The River Falls First Covenant Church - 2010 Ecuador Mission Blog!

Day Nine: A day of tourism

2010-03-25T11:57:00.001-07:00

Day Nine: A day of tourism
Just to recap yesterday, we spent most of the day with our Ecuadorian hosts. Sunday morning we drove back to Paz de Dios to do a Sunday morning Bible School for the children. We had planned for about 200 children…we believe that we had about 60. We spent about one and one-half hours in three different stations. We began our time together with a song and a skit. The song we sang with them was a children’s song called “Alleluia” and the skit was of The Good Samaritan. Then we split the children into three groups and at each “section” offered coloring, making a salvation necklace, and another skit where some of our team told the story of the wise man and the foolish man. We then met with two other churches for our morning service. All three of our church families provided some music. Four of our team members provided their testimonies (Sue, Kasey, Nikki and Jim). We then presented the church with the banner that the ladies from our church made. The other visiting church then had two dance numbers for us. After almost a three-hour service, our host church honored us with cui (which is guinea pig), rice, potatoes, and a cooked salad. We then traveled back to Quito, unloaded the bus to repack our luggage (to pack our goodies from our shopping trip), and then went to eat at Crepes and Waffles. After a two-hour meal, we said our good-byes to Mario and headed back to the hostel for the evening.
This morning we again got up around 7:00 and had breakfast. Then we met for a debriefing that went for about an hour. It was a very interesting time for our team…we were able to talk about the last several days and our initial impressions about our work through the week, the people with whom we worked, and our Sunday service.
We then packed up the bus and headed to the basilica. The basilica was started in 1923. It has not been completed, but it’s a beautiful building—and it’s considered their national cathedral. We then went to another cathedral, but it was closed. Our third church was begun in the early 1600s and took over 150 years to complete. It was constructed with seven tons of gold. After a period of time with the country suffered a depression, much of the gold was stolen. There is still quite a bit of it in the church, but there is also many areas that had gold on it that now holds gold colored paint. We were unable to take any pictures of this beautiful building.
Then we went to Chris and Jenny’s house to make lunch and then to the park to eat. A smaller park, it was a nice setting to share our last meal with them. After lunch, we were off to Mitad del Mundo (the center of the world) for a tour of the equator and a history lesson of the Quitu people. These people were the original settlers of the Quito area. We had some time to discover the earth’s pull on the equator with water, walking on the equator, testing our strength on the equator, and balancing an egg on the head of a nail.
Dinner came quickly after at a mall, and then off to purchase some roses. Then we headed to the airport where we said our good-byes to Nelson our bus driver for the week and Ruben. We are now sitting in the airport waiting to board the plane. We expect that our flight will go well, that when we get into Atlanta tomorrow morning we won’t have problems with customs, and we will be back in Minneapolis on time. So as I sign off, I hope to see you tomorrow! Also, once we get back, we will share more photos with you on our blog…we hope you enjoy seeing them.
Update: We again left Quito late, and we had to stop for fueling in Miami, which caused us to miss our connecting flight. Our team again was split up during the day on Tuesday, but everyone was able to get on a flight, and by 10:00 p.m. Tuesday, everyone was safely back home in River Falls.
We plan to talk about our trip on Sunday, April 11, after our 10:45 service, and we invite everyone to attend. We will also be having a potluck prior to our presentation. We look forward to sharing with you what God has taught us and how we plan to use this in the future.
Also, we thank everyone for your prayers, support and encouragement for our trip. God indeed blessed us in so many ways.

Day Eight, The final goodbyes

2010-03-22T10:00:00.000-07:00

The final goodbyes

Emily Gabriel
Kasey Manche
Kelsey and Nikki Ekstrom

Today was our last official day in Ecuador bonding with the people at Lote Tres. We had our Sunday school program for the children that went very well, however; it didn’t go as we had thought it would. We had planned for about 200 kids and we probably only had about 50, so there were a lot of extra bags of cross supplies and extra candy. :) There was a church service after and it was filled with singing, “praising the Lord with our hands”, and praying. Sue Kimball, Kasey Manche, Jim Harsdorf and Nikki Ekstrom gave their personal testimonies in front of the whole congregation which was translated by the amazing Ruben. We gave the banner made by the banner ladies to the people of Paz de Dioz and they were overjoyed. They, in return, gave each of us a handmade hat and/or scarf. They had prepared a meal for us, which was either eaten or picked at (or neither). After the meal we said our final goodbyes and got on the bus to go back to Quito for our last night in South America. Dinner was at Crepes and Waffles which is the new favorite restaurant for many people in the group. Ryan finished the desserts for five different people besides himself, and then an extra hot chocolate of Steve’s.
Tell us about your experience today…

Kasey: Wow…. I think that my day today can be summed up in the fact that I am in a Life and God high! The children’s bible school was incredible, yet I find the most moving thing for me was the church service (The very long 2 hour church service  ). In the praising, those who did not know the words clapped and praised God in the only way they knew how at the time. There were three churches there, yet the sole purpose of the room was to praise the Lord Almighty. The testimonies were also truly moving for they came from the heart. But one of the most incredible sights was looking around the room as someone told their testimony. The people who it affected were nodding their heads as though they knew exactly what the experience in the testimony was like. God truly spoke to me this day and made me realize something… Though these people live in a whole other life, they are still my family in Christ. I was surrounded by brothers and sisters in Christ today. I believe that was what made the goodbyes so difficult. But the one assurance God gave many people as they boarded the bus is this… though we may never see these people again in our earthly lives, we will be reunited in heaven for eternity. I am leaving part of my heart in Ecuador when I board that plane tomorrow; part of my heart, but most importantly, part of my family that I have in the Lord.

Emily: Today was probably the most difficult day of our trip. I mean sure we had those days where we were so tired we thought we could never go on or couldn’t breathe because of the altitude. But today was different. We had to say goodbye to our new friends or as Kasey said our brothers and sisters in Christ. It was kind of like finding your long lost brother or sister and then leaving. Some of us had really gotten to know some of the kids up at Lote Tres. And we may never see these hermanas (sisters) and hermanos (brothers) ever again here on earth. But we had another goodbye which was also very difficult. Mario, one of our amazing translators, left. He had “business” in Colombia. Mario had become part of our family, another hermano. Mario was the one who was always willing to sit on the ground with the kids, to play soccer with them, and to do whatever we needed him to. He was always ready and willing to translate for whatever reason. Mario also always had a ready smile and a helping hand. He was truly a blessing to have with us on our trip. It was also difficult knowing that our time here in Ecuador is running short. I know that I could stay at least another week. I’ve definitely come to appreciate the simple things of life. Such as: the flowers along the road, or the scenery out the window. We were in a place where you could see for miles, something I’ll definitely miss. And the mountains, I can’t even begin to describe the longing I’ll feel for them. But it’s the people I’ll miss the most. Alex’s smile, Efrain’s mischievous look, Jessica’s shy glance, or Edwin’s openness. They have all showed me that just because someone lives in a different country or is a different nationality it doesn’t mean they’re not your brother or sister. And that Jesus’ family truly does include everyone, Ecuadorians and Gringos (Americans) alike.

