Santo Tomás - Day 6 [Blog]

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By: Courtney Hughes

Today was such a special day. This week has been such a special week. I cannot believe I will have the chance to say I went to Guatemala to build some stoves and sing some Spanish songs to the kids. I never expected the kids to have such beautiful faces, hearts, and smiles. The kids impacted me the most.

And if there is just one thing I want to tell my friends when I get home, is how full of love the kids are, when in reality, love is the only reliable thing they have. They do not have much material, or much of a home, sometimes, much of a family. However, they do have love. I was privileged to see that.

Nothing feels better when you see a kid light up when they see you, and they run to hug you. It does not get better than a little girl holding your hand as you get in line for crafts. But, it breaks my heart to see little children crying on the last day because they cannot continue VBS longer. God blessed me to have this opportunity and the kids made every second of stress more than worth it. 

I was also privileged to have taken four years of Spanish and been given a love to speak the language. Having that experience under my belt was incredibly helpful. Although I need A LOT more practice, I enjoyed speaking Spanish everywhere I could. I cannot wait to get home and be conditioned to say things… not in English. I enjoy annoying my friends because none of them know what I am saying, hehe. 

I am thankful for this trip on so many levels, but the biggest thing I am thankful for, is building my relationship with God. I was surrounded by astonishing people all week and got to work with them every day. I learned something new from every single person. They are all so kind and compassionate towards each other; I was fortunate to be welcomed into that family. The people this week allowed me and taught me how to strengthen myself with Christ. Now Is The Time to celebrate!

To end, I would like to thank Shawn and Damaris for organizing all of the trip and the other trips. I would like to thank my mom for coming with me and for being with me throughout the entire trip, but also being there for me when we both grew together.

A special thank you to Christ the Shepherd Lutheran Church back at home for supporting my mom and I on the trip. And a TREMENDOUS thank you to the anonymous sponsor back at home for allowing me to come on this trip without worrying about a cost.

I could not have done this, or had such a life changing experience without everyone’s support, love, and prayer. I recommend a mission trip to any person, especially those who need to find themselves, who want a better relationship with God, and those who want to change lives.

Now Is The Time To LOVE.

Santo Tomás - Day 5 [Blog]

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By: Nancy Peabody

I am a crier.

Many people know this.

They know this because they have seen me cry.  Frequently more than once.

I cry when I am happy and when I am sad.  I cry when I find something touching or sincere, which I am embarrassed to say can even be when viewing a Hallmark card commercial.  I even start crying when I see someone else crying, especially a good friend.

Oh, I almost forgot.  I am not a quiet crier who has one tear delicately falling down one cheek.  I am a full blown eyes red,  skin blotchy, nose running and voice squeaking kind of crier.

I was surprised, however, when I found myself tearing up a few times today.  My last day working donations for the Corazón de los Ninos Association. I have helped unpack, fold and organize over 2,000 lbs of donated clothes, shoes, toiletries, etc… with my friends Judy and Jendy. I also assisted children to pick out a new pair of socks and underwear, gently used clothing and hopefully a pair of shoes.

We worked with some amazing women from this Guatemalan community. These women have tirelessly worked to make this donation event organized and welcoming to the families involved with Corazón de los Ninos.   What struck me most about these strong, beautiful  women at the outset of this endeavor was their good humor, camaraderie and willingness to work without complaint.

While working our first day together I wondered what I had in common with these women that I could only communicate with my seriously deficient fourteen Spanish phrases. 

I am not sure how we all gathered outside in the dusty, but wonderfully cool breeze, but with the very patient Judy as our translator we all introduced ourselves and practiced the pronunciation of our names.  We found our common denominator as we talked about our children and grandchildren.

It was motherhood that brought us together.

As with most people who have been involved with a mission project I have been humbled, blessed and honored to have been a part of their lives for these few days and I felt sad it was coming to a close today.

Yes, I cried as we said our parting words and goodbyes.

I can’t wait for next year.

NIT 033 - Santo Tomás - Donations Crew [Podcast]

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To listen to the episode, click on the player above. Click anywhere in black to skip.

Shawn Smith. Director of NIT Missions, interviews members of the Donations Crew from Week 2 at Santo Tomás Milpas Altas from June 21-28, 2015.

 

Donations Crew is:
Judy Higa
Nancy Garland
Jendy Nice

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NIT 032 - Santo Tomás - Crew 6 [Podcast]

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Shawn Smith. Director of NIT Missions, interviews members of Stove Crew 6 from Week 2 at Santo Tomás Milpas Altas from June 21-28, 2015.

