Blan! Blaaaannn! (Team Haiti)

More "blans" (White people) are here! And our team of engineers has more than doubled. Jeff made it here safely, along with another familiar face, Josh Kennedy, Reed a high school student from Georgia and Michael a physics major from Whitworth in Spokane.

Our first day with everyone here, we went out to a new job site to do some surveying. This particular place has a huge pumped water system that supplies irrigation water for 700 people. For those that may not know, surveying is basically taking digital data points with some cool instruments and using them to make a 3D map of an area. From that data, we can then design a solution to the problem. The existing system was washed out by hurricanes a few years back and now it's totally out of service. Our task was to survey the area and exiting pump system to 1) design a newer, better system, and 2) determine whether the existing equipment could still be used. It was a long day out in the sun, but we got everything we needed. We then had a nice lunch of MREs (Army food), picked up the bags from the airport that came late, and headed home for an awesome dinner with the Robinsons. After dinner, we had a great devo lead by Bruce and Deb, and then went home and had some time to hang out, play cards, make gatorade, etc...

Today, we went to Pastor Chribon's church again. It was really hot out, but church here is awesome. Every Sunday the pastors ask if there is anyone in the congregation who is new and wants to accept Jesus as savior. This time there were a few new believers there, which is amazing to see. Haitians also love to sing. There is always a lot of variety in the worship music. Some songs are done in Creole, some in French, some songs are sung by choirs, some are solos, some are duets. You can definitely hear an African influence on the musical style. It's very interesting for us to try and sing in a different language and still be in rhythm. And of course, Sunday means lunch made by Madame Chrisbon. Sooo good! New favorite items on the menu were breaded, fried cheese balls, and pasta salad.

Also this week, We worked on building a basketball court, pouring cement at Bruce and Deb's house, tying more rebar. Adam and I also got the priveledge of going deeper into the mountains than Bruce has ever gone before to find a new spring. It was quite the adventure, but we found the spring. We had to do a lot of off roading in the Land Cruiser, hike through a jungle, and climb halfway up a mountain to get there. We also took a little time to climb farther up the mountain. We reached a peak, and the view was amazing. We could see all of northwest Haiti. What an incredible experience!

We're all doing really well. Thank you all for prayer and support. Hope all is well with the other teams and at home.

God's Grace,

JJ&A

Ecuador: Las pollitas americanas = the American chicks. This is what they call us here.

Ginormous bullet ants. Tarantulas. Mosquitos the size of your hands. Giant flying beetles. A humidity that left us sleepless and heat rashed[Erica is still suffering from this malady, if you can believe it]. Staying in the basement in mattresses on a perceived bug-infested floor. This my friends, is Lita.

Last Friday and Saturday, Team Ecuador treked to Lita with a bus full of Kentucky doctors. Yes, they had accents, yes, they were cool. Though they laughed when we asked if they ate Kentucky fried chicken.

Anyway. Each morning we would clamber into the back of a truck and ride windy and crumbling roads up the mountain to a remote village of indigenous people. Although a bit terrifying at times [Jamie has video to prove it] the area is absolutely beautiful. Very much a jungle with beautiful butterflies, banana trees and the sounds of cicadas abound. We each had various jobs at the clinic the doctors set up. Mandi and Jamie weighed everyone who came through and put it on their charts, Kellie was compiling necessary meds and toothbrushes into take home baggies for the patients, Erica kept track of who came in and out and directed families to open doctors, and Allyssa treked supplies and food for the team up and down the mountain with our pastor host, Washington. There were a lot of heartbreaking cases of widowed 2o year old mothers who couldn´t take care of their children and one man who blew his hands off while fishing with dynamite. Don´t ask.

Other notable mentions about Lita: we pretty much suffocated when we all bug-sprayed the crap out of our beds for fear of waking up with a beetle on our faces. [Trust me, all the locals really built up the bug issue, so we were terrified]. Jamie slipped and fell in the mud multiple times while going up the mountain. Preeeeetttyyy sure she has the record for most falls in the dirt this trip. Erica is surprised because normally she is the biggest klutz. And last but not least, Mandi freaked out when a puppy woke her up one morning. It was a harmless, tiny, little white ball of fluff, people. Needless to say Erica still mocks her to this day for it.