Kelsey: Ok. So, me and Nikki have a pet guinea pig. Well, he was my brothers, but when he moved down to Florida he couldn’t take the guinea pig, so Leonid was left back in Wisconsin for me and Nikki to take care of. The meal that they people of Lote Tres served us was… guinea pig. I know right: yum, only not so much. Not when I got the head and could still see the eye sockets, its little fried ears the nose with the whiskers practically still intact, and when I flipped it over, I could see its little teeth lined up along its jaw. This wasn’t exactly my idea of a meal. Not when I have what is laying fried on my plate, back home running around in his spacious 3 foot by 2 foot cage with I purple hidey hut. I probably could of sucked it up and tried a little piece of the poor little fellah, but when I looked at it, all I saw was Leonid running around his cage; breathing; not dead. I just couldn’t eat it. Yeah, Kasey and Emily talked about the mountains and the people. And yes, the things like being 3 miles up in the air was amazing (and the lack of air made crying or anything that required breathing difficult), but the thing that stuck out to me the most was having what I consider a pet, dead, fried and set on rice with potatoes for me to eat. No thank you. Nikki told me it was God’s sense of humor, but I’m not laughing (actually I did for a second). Actually, it was kinda funny how ironic it was. I was the one with the pet back home, and I’m the one that has the biggest piece, and a head set out to eat right in front of me. And yes, the people were so accepting. Even after minutes of staring at us because of our light skin, and some of ours light curly hair and light eyes. I’m sure we looked like aliens to them. No matter what our differences it was amazing to work side by side with brothers and sisters of the Lord. There was this one man, Manuel, I remember him because he was helping with bending rebar which I did a little of. Friday, when I was sick and stayed back at the hotel with Mark Kimball, Manuel saw us walking on the sidewalk and cornered us to say hello. He recognized us from the previous day and even though he spoke no English, and Mark and I spoke limited Spanish we still got the point across that we had worked together and share a common love: that of Jesus Christ. These people have so little, yet we have so much in common with them.

Nikki: I came to Ecuador thinking it would be fun to go to a different country and meet new people. I had in mind that I would be meeting new friends. Over this week and especially this last day with them, I learned that they were not only my friends but they were my family. Though we only knew each other for a short week, I felt so close to them. The first couple of days I was a little homesick and a bit scared to be so far away, but these people welcomed me with smiles and outstretched hands. From day one they were calling us brothers and sisters. I began to feel more at home here in Ecuador then I have ever felt back at River Falls. When I come home, I will be more Ecuador-sick than I was homesick when I was in Ecuador. As Kelsey mentioned before, we were served guinea pig. Ha...ha...yea…. that was something I will definitely not forget. During the amazing church service today, I got up and shared my testimony. I was shaking but I had an unusually sense of peace as I shared my story. Afterwards, many people came and thanked me and shook my hand. I have a lot more I want to say but I’m running out of time. God really showed himself to me this week and gave me this courage that I did not know I had. (That’s how I knew it had to be from God) I knew that there were other people around the world who were Christians (obviously), but to come to Ecuador and actually see these people and interact with them was just... I can’t even describe the feeling. It’s a really good feeling.
Even though I could not speak the language very well, it was somehow (most of the time) easy to understand each other. We would teach each other our languages; it was fun. But I gotta go now, toodles.

Day Seven

2010-03-22T09:59:00.001-07:00

Day Seven: Today we actually got to sleep in for an extra hour. Once we were up, we again met for devotions and ate breakfast. Then we boarded the bus and headed to Otavalo, Cotacachi, and San Antonio (towns that are known respectively for their textiles, leather, and wood products). Please do not worry, because we have once again added greatly to the local economy—we will come home with more than we left with.
At 6:30, we enjoyed a delicious meal at Aroma Cafeteria. I’m certain that there will be some more practicing of the skits that will be performed tomorrow morning during our VBS for the children at Lote Tres. This is undoubtedly a wonderful day, but I ask you to talk with one of the team members, because we all went our separate ways during the day for shopping. This ends day seven…..

Day Six: Our last day of working

2010-03-22T09:47:00.000-07:00

Day Six: Again our day started as usual. Up at 7:00, group devotions led by Sue, quiet time, breakfast, and on the bus to head up the mountain. And once we were at the worksite, we got right back to work. Today was a great day, we got a lot accomplished!

At 10:00, several of our team members, including Julie, went down to Lote Cuatro and spent two hours with the children. The children were divided into groups—those who had seen Julie and those who hadn’t. Our team then had an opportunity to interact and play with the children. Our group brought with them jump ropes, sidewalk chalk for hopscotch, Frisbees, volleyballs, and soccer balls. Everyone continued to play until Julie had seen the last child. After the checkups by Julie, she gave a demonstration on brushing teeth. And they were able to hand out toothbrushes and toothpaste to all the children and mothers who were present. Melanie had many questions about her leg. The children were very curious and touched her boot. We think it was a very interesting sight for them to see. The group then invited all of the children to the VBS on Sunday, and headed back to Lote Tres.
Sue, however, has been going down there all week to work with the teachers. She brought math materials that are usually used for students who have a hard time learning with traditional methods. Two years ago she got to go over addition and subtraction with one teacher but for only one day, but there were students as well, so she was unable to spend much one-on-one time with the teacher. This time she was able to spend concentrated time with them to go over the addition and subtraction but she was also able to cover multiplication and division. It was interesting to see the different methods they use in subtraction and division. But when they were able to see these applications with the touchpoint materials, they felt they had a clearer understanding of how to teach math with a much simpler method.

They were actually excited about this new way of teaching and the following day they were teaching the students the methods they were shown. Sue could see the appreciation on the teachers’ faces and could tell they were very happy to learn these things and to teach them to their students. They look forward to Sue’s next visit.
Tonight we head to the Lomas residence for our last meal with them, and then we head back to the hotel. Some of us will venture out for ice cream (Magnum bars, Leah), and others may head to the internet café. Still others will crawl into bed for the evening. Tomorrow’ agenda…shopping!