Stove Crew 6 is:
Victoria Gaston
Anne Sporrer
Nathan Sporrer
Kyle Hughes
Court Hughes

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NIT 031 - Santo Tomás - Crews 1 & 2 [Podcast]

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Shawn Smith. Director of NIT Missions, interviews members of Stove Crews 1 & 2 from Week 2 at Santo Tomás Milpas Altas from June 21-28, 2015.

Stove Crew 1 is:
Dean Higa
Sam Higa
Garland Peabody

Stove Crew 2 is:
Stuart Nice
Fred Kraus
Sandie Smith

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Santo Tomás - Day 4 [Blog]

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Breaking New Ground

by Brook Fonceca

Those of you who have been following the mission know that we are in a new village this year and are working with a new partnering organization — Corazón de Los Niños. From my vantage point, things are going amazingly smoothly! I am well aware, though, of all the work our mission leaders and partners have put in behind the scenes. They have smoothed out the foreseen bumps in the road. Again, from my vantage point, the unforeseen bumps have been quite minimal. I guess I could say that this new ground feels like the Promised Land!

Another area of breaking new ground is that this year I am a team leader. For those of you that know me, that may not seem like a big deal. If you do not know me, I'm an associate pastor and a manager at a private school. I always find myself in some sort of leadership position. That is one reason I have enjoyed coming to Guatemala the last few years, where I can just be part of the team, working and playing hard. For some reason I was a bit nervous to be a team leader. To my pleasant surprise, I have a wonderful team to work with (two of whom are my children) and, as I said above, there have been next to no difficulties, as of yet, on this mission. 

Breaking new ground has been a theme for this season of life for me and my family. As you know, breaking new ground almost always involves tremendous amounts of hard work. I know of many difficult situations that our mission leaders went through just opening up this new village for us to work in. Then there are times when breaking new ground seems nearly effortless. It is in those times that just taking few steps back reveals that we are walking into prepared soil. The breaking is really more like continuing in the footsteps of the faithful servants that have gone on before us. This has been my experience with this year's mission, and I am grateful for it! I am looking forward to the remaining days of my mission and anticipate fruitful labors and joyful experiences! 

 

NIT 030 - Santo Tomás - Floor Crew [Podcast]

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Shawn Smith. Director of NIT Missions, interviews members of Floor Crew from Week 2 at Santo Tomás Milpas Altas from June 21-28, 2015.

Floor Crew is:
Rodney Gonsalves
Dave Tousley
Jason Nice
Fidel Nuñez

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Santo Tomás - Day 3 [Blog]

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By: Fidel Nuñez

Embrace the Unexpected

    Hi, My name is Fidel. That kind of summarizes my experience thus far fairly well. This is my first time in Guatemala, I only really knew a few people on this trip prior to Sunday, and I didn’t really know everything that we would be doing when it came to serving.

To say the least, I came into this trip partially blind and not really knowing what to expect at all, but everything that has surprised me up to this point has been nothing but a blessing. A few examples are the following:

I found out I would be installing concrete floors when for some reason I didn’t even know that was a service that was provided. My group is on the early bus meaning I have to have my alarm set for 5:45 in the morning, and it turned out that I am my group’s translator for the week even though I’m really not that proficient in Spanish.

When I first found out about these different situations I just accepted them and my mindset was more towards “hopefully this won’t hinder my experience” than “I’m grateful for this”. That mindset has totally shifted by now.

The intensive labor of installing the floors has only added to my sense of accomplishment in service because the hard work is so much more rewarding when it is being done for someone who really needs it rather than a paycheck. The more I sacrifice myself for those I’m serving the more I can sense the heartfelt appreciation that the families here have for us.

The labor leaves me only more exhausted everyday, and knowing that I have to get up bright and early the next day is sometimes difficult. Despite this, I love being tired. It is very satisfying knowing that I am spent because I have spent all of my energy for the benefit of somebody else, and the soreness is also a constant reminder that the sacrifices I make of my body help to tell the people here that God is present and His work is alive in their lives.

The thing that I was dreading most was being translator for my group, but it’s funny how God takes you for a ride sometimes just to show you what you’re missing out on. Being translator has forced me to really experience the wonderful people in this country and build relationships that I would not have bothered creating if it weren’t my job.

It has been difficult no doubt, but I discovered that I speak enough Spanish to share some laughs and grasp the full amount of thankfulness and faith in the Lord the families we have served have. That in itself has made my time here worth more than any amount of money that I could have taken for installing 14 floors in a week.

It is very likely that if I had not been translator I would have just kept to myself and done the labor that I was supposed to do. I used labor in that last sentence because I would not have completed the work I was sent here to do.