On our way back from Lita we stopped in Otavalo, which has the biggest artesian market in all of Ecuador, if my sources don´t deceive me. We were all afraid to buy something at first, because seriously, in Otavalo once you start buying you don´t stop buying. FYI: Allyssa is a heartless haggler. "Cinco dolares. No mas." Accompanied by a flat out hand motion. That´s a direct quote. Erica also felt like a baller when she got a sweet handpainted item for 8 dollars instead of 14. Who knew?

The church we are living in, "Amigos en Cristo" also had it´s first ever service in English for all of the expatriates living in Ecuador. There was a great turnout, we heard a message from one of the German missionaries here and we sang worship songs. Everyone was really happy to finally here something about Jesus in English. Seriously. There is only so much you can get out of a sermon when you don´t fully speak the language. Unfortunately Erica and Allyssa were sick during this long-awaited for event. They were really bummed, but there is another one in two weeks, so they are eagerly awaiting it.

For the past week or so there has been a giant festival going on with all of the indigenous people celebrating San Juan. We had no idea that this many people even lived in Cotacachi. They are literally coming out of the woodwoork and mountains to celebrate in the town squares. Notable things about this festival: All of the men wear giant furry chaps and large black cardboard cowboy hat-ish-things. Also? They like to dance through the streets. And throw rocks and fruit at each other. You heard me correctly friends, they throw rocks at each other. For fun. Only in Ecuador! It has been really cool to see how other people celebrate and dont worry, we haven´t witnessed any rock throwing, only heard about it from everyone we talk to.

We have still been working with families this week: babysitting, working in restaraunts, cleaning, cooking and sometimes just sitting and watching how the people live here. We all really love the people here. They never hesitate to make us feel like we are family too and have a home in Cotacachi.

We also attend Bible studies three times a week and absolutely love them. Of course, the messages and conversations are all in Spanish. Sometimes we have trouble with Bible references - "wait, was that mateo veinte-cuatro or mateo treinta-cuatro??" But we absolutely love them since they are with the families that we work with during the day a lot of the time.

Other notables:
- pretty much everyone has been sick off and on. Save Mandi and Jamie. How they do it, I have no idea. Kellie, Allysa and Erica have all had their turns at being sick. Wah wah wah.
- Allyssa made BALLER cinnamon rolls from scratch. She will be getting a request for more soon. Trust me.
- Erica and Mandi changed their first diaper today while babysitting. Yes, it is gross. Yes, it smells. But you know what? They were warriors. And they high-fived after. Preettty much an epic moment.
- Mandi and Erica also very [almost] seriously considered buying a baby duck from a guy selling them on the street today. It was just so cute! After weighing the pros and cons, they decided that it probably wouldn´t be very practical to have a baby duck in the church. It also could have rabies. So sadly, they decided against it.

Well that´s all I have for you know, but stay tuned folks, and next week be ready for another exciting adventure with las pollitas americanas in the beautiful country of Ecuador!

"Ya neva know... only in Ecuador."

D.R.: The two weeks are up!

So we had to wait two weeks without internet access but now we are back online and able to update you all on whats happening! We wanted to give a quick update on some of the different things we've experienced thus far and go into detail a little later.

We started off with tons of mosquito bites, amoebas and bacteria. Totally agree with team Ecuador that all mosquitoes should die! We are working with six other ladies from Oregon and Tennessee plus our two fearless leaders; Ingrid and Desiree. Over half the team has gotten sick but we've got the process down of get to the clinic, deposit our samples and get some meds. (sadly Mary's in the middle of the process right now so please be praying for her!!)

Meredith and Megan purchased a live un-plucked chicken on a string and carried it from the market to our home base called Casa Betesda. This involved walking, a "concho" ride (a cross between a motorcycle and a dirt bike meets a scooter) and a van ride just to get Richard the chicken back home ...in time for lunch.

While talking about conchos we fit three girls plus the driver and managed to safely make it to our destination(s).

We are all getting used to living with our host families and think we can all agree that despite the language barriers and acclimating to their family rhythm and culture- we love 'em!

Theres been lots of plantains, yuca, mangu, chinola and RICE & BEANS. There has also been a phase with us Interns about CRAVING peanut butter and oreos, peanut butter and crackers, peanut butter and ice cream, peanut butter and just about anything that tastes like home.