Day Five: We plan, God laughs

2010-03-19T08:48:00.000-07:00

Day Five: We plan, God laughs
Today was another typical morning with breakfast, devotions by Sue (today was about Noah, his willingness to follow God’s instructions even in the midst of ridicule by his peers), quiet time, and a bus ride to our worksite. But today was different in that we were able to begin some of the projects that we had come to do. But before I get into what we worked on, I would like to try to give you a better picture of what we have been seeing as we have been here the past few days. But we were missing two of our members, as Mark Gabriel and his daughter Emily traveled to visit their sponsored child through World Vision located three hours south of Quito.
Lote Tres (Lot Three) is a smaller community that is located in the Andes Mountains. Paz de Dios (Peace of God), the church at which we are working, was started by Jaime Lomas in 1985. Because the church has grown in size, the people have outgrown their current building, which is very small, has a dirt floor, and has one light that hangs from the electrical cord. The new building will be used for church services, Sunday school, and a community center. The building also will house a small kitchen.
We are working at an altitude of about 12,000 feet above sea level. The air is very thin and it has been a challenge to even walk up a hill. It feels like we have asthma. Often it can take us a minute or two to catch our breath when just standing. But our surroundings are green and full of life, which is demonstrated by the people that we see walking and working in the fields of the crops they are growing.
The roads that we travel to get to our worksite are rough. Sometimes they are paved with rocks, and other times they are just dirt. So we travel very slowly up the mountainside. Some of the turns we take while we travel up the mountain are very sharp and steep—and because we are traveling up the mountainside, sometimes we are right next to the edge, which can drop as much as several feet, although most of the road has land on both sides of it.
The logs that we have been carrying to the church have been fresh-cut trees. The trees are located in small forests, and the forests are about one to two miles from the worksite. The trees can be as long as 12 feet with a diameter of four to six inches. Because they are freshly cut, they still hold their water and can weigh as much as 75 pounds. While it takes two of us to carry some of these logs, many of the local women have been carrying one by themselves. Several trees will be needed to hold up the roof while it is being constructed.
When we first arrived in Ecuador, we planned on putting up the roof. But the building was not quite ready for a roof. Another layer of block is needed, and they have run short of supplies. But yesterday afternoon, a truckload of supplies came up to the worksite bearing gifts including rebar, concrete, and wire mesh. So today we spent the day cutting the rebar, bending the rebar, and carrying blocks from one area of the worksite to another. Another project that we planned to work on was building benches that also can be used as tables (the back of the bench flips up to create what looks like half a picnic table). Mark Gillis and Chris purchased the lumber yesterday and we picked up the lumber today (we brought the lumber to the worksite on the bus. It was stacked in the aisle of the bus). So Mark and Joann spent most of the day building a “prototype” and now are ready to cut all the lumber and assemble ten benches for the church.
Jerry, Steve, Jim, and several others took turns cutting the rebar with a grinder. Quite a few of us also worked on bending the rebar into rectangles, over 200 of them. Justin and Dana worked on wire tying the rectangles onto longer pieces of rebar. They created wire reinforcements ten meters long for the beams at the top of the block walls. These reinforcements will be used to stabilize the long walls and span above the windows. The roof supports will sit on these concrete beams. The ten-meter rebar assemblies were lifted from the ground to the top of the second story block walls by hand in a team-building exercise. Then the church members formed up and poured concrete on top of the back wall to make the first beam. They mixed the concrete by hand using the concrete mix, sand and gravel that we had carried up to the second floor the day before.
Today seemed to be the first day that the people at the church and our team really worked side by side. It was sometimes a difficult task to communicate at times, but it was exciting to try!
After working, we again loaded the bus and headed to the Lomas home for dinner. After a wonderful meal, Jaime gave his testimony. He is known as the Billy Graham of the Andes, bringing the word to the indigenous people for the first time. He is credited with founding over 12 churches and five small groups (churches of less than 25 people). I invite you to ask one of our team members about their impressions of Jaime’s story. I also understand that there is a book about his life…I’ll try to find out the name of it. We also were joined by Cadie Boyung, who is in Quito working on her internship before spring graduation at UW-RF. She will be with us until Monday. For those of you who don’t know Cadie, she is Pastor Tim’s niece and was part of our team to Ecuador in 2008.
Once we returned to the hotel, several went for ice cream. Others headed to showers…hasta manana!

Day Four, Workout!

2010-03-18T08:19:00.001-07:00

Day Four—Another workout!
Oh, what a day. This morning we again met at 7:00 a.m. for devotions led by Sue, quiet time, and breakfast (continental-style breakfast consisting of cereal, bagels, and yogurt). Again we were on the bus around 8:00 and headed up the mountain for a day of log moving (at times we felt like mules), sand and rock hauling (small loads that were shoveled into potato sacks), teaching (by Sue down in Lote Cuatro), and clinic work (by Julie and some of our youth).
Today we would like to share with you some of Julie’s impressions of who she has met while running the clinic and the health issues the local people experience. With the help of Ruben, she saw about 100 patients between yesterday and today. Interpretation can be difficult because Spanish is their second language and some have a limited ability to communicate in Spanish because they live in the Quichua district and speak Quichua at home. The people she saw had a variety of ailments. But Julie felt that the most important thing has been getting to know the people and speaking with them on a one-on-one basis. On Monday morning, before heading out of Quito, we stopped at a pharmacy and picked up a recommended parasite medicine. Julie was concerned about running out, so last night she and Ruben stopped at three more pharmacies and picked up more. Today again, she is almost out. This seems to be the most needed medicine for the people she is treating. However, this medicine is just one of the many issues that these people face.
Julie had lots of help from the youth who are part of our team, including Melanie, Dana, Justin, Britta, Kasey, Murray, Ryan, Kelsey, and Nikki. Later on in the afternoon, Melanie, Kasey, Kelsey and Nikki spent much time with some of the younger children. They were fascinated by the camera, and many pictures were taken of the Gringos and their new friends.
A special story that Julie has involves an 87-year-old woman, who came to the clinic yesterday. Julie asked her to come back today. She found the woman’s son and was ready to walk to their home. But the son said no, that he would make his mother come to the church. One of the interesting things about this woman was that she was barefoot. Anyway, she came back up the hill today for her shot. She left and later came back to give Julie some onions as a gift. The estimated weight of the bunch of onions was about 25 pounds. Julie would like Vi to know that the distance the woman walked was about a mile—uphill.
Another thing that impressed Julie was that some of the local children were standing outside the clinic and talking among themselves. One of our teenagers overheard their conversation—some of the children who had been to the clinic were telling the other children to express a stomach ache so that they could get a chewable vitamin along with the parasite medicine.
Our workday ended at 4:00, when we were able to gather to worship with our brothers and sisters. Pastor Nelson, the representative from the Evangelical Covenant Church headquarters located in Quito gave today’s message. He spoke of mercy. We also sang many songs—first as a complete group, then the local women sang a couple songs for us, and then we Gringos got up and sang a couple songs. We ended our service with prayer. We again loaded the bus and headed for our evening meal at the Lomas residence. Tonight we were served fresh trout that Laura caught this morning. It was muy delicioso! The evening ended early for some. For others it was a trip to the store for ice cream. Until tomorrow…

Day Three, Surprises!

2010-03-18T08:18:00.001-07:00

Day Three—A day of surprises
Breakfast today was a “cold breakfast.” Sue led us in a Bible study, looking at Hebrews 11, a look at Abraham. Who would go to an unknown land for an unknown period of time? We took a look at what some of our fears were.
Back on the bus, we started up again to Lote Tres. We traveled a road that Jaime Lomas said is now a good road. We looked hard past the ruts and bumps to visualize the horse trail he traveled to start the church we are building a roof for. We arrived to be greeted by our brothers and sisters and hear of our beginning plans for the day. We arrive and there are logs to be carried up from a little ways down the mountain.
10 meter rebar was cut first with a hacksaw into many shorter pieces. Justin carried the suitcase of extension cords and power tools, but there was not enough electrical power to run the Sawzall. But the grinder worked, and Murray traded in his hacksaw for the grinder. All the Marks (yes, we have three here again) and Chris (our facilitator) set up the rebar bending bench where about 88 rebar pieces were bent into rectangular shapes that will be used to reinforce the concrete beams, the basis for the roof.
Julie, Kelsey, Kasey, Ryan, and Ruben, our translator, transformed the old, smaller block church building into a clinic, and about 40 people came, were seen, and assisted (most of the people who came were mothers and children). Throughout the morning we exchanged greetings with the local people (Buenos dias, mi hermano—which means, good morning, my brother). There is a connection that transcends cultural differences here at Lote Tres. There is a sweetness in working side by side with our colorful family in sight of Mount Cayambe.
A smorgasbord lunch was served from low benches gave us energy and time to share the morning status. And it’s back to more logs and rebar, concrete blocks to cut and build and treks down the side of the mountain.
Sue Kimball readied her supplies and headed to the school at Lote Cuatro with Britta and Chris. They were received with great hugs and joyous faces. Norma, Blanka and Alicia (three teachers at the school and who became friends with Sue two years ago) have been looking forward to today’s encouragement and instruction in addition and subtraction.
At 5:00, we ended our workday and boarded the bus to head to Jaime and Laura’s home for dinner and wonderful music that was performed by Reflexion, Pablo’s band. (Pablo is Jaime and Laura’s son.) We shared a wonderful evening praising our Heavenly Father with instruments and singing. We were glad to hear that Reflexion is recording their first CD, and they plan to “release” it in about three months. At the end of the evening, we head back to the hotel for some much needed rest.

