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Well the work is offically done. We finished up our last week on Friday afternoon. Sorry this has taken so long to get done but we had a real quick turn around on Friday to head to Puerto Penasco for some translator vacation.
Saturday afternoon we met up with a group from North Carolina/Indiana/Arizona. We headed to Vicente Guerrero to spend a week working with the church there. We stayed in a concrete compound/bunkhouse that we affectionally called prison. We slept on foam mats on the floor. It wasn't like a hotel but we made it just fine. Saturday we got there and spent some time with the preacher and his wife and had dinner. We then got settled and got some rest for the next day.
Sunday we had service with the brothers and sisters there in VG. Then we served everyone hotdogs. After that we did a medical clinic. They brought a doctor and two nurses. I worked with the doctor and we worked for about 3 hours on Sunday. I have grown to love working in the clinic. It can be something so helpful and also something that really touches the lives of the people we are working with, just showing them that someone cares about them.
Sunday afternoon we went to church again. But we didn't go to the building in VG. Instead we went to a house church of sorts. It is in a city called Zapata which is close by. They are working on building a congregation there. For now, it is just several Christians reaching out to the community there and meeting at the home of one of the brothers. It was a great experience to get to worship with them.
Monday we did the clinic at a community center the church has right across the street. We worked from 8:30-3:30. It made for a looooong day but it was well worth it. We got to help a lot of people. One thing I loved about this medical team is that we prayed each morning before we got started. Also, the doctor I worked with all week made it a point to pray with each person we saw before they left. We would ask if there was anything special they would like us to pray for and then he would pray for them and I would translate it. It made the whole thing more personal and also allowed us to serve them spiritually and not just physically. Monday night we had classes for everyone. I sat in on the women's class. Sara translated it and did a great job as always.
Tuesday and Wednesday we had more clinic days. But we did them in Zapata to try and reach out to the community there. We did it in a community center there. This place had no air conditioner and no lights. That made for a very hot couple of days. We worked from 8:30 to 3:30 again with a short break for lunch. We were blessed to get to serve over 120 people in those two days. We met several people that made a great impact on me. One of them was a 20 year old girl whose mother had died several years ago and her dad left the family two years ago. She lives with her elderly grandparents and takes care of her 5 younger siblings. When the doctor commented on how strong she was and how sorry he was for the situation she replied, "Don't be sorry, this is God's plan and he is taking care of us." It is amazing the faith she has. I can't imagine having to take care of 5 people but she does it and does it with a smile.
Thursday we did a half clinic day. We worked from 8:30-12:30. Our last patient was a baby whose mother brought him in. His name is Miguel and he is a month old. His skin looked like he had been burnt all over. His ears were swollen shut and he couldn't breathe well because his nose was swollen as well. We asked the mom if he had been burnt. She said no, that he was born that way. She showed us papers that said he was born with a rare skin infection. He needed to see a specialist but she didn't have the money to get him there. We talked with a nurse who is from Zapata and had been working with us. He promised us to get her an appointment with a specialist and we gave them some money to get her there. It was a sad situation but we are praying that everything turns out well and that Miguel can live a happy, healthy life.
After clinic on Thursday we went to visit a house of a young girl that one of the nurses had gotten close to. Her name is Bendita and is 16 and she has 3 younger siblings. She is constantly abused by her stepmom and has to provide for her siblings. Her father and mother left her and her siblings to go to the states and left her with her stepmom. Its a very Cinderella-like situation. We talked to her for a long time and have got her to consider reporting the situation so that she can get some help for her and her siblings. Please keep them in your prayers.
Thursday night we had class again and said our goodbyes. It hit me about halfway through class that this was the last class of the summer. The summer has been a roller coaster of emotions but it has truly been a great one and it was strange thinking it was time for it to come to an end.
Friday we said goodbye to the group. They did a great job and we were truly blessed to get to work with them. We came back in Ensenada and then turned right around and headed for the beach! We spent Friday night in Mexicali and then drove the rest of the way Saturday. We had a lot of fun with the group which was Me, Sara, Allyson, Matt, Misha, and Arturo. Also Liberato and his wife, their daughter, and her kids came as well. It was a wonderful time of relaxation and spending time together.
We drove all the way back today, spending about 9 hours in the car. We just got back to Ensenada. Tomorrow we will go to say goodbye to the kids at the City of Children as well as our friends there. Its gonna be a hard thing to do since we have been her so long. I have grown used to seeing the kids and everyone every week. They mean so much to me and it will be hard to leave them. We head back Wednesday afternoon and will land in Nashville Wednesday evening.
