February 2024

      This month was an exciting month with much going on here in Guatemala.  We started the month with surgery week at Clinica Ezell, it was GYN and plastics with many children in the ward.  We then had the joy of providing two families with homes this month and finally we fed the children each week.  In the process on Tuesdays now the feeding center has classes for the older kids in cooking, construction, and sewing.   It is so rewarding to be able to help where we can in these classes.

 

 

 Clinica Ezell

 

 

 

Father and son from one of the Mayan villages near the clinic

 

 

 

 

Children with such sweet smiles even through surgery.

        

The many faces of the precious women at the surgery center this week 

 

 

 

                                                             

 

 

 

 
                                                            

 

 

 

 

 

Yessica Cruz with Rita.  Yessica had a very large mass removed during surgery.  A nurse in the OR took a picture of the large mass - size of a basketball - just to show Yessica after she came out of surgery.  Yessica did not know what was causing her so much pain.  When she was showed the picture she started crying and saying "how did I live with that inside of me,  it is a miracle"  It was such a sweet and powerful moment because it truly was a miracle that it had not ruptured and was able to be removed intact.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Construction

This month we were blessed to be able to provide a home for the families of Darwin Castellanos and Beberly Yuman. 

Darwin (25) with wife Maria (25) and their children Pablo (3) and Damaris(1)

 

Darwin and his family lived in the home of his parents,  they had one small room for all 4 of them to live in.   Darwin's father had given him some land but since he only had seasonal work in the fields he had no means to provide a home for his family.  With blessings from donors, we were able to provide his family with a home of their own.

 

 

 

 

 

This is a photo from nine years ago.  Nelson(in the sling) had broken his arm and we were able to take him to the hospital to have it set.  His parents wanted to get a picture with us at Campos.

Nine years later, unknown to us, we built the home for Darwin and Nelson is his brother.  The father came out with the previous picture that they had saved all those years and showed it to us.  We had no idea this was the family and the parents were so gracious to us and we were doubly blessed during our time building this home.

Prayer led by Fidel in Kachiquel before the construction begins

Maria helping us put up the first wall

 

 

 

 

 

The completed home

The kitchen complete with wood burning stove and chimney. 

Beberly Yuman (25) with sons Daniel (4