Day Two, Quito

2010-03-18T08:17:00.000-07:00

Day Two: Our first morning in Quito
This morning we were allowed to sleep in. (For some of us team members, our first day started at around 4:00 because of the daylight savings time, so our traveling day got to be a bit long—sleeping in was a small blessing.) We all met for breakfast at 8:00. And our facilitator, Chris, met with us around 8:15. To sum up what he said, be flexible, be approachable, and be teachable. We are guests in this country, and our way is not always the best way…there are many different ways to accomplish a task (this writer just shares with you her “impressions” about our “meeting” this morning, but she will also add other team members’ comments as the week progresses).
After our meeting, we loaded the bus and are currently heading to Cayambe, our housing town for the time As I write, we are traveling through Quito. We stayed on the south end of Quito and are traveling north. As I look about me, I see mountains…they are very steep and rugged. The colors are brown and green. But the sky above is blue with billowy clouds hovering over the higher ranges. The view is breathtaking! And because we are riding on the side of the mountains, our way can be steep and slow, so we are able to take in quite a sight.
This morning we were informed that we will not be working in Cangahau, but we are going back to Lote Tres (Lot Three). Those of us who worked at Lote Tres in 2008 are very excited about seeing what has been accomplished since our last visit. We still are working on the roof, but it will be for the church that we helped to lay foundation for in 2008.
The weather is very nice and it is sunny and warm, and we are looking forward to traveling up to Lote Tres this afternoon. Hasta Luego (until then).
It is now about 8:30 p.m. and we have had a wonderful afternoon. After we got into Cayambe, we unloaded our gear into our rooms and organized our supplies—the medical, work and educational supplies. We then got back on the bus and headed for Lote Tres. Now, it must be shared that Lote Tres is only 30 miles from Cayambe, but because of the way the road goes up the mountain, it takes an hour.
Once we arrived, we were able to see how much work the people had finished on the church. We met some of the members of the church and had an opening ceremony with them. The pastor of the church shared some words with us, and then Mark Kimball shared words with them. They sang for us a few songs, and we also sang some songs. We ended today’s visit with a visit to the pastor’s farm, which is not far from the church.
We then left Lote Tres and traveled to Jaime Lomas’s home for our evening meal. The Lomas home is located right on the equator, and we travel by their home each day. Interestingly, this week we will sleep in the northern hemisphere and work in the southern hemisphere. I will share more about Jaime And tonight’s meal consisted of potato soup, salad, beets, carrots, pork, and Yappingatchos (sorry, I don’t know how to spell it, but it’s a pancake looking thing made from potatoes and cheese, and it’s totally delicious). For dessert we ate pineapple.
After dinner, we came back to hotel and met for a few minutes to share some of our impressions of the day. Tonight is an early evening, as most of us are tired.

Day One

2010-03-18T08:15:00.000-07:00

Day One: A day of traveling
We met at the church at 7:00 a.m. Once all 21 of us were there, with some of our family members there to see us off, Pastor Todd met with us and, and he led us in prayer. We packed up three vehicles and one trailer and made it to the airport, (thanks to Dan Pearson for driving the van and Terri Pearson and Craig Amundson for the use of their vehicles and for transporting our team). But we were very surprised to be met by a great wave of people who were traveling. It seemed like a million people were headed out of Minneapolis to destinations unknown—the start of spring break.
Needless to say, it took us some time to get up to the ticket counter and check all of our 22 bags (most of the checked luggage was carrying work supplies, such as tools; medical supplies, for Julie’s medical screenings; and school supplies, for Sue’s teaching and our Sunday morning children’s program).
Our flight to Atlanta was delayed about an hour. I must admit that we were just a little nervous about catching our connecting flight. But God was faithful, and we were in Atlanta in plenty of time to catch our connecting flight to Quito. Even Melanie with her broken ankle was doing quite well. She was able to get around by wheelchair with the assistance from some of the people who work for the airline.
The flight from Atlanta to Quito was just under five hours, and without incident. It took only about an hour to get through customs and to pick up our luggage. Once we were out in the “public” area, we were met by our facilitator for the week, Chris Hopkins. We also were met by a friendly face, Cadie Boyung, who went on the previous missions trip and is now in Quito working to complete her internship. (She will be joining us on Thursday evening and spend the weekend with us.) We also met our bus driver, Nelson, and our two interpreters for the week, Mario and Reuben (Mario is from Mexico and went to CBC in Canada. Reuben was born in Cuba, moved to Spain and then to California at 17 with his family. Both are volunteer interpreters for Merge, the organization that provides facilitation for missions teams.).
It was a short trip to our “hostel” for the evening, reaching our evening’s destination around 11:00 p.m. We were given our room assignments and all welcomed sleep.
One of our team members is Kasey Manche. Kasey says her favorite verse is found in 1 Corinthians. I thought she summed it up beautifully: Your foundation is your relationship with God and you can either build on that with hay and straw or gold and silver, and each man is going to be sent through the flames and those who build with hay and straw, they will come out but will be burned, and they have to start building again, but those who use gold and silver can escape the flames with a secure structure and keep building on God…
Another of our team members is Mark Gillis. He says that he feels very close to God when he is on a missions trip. He doesn’t worry about his car, house, job…he can just meet God in this place. He also gets a chance to meet his brothers and sisters in Christ. His favorite verse is: Prov. 15:15 “All the days of the oppressed are wretched; but the cheerful heart enjoys a continuous feast.”
(A note for our readers (written on day four): This trip has been much different from our other trips in that because we are eating our dinners at the Lomas home, I have been unable to get to the internet café as often as I would like to get you these updates. Because of the time constraints that we have been facing, I have limited this blog to just words for now. I will try to get you some photos very soon. But I would like you all to know that we are all doing well, we have remained healthy to date, Melanie is doing wonderfully despite her broken ankle, and the worst we have been suffering is the sunburn from the beautiful weather that we have been experiencing at Lote Tres.)

Day 9: Our last day!

2008-03-08T22:12:00.000-08:00

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28.

Today we got to sleep in a bit. We met for devotions at 7:45 and listened to Paul and Joan’s story of how they got to Ecuador. It was another example of how God takes care of the details when he wants you to go somewhere. And he gives us great rewards when we listen.