Thank you all for your love, support, and prayers this summer. I plan to do at least one more blog post when I get home, sharing with you guys the feelings of the last couple days. Its been a crazy summer but definitely one that I will never forget. I thank God for the opportunities He has given me and the people He has put in my life this summer.
In His Service and For His Glory
Well week 6 is officially done! We got back to Ensenada Thursday evening and the group left yesterday afternoon. We had a wonderful week in San Quintin working with the church there. It was a busy week but a great one.
Last Friday the group from the week before left the City of Children at 7:30 and we had to meet this group at 8:30. Needless to say we did not have any sort of a break but we made it through the week just fine. We left for San Quintin Saturday morning and got to the church around 3. We spent some time getting the medical clinic set up and the stuff for the kids classes organized. Then we went back to the hotel and had dinner and some time to get settled. Before we left that morning we had received some heartbreaking news. One of the kids in San Quintin had been killed Friday night. He was riding his bike and got hit by a car. His name was Isaac and he was 13. After hearing that news I knew this would be a very difficult but special week with the church there in San Quintin. God had given us the opportunity to be with a family and a church family in a time of pain and sorrow. Most of the time when groups are with a church its all happy and good times. And that is a wonderful thing. But truly being a family means being able to be there in the difficult times as well and that is what we were able to do for Isaac's family and the church family there. We prayed a lot for God to give us this right things to do/say to bring some comfort to the people in San Quintin.
Sunday morning we worshipped with our brothers and sisters in San Quintin. Then we had lunch with everyone. The group had brought BBQ from the states and served that to the entire congregation. Sunday afternoon we started the clinic. The group brought 4 doctors, 2 dentists, and an eye doctor. We were all kept very busy in the clinic. Sunday night we had service and after service the funeral started for Isaac. Something really special that happened was that preachers from all over Baja and members from their churches all came to be with the family in San Quintin. Some of them didn't know this family in particular but said they just wanted to be with their brothers and sisters while they were hurting. We stayed for a little bit and then headed back to the hotel.
Monday we got up and headed back to the church. The funeral was still going on so I sat in there with some of the members of the church. They had a service and then went to the gravesite. After they left we started with the clinic. We worked at the clinic until 3 and then headed back to the hotel for a little break and dinner. Then we came back for class. I translated for the ladies class. I did that for the first time the week before in El Zorrillo and I was terrified to do it. It just seems so much more intimidating than the kids or teens class. But I have really come to enjoy it. The ladies of churches here are a very special group of people and I love getting to spend time with them.
Tuesday was much more of a "regular" day, if there is such a thing in Baja. I went to visit houses in the morning and then translated the clinic in the afternoon. That afternoon I met a girl named Kayla. I had seen her around all week but had never met her. She came and introduced herself to me. She was Isaac's older sister. Their family had come directly from the graveyard on Monday back to the church and had been there ever since. It was cool to see that in their time of pain the place they wanted to be was at the church. I spent a lot of time talking to Kayla and she seemed to be doing very well.
Wednesday morning a lot of the medical team left to go to San Vicente to do a medical clinic there. This included a ton of the translators. So those of us that stayed were kept very busy. I went to do visits during the morning. That afternoon there was a soccer game between the Americans and the Mexicans. Before we left, the preacher from the group asked me if I could go with them to translate a visit. I love visits so I was completely willing to do that. We were at the house for well over an hour. It was the house of a young mother named Maria and her son Aaron. Maria is right at the point of wanting to be baptized but she says she gets discouraged a lot and doesn't think she is good enough to be baptized. We tried to encourage her and tell her that there is no such thing as being good enough to be baptized. That all we have to do is be willing to give our lives to God, to commit to serve him. I think our time spent there was very encouraging to her. Please continue to pray for her that she will make the decision to become a Christian soon. Wednesday night I translated the women's class again. Then we said goodbye to everyone. That was harder for me than I thought. Kayla came up and just hugged me for a long time. I didn't expect to get close to her like I did but I guess God had different plans. We swapped emails and I hope we are able to stay in touch.
Thursday we got up and headed to San Vicente. We got there and had lunch. Then some of us went to El Rancho. El Rancho is a home of migrant workers. They are people who work in a field owned by someone. The owner provides a room for them to live in and food for them but doesn't pay them. It was a really cool experience. We went and had a clinic and kids activities. As soon as I got out of the van a little boy named Carlitos came up to me and I picked up him. He is 2 and stayed with me the whole 3 hours we were there. When I had to go translate in the clinic, I put him down. He ran in after me and sat in my lap while I translated. It was a great experience to be there with the workers for a few hours and they were appreciative of everything. Antonio, the preacher in San Vicente, is going to start doing a service there for the workers every Sunday. Please pray for the success of that work.