Last but not least for this quick and dirty update:

MWF- In the mornings Meredith has been tutoring grammar, reading and math ALL IN SPANISH in the batey Los Robles. In the afternoon she goes to the COTN Office to teach English to about 20 of staff's children.

Each morning Mary and Megan have been working in the clinic; helping out with a visiting doctor team, updating crazy storage spaces, and observing patient visits. On MWF afternoons they also go to teach English; Mary in the batey Don Basco with lots of younger children and Megan is off to the batey Algodon to teach about 20 older students English as well.

T/TH mornings, Meredith works at the office thus far creating order out of the chaos that is the storage room. Then in the afternoons we all head out to work with the Sponsorship Program, helping to update profiles and photos of the kids.

In closing- all of us interns are excited to be getting together this sunday for a Fourth of July Celebration- American Style at the beach (minus the fireworks, minus the hotdogs, plus all the fun!).

Until next time!!- M^3

Kenya: Great Days in a Unique Land

We have officially ended our second week of our Kenyan adventure. The time sure is flying by! We continue to love being present in the lives of the children and are trying to live every day to the fullest, keeping in mind that we only have a short amount of time here. As Drea said in the last post these kids have come from some of the gravest conditions imaginable and to see them laughing and healthy is something beyond amazing. They are so full of joy and do not take what they have been given for granted. During the last two weeks we have been putting on a mini camp for the kids since they have three weeks off of school. The camp is called GAMES which stands for Games, Art, Music, Enrichment and Sports. I, along with three others have been in charge of Sports. Last week we held a basketball clinic where we are hoping to produce the next Michael Jordan:) The kids have had a ton of fun with b ball and it is great to see them so eager to learn about the game. It has been just as enjoyable for me to teach them.

Every Saturday and Sunday night we have a giant soccer game with the kids as the sun goes down resulting in one of the most epic experiences I have had. Our team has loved running around and going crazy when goals are scored. There is a mama for every ten children at Rafiki and one of the mamas, Mama Lydia, is an avid soccer fan. She always comes out with her hat backwards and try's to keep up with the rambunctious little ones (hilarious to watch). The mama's of these kids are some of the most impressive people I have ever met. I can't imagine being a single mother and having to take care of ten children under the age of 12. It's unreal to see the strength they have and they give all the credit to God. Truly amazing.

The meals continue to be our team's achilles tendon:) The kids on the other hand love every meal, eating everything on their plate. I have literally never seen such clean plates at the end of a meal, so we are trying to learn from their ways. At dinner tonight I had a boy ask me with a completely straight face if I was from the North Pole....Haha

The work this week after games has been challenging, but as we keep in mind who we are serving we get that extra encouragement. Eric and I extended the soccer field about an extra thirty yards with this massive machine of a lawn mower. We plowed over several small trees and bushes that got in our way. It was quite a fun task. We have also mowed an additional five acres or so in preparation for a Kenyan ministry of education inspection on Thursday. Drea and Megan have also been working extremely hard after Games is over, working on preparing books for the next school semester and organizing a library for the junior high students. They have taped and repaired a ridiculous amount of books.

As we get to know the people, experience the wonderful Kenyan culture, and become more acquainted with this unique land the more we fall in love with it. Blessings to all of you and we will continue to keep you posted.

Much love,

Barclay

Haiti: Mangos are delicious!

Hey everyone! It’s been an awesome weekend down in Haiti. The mission team from Denby Pres in Virginia left for home Friday, leaving the 3 interns behind. We spent most of the day Friday working on creating a digital 3D map of the surveying data we took last week. We’ll start the actual design of the dam and canal soon. On Saturday, we got some good rest by sleeping in until about 8am. Bruce had a few tasks for us that day, but they were quick and easy. It was mostly just bending rebar and connecting some new parts to a car battery charger. We’ve had two visitors this weekend from a company called Protos that works with Bruce on many of the water projects. Martine is Belgian, and Julie is French. They’ve been working with Bruce on accounting stuff. We have definitely managed without his supervision though. With our spare time, we like to play with the neighborhood kids, start soccer games, explore the beautiful Haitian countryside, hang out…There’s always stuff to do here. Church on Sunday was an awesome experience. Everyone dresses their absolute best to worship the Lord. We went to Pastor Chrisbon’s church in Post Metier this time. He gave on great sermon on the 5^th Commandment. After church, we got to accompany Bruce and Pastor Chrisbon to Madame Danielle’s house to pray with her for her family. It was really cool to see how the church community will come together to support each other in times of need. And, of course, Sunday afternoon was spent at Pastor Chrisbon’s house where we had a marvelous feast prepared by Madame Chrisbon. So good! Then Sunday afternoon we went to visit a Toutoun, a man who works for Bruce, and his family. And we spent Sunday evening eating amazing mangos and popcorn and hanging out with the Robinsons. What a great weekend!