"From the dark entry of a small, dirt floored home, children’s smiles reflect the beauty of cala lilies blooming beneath lines of hand-scrubbed laundry. Parents of eight show off their babies, embraced their friends warmly, welcomed strange gringos to their humble home. Lord, let me be more like Segundo and his wife.” -Sue

Another breakfast and packing and we left our hotel in Cayambe for the last time. But a fun day was ahead of us. We took the short trip to Otavalo, where the town has a market area. The area for vendors spreads about three blocks by three blocks. The people sell many goods there—food (including meat, like chicken and fish, and fresh fruits and vegetables), clothing (like sweaters, ponchos, “Ecua” pants,) all types of scarves and blankets, table clothes, artisan work (like paintings, drawings, woodwork, and pottery), and just about any other type of textile item you can think of. We spent two and one-half hours in Otavalo. We returned to the bus and headed for San Antonio, where there is a town square and around the town square are many woodworking shops. Many different wood items were found at this town, including vases, bowls, and statues. Our next stop took us to Otocachi, which is considered the leather town. The whole town had many streets filled with leather goods, but we went down only one street (about four blocks of shopping). Any kind of leather product you can think of, you probably could find in at least one of the shops in Otocachi.

I felt very comfortable talking with the people at Lote Tres (the high church) because they were very patient with us and considered us family from the beginning of the week. -Leah

After an hour in the leather town, we were finally on our way. With the exception of two quick stops—we stopped at the home of a local couple. The husband’s name is Segundo (yes, his name is second, for second son). He is a weaver and makes scarves to sell. We had the opportunity to meet his family (he has eight children) and watch him do some weaving. He also had some scarves in his home for us to purchase. We then stopped at a beautiful place where there was a lake next to a big mountain (but I cannot tell you the name, because I never learned it). There also was a town surrounding the lake—it was very picturesque.

I was touched by the warmth and love of the normally reserved Quichua at the closing given for us. What sometimes seems insignificant has a larger impact.-Britta

Tonight we will go for dinner at Crepes And Waffles in Quito. We then will head back to the Guest House for the evening. Most of us, I’m sure will be packing up the items we purchased during today’s shopping extravaganza! Tomorrow is our last day here in Ecuador. We are looking forward to being back home with our church family! We have some amazing stories to tell you!

Day 8: Finishing the work

2008-03-08T21:50:00.000-08:00

“Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” Psalm 100: 3.

It’s hard to believe, but today was our last day of working in the Quichua area. Again we met for devotions at 7:00. We talked about Daniel 3 with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego being thrown into the furnace. It’s not just a kid’s story! Three men were willing to stick to their beliefs and face a firey furnace. God was faithful and protected them through the fire. And God was glorified!

This morning, we left the hotel around 9:00. Again we took the bus through the mountainside. It was a glorious ride through God’s amazing quilted earth. We arrived at the crossroad of Lote Tres and Lote Cuatro and some of us got out of the bus and headed up to Lote Tres—the bus then went on to Lote Cuatro. At Lote Tres, all that the group was able to do was move rebar from the pastor’s house to the building site. It was only about 200 yards, but it was uphill and at the altitude, it took seven people almost two hours to move about 100 ½-inch by 40-foot rebars. Needless to say, the group was tired when they were done at noon. Down at Lote Cuatro Sue worked again with the kids, Mark and Ben bent rebar, and Pastor Todd and Mark K. worked with the local people pouring cement into the foundation of the mill building. Just before noon, the worked stopped—this time it was for the last time. The group at Lote Cuatro joined the group at Lote Tres for a farewell service.

The service (including songs and prayers) was a very moving service. Once again the team was placed out of their comfort zone and asked to sing. Thank goodness Kathy brought all her music with (she was always prepared for anything—she carried her backpack with things like sanitizer, toilet paper, sun block, tissues, the music that we sang, and various other things). We sang two American songs and then sang two songs with the congregation in Spanish. Our team was then presented with two gifts—a poncho to Pastor Todd and a Quichuan hat to Mark Kimball.

After good-byes at Lote Tres, the team moved to Lote Cuatro where we were served a wonderful meal of chicken, potatoes, onion gravy, and an anise drink. We then had another service with music and prayers. The congregation sang a few songs. The team again was asked to sing. So we sang a few of our worship songs in English and then asked the congregation to join us in singing a couple Spanish worship songs. We then were presented with gifts made by the children. And we in turn presented their church with one of the banners that had been made for CBC-E (because the school closed down, we were given back the two banners that the Banner Ladies had made for the school. One banner had a verse in Spanish, and so we thought it was appropriate for that banner to stay in Ecuador—the other banner will be coming back home.). The pastor of the church was overwhelmed with the gift and asked the team to again come forward so that he could pray for us. After the prayer, the entire congregation came forward and gave each team member a huge hug. Before we knew it, it was 4:00, time to head back to the hotel. We met at 6:00 to eat dinner, which consisted of the sandwiches we had made this morning for our lunch (and chips, fruit, pop, and cookies).

Mark Kimball asked the team to meet to talk about the week’s events. Mark asked us to share what God had been doing in our lives throughout the week and how today’s events may have affected us. Joan then asked about our reasons for coming down and how they might have changed throughout the week. Some of the team shared how God had taught them different things about themselves and how they needed to make changes in their lives. Our team has definitely experienced God’s presence here in Ecuador.

Day 7: But still no rest!

2008-03-07T21:46:00.000-08:00

“Oh LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done marvelous things, things planned long ago.” Isaiah 25:1.

Morning seemed to come very early today. But again we met at 7:00 for devotions. Today Sue read for us Daniel 2. King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream, and he wanted his wise men to interpret it. But they couldn’t, so the king was going to execute them. When a guard went out to find Daniel and his friends, Daniel spoke with wisdom and tact to the guard. Daniel was bold and went before the king. That evening, Daniel and his friends prayed to God, and God revealed to Daniel King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. Daniel explained to the king his dream and how God had told him about it. How did the king’s heart change?

Everybody brings gifts to the team that I was impressed how well the team has been working together and we’ve been able to communicate quite well with everybody’s pool ability to speak Spanish. And those that don’t speak Spanish, play Charades. -Mark Kimball

After breakfast, we planned to leave at 8:00. Yesterday, we had asked one of the men from Lote Tres to meet us at our hotel to take us up to Lote Tres a different way (this was a different way from going through Cangahua to avoid the many road problems). This morning, two men came and asked the team to purchase more supplies. So we ran to a hardware store. But that store didn’t have everything needed, so we went to another hardware store. At around 9:00, Mark Kimball suggested that some of us go up in Paul’s vehicle because it was undetermined what time the “sale” of the items would be completed. Thanks to Spencer and Amy, we were able to purchase all the needed items (to be delivered by truck), and we were back on the bus and ready to go by 9:30.

For me it would be just finding time to find my own legs here on the mountains and seeing that it takes time sometimes, but finding God faithful through that time. I think what I appreciate the most is seeing Ben find a place here too and finding his own legs. -Mark Gabriel

The group that went with Paul to Cuarto Lote included Pastor Todd, Chris, Mark Gabriel, Ben, Kadie, Kathy, and Mark Kimball. Once they arrived at the school, they continued to cut and bend rebar and haul rocks from one location to the building site (to bend rebar is a bit difficult to explain. But they use a very old-fashioned but effective way to make rectangular pieces out of the rebar. The rectangular pieces are wired to long pieces to make the column and beam supports for the roof and walls of the building.)

The group that stayed on the bus experienced a one-and-one-half-hour drive through the mountains. The road twisted and turned—it seemed to bend in half at times and continued to ribbon through the mountaintops. It was a beautiful sight to behold (and I must admit, a bit on the scary side)! Once again, God’s majesty was right before us. By the time the bus got to Lote Tres, it was about 11:15. So some of our crew walked up the very muddy hill to do some work (again, cutting and bending rebar and cutting “poles”). We were able to stay for only an hour. We then met Paul, and he took us over to Cuarto Lote for lunch and an afternoon of VBS.

