Update from Jennifer - Gerhard

Jennifer spent a weekend in Mexico at the orphanage where Heidi did her dental cleaning job. When I found out that Jennifer was in the same town where we had been, I emailed her directions, as best as I could recall. And she and her friend (who could speak Spanish) walked (!) and found the house we built. Here are a couple of pictures she took. The house looks lived in and the outhouse is being used...

Blessings,

Gerhard

Final Thoughts (Mike Bury)

Despite the travel and the heat and the wind and the dust and the roads, this trip is the must profound experience I've ever had, behind meeting my wife and watching the birth of my son and, of course, my baptism. I would recommend the mission experience to every American, to remind yourself of how privledged we are and our responsibility to give back for the benefit of those who have so little. I'm looking forward to our next opportunity to serve...

Thanks to Steve and Jackie for all they do, and God bless Natividad and her family.

Last Day Photos (Mike Bury)

It's good to be home! Here are some photos from my camera of the last day on the building site:

The stucco boys are doing a great job!

TJ finally pushes Kelly over the edge!

It's finished!

A new stove; a gift from the Mission team.

The family in their new home.

Tony and Gerhard celebrate the completion of the house...

We feast on watermelon and cantaloupe after the dedication ceremony.

Then it was off to dinner on the beach and dreams of home (if you could get to sleep at all before the 3AM wake-up)...

Bob's Entry from Home (Bob McGuire)

We'll, we left at 4 a.m. today from Vincente Guerro and now we are home safe in Edmonds, Washington. Everybody was well from any sickness as we left it felt so great to be back in the U.S.A. However, as those that have been on mission trips before will tell you, one bonds to the place in which you serve and you leave part of your heart there while also taking home the memories and experiences God teaches during the project.

As our team left we thought about how many more features we would like to have been able to equip the house with. We thought of how much Natividad still does not have and the possibilities of returning to bless her and others again with things we can provide. Yet, we were all anxious to get good showers, rest in our own beds, and be with our loved ones again.

A few years ago someone who had just returned from an African mission trip said, "there are definitely things to help in places like that, but there are so many things we would never want to change about other cultures." I always leave with a profound respect for these beautiful people who make the most of everyday in conditions we can only visit for brief moments. I wish for them the joy of freedom, the pleasantry of comfort, the availability of justice and health care, but the protection for their perseverance and happiness.

The thing is, we all live on a pretty small planet, the economic power and the compassion of people is enough to truly relieve the suffering of poverty if not poverty itself. I hope that the last half of my life I see humanity reach out more and more often to share and supply each other as we spin around this sun of ours. And, I am so blessed to have been with this wonderful group this past week. My life will always be richer for having done so.

Thanks in immeasurable quantities to those who met the need of those traveling with prayers, finances, and supplies. A special mention for the Vancouver, Washington First Church of God and the Impact Fellowship class of that church family, my wonderful friends who gave to our mission after already giving to one that went out from their own congregation. You are wonderful!

Home safe, but not finished! (Eric)

Well it was a looooong day today but everyone (for the most part is home). I was not able to blog last night as planned since we were packed with activities for the remainder of the day. Some short notes. We ended the day with a dedication of the house to Natividad and her children. It was a truly heartwarming moment. After that it was a quick shower, then on to Gastone's for a great meal. Then back to the mission for a debrief, pack up and lights out. We woke up at 3am this morning and left the mission at 4am. Timing was great and we arrived at the airport at just the right time. We were up in the air, off and back home at 4pm. Gary, Mark and David, met Dorris and Jen in San Diego. They are staying over until Monday and will be back in town then.

I and others will finish up the blog with postings and pictures over the next couple of days. There are a lot of good pictures of the finished house, migrant camp, restaurants, dentist offices and other cool shots that people took while we were out.

Take care and God Bless - more posts tonight through Monday.

Eric

Progress on the house (Eric)

This was progress on the house from yesterday. Trying to get caught up on picture downloads / edits and blogging.

Once the house was up, it needed a good stucco on the outside. The stucco was a little looser version of the mortar. Everyone pitched in and helped stucco the outside walls.

Bob Peeks up through his work on as the rafters go up. Time to put on the roof.

You can see off to the left the roofing material that they are laying down now. Stucco is still going on. Great progress for the day!

