand, but so much love and hope on the other.  We are so blessed and we thank God for all that we have.  Enjoy the pictures!

Three Teams...Three ways to Serve

Today we split into three teams:  one team built 7 stoves, making a total of 14 built.  The second team of artists began painting a mural on the side of a trailer that will become a children’s library.  (pictures later).  The last team (2 doctors and 1 EMT) were able to see 40 patients and give medications for various problems.  Unfortunately we were down 2 today due to illness but they are bouncing back.  Please continue to pray for our team.  As usual it is amazing how the people here end up giving us far more than we give them.

Just when I thought yesterday was an awesome day, today came and realized that was just the beginning.... indeed, was the perfect opportunity to serve others in a lot of different ways.  We built the stoves in the houses of the most underprivileged people from the Mayan communities. It will shock you to know that a little room is the whole house and not to mention the floor of dirt, because they cannot afford anything else. Still they received us with smiles in their faces and all of them saying "matioshk" which means "Thank you" in the local language.
At lunch time we were able to help with a feeding program for the elderly in the same community where we built the stoves.
Later in the afternoon, we came to the office of the Mayan Families Organization to give out more shoes to orphan children and it was great to see their little faces being so happy with so little.
Pictures will tell you more, cannot wait for what the rest of the week awaits...
Written by Fernando Fuentes

Dances...Shoes...Healthcare

Today was a great day!  We traveled to a village called El Barranco.  We were the guests for several traditional dance performances from the Children's Dance Troop.  We enjoyed watching the Corn Dance and a favorite...the Monkey dance.  Then we gave out shoes for many precious dirty small feet!  Our two doctors and one EMT did medical checks on many of the children.  We finished the day enjoying pizza and devotion. Guatemala has a way of bringing perspective to our lives and God reveals Himself through this beautiful country and people.

We are so happy to finally be here, after our trip from the US to Guatemala City to Panajachel. After our arrival today in Panajachel where we will spend the majority of our week, some of us decided to mingle with the culture, or visit the lake, while others decided to go and do the famous zip lining which we heard was AWESOME!!  A few of the group enjoyed the ziplining for the first time while others enjoyed doing it yet again.

It has been great so far, but I have to say is very different from the USA, especially in the transportation system and some of us had the blessing of experience it all: from riding the famous moto taxi or "Tuk Tuk" -you can see some pictures later- to riding in the back of a pick up, simply fascinating!

Tonight we also had the opportunity to meet the directors of the Mayan Families who took us into their home for dinner.  It was a delicious local chicken dish with local vegetables, such as "Guisquil".
The weather has been great.  Although its the rainy season, they have not had rain in 2 weeks so the temperature today was much warmer than expected.  We'll see if it holds up! We are enjoying bonding with our fellow team members and getting to know each other better.  We know God has a great week prepared for us.  Please keep us in your prayers and pray that we will touch those in the greatest of need here in Guatemala.

Until tomorrow,
Buenas noches!