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My apologies for not getting this blog up sooner, it has been a crazy week, but a great one! Last week I was in El Zorrillo again with the group from my church and it was such a wonderful trip. But when we got back to the City with that group, we only had an hour before the next group got in so there was just no time to get this done until now. So here we go...
We had a great week in El Zorrillo this week. Sunday we had service with our brothers and sisters at the church there. After lunch we spent time talking with the Francos and the ladies who would be helping us that week. It was a great time spent together. Then we got some shopping done. After a somewhat stressful shopping experience, we went back for church and dinner.
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday we did a combination of house visits, clothing give aways, concrete work at the church, and working on some roofs. I helped out with house visits and clothing. I love house visits anywhere but house visits in El Zorrillo are very special to me. It is such a blessing to spend time in the houses of people that I know and love. That and the fact that I was with people from my own church just gave me a little piece of home that I really needed last week.
During the week I helped with the teens class, the babies class, and also translated the women's class Wednesday night. That was a new and slightly intimidating experience but all the ladies said they enjoyed and understood the class. I can only take credit for the latter of the two but I really enjoyed it as well.
Thursday we had the carnival, that was an adventure. There were over 100 kids going through the different stations. I worked at the tattoo station, tattooing the children of El Zorrillo :) After the carnival we fed everyone hamburgers. Then we said goodbyes to everyone. After that we went to Ensenada to shop and have dinner. Then back to the hotel to pack and sleep. Friday we got up early and headed to the City of Children. The group left at 7:30 and we met the next group at 8:30. We went shopping at then spent the afternoon/evening at the City of Children. I always enjoy any time that I get to spend there.
We are in San Quintin now. We will be spending the week here. I am excited about it. Please pray for us as we work here this week. We have two weeks left and everyone is getting tired. Check in with you guys later!
In His Service and For His Glory.
Just finished a very good, very LONG week in Camalu! Break time is short this time around because this week went from Friday-Friday instead of the normal Saturday-Thursday. However it was a great week and a lot of good things were done.
We got down to Camalu (which is a little over three hours from Ensenada) on Saturday afternoon. We had dinner at the church (pizza that is HUUUUUGE) and spent some time with the preacher, Juan Jose, his wife, Flor, and their kids. They are a great family and I really enjoyed getting to know them this week.
The hotel this week was...interesting. We had three frogs join us via our toilet at different points throughout the week. Hot water was hard to come by and construction on the hotel started at about 6 every morning. Never thought I would look forward to the Villa Marina but its looking better every week :)
The team this week had stuff going on all day. They had VBS classes for the kids every morning, then had lunch, then got ready for more VBS classes at night. At the same time there was a construction team working on Juan and Flor's house, a team going to visit/clean the homes of some of the members, a team building furniture for some of the members, and some other random errands going on. At night they had classes for men, women, kids, teen boys, and teen girls. Sara and I translated for the teen girls class. It was really great to spend that time with the teen girls from the church and watch the relationships between us all grow.
During the day I worked with the team going to visit some but mostly did random errand running. Little trips to the hardware store, grocery store, getting copies made, and the candy store were an everyday occurance. On Wednesday 5 of us went to the store to get food for the food bags we were making for the members of the church. When we drove up, I saw a little puppy sitting outside of the store. We got out and went over to see her, she was tiny! I asked the people around if she belonged to anyone and they said no, she had been there for a couple weeks but didn't belong to anyone. Well, being the animal lover/softie that I am, I couldn't just leave her. I left her in the van with two of the teens that were watching our stuff while we went in to shop. We bought her some food and then after we left, took her to the vet to get her some flea shampoo. The vet looked at her and said she was about 8 weeks old and was pretty healthy. Then the real fun began. We wanted to give her to Flor and Juan, their dog had been stolen about a month ago, but we didn't want to give her to them all dirty. So we decided we needed to keep her a secret until we had our break in the afternoon so that we could give her a bath and make her look nice before giving her to Juan and Flor. So we left her with another member of the church who said they would watch her till break. Then at break we put her in my backpack and took her back to the hotel and gave her a bath. That wasn't fun for any of us. Try keeping a puppy a secret that won't quit crying! She went back in my backpack for the ride back to the church and for a little while until we could get Flor alone. We went in the house and surprised Flor with her first, we didn't want the kids in there in case Flor and Juan didn't want to keep her. But that was nothing to worry about because they loved her! They named her Kiara and we left money with them to get her shots (which are MUCH cheaper here than at home). It was a fun day of puppy daycare :)