Posting has slowed down (Eric)

Well I ended up with a solid case of the 'revenge' over the last day and a half. I spent the first half sitting and the second half bent over the camode. No fun. Thanks to Patsy and Wyle for letting me lay on their bed this afternoon while I recovered. I will get the blog caught up with pictures etc before and after dinner.
God Bless
Eric

soccer! by wylie

Soccer was so much fun . we played some kids at the migrant camp. They where so good that a 4 year old got past avid and scored a goal. it 6-0 until we scored are first goal. But then they scored 3 more goals but then we got a kid from the migrant camp on are team and he scored a goal to make the score 9-2. then we scored one more. But they scored four to make the final score 13-3. even though they whooped are butts it was still really really fun

Lunch with the Kids (Mike Bury)

Here is what the cafeteria looks like around lunch time each day. We come back sweaty and dusty from the construction site to the sound of 30 or so happy campers. It makes for a loud and exciting lunch...

The Kids Love the Beach (Mike Bury)

This picture tells you how the kids love the beach after a dusty day at the worksite. I got into it last night, too - it was cold but refreshing. Friday evening we'll have our last dinner here at Gaston's on the beach. I'm hoping for a great sunset! By the way, Gerhard took this shot with my camera - well done Gerhard!

Thursday morning

It's a beautiful morning - only two more days left - how fast the time is flying by. We finished with the blocks on the house yesterday. We jumped in the waves for an hour, trying to wash off the dust and dirt while having lots of fun. Pizza for dinner, packing up food for the migrant camps, and then some still played Ligretto until lights out at 10 p.m. Nick and Mark had to use the bathroom - it came out both ends - but they seem better this morning. It's time for devotions. We're looking forward to what God has in store for us today!
Lots of love,
Gerhard

To Melody McGuire (Bob McGuire)

Melody,
Gerhard let me see your e-mail. Sorry about Dale Clark and Ramona. I'm glad you are having a good week at school. We miss you a lot and right now, Nick is heaving sick. So pray for us. It has not been that hot, but real dry and windy it all adds up to stressful outdoor exposure.

I wrote an e-mail to your on our Comcast account so maybe you could check out our regular e-mail. I can check our Comcast easily on Eric's Computer so It would be good for us to be in touch that way, not just on the blog.

All you have to do is send it to our self. Just put our own e-mail address in the address line just like I did. You can reply to mine if you want but that is all it will do, just send it to our self. Then we can be in touch and other's don't have to read it first, not that it matters except it has to go through several extra steps for me to actually get the message.

Love you!
Bob

Bob's third day (Bob McGuire)

I just have to praise this team. Everyone is working so hard and the project is really coming together. We had a couple of sick folks on the team yesterday and now a couple of new ones, including my son Nick, are sick. It could be the heat, it could be some of the food, it could be a lot of things so it's hard to tell what really causes these bouts of crud. We had just arrived back at our compound and Nick took off to the bathroom, but was outrun by another of the younger kids. That one got the toilet, and nick found the trash can outside the bathroom. Both were heaving and well... you know. I and a couple others were standing there trying to help and both the boys when they were done starting joking around about it. They had a clear picture of how silly it looked with the both of them racing to the bathroom and doing the same things. No doubt though, they are sick and we hope it will pass quickly. But what I think is so great is how helpful everyone is to each other, and the great attitude even the youngest of our team are displaying.

Tomorrow we really have to hustle since we want to finish the windows and stucco on the house and start on the roof. But in the afternoon, we plan to go out to a camp of some migrant farm workers who are known to be among the poorest of the poor. We will be delivering food staples to them, enough to last about a week for a small family. So keep us in your prayers for the hard work we have yet to do, for recovery of our sick and the protection of the others who have not been sick, and that the small gifts we provide to the migrant farm workers would help them rejoice to have lived in this world with the rest of us.

Love
Bob McGuire

Pics for tomorrow

I have had a couple of requests for pictures of around the compound, eating area, kids and the neighborhood. I will ask the camera crew to focus on that tomorrow. - Eric

Building a form over the window (Eric)

Each of the windows and doors needed a form built over the header so that we could pour cement (it also has a couple pieces of rebar in them). This creates a solid beam over the door.

Jeri in Windows (Eric)

There are 5 windows in the new house and Mike got a great capture of Jeri in between two of them.

and the dirtiest award goes to... (Renee)

Only in Mexico can you get so dusty you blend into the miles of dirt and sand stretching all around you. With the winds coming strongly off the ocean not far away, the dust just seems to get everywhere. After mixing cement all day I felt dirty but was completely oblivious to the fact that there was such a thick layer of dirt on my skin that I looked completely matte. Only after after Eric began following me around with a camera, full of laughter at the appearance of me, did I realize why the little boy ( of whom we were building the house for) had been staring at me as though I were some new species of human being. So far Ana has been my main competitor for the dirtiest ECOG member at the end of the work day...but so far I seem to have claimed the award as poster child for a good hard days work in the land of Mexico.