God’s work is so much more than that. God’s work is sacrificing not only your body for others, but also your heart and your soul. To give a piece of each of these things is what doing God’s work really is.

That’s what I have learned this week, and none of that would have happened if God didn’t push me a little bit out of my comfort zone.

NIT 029 - Santo Tomás - Crew 4 [Podcast]

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Shawn Smith. Director of NIT Missions, interviews members of Stove Crew 5 from Week 2 at Santo Tomás Milpas Altas from June 21-28, 2015.

Stove Crew 5 is:
Bella Bevilacqua
Kim Nowlin
Olivia Nowlin
Moriah Tejada

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NIT 028 - Santo Tomás - Crew 4 [Podcast]

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Shawn Smith. Director of NIT Missions, interviews members of Stove Crew 4 from Week 2 at Santo Tomás Milpas Altas from June 21-28, 2015.

Stove Crew 4 is:
Brook Fonceca
Lydia Fonceca
Clayton Fonceca
Stephanie Tapia

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Santo Tomás - Day 2 [Blog]

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by Kim Nowlin

The morning my daughter Olivia and I were scheduled to leave for Guatemala, I got up to have my quiet time as usual.  But on this morning, I found myself filled with fear. 

My main fear was centered in the fact I would be traveling out of the country alone with my 13 year old daughter.  My other fears were based on the fear of the unknown—just not knowing what to expect. 

We also had quite a lot of opposition to getting our trip together—difficulty getting our funding, trying to schedule our vacation to visit my family the week after Guatemala, and a huge hassle getting our passports. 

I began to wonder,“ Should we even go on this trip?” As I sat there crying before the Lord, he gently revealed to me that I pretty much live my whole life in fear.  Afraid of what others might think, scared that things won’t turn out the way want, always afraid that what I do and who I am are never enough. 

And you know what?  He was sadly right.  I had never really attributed the way I lived my life to fear but now I see clearly I have allowed fear to keep me from living the abundant life Jesus came to bring. 

Fear has kept me from being the wife and mother God’s called me to be, it’s kept me from pursuing friendships, it’s keeping me from fully fulfilling God’s call for my life, and it almost kept me from coming to Guatemala. 

God then reminded me of the verse in 1 John 4:18. “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear”.  So awesome that He brought that verse to my attention—God’s love for me is perfect—it actually drives out my fear! 

Had I allowed the fear to remain, I would have missed out on this amazing time in Guatemala.  I would not have seen my daughter step out of her comfort zone as she builds stoves and loves the people she is serving. 

I would have missed out on meeting so many wonderful people—American and Guatemalan.  And I would have missed the sweet kiss from a tiny girl in VBS who just wanted to say ,“thank you.”  

I feel like God is encouraging all of us to, “fear not” and to step out and live the life Jesus came to give.  Stop worrying what other people think—you are enough, you have enough, and you are definitely loved enough. 

Don’t miss out on the amazing life Good has for you!  Now is the time……

NIT 027 - Santo Tomás - Crew 3 [Podcast]

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To listen to the episode, click on the player above. Click anywhere in black to skip.

 

Shawn Smith. Director of NIT Missions, interviews members of Stove Crew 3 from Week 2 at Santo Tomás Milpas Altas from June 21-28, 2015.

 

Stove Crew 3 is:
Rochelle Gonsalves
Bobby Shipman
Tammy Shipman
Reilly Higa

Click here for Santo Tomás Photos

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Santo Tomás - Day 1 [Blog]

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By: Sandie Smith

First of all, my flight from Pennsylvania to Guatemala was awesome. Everyone from Delta Airlines was so nice, courteous and friendly.  I would say it was the best flight I ever had. 

My first day here started with a great and healthy breakfast.  We then loaded all the donation luggage onto the chicken bus and headed to the village of Corozon de los Ninos. 

Lillian had given us a tour of the Doctor’s Office, Dental Clinic, Lab, Pharmacy and Computer Room.  It was amazing to see how everything was documented on paper. 

We then had a fabulous lunch served by the women in the village.  The beverage [Rosa de Jamaica, or Jamaican Rose] was made from a Hibiscus plant.  I never knew you could consume this plant until today. 

After lunch we split into stove and cement crews and completed 1 stove and 1 cement floor.  We had a little problem putting our stove in because there wasn’t enough draft going through the flute pipe.  We added another piece of pipe outside that solved our problem and worked well. 

The children were so happy and laughed all the while we were there.  The family was very grateful. It was such a beautiful and rewarding day.

I am looking forward to the rest of the week hoping to make more families free of smoke in their homes and seeing the smiles on the children’s faces.