This week is going to be really busy for us. Bruce has several projects he wants us to start working on. Wednesday we even get to travel up into the mountains to find the source of a river to see if we can use it to supply water to the towns below. And the rest of our team arrives on Friday, and we can’t wait for them to get here. We’ve got plenty to do until they get here though. We’re doing great! Hope everything’s well on the home front.

God’s grace,

J&A

Bonsoir! from Haiti

Hey everyone! we're having a great time in Haiti so far. Internet access is spotty, so this is kind of two posts in one. A lot's been going on, and we're excited to tell you all about it.

The Haiti boys (Jordan and Adam) are back from another tiring day of foundation building up in Foison. We are dust and sweat covered but we’re having an awesome time. We’re a little late on updating everyone so we’ve got a lot to talk about.
Our trip started out with about 26 hours of total travel time. We arrived in Port-Au-Prince (PAP) at about 8:30am after flying from Seattle to LA to Miami and down from there. In the Miami airport we met up with the mission group from Virginia that we’ve been staying with for the first 10 days. They are awesome and we’ve had a lot of fun hanging out at the team house and working with them. There is one other intern here (Kester) along with Adam and I. We arrived at Bruce and Deb’s house at about 7pm after battling the red hats at the PAP airport, sneaking oversized carry on bags onto the Tortug Airlines flight to Port-De-Paix, crossing a river in sinking boats, and a 40 min truck ride with Pastor Chrisbon over some of the bumpiest roads we’ve ever seen. What an experience.
Since then, we’ve been hard at work. The very first day we got the opportunity to survey a section of river where we will eventually be designing a dam for an irrigation canal. We finished the surveying on Thursday thanks to our brand new Nikon total station. Other than that we’ve been working with the Virginians on the foundation of a new school in Foison, a small village in the mountains about 10 miles South of Bruce and Deb’s house. That has involved digging holes; gathering, rolling, carrying, shoveling, throwing, and smashing huge boulders; tying rebar to make foundation columns; carrying and mixing cement. We’ve also had plenty of time playing with the local kids. Around the team house itself, we’ve put together emergency tents that were just delivered, moved building supports, attached a dipole radio that can communicate with the rest of the world, eaten delicious food with the Robinsons, toured Bruce’s previous projects and shop, and explored the area around the team house. We also got to go to the local outdoor market and bakery with Deb. A couple nights ago we attended a Haitian funeral, which was a very interesting experience. We met our first real opposition at a work site where we were building the base of a culvert. A man was throwing a fit that made a lot of the Haitians stop working. It was decided for us to leave the situation and so we went to a pastor’s house nearby. It was a nice drive back to the house with the pastor through the Haitian countryside.
We have loved getting to be a part of Bruce and Deb’s ministry so far and hearing their vision for the future of this remote corner of Haiti. So much of their vision has already come to life, and we’re very excited to see what other amazing things will happen here in the next few weeks. We’ve been very busy, but we’re having a great time. Please keep us in our prayers, especially that God would comfort us from homesickness, would give us strength to complete our tasks, and would be with us in developing our team unity.
We hope you’re all doing well, and we can’t wait to hear about the things God is doing with the other teams. Much love,
J&A
Note: The above blog entry was written several days ago, but we were unable to post it due to power and internet issues.
Today was Beach Day!
The week long mission trip of the Virginians is coming to an end, so we got to celebrate by spending the morning at a beautiful beach near Bay De Mustique. It was a beautiful sunny day. We got to swim, snorkel, and play all morning. We found Nemo, dove for sand dollars, and Adam even made a treasure map. All in all, it was a great day enjoying God’s creation.
Haiti is an all around beautiful place. Each little town is different. There are tropical beaches with white sand and turquoise waters near, harsh deserts with cactus and all things prickly, huge rocky mountains, lush tropical jungles, vast banana and mango farms. What an amazing place.
The Virginians will be heading back to the US tomorrow leaving the 3 engineers to continue working. We had a great time getting to know and hanging out with them, and we will miss them. But there’s plenty of work still to be done. Every day is a new adventure in Haiti, and we’ll do our best to keep y’all posted on our activities.
Peace,
J&A

Kenya: A week of adventures

It has been a week since we have been here. We finally got the internet up and running. I am very thankful that Barclay brought his computer because the one here is very slow. We have een very busy working and playing with the kids.