And there was a kitty (Halee / Maechen)

Well, Jeri keeps telling us to say "Kyli this ones for you," so Kyli this one is for you. We found this cat in the back of a truck at work site. It drank water out of Maechens hand even though she claims to hate the cat. T.J. named it Diego and says its a boy. Halee stuck it under her shirt to keep it out of the wind and keep it quiet. The boys kept trying to throw it in the toilet hole (which is about 6 feet now.)

Pizza is here - more blog later

The largest pizzas I have ever seen have arrived and we need to stop and do some eating. I will have to post some pictures of these later.

The wall is up and the crew starts to stucco

Great progress is being made - the wall is up and the stucco is going on.

Oaxacan Ladies show up with their goods (Eric)

We were met in the morning at the site by some Oaxacan pronounced 'woahokin'. The Oaxacan are the native indigenous people of the area. Three vendors came by with tables full of crafts. There was jewelry, rugs, backpacks, etc available. We purchased a variety of goods. From what we heard there will be another opportunity to purchase crafts and such on Friday at the market.

David - Natividad's youngest son

A cute shot from Michael of David, Natividad's youngest

Amazing to see the house going up (Kelly)

From the beginning to now, I really can't believe how much we have accomplished in building this house for Natividad and her children. She comes every day to the work site and helps digging the "hole" for the outhouse, washing up all the tools at the end of the day, and just pitching in wherever she sees to be useful. But the best part for me is to see her smile as it gets wider and wider each day--just like she really can't believe it is happening either! That is the best blessing to me--to make a difference in the life of someone else.
Anyway love to Allen and Shauna and Matt and Sara! I miss you all.

Just a note that Kelly saw an opportunity to make a front step with some of the remaining materials. Mike and her laid it out and poured the cement! Here is the form. Natavidad looks on. She has really been in good spirits. (Eric)

Day two with the Dentistas (Heidi)

Patsy Jacoy showing off her new skills as a fabulous dental assistant, forget that legal career!

Where am I, who is this weird lady and what is she doing to me?

Well, it wasn't that bad. She slapped some bubble gum stuff in my mouth and now I get a toy!

(Note from Eric at the end - Patsy was Heidi's assitant during the morning and then Renee joined her later in the day)

Just finished lunch (Eric)

Well we had a good solid morning of work. Heidi was off with Patsy to the dentist office again, bright and sun-shiny as she always is. TJ was back in action and off to the build site. We made great progress today. I will post some pictures this evening.

Basically we started roughing in the windows with wooden frames and to continue building up beyond. We also got the door frame in. In this case, the 'we' is Steve and Tony. The rest of us worked on sifting sand, making mortar, filling in the cracks, laying blocks, delivering mortar and digging in 'The Hole'.

We made progress to the last stages of the wall building. The top circle of blocks are special. They look like normal blocks from the side but are an inverted v shape on the inside lengthwise. As these are placed on the top row, cement will be poured into them to create a 'ring' at the top. I called it a 'ring' beam, which was what they called it in Africa with similar construction. There was a special name for it here which I don't remember. This layer of blocks will offer better structural integrity to the house itself. There is rebar going vertically every 3 blocks from the foundation all the way to this ring beam. There will also be rebar going around the ring beam to offer better strength. Once the cement has been poured into the ring beam, 1 more row of blocks will be put down on 1 side of the house so that there will be a slant to the roof once it is on. The goal this evening is to get the ring beam done and that last row of blocks in place. Then we can do the roof tomorrow.

We also had some ladies set up their crafts at the work site for us to look at. A few of the folks purchased blankets, backpacks and jewelry.

That's about it until dinner time.

Renee went back with Heidi to the dentist office and Patsy went to the work site with the first crew. If we get done early enough there might be time for another swim in the ocean before dinner.

God Bless

Last morning entry (Eric)

Ok - the last van is taking off and I need to get on the bus. I will pst more pcitures and notes during lunch today or when time allows. Take care and God Bless.

Eric

More Katsup?

Renee helps Mark with a little Katsup at dinner - needed more with his fries?

Wylie and Patsy take a quick break

Wylie and Patsy take a quick break on the sand pile while Meachen and Haylee continue to sift. You can Jake in the background at the mortar barrow working away.

