By land and by sea

This morning we walked to the mission's reforestation project and worked on a variety of jobs. The people here are full of ideas about how to use and reuse resources to make a better life. Instead of burning old trees, they are cut into spoons and other implements. Young people in the community are given jobs making and smoothing the spoons. This is not an easy task - several of us spent the morning sanding spoons. Others moved dirt to create a compost heap under the watchful eye of our young supervisors, Eduardo and Ober, both age 13.

After lunch we took a boat across Lake Atitlan to a nearby community, San Antonio Palopo. This is a country of great contrasts - many live in great poverty but we passed elaborate lakeside mansions on our way. San Antonio Palopo is known for colorful weaving and distinctive pottery.  We hiked up to the church on the hill to enjoy the view of the lake.

This afternoon we learned more about the history of the mission from Chona, the long-time head of the kitchen and some of the challenges this community has faced since the death of Father Greg Schaeffer.

After a dinner of hamburgers and pasta, we celebrated Jack and Shirley's birthdays with a huge chocolate cake. We just rehearsed our two songs for tomorrow's very early mass. At the 11 am service we celebrate the baptism of Everth with Julie as madrina (godmother) and are invited to join the family for lunch afterward.

We remember the communities of Gloria Dei and Salem as loved ones are named and celebrated.

More pictures tomorrow.

Finally Getting to Work

Another busy day in Guatemala!

First, we will talk a little bit about yesterday, Day of the Dead.  We followed a processional from the church to the cemetary.  The cemetary was filled with people, and vendors selling things.  Right outside Father Greg's tomb, an alter was set up.  Throughout the service, the names of deceased loved ones were read.  It was an honor to hear the names of members of Gloria Dei and Salem alongside names of local people who have died.

After the service we walked to the Lake to watch the kite festival.  Kites are a big part of Day of the Dead in Guatemala.  They symbolize the connection between the living and the dead.  People made these huge kites (bigger than a person) and flew them over the lake!

Lunch was a traditional salad called Fiambra (pickeled vegetables and meats) that everyone eats on Day of the Dead.  In the afternoon we drove to another town on the Lake, Santiago.  In Santiago we visited the site where Father Stan Rother was murdered then did a little shopping.

After dinner, singing practice and devotions, a family came to visit us.  Abilino, his wife Manuela and their two daughters came to visit.  Abilino is the god son of a Salem member who has visited Guatemala many times.



Today was our first work day!  We drove in the back of a pick up truck to the town were we built stoves-the view on the drive was amazing.  Our two work sites were far away from each other.  The first task was to carry all of the stove bricks up many hills, which was a hard task....or so we thought, until we were passed by kids, and mothers with babies carrying bricks.

Building the stoves was fun, hard, but fun.  On Monday we will return to build more stoves at different houses in the same community.

First Day in San Lucas

Yesterday we made the 3-hour drive from Guatemala City to San Lucas!  San Lucas is located in the highlands on the shores of Lake Atitlan.

The mission volunteer coordinator, Lauren and Julio gave us a tour of the mission projects.  We visited the women's center, the hospital and the coffee center.  It is great for those of us that have returned many times to San Lucas to see progress at the women's center...and also women using the center!    The hospital also had a fresh coat of paint and looked really great.  Surgeons visited last month, and performed over 80 surgeries a week while they were here.

After dinner we watched a video about Father Stan Rother, who was a priest in the neighboring town of Santiago.  Rother was murdered in 1981 by a death squad.  Today we will visit the site where he was killed.

Yesterday was very rainy, the Salem crew took a walk down to the lake in the rain.  Today is sunny, which is great!  Today is Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos).  We are off to the cemetery soon for worship, then it's time for the kite festival!

A Day in Guatemala City

Today was a busy, full day in Guatemala City!

Tomorrow we will say goodbye to ILAG and head to San Lucas.  (I am summarizing up here, because the computer is not letting me edit the blog very well-photos will be what we end on.)  Bishop Horacio and his wife Esther said goodbye tonight because tomorrow they are headed to Minnesota-they both expressed excitement for the trip North.