Our flight over was good. Nothing went wrong, we had a delay of about an hour in Ethiopia but our driver was still waiting for us. We are living in the village, which is surrounded by walls. All four of us are living in Wageni, which means guest in Kiswahili. There are five other people here and we all share the space. One more lady will arrive tomorrow. It is very nice. We eat our breakfast here by ourselves but every other meal is will the kids and momas. They do our laundry three times a week if we want and clean those days as well. They provide us with all the food we want, including the most amazing mangoes I have ever tasted. We run out of the a lot.

Our days are pretty routine. We get up at about 6 or 6:30 and get ready and eat. We then have devotions at 7:15 but for some reason, we never get there on time (or they just start early). The devotions are with the staff members and the village director. We sing and read the Bible. The next three weeks we are having a competition of sorts where we get asked questions about the books they just finished. We of course have no idea what the answers are because we havent read Ezra or 2 Chronicles. After devotions we pray and then prepare for the day. This week and next week we are doing games. It is just in the morning and the kids are in groups and go through different stations. Thankfully the kids all have shirts with their names on them. Otherwise we would be lost. There are about 90 kids and it is hard to know all the names. It is very cool to get to know the students though. We have learned some stories that break our hearts. One little girl Miriam was found in the bottom of a latrine. A latrine is basically a whole in the ground that is used for the bathroom. Two other kids, John and Susan, came to the village because their mom was killed by their dad while they were in the room. All the stories are very sad. It makes me so happy that they have come here and found a better life.

We have been mostly in the village. It is a completely different world that outside the village. We havent had much culture shock (at least speaking for myself- Drea) but we have a visit planned for the slums, which I am excited about. This past weekend we have been to the market and the tea farm. This weekend we are going to the market again and to the Giraffe center/Elephant orphanage. It is nice to see the rest of Africa.

The food has been hard for us. It is hard to adapt. We eat beans at almost every meal. We have had some interesting meals. The other night was a mixture of eggs, rice, and some green veggies(I think spinach). It has been interesting. A lot of the time we give our food to the kids when the momas arent looking. At dinner it is silent. No one talks, it is sometimes very awkward as we as Americans talk when we eat.

The kids are just amazing! I have fallen in love with some of them. They are all very quiet. They call me Auntie Drea. Megan is also auntie. The boys are uncle. Barlcay is trying to establish his own nickname. He has gone from BK to broccoli. The kids are calling him broccoli. It is really funny to watch them. On the weekends we play soccer. The kids are all very good and I get caught up in watching the sunset as the kids play.

We havent seen much wildlife yet. There are lots of birds and lizards. The other day I was wearing my only white shirt and an ibis ( a big bird that makes a lot of annoying noises) pooped on me. All the kids died laughing.

A lot has happened for me since I (Drea) have been here. My boyfriends sister had her baby, and it didnt make it. It has been hard for me to be here and have this all happen at home. I have never prayed more in my entire life. This week has already changed my life. I have learned not only a lot about myself but a lot about God and the way he works. I can't wait to see what else He has for me to learn. I am learning to trust more and more. It has been hard. I am asking for continued prayers as they are dealing with this issue at home. God has a plan and I pray for peace and comfort as I am here.

The team is good, I have a cough but overall we are ok. We are still getting used to the schedule and so we are a little tired. We can feel your prayers and we ask for more. We hope to get on later and update you more on our experiences.

God bless,

Drea

Team Kenya

Team Kenya arrived safely but has had limited internet access. Keep them in your prayers.

Ecuador: Mosquitoes should die

Team Ecuador is here safe, and loving life.

Our brains hurt from trying to understand and speak in Spanish todo el tiempo.

We are like old ladies because we go to bed at 9 o'clock. Last night we stayed up till 11; we are so wild!