Water Break

Left to right - Nick, John, Renee, and Wyle take a much needed water break. You can see the cistern on the back of the truck that needs to be filled with water every day for the work (mortar and cement). There is no water or power at the site.

Is it freckles? A Tan? Hmmm.

Renee ended up working in the line of the dust for most of the day. A lot of us looked 'tan' by the end of the day. After the evening shower, we weren't Tan anymore. What a bummer....

Halee and Meachen fill in cracks (Eric)

Halee and Meachen fill in the cracks bewteen the blocks.

Meachen and Haylee sift sand to make mortar while Matthew does some mortar mixing.

Progress on the house (Eric)

Here are a couple of pictures from the end of the day. You can see in this first one that we had to build make-do scaffolding out of 60 gallon drums and boards to get elevated for the higher blocks.Kelly is on mortar duty making sure all the block layers on each wall have mortar on their pads. Tony and Bob work on the front wall. Tony and Steve did a lot of corner work, which is what drove the straight lines for the inner wall work.

This is the house about 30 minutes before we left for the day. Mixing the last batch of mortar. Patsy is working on the left wall to the door.

Here is another shot. You can see Mike elevated above the edge on the scaffolding. Patsy is working on 'her' side.

That corner to Patsy's left is as high as the wall will get. Tony and Steve build up the corners to the height of 11 blocks and the rest of us working on a specific wall, build up to that level. We use string and levels to keep the blocks properly aligned.

Good morning from Mexico (Eric)

Good morning all - we woke up around 6:30am this morning. I am sitting outside and the clouds are already starting to burn off. I was greeted first thing this morning by a smiling Heidi. It looks like the prayers are answered and she is up and about. Heidi plans on heading back to the dentist office today. TJ is also up and about and is ready to head back to the work site.

We have been thinking about a rooster BBQ, since that rooster starts to crow around 4am. Hmmmm.

Yesterday we had a nice sit down dinner at Baja Fiesta restaurant. I heard the burgers were really good. So were the fajitas and carne azada. We stopped for ice cream on the way home.

You could really tell everyone was tired since the youth went directly to bed when we got back. There was no card playing or horse play.

Today we plan on getting some solid progress done on the house.

God Bless

Gnight

ok - it's getting late and lights out was 20 minutes ago - last couple of pictures up and I will blog some more tomorrow - if there are pictures people want to see - just comment.

Also, Heidi is getting back to normal and should be back in the dentist office tomorrow. So is DJ. He was ready for a burger by this afternoon, but decided to wait until tomorrow to have that big meal. Thanks for the prayers and God Bless
Eric

Making Mortar

Making mortar is hard work - David, Renee and Jake stop so I can take this shot. The youth were making mortar all day.

Gary lays some blocks (Eric)

Gary fits a half block into a spot near the window opening.

Patsy Laying block (Eric)

This is towards the end of the day today - Patsy was laying out mortar for the next block. It was really windy by this time of the day.

Welcome Home Outreach Ministries Wish List

The Welcome Home Ministries has a variety of needs that need to be met to continue their day-to-day operations, as well as larger needs to cover the future. If you are interested in assisting with any of these needs, you can reach the folks here at WHO through their web site.

www.welcomehomeoutreach.org

Our Wish List
Needs, Projects and Dreams for Casa Hogar Bienvenidos

Need supporting Partners (churches, groups, and individuals) to help underwrite the general operating budget at a level of $2400 or more per year.

Need a 4-wheel drive vehicle to facilitate transporting children and supplies during inclement weather on dirt roads. Ideal vehicle would be a mid-90s or newer Jeep.

Need a 15-passenger van for daily transport of daycare children.

Cafeteria floor is adobe tile which has broken and missing tiles, presenting a hazard for staff, children and visitors and a challenge to clean. We want to replace the tile floor with a tinted concrete surface. Estimated cost $800.

Fumigation of buildings – est. $300, or looking for someone who can do this work.

For our school and office. . .
o Funding for two computers to be used with the Kinder students ($600 each)
o Disposable products: toilet paper, napkins, paper towels, garbage bags (large and medium)
o New vacuum cleaner
o Serger – FULFILLED, thanks to the Vierra Sacramento group. GLORIA a DIOS!
o School supplies for Kinders going to public Kindergarten in the Fall – FULFILLED!
o Soft-side lunch boxes, need 12-15. These can be on the small side as they are used for the Kinder students to carry their snacks to school. FULFILLED, thanks to David & Donna Araya and Calvary Chapel East Anaheim

For our shop…
o Paint sprayer
o 6’ step and/or multi-position ladder – or any form of scaffolding
o Levels
o Carpenter squares
o 110/220 Lincoln arc welder
o Electric pneumatic chisel shovel
o Repair portable generator – est. $150
o Paint brushes, rollers, drop cloths

Solar-powered, motion-sensor security flood lights for perimeter walls of compound.