I have been awed again by God’s goodness, creation and providence. He perfectly handpicked each person in our group and it was amazing to see how each person was used and was challenged by God. He pushed us, took us out of our comfort zones, and showed us how similar we really are to our brothers and sisters in Christ. Ecuador has some of the most beautiful sights I’ve ever seen. The quilted towering green mountains took one’s breath away. But even more incredible was the friendship, hospitality and love of the Body of Christ in Ecuador. -Spencer

Immediately after lunch, we all geared up for the afternoon. Melanie, Ben, Spencer and Pastor Todd went “up” to the soccer field; Sue, Joan, Paul, and Chris got balloons ready for the tossing game; Leah, Amy and Joann got the kids’ photos organized, and the rest of the team played with the kids using the jump ropes the team had brought.

It was awesome to see God’s faithfulness this week. For example, not getting up the mountain on Wednesday gave us time to sort clothes and glue beads and allowed those who did get up the mountain to have time with the niños. Also God handpicked every person on this team—each with their own unique gifts to contribute to our work. I really enjoyed interacting with the Ecuadorians. I worked mostly wit the church in Lote Tres. The people were so gentle, patient, and kind. IT was cool to see how they always refer to each other as hermanola. Even when you would ask who was in the same family, they would always say that they are all brothers and sisters. They even would call us hermanoya. It was great to see God’s work in distant lands! -Amy

At 2:00, the kids were all called together. Leah and Britta led the kids and the team in several worship songs (sung in Spanish). Immediately after singing, we performed our Lazarus skit (The story of Lazarus, John 11:1-45). Then it was time for crafts. We had two rooms in which to do two crafts. One group of kids was able to make cross necklaces and color a picture of Lazarus with Jesus. The other group of kids received the photos we had taken the day before. The photos were placed on a paper “frame” and the kids were given colors and foam stickers to decorate their frames. When each group completed their project, they switched rooms. Photos were taken of and handed out to about 77 kids. And the estimated attendance today (just the kids, not including the parents) was about 100 kids. After crafts, Leah and Britta lead the kids in a few more songs. Then Cadie, Melanie and Kathy handed out the candy that the team had brought. It was then about 4:00, and we were ready to head back to the hotel.

We arrived at the hotel around 5:30, giving us about 30 minutes to shower and change.

Tonight we had guests come to eat dinner and speak with us. Two couples, both missionary couples, came to share their stories with us. Jaime and Laura Lomas came to speak about his experiences in the Quichua area (this is the area in which the team is working). Altogether, Jaime has helped to start 12 Covenant churches (for Jaime and Laura’s amazing story, ask one the team members to share it with you). And Anna Louisa and Sven Olaf spoke about their time in Ecuador. They have spent much time in Ecuador and in Finland as missionaries. They too have an interesting story (also ask one of the team members to share this story with you).

Tomorrow is our last day of working. On Saturday we visit a few “market” towns and then head to Quito. On Sunday we visit Jipijapa church and then visit Mitad del Mundo (the center of the world). Our flight leaves Quito around 9:40 p.m., and we will be home around 10:00 a.m. on Monday morning.

Day 6: Working with Happy People

2008-03-06T08:35:00.000-08:00

“May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.” Psalm 90:17.

This morning, we woke up to rain. Gathering at 7:00 a.m., Mark Kimball led us in devotions. This morning we talked about Daniel and how he was an iron-willed man. He was not a person to compromise on his beliefs. I guess it might be easy for us as Americans not to compromise on things. We have expectations and will not accept less. But in Ecuador, sometimes compromise is the only option. When we have many choices about things, Ecuadorians may have only one choice.

"The people here are friendly all the time and laugh and have fun with us (at our expense!) while we work with them. They like to show us how hard they can work while at the same time building a fun relationship." Chris Ertsgaard

After devotions and breakfast, we spent some time in solitude. Amazingly, the rain stopped, so we loaded the bus and headed for our worksites. But when we got to Cachughua (pronounced Ca-choo-a) a small town that is about halfway to our destination, the road was blocked (the main road through the town is being “rebuilt” by some of the townsmen, but the work the men are doing is laying concrete pavers by hand, not pouring concrete or asphalt). The other roads in the town go up a steep incline, and they are dirt roads. Because it has been so rainy, the roads have been very slippery. Fernando tried to get up the hill this morning, but he was unsuccessful. Many of the buses that run to the towns in the upper part of the mountainside were also stranded in Cachughua.

"I'm impressed and love the feeling you get when they call us brothers and sisters in Christ. We're more than just Americans and friends, we're really brothers and sisters to them." Cadie Boyung

Because Joan and Paul (our hosts) have a seven-person vehicle, the decision was made to send up half our team in their vehicle. The rest of the team was sent back to the hotel to prepare for tomorrow’s VBS at the school. The team members that went up were Mark Kimball, Sue Kimball, Mark Gillis, Joann Gillis, Leah Jarosek, Spencer Peterson, and Kathy Curtis. This team went to Lote Quatro to continue working on the rebar work. Sue continued with her teaching while Spencer was translating for her. Joann and Leah worked on taking individual photographs of all the school children (these photos will be used at VBS on Thursday—the children will get their photo on a card-stock “photo frame” and be able to decorate the frame with colors and stickers). Mark Kimball, Kathy Curtis, Mark Gillis, and Paul continued to work with the local people on cutting and bending rebar. Before we knew it, it was time for lunch (around 1:30). We were able to eat our lunch in one of the classrooms. Lunch consisted of sandwiches, chips, yogurt, bananas, and soda. As we ate, it began to rain. After a bit, it let up again, so we went back to work. But only for a short time, as we needed to be finished working for the day by 3:00 p.m.

"I have two observations. People here are so family oriented. The women are working with us sometimes as they hold their babies on their backs. The kids are in the middle of what they're doing. Also, even though these people seem to have so little, they are happy people. Their happiness doesn't come from material things, it's in being a Christian and having their family." Kathy Curtis

After the rest of the team returned to the hotel, they discussed the many things that needed to be done. Starting with the VBS tasks, the team took out the beads and glued three purple beads together (the beads were glued together to make it easier for the kids to make crosses). The kids will then use the crosses and make necklaces. Everyone had a good laugh when Britta, trying to glue the beads together, kept gluing the beads to her hands. The team then made up 90 necklace “packets” to hand out to the kids. After lunch, the team made up more necklace packets and began sorting the clothes, which took a long time because there were so many clothes to go through. Altogether there were 26 bags of clothes (thank you, First Covenant Family!). After two-plus hours of sorting, the team was finished for the day. Some of the team went for a walk around the town while others took advantage of the time off and rested.

Around 4:00 p.m., the team at the hotel loaded the bus to head for Jaime and Laura Lomas’s home (more on them tomorrow, as they will be coming to speak to the team about their work in Ecuador). Shortly thereafter, the rest of the team joined them. Laura served the team bizchocos and tea. And the team members got a little shopping in.