We have been sent to different families for Tuesday through Thursday each week. We help with dishes, sweeping, making the bed; we are just here to help :)

Erica had to cut up dead animals. Ha.

We live in the church, and it is always freezing. When we meet people and tell them we live in the church, they always ask us if we are freezing. Our immediate response is yes. Si, muy frio.

We need keys for the church, but unfortunately a few days ago we went into town, locked the gate to our church, and forgot the keys. People were not supposed to meet us at the church for a while, and it had started to pour. Kellie decided to break into our house; the only problem is there is barbed wire and spikes all around our gate. Did that deter her? Nope. She found a place where there was just chain link fence, and began to climb. It wasn't until she swung her leg over the chain link that she realized the chain link in Ecuador is NOT like the chain link in the US. It was sharp, and her pants got caught. So Kellie was stuck, up on the fence, which her pantalones ripped and stuck to the chain link, not able to move. Jamie was helping while Kellie screamed and laughed. Quite humorous. By this point she was soaked. Awesome.

She made it over, and she broke into the house, and she got the keys. She is a hero. Her pants are destroyed.

We´ve had a few aventuras (adventures) with the bugs here as well. Mandi´s family actually convinced her to try a fried grub of some kind. She won´t eat meat, but she´ll try insects. Go figure. We also found a giant centipede in our bathroom. Jamie was the only one brave enough to catch it and take it outside.

One night a very nice church member brought us a pitcher of some kind of fermented milk beverage. After we figured out that he was offering us a gift and not begging we took the pitcher and thanked him. Allyssa was the only one brave enough to try it. Everyone else was scared off by the curds floating in it. It tasted kind of like cheese. (Allyssa is still perfectly healthy by the way.)

Yesterday we went to Otavalo, which has a huge market. So fun.

We love empanadas here.

We tried to go to a waterfall, but it started pouring rain... and 11 of us were in one sedan, with two children in the trunk.

That is just how we do.

The mosquitoes? Too painful to remember the horror of their

More to come :)

Team India: The Adventure Begins

After 20 hours of flying and layovers in Vancouver and Hong Kong we arrived in Bangalore at 3 a.m. on June 16th. After a day of rest we went to Asha Kiran Special Needs School. This summer we will be assisting the principal and the teachers at the school. School begins at 8 a.m. each day and ends at 1:30 p.m. At 7:30 a.m. we take the school bus to Asha Kiran, the drive to school is one of our favorite things. The half hour drive takes us through the busy streets and slums of Bangalore. Several times we saw cows in the middle of the street, yesterday there a man walking a camel next to our house. The school teaches kids with a range of special needs; including Down’s syndrome, autism, physical disabilities, and hearing impairment. On Thursday Katie assisted the preschool age kids as they learned to count, name shapes, and know their abcs. The kids at the school are mesmerized by Katie’s golden locks, the teachers had to explain to the them that all of the yellow stuff was her hair; they had never seen blonde hair before. We get a lot of stares from the kids and locals as we are the only foreigners. Class is taught in English. English has become a necessity in the Bangalore, many of the overseas call centers are in the city. The language is used nationally, Rita, the Principal and our host, says that English has “united the country.” All Universities teach in English. Sarah assisted a prevocational class on Thursday. The twelve students learn different life skills and how to sit quietly for periods of time during their first class, breathing exercises. On Friday we helped in the prevocational class, we went on a field trip to the store to teach the students how to write a grocery lists and purchase items. On Saturday we went on a walk to CHM Street where there are a few shops. All of the streets are uneven and are broken and slabs of concrete are missing. Dirt piles and garbage line the streets and people are everywhere and cars constantly honk. From what we can tell there are no real traffic rules, or lanes. There are no stop signs, or working street lights where we live. Walking around the city is an adventure because we constantly have to be aware of ourselves, the cars and motorcycles, the garbage, and the broken uneven streets. A misstep can land you in a four foot ditch between concrete slabs; we thought the streets north of 45th were bad. This weekend we are planning our first shopping excursion to buy traditional Indian clothes and a Sari for the wedding we are attending on July 2nd. We are hoping the clothing will help us to not stick out as much. Sometimes locals ask us where we are from and why we have come. In our daily walk around the park next to our house a few elderly gentlemen talked to us about our trip to Bangalore and their kids in the States.