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THANK YOU for these items recently provided:
o Students of Warner Pacific College - Children’s backpacks; laminating machine and supplies.
o Lynchwood Church of God – Funds and labor to purchase and spread lava rock in our parking lot.; funds and labor to erect a cover over slab between classroom and north wall of compound.
o First Reformed Church, Lansing, IL – Gym mats for preschool; electric hammer drill; grinder
o Fairhill Christian School, Fairbanks, AK – New uniforms and shoes for our Kindergarten students.
o New Hope Community Church, Portland, OR – All-in-one copier/printer/scanner/fax. Awesome!

Craft time with the kids (Jeri)

We had the opportunity to do a craft with the children of W.H.O. today. Participants were Michael, Wylie, Mark and myself. We also had the assistance of the two school teachers, who were absolutely wonderful. It was chaotic as the kids were between the ages of 2 and 4, with the exception of Sergio (pictured with me), who is 18 months. They were running all around and I think we caused the teachers to lose control of their class! (Jeri)

Wylie is pictured with Enoc below who wanted to play instead of do crafts. Wylie rose to the challenge.

Mark and Michael helped this young student complete his craft, which was based on Psalm 23, and printed on the inside of their craft project in Spanish and English.

Group shot of the students, their teachers, and Jeri, Michael, Mark, Wylie.

Eric (Mike Bury)

Our intrepid blogmeister is also a fair to middlin' block stacker and a good shooter, too (for a Nikonista). Here are a couple of shots showcasing his talents...

Thanks to Eric and "Uncle Bill" for his laptop and blogger skills!

Both John and Nick are working dilligently. I'm so proud of them, no complaining at all so far.

I just preached on the "Plumb Line" from Joel a few weeks ago. Now we are using them and trying to keep things square and level.

I hope Melody is looking at this blog and these pictures of her 3 Muskateers. Miss you alot Melody, you'd love the day care program here, the kids are so cute that even us men are noticing their cuteness. We all eat together at breakfast and lunch, with the little kids, they are so cool!

Love Bob

Filling in the cracks (Ana)

Today we started laying bricks. My favorite part was right after the bricks were set and level, when we filled in the cracks. I really enjoyed putting mortar in all the little spots between the bricks! I don't know why it was so much fun, maybe something to do with the fact that the alternative was hole digging. Regardless "mortaring" is my newly found passion.

Last night we ate at a place called the crazy chicken. They had the best food that I have ever eaten in my entire life. I ordered a beef and cheese taco and was blessed with this fabulous combination of beef, cheese, tortilla, a lil lime, some tomato's, and the best guacamole you could ever have tasted. Bottom line is that the food is great here and everyone will just have to come build a house to find that out.

I think the trip has made me appreciate things more. Here is the list. I love my bed, and my bathroom, haha and being able to flush toilet paper... I think you get the idea. However, despite the things we miss, this facility is more then I could ask for. We have our own little dorm rooms. They are really nice. I have not been on a mission trip before but we are very comfortable and I'm thankful for how nice everyone is and how wonderful our food has been.

I miss everyone back home and hope you all are having fun reading this blog.
Love always,
Ana<3

The trip in perspective (Michael Allred)

Well I think the trip has been really fun so far. One of the days we went to the beach and it was so much fun. We went out 50 ft and were waist deep, we would body surf the enormous waves. The waves that were too big we were diving through. Today at the building site we were throwing the Frisbees down the 300 foot cliff that slopes at a steep angle. We would chase down after them. It was really fun playing with Navtividad's two children. We would play soccer and Frisbee. Marco and Carlos come to the building site each day after school. They are really good at retrieving the Frisbees. Marco is 8 and Carlos is 4. Carlos will beat me, Nick, Mark and Wylie at chasing the Frisbees. He gets them more than anyone else. I miss Mom! I can't wait to come back home.

Back to work

ok - need to shut off the computer for heading back to the worksite. More blogging later.

John and Jake sifting sand (Eric)

John and Jake sift sand for the mortar. The wind is really blowing, which makes it a dusty / dirty job. The sun is also slow roasting us at the same time.

It's a gun show? (Eric)

Kelly shows off her big muscles moving blocks around. We needed to stack about 100 blocks inside the house to start this morning. Kelly led the charge!