"The kids (from Ecuador) are having so much fun here. As they carry down the bricks where we're working, they're having a great time. And they're strong." Ben Gabriel

Back on the bus, we came back to the hotel for a quick shower, and then off to dinner. Back to the hotel by 7:15, the team practiced the skit for tomorrow’s VBS. While Joann and Melanie printed up 75 pictures for the kids, Sue, Ben, Cadie, and Kathy glued the photos to the frames. Pastor Todd, Chris, Leah, Spencer, Amy, Britta, Mark Gabriel, and Mark Kimball assembled the necklaces (it was determined that the language barrier would prevent the kids from understanding how to knot the string to make the cross for the necklace). 10:00 p.m. came very fast for the team, and we are now ready for rest. We’re all excited about tomorrow…

"We've had amazing experiences and have seen God work in wonderful ways. Thank you for your prayers." Pastor Todd

Day 5: Rain and Rebar

2008-03-05T06:45:00.000-08:00

There is much to say about the day, but first I would like to share about three people who are here with us. Our “hosts” Paul and Joan Spjut are the IPEE representatives (IPEE is the Covenant church in Latin America). I know that Joan was a school teacher, and that Paul was a band teacher before he became a pastor. I do know they have a few children. I also know that Paul grew up in Minnesota. What is so amazing to me is that Paul is now 70 years old and Joan is 65 years old. They don’t look their age. Their home is currently in La Merced, the prior home of CBC-E. They came to Ecuador two years ago, and they replaced Herb and Elaine Clauson (who are now living in Wisconsin).

“People are really happy here, even though they don’t have a lot.” -Melanie

The third person is Fernando. Fernando is our bus driver. He has shared meals with our group and has sat by us, so I’ve been able to ask him questions about his life. He is 25 years old. He studied to be a bus driver for two years before his boss would let him be a tourist driver. He wants to continue driving in the mountain regions—he doesn’t want to drive down in the forest areas. He lives in Quito with his wife and two-year-old daughter, whose name is Camilla. His father is a farmer, and he has two sisters. He works a lot and doesn’t watch much tv. He does like to watch sports (futbol) and The Simpsons. Camilla likes to watch Shrek. Fernando has been an outstanding driver. He also helps us with translations. What’s amazing about this is that he took English for only one year in high school. But he has been a blessing to Paul and Joan and our team.

Now, back to our day. Well, we were off to a little later start today as we had to make lunches, send yesterday’s journal over the internet, and shop at the local hardware store for some supplies to be used at Lote Tres. The day began beautifully; the sun was shining, and from our hotel windows we could see the snow covered top of Cayambe Mountain (5738 meters above sea level).

After a much less problematic journey to Lote Tres, the entire team hauled eucalyptus poles about one and one half miles up the mountainside to the building site. It took two to four people to carry each pole depending on its weight. Some of the locals were able to carry one per person – even the women. They are so amazingly strong. Only five of our team stayed at Lote Tres to cut rebar and move a pile of dirt from one area to another. Moving the dirt will allow space for mixing the cement for the support beams.

Everyone on the team has had a special gift to contribute.” -Mark K.

The other members of the team went by SUV in two groups to Lote Cuatro (the SUV, driven by Mark Gillis could hold only six people), where the school is located. (Because the bus got stuck three times yesterday, the bus was going to stay on the roads that weren’t as affected by the rain.) Sue was taken right to the math class where God provided again! Seated in the back was Christian, the little boy who wandered into the bus yesterday and learned how to use Touchpoint math. He became the teacher’s assistant immediately, with great pride and enthusiasm. He helped to demonstrate to Blanca, the math teacher, how to use the touchpoints and how to do addition. Sue had saved his 100% page of subtraction problems that he had finished on the bus the day before. He had not learned subtraction at school yet.

Blanca watched for a few minutes and then brought Carlos to the desk, explaining that math was a problem for him. Christian and Sue soon had him very successfully doing simple addition problems. When Blanca saw the success she brought one – two – then three more struggling students. At this point the room became so loud with curiosity that the lesson was taken to the whiteboard for the entire class. “It was a blast!” was Sue’s comment. “The morning flew past. I hope I can spend much more time there.”

“The farther we get from the big city (Cayambe), the friendlier the people are. And it’s fun to drive in the mud of Ecuador.” -Mark G.

Everyone at Lote Cuatro cut their work short because the rain began to fall and the road was getting slippery. Mark Gillis got the second group there just after the rain had started. But because the first group had stopped working, the second group piled back into the car and was brought back to the bus. Then Mark Gillis came back for the first group, and Mark Gillis and Mark Kimball had to hurry the gimpy gumbi (Sue) out of the classroom to make a quick get-away. Once we were back on the bus, we debated about whether to stay and work in the rain or go back to the hotel (because the rain would make the roads muddy and slippery). We prayed for wisdom about what to do. Then we ate lunch on the bus (minus the bizcochos, which were crushed under a tool box).L When we finished eating, the rain had stopped (Praise God!), and so we once again got off the bus and went back to work.

The group at Lote Cuatro continued to work alongside the locals by cutting rebar and moving the dirt while the local people continued to put up poles for the roof (the local people also continued to cut down trees for the poles, “skin” the poles, and bring them up the mountainside. The group at Lote Tres worked alongside the locals to finish digging a trench for the footings for the new bolina (mill) and hauling rocks (big, big rocks) from their location to the building site.

The time flew quickly, and before we knew it, it was time to leave the worksites for the evening. Back at the hotel, people got showered and changed for dinner at 5:30. Tonight we will be visited by a local Christian band called Reflexion. They will perform many folk songs for us. I’m certain it will be a wonderful evening.

Day 4: The Gumbi Journal

2008-03-04T06:40:00.000-08:00

“Look at the nations and watch—and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.” Habakkuk 1:5.

As you can see we have given our journal a name. If it makes no sense to you, think “flex” “flex” “flex.” Today we all had to “gumbi” a lot.

*We didn’t really know what we were going to do on the job site as we left Cayambe.

*Half of the team stayed at Lote Tres and the other half repaired the road to Quarto Lote so the bus could proceed to their work site.

*Nine were at Quarto Lote. The school director requested on arrival that we play with the children. Most of the staff appeared to be away and the children were in classrooms working independently – or doing the same things American students would be doing unattended on a ‘special’ day. But those nine also were asked to bring down many cement blocks (about 500 blocks) from one site and stack them next to the school yard (moving them about 100 yards).

*Sue and Joan (our Ecuadorian leader) taught an English lesson at the school. We taught the students “Five Little Monkeys Jumping On a Bed” so we could continue practicing when we gave the children the jump ropes that we brought them. A few children were very eager to learn some English, while many others were very shy. The class was dismissed for a very long recess so they could play with us. Some of the children were very concerned about Sue’s leg brace and asked question after question. It’s so hard to explain in Spanish. They finally asked if she would take it off and show them her leg.. J They loved writing their names in her notebook and laughed when she tried to pronounce them. Leah, Britta, Cady and Amy taught them some Christian songs in Spanish. It was a great day.

*Six people stayed at Lote Tres. Those at Lote Tres began by hauling 29 rebar rods up to the building site (about ¼ mile). (The church has a very small building, and so they are constructing a second building. The current church is about 12x12, has dirt floors, and no electricity. The new building will be almost three times as big, have electricity, and house a two shoveled dirt for fill, and two took the fill and laid it in the foundation area. Several local men were there, and they were working on raising the roof.

*The staff prepared lunch for us (we had packed sandwiches), which we debated graciously turning down. Thankfully we stayed because they had prepared for us the lobster of Ecuadorian cuisine. Cui! Cui is guinea pig! We were all seated on benches crowded around two long desks and brought a heaping bowl of boiled potatoes (each), cui, large slices of cheese and an onion gravy. There was a bit of discussion about the cui, to be sure, but everyone ate some and did their best to finish it right to the bones. In general, we all thought it was delicious.