We started our day with a visit to the community of El Tuerto.  This community is located down a ravine, with their church at the very bottom. The walk was basically a very steep set of narrow steps that are in very poor condition.  The hike down was worth it though!

The Pastor of El Tuerto, Marcelina met with us and discussed the history of the church.  Several in our group have visited and worshiped with El Tuerto before.  We were proud and amazed that the building finally had a floor AND a roof.

After lunch we then headed to the community of El Mirador ( Colegio Lutherano Agustino de Guatemala) for the preschool and 6th grade graduation ceremony.  9 preschoolers and 2 6th graders graduated today.  We sat in the front row as distinguished guests and had the honor of handing out the diplomas!   Jack also got to do his favorite thing (take pictures!)  and acted as the 2nd official photographer.  The ceremony lasted 3 hours and included constant background music, dance performances by each grade and speeches.  It was a great event...and our 200 cupcakes were a hit!

The

We have arrived at ILAG

We have arrived safely in Guatemala City!  We were greeted at the airport by our drivers from San Lucas.  They loaded us up and our luggage and took us to the Lutheran Center.  The Lutheran Center has changed a lot since any Salem members have visited.  There is now a beautiful guest house for us to sleep in, and a sanctuary above the guest rooms!

We were greeted by the some of the Pastoral team from ILAG (Amanda, Horacio and Padre Horacio).  After a quick lunch we met to hear about how the Lutheran church in Guatemala started, and also about how the ILAG school was formed in 1993.  ILAG has been working hard to build up and support the school in El Mirador, it was sad to hear that gangs and other members of the community actively try to destroy the school.  They say though that God continues to protect them and the school because it is work that is needed!

Currently we are in the process of baking 200 cupcakes to bring with us when we attend the preschool and 6th grade graduation ceremony in El Mirador!  Thank you for your prayers for our safe travels and for our friends here in Guatemala.  Tonight we will rest up for a busy, full day in Guatemala City.

Houston, we need coffee!

We are half way there!  After getting to the airport at 3:45 am this morning and a quick layover in Houston (with coffee!) we are now headed to Guatemala City!

Gearing Up for Guatemala

It's hard to believe that it is already October and... that in 18 short days 6 Salem members, along with members of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church will be headed to Guatemala!

For some people in our group this trip will be there 6th, 10th or even 14th time to Guatemala, but there are others who will be going to Guatemala (or even leaving the US!) for the first time.  We have a group of fun and interesting people and are looking forward to learning from each other just as much as we will learn from people in Guatemala.

We have a lot on our agenda, we could use more time, but know that with work, school and families it's just not possible.  We will be visiting ILAG (the Lutheran Church in Guatemala) and San Lucas Toliman and learning and helping in many ways.

Here is what is on our agenda:

• Visiting a congregation & school in Guatemala City where we will lead activities for 70 children including: puppet making, kite making, songs and parachute games.
• Celebrating 'Dia de los muertos' (Day of the Dead) in San Lucas by worshiping in a cemetery and watching a kite festival over Lake Atitlan.
• Building safe stoves in the homes of 4 families.  These stoves provide safe and healthy living conditions for the family, and also stimulate the local economy and provide good jobs for young adults.
• Participating in a baptism of a new baby.
• Visiting students from San Lucas and surrounding communities that are sponsored by members of Salem.
• Touring the San Lucas projects (reforestation, women's center, hospital, schools) and learning about the work being done in the community.
• Many impromptu visits and gatherings with friends we've met along the way.

Even though you may not be coming on the trip with us, our fellow church members, families and friends are still very much a part of this trip!  We need your prayers prior to and on our trip.  Prayers for the people of Guatemala, our safe travel, and that we AND the people of Guatemala benefit from our time there.

Many of you have already donated towards scholarships, stoves, and to ILAG....THANK YOU for that!  As we get closer to the trip we will keep you updated on needs we still have for the trip.  This blog will also be the place to get updates about what is happening while we are in Guatemala!  We will do our best to provide daily updates as long as we can find an internet connection.