Quick Follow-Up to the April Trip

Last entry, until the next team heads down... Just thought I would let all of you know who were following our journey that we had a very nice ending to our transformation trip! Our last day in Guatemala was spent in Antigua as a sort of "debriefing/transitioning" time back into the States. It was a wonderful opportunity for us to enjoy one another's company and take in some more of the Guatemalan culture. Antigua is definitely more for tourists, but we were able to continue to give back when we went to dinner at a place called Kids Restaurant. It is run out of a school the first Friday of every month and it is where the kids cook and serve the food. The profits then go to benefit an organization called TESS Unlimited that helps babies born with cleft palates. Also while we were there, our hosts, Dylan and Missy, surprised us with a hour's worth of Salsa lessons! There was a lot of laughter and sweat in that dance studio! :-) 

Overall the trip was an amazing, eye opening experience for us all and we were all very lucky to be able to experience it together and grow! Thank you to all of you who prayed, donated, and read this blog! It really meant a lot to us all!

Here is a link to a video that the one missionary, Dylan, made of our work time: http://bit.ly/1iVKz1A .  I hope you enjoy getting a glimpse into our week!  Thanks again Missy, Dylan, and Jon for hosting us and helping us grow in our Faith! 

Thursday--- last day on the job...

Today was a lonnnnnng day! While we didn't accomplish every single project we were hoping to, we did accomplish a good bit of it! Today we finished the shelves and pretty much all of the wall was finished (this took ALOT of hard work!!!) When we came this week, the home had no roof and was only cement blocks, by the end of the week we have waterproofed the home, built the roof, put up shelves in the tienda, the bars on the windows have been started and the retaining wall has been started! A lot of sweat and prayers went into this project but it was great when we got to say out goodbyes to the Maria's tonight an hear how thankful they are. (The older one is still very sad to be leaving her home though, which is understandable since she's been living there for 90 years!) Below you'll see some pictures of our work day. 

(Anna-Marie sawing)

(Missing drilling the shelves)

(Mary-Lou sweeping)

(Dylan laying blocks)

(Anna-Marie and Derek helping with the wall)

(Ron splitting blocks with a machete! His wife will need to get his honey-do list ready because he definitely has the muscle to get them done now!)

(Jon helping with translation)

(Working hard!)

(Pouring the cement into the columns was the biggest roadblock of the day!)

On top of visiting with the Maria's, we also were able to visit with another SARF family. They have four boys! We brought them some food and Mary-Lou gave them some candy, bracelets, an a cross! 

Today will most likely be our last post as we are headed to Antigua tomorrow and then heading for the Airport Saturday! Thank you all for your prayers and support! It's been an amazing, eye-opening experience that I'm sure will stick with each of us for the rest of our lives! To find out more about the Serving At-risk Families (SARF) ministry or to see how you can help, check out www.servants.org ! 

God Bless!