Saying Our Goodbyes

Today capped off an absolutely amazing week with kids at La Casa de mi padre.  We started off the day at La Finca, "the farm.". La Finca is a 20+ acre tropical paradise that is bought and paid for and will be the future home of La Casa de mi Padre.  It is amazing piece of land that has just about every tropical fruit growing naturally throughout. There are coffee beans growing vastly and at the highest point on the land sits a beautiful  chapel with a bell tower donated by Samaritans purse. In the chapel, Gary Powell with his wife Sharon, shared the vision for La Casa along with the future building plans with our group.  It is a build as they raise money situation and already have enough money to start the first two homes. We walked the property as a group and witnessed the most breathtaking views, horse riding lessons taking place, and had the opportunity to view a perfectly manicured soccer field for the kids.
After the farm we drove back to La Casa to finish our last day of work at the boys home.  Brian assembled a team including many of the kids and our bus driver Manuel to move and assemble the new wooden bunk beds that our group donated to the boys.  Zan and Jeff worked on reassembling all of the curtains and rods in each room.  Kristen worked with the boys on making bracelets and finishing their cork boards.  Nina and Katherine printed pictures for the boys to keep on their individual boards. Nina, Jennifer, and the girls showed the kids how to make their beds with newly donated sheets and installed new shower curtains in all the bedrooms. Amy and Chris installed towel holders and a new bathroom mirror as well as disassembled and installed toilet seats; and man, the treasures you find and smell for that matter are well...memorable. Craig, Amy, Katherine, Jeff, Stephanie, and Juan (one of the boys)  scrubbed showers and caulked.  Chris and Chris installed the cork boards beside each boys beds, and our fearless electrician Russ finished up the electrical work. Everyone was amazing in lending helping hands throughout the day.
 By the end of the day we had new couches in the open area, new ceiling fans throughout to create a wonderful and needed breeze.  New beds, sheets, lights, etc.   We were able to provide physical cleanliness and light in a once dirty and dark environment. Much like Jesus is the light of the world we were able to brighten the lives of the boys at La Casa. Not just through physical light but from the love that was shared from each group member to every boy in that house. We left a physical imprint on the house, but more importantly we left an emotional and spiritual imprint on the boys living in the house. The boys also left an unimaginable imprint on our hearts as well. It was a very emotional goodbye for both our group and the boys.  As for me, my life will be ever changed from this experience and I am forever grateful to have met the children at La Casa de mi Padre.

~ Chris Roberts

Gary showing us the future plans for La Casa

The beautiful chapel

Watching a horse lesson

The bell tower

Kristen and Jason

Craig and Juan scrubbing the shower

Snapshot of a La Casa Child

Some of the children at La Casa de mi Padre have biological families, often extended family, living in El Salvador. For a variety of reasons they have been unable to care for the child, thus the child being placed at La Casa. Efforts are made to restore family connections, when possible, in hopes that child will know the love of their family.

Today (Thursday) was an opportunity for our team to get a glimpse of just one “biological family” in order to gain a more complete picture of where a La Casa child comes from. 

Juan, age 10, is mentally challenged, but is nevertheless a loving and spirited boy longing for the love of his “familia.” Juan was brought to La Casa 10 years ago, shortly after having been abandoned as a baby at a hospital. Nothing was known about Juan’s biological family until a few months ago when Norris, the La Casa social worker, discovered that he has an uncle living in a rural area of El Salvador.  Juan was so excited to hear he had a family, and was able to meet his uncle and aunt, along with their 5 children.  

So, we boarded our bus and headed north, traveling through the Salvadoran countryside past volcanos, fields of sugar cane, corn, bananas, and small rural towns.  We even had to stop a couple of times to wait for cows to get out of the road.  They were in no hurry.  After winding through a mountainous area near the Honduran border we arrived at the home built by Juan’s uncle 16 years ago.  It is a simple adobe home where Juan’s uncle and aunt, Benni and Josefina, live with their children.  We got to meet them and participate in delivering a basket of food.  The family lives in poverty along with many in this country where need is great and unemployment is over 80% in rural areas.  Juan’s uncle Benni earns a small amount of money by doing odd jobs in construction, and the daughters try to help by finding and selling aluminum cans for recycling.  