*Because the local maestro for the project didn’t arrive at Quarto Lote, we all headed for Lote Tres. The bus was buried in mud a short way from the school. More digging! Men from the school area showed up with boards. The gringos piled into the very back of the bus, and we all prayed. Fernando, our bus driver, backed up the steep road to the main road (Ole!) while the shovelers walked up the hill.

*When we arrived at Tres Lote we were informed that the only road back to Cayambe was blocked and was impassable. We trekked back up to the lot and worked more with the men, working on preparing the forms for pouring cement, cutting more rebar, and bending the cut pieces into rectangles. The rebar will be used for reinforcement for the support beams. At 4:00 we packed up for the day. We started heading back for the evening. But a few miles down the road we came to the impassible part of the road. This is where we were really thanking God that Mark Kimball thought to bring long-handled shovels, because six of our team got off the bus and began shoveling with our bus driver, Fernando. Soon we had the roadway cleared and we were back on our way. OH, did I mention that it was raining and that the dirt roads were more like mud?

*Fernando returned us safely to the hotel around 6:00 p.m. We all got showered and changed and went for dinner. We then returned to the hotel for some much needed rest!

Day 3: Oyacachi

2008-03-03T07:26:00.000-08:00

Rooster crows and mooing cows woke some, while traffic noise woke others for an early start to Quarto Lote (fourth lot), which was about an hour’s drive through mountain valleys and cloud covered peaks, and over stone roads the width of one bus. AND we passed another bus, which took at least five minutes, moving only a couple inches at a time after backing up once or twice to start all over. If you had your window open, you could feel the breath of the passengers in the other bus. J Because the road became impassible, we walked the last couple hundred yards – up and then downhill – to a pretty church on the mountainside, filled with the most colorfully dressed women and children and men in black hats (the women also had the black hats).

The local pastor announced they would sing for us first in their language, and then we would sing for them in our language “which would be pleasing to God.” Well, we had only planned to sing in Spanish, so we flexed and sang two English and two Spanish songs. The local church sang along with us and seemed to really enjoy it all. Pastor Todd preached with a translator– and he must have been so good that the other pastor didn’t preach at all, which was another unexpected. The church was on the second floor and Sue was just a bit self-conscious about everyone watching her as she came down narrow cement steps with no railings. Chris, the faithful helper, looked at Sue as Sue said, “I felt like everybody there was watching me.” And Chris responded, “It would have been only more obvious if you had been blonde.” God is good.

We drove from Quarto Lote to Oyacachi, one and one half hours over the Andes Mountains, across the continental divide. We experienced all of the above road conditions plus goats running across the road in front of us (like deer) and stopping to chase cows out of the way. Our driver drove to within a few inches of one cow, but it would not move until he got out a chased it away. We were above the tree line, in the clouds and watching clouds drift down the mountains, about 13,000 feet above sea level. In Oyacachi, the local Covenant Church served us a dinner of chicken soup and baked trout with boiled potatoes and a kind of fresh salsa,. While we were unable to do anything for them, they were very generous and would accept any payment for our meal!

Our next adventure took us to hot springs, where most of the team partook in warmer than bath water. The local people were very kind in sharing this wonder of nature with our team. The springs are formed by the geothermal heat from the volcanic mountain. The local people have made about four pools, and the closer to the mountain the warmer the water. The pools were very close to the river, and people would sit in the pools for a short time (the temps of the pools ran about 85, 95, and 105) and then go in the river, which was about 60 degrees. After refreshing ourselves, we visited a small artisan shop. The shop contained many wood carvings, including bowls, key chains, plaques and wall hangings.

Back on the bus, we took the two plus hour drive back to our accommodations. (The reader should now be aware that it is currently 6:00 p.m. in Cayambe and we will be soon heading off to dinner. We plan to meet after dinner for debriefing—to talk about what we experienced today and to get a blueprint of our day tomorrow.) So, until tomorrow…

Day 2: Volcanic gondola rides

2008-03-03T07:24:00.000-08:00

Our two CBC graduates were awakened by a surprise. Previous workers at CBC, Andy and Jenell Pluim, were staying at the dormitory and awoke our graduates to say hi. It had been a few years since Andy and Jenell had seen Britta and Leah. Andy and Jenell were down with a team from Canada and decided to stay a few extra days. It was great to see them!

Breakfast (a typical American breakfast of cereal, some familiar and some not so familiar fruit, coffee, and bread) was served at 9:00. Most of the team was down earlier and was able to meet some others who had been in Ecuador working on the same location as we will be through the week.

After breakfast we shared in devotions—talking about Elisha and servanthood, and then we traveled through Quito to take a gondola ride up Pichincha, a volcanic mountain 13,000 feet high. It last erupted in 1999. The view was fantastic, overlooking the valleys that Quito has filled. Ben and Kathy faced their fear of heights and lived to enjoy it!

We then went into the old city center to have lunch at La Posada Colonial, a restaurant housed in a building dating back to the 1500’s when Spain defeated the indigenous people. A visit at the city center after lunch included a square surrounded on four sides by the presidential palace, the Arch Bishop’s mansion, a cathedral and a commercial area – oh yes, and a few armed soldiers guarding it all. From there we drove to the Bascilica, which is a national cathedral, and many climbed to the top of the bell towers (Ben hit them all).

After a two-hour drive through more mountains we arrived at our home for the week, a hotel in Cayambe Hosteria Mitad del Mundo (hotel in the middle of the world). We enjoyed another great dinner at a local restaurant before heading to bed – VERY TIRED AND GLAD WE CAME!

Day 1: Traveling with a fearless leader...

2008-03-03T07:13:00.000-08:00

It’s here! It’s the day that we leave. But six o’clock comes pretty early! For benefit of the reader, I wanted to let you know that I will combine day 1 and day 2 because day one was just merely traveling to our destination.

Our fearless leader, Mark Kimball, requested that we meet at church by 6:00 so that we could be on our way to the airport by 6:30. 12 of us met and packed the church van and Dan and Terri Pearson’s van (thanks, Dan and Terri, for bringing us to the airport!) with our luggage and started our first trek. Having experienced no complications, we arrived at the airport right when Mark wanted us to--7:30. Leah met us at the airport at around 8:00, and we were to meet up with Spencer and Amy in Quito. After we checked in, we got Sue on her way with a wheelchair and a golf cart. Then we headed toward the gate. (pic)

After some airport food (breakfast), we boarded the plane. We reached Atlanta with no complications. We had a two-hour layover, which was spent talking and eating more airport food. We then boarded the plane for Quito. About one and one-half hours into the flight, we needed to make a medical emergency landing for a passenger. So we spent about one and one-half hours on the ground at the Tampa Bay, Florida, which delayed our arrival time in Quito about two hours late. (The passenger is okay, and she was left in Tampa Bay for observation.)

We finally touched down into Quito around 12:15. After going through immigration, picking up our luggage and going through customs, we met up with our hosts, Paul and Joan Spjut, and with Spencer and Amy. We packed up the bus and headed to our evening lodgings. We were lucky. We spent the night in Quito at a dormitory for missionaries. We all were in our rooms by 1:00 a.m. It was a long day.