After a memorable visit with Juan’s famila, the Team headed back to San Salvador with a fresh awareness that the majority of the world does not have access to the basic necessities that we take for granted. For a family that can barely afford food to sustain them, the cost of a bus fare into San Salvador to visit Juan is difficult to obtain.  Yet, a goal of La Casa’s program includes having the family travel there to visit on occassion.  To help them reach that goal, one of our team members gave “Uncle Benni” the $4 bus fare needed to get 2 people to San Salvador which will enable them to actually visit Juan there for the first time.  Such a small amount for us, yet a huge blessing to them.  

 After getting back to San Salvador we went to La Casa where some of the team helped the boys decorate bulletin boards to personalize their freshly painted rooms. They loved getting to personalize their boards with their name as well as a photo we printed of each of them.  We were especially excited to give Juan his first photo of his newly discovered “familia” to put on his board. He was so proud and was grinning from ear to ear. 

Each of these children have been “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14) and 

inside of each is a longing to know that they have worth and value. Our prayer is that Juan, and all the other children at La Casa, will know that and will reach each of their “individual” potentials and unique purposes that God has created them for.

The week has gone fast and it’s hard to believe that tomorrow is our last full day here.  We will go back to La Casa and finish the improvements at the boys home as well as visit land that La Casa purchased to develop new homes for the children.  

~ Craig & Zan Nevels

Heading north!

Zan and Josefina

Craig, Benni, and Zan

Juan's familia

Interior of house

Katherine and Stephanie with Juan's cousins

Chris helping Juan put the picture of his family on his board

One excited little boy!

Kristen and Ricardo

The boys making their boards

Jansen and Chris

Cheppe, Chris and Jason

A Very Busy "Rest" Day

Wednesday was the scheduled “rest” day for our mission team, which allowed us to spend time being tourists and take a break from the physical labors of re-modeling the boys home.  We took full advantage of our opportunity to see the beautiful country of El Salvador, by taking a bus trip to El Tunco to spend a few hours enjoying the sunshine on the smooth black volcanic sands of the coast.  We had a wonderful time relaxing in the sun, as well as braving some of the most impressive and intense surf on the planet.  It is a truly amazing and humbling experience to witness the raw power and beauty of the ocean, and the many beautiful places that God has created.  After enjoying the sun and the surf and having some lunch, we loaded back in the bus for a trip to the San Salvador Artisan’s Market to shop for souvenirs and gifts for our loved ones back home. 

After the Artisan’s Market, we loaded back on the bus to travel to the town of Los Planes to visit the residents of “The Bridge”, which is an extension of La Casa de mi Padre.  “The Bridge” is a transition home where the children that have been a part of La Casa move to once they reach the age of 18.  This allows them to stay within a loving Christian environment, while they learn valuable life skills and work towards integrating into the next phases of their lives as young adults.  Gary Powell (Director of La Casa de mi Padre) shared with us the amazing story of how a very generous individual donated the house to La Casa, and what a blessing it will be to many lives.   After touring the home and visiting with the these young men and women, we all loaded into the bus to travel up to the top of the mountain to have dinner overlooking the vast city of San Salvador just below us at the base of the mountain.   We had a great time getting to know these young people further while enjoying a meal of “Pupusas” which is a local Salvadoran favorite. After the obligatory rain storm started to blow in for the evening, it was time to say our goodbyes and make the trek back down the mountain. 

With a very busy “Rest” day behind us, we are anxious for tomorrow as we have a great deal still left to accomplish before our mission trip is complete.  Thank you again to all those who have helped our team make this journey.  We could not have undertaken this task without the love and support that so many of you have freely given to us.  We are so thankful for all that you have done.  God Bless.

~ Russell & Amy Workman

Beautiful view

Brave souls enduring the huge waves!

The three amigos!

Manuel and Samuel 

Katherine, Audrey and Carla

The famous pupusas! 

Day Two: San Salvador Blessed and Blessings

The team is off and running, eager to pick up where we left off the day before. Four of us were able to sneak off to the market to gather supplies...hoping we would find the familiar labels that we knew could handle to tough job a had of us. The little things we take of granted are such blessings.

We had a list of things we wanted to accomplish and, as we checked on task off the list, we added a few more. Today was special though...some of the boys came to help us clean part of their rooms. It was a joy to share this particular project with them. Though this was light work, it was so much fun getting to know these boys as we were working. They are such a joy...talking to, joking around with. 

Unfortunately, the day's supplies began to run low, so we had to send some more members out to retrieve them and luckily found some time for a break. But instead of lounging around with a Cliff Bar, a couple of us rounded up a few boys for a game of Jinga. Although the language barrier took time to get over, we were able to share loads of laughter and smiles. When the members returned, we knocked out the remaining tasks for the day and decided to return to the hotel before the sun set completely. Before turning in for the night, we grabbed some grub and booked to home in hopes to keep dry from the sudden downpour.

~ Nina Doster and Kristen Tuttle

Extra pictures since we couldn't load any yesterday!!!

La Casa's dog Tequie

Entrance of La Casa

A little four square before work!

Nina and Kristen

Brad and Jennifer (aka "Bradifer")

Juan and Tequie

Emmanuel and Ricardo!

Silly boy!

"...But me and my house will serve the Lord."

Jennifer organizing!

Ricardo with his tía

Jenga!

Always a comedian! 

Sweet Emmanuel

Little mama :)

Stephanie and Chris

Stephanie, Katherine, Kristen and Chris

Precious Salvador!

Day One at La Casa de mi Padre!!!

The past two days, our group worshiped, ate, and played with the staff and children from La  Casa. Today, we got to sweat for the kids at La Casa. Before we came, Gary, Craig, and Brian had decided that renovation of the boys’ bunk area was the best choice for our team’s efforts. We set off from the hotel at 8:00am this morning, eager to dive in at La Casa de mi Padre. There were lots of projects to busy us: scrubbing, priming, painting, wiring and hanging new lights, and then more scrubbing. One can imagine what 14 little boys can do to a dormitory over 10 years. We brought tools,  energy, and expertise with us from the states. However, we are mindful that La Casa isn’t a project. It is a home. We went about our tasks with joy because we want these boys to know that we love them and want to be part—even a small part—of their stories. Were there some gross moments as we scraped walls and toilets? Absolutely! But, what a privilege to  serve a Savior who was born in a lowly, dirty manger. Jesus didn’t disdain the diseased or the messy. He embraced the parts of life the Pharisees called unclean. Our Savior considered identification with the oppressed as central to his message. St. Teresa of Avila said, “Christ has no body on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours.”  How true.

We are BEYOND tired this evening. Everyone put in lots of hard work, but the rooms are already looking much more cheerful. After a  good night’s rest, I know we will be ready to go again. We can’t wait to present these boys with rooms they can be proud of and care for. Brian reminded us last night that we are bringing physical light fixtures to these rooms, but more important, we are preparing the way for light and grace in these boys’ lives. What an awesome way to spend a day!  

~ Brad and Jennifer Hanchey

We're having trouble loading pictures from today! We'll have more for you tomorrow!

The Moment We've All Been Waiting For!!!

We woke up to a beautiful sunrise over San Salvador this morning. It was the start of an awesome day. We visited Union Church, where Gary is the pastor. It was an English-speaking church, so it brings together a very diverse group of people. I really enjoyed worshipping with everyone. I felt a different spirit there. Many of those people have sacrificed a lot after following a call to go to El Salvador. You could tell by watching them sing to God "I Surrender All". It was a sweet time of worship. After the service, I met a few of the band members and made a few exchanges with them. It was interesting getting to hear a little of their stories. 

After lunch, we gathered back at Gary's house where we were to meet all the kids for the first time and have a playday with them. Before they arrived, we were able to present the large assortment of horse gear and supplies to Whitney, who seems to be the main caregiver for the horses. (read about the dontated horses here - http://lcdmp.wordpress.com/category/la-finca/) These supplies were donated from a farm in Dickson outside Nashville, and we packed them up and travelled down with them. She was filled with excitement as she opened up each large bag filled with saddles, stirups, bridles, bits, saddle pads, etc. I didn't know half of what she pulled out, but she was certain it could all be put to good use. 

Finally, the kids arrived! They were a little shy at first, but that didn't last long. We had a blast whacking wiffle balls filled with shaving cream, swinging the kids on the tire swing attached to this giant 200 year-old tree, and playing a never-ending game of volleyball. We ended our time with a pizza party provided by Pizza Hut, ha! You wouldn't have known these kids came from broken homes and dark backgrounds. They just seemed like normal kids. They played and laughed like any other boy or girl. But the fact is they have been deeply impacted by their pasts. While it seems like we can't have an influence in the lives of these kids with our short time with them, I think we each play a part in their story. We are open to however God wants to use us this week, and I believe that is all He asks of us. 

~Chris and Stephanie Huovinen

Sunday Morning Worship

Whitney opening her new horse gear!

Sweet baby girl!

Precious little man!

Volleyball! 

Lots of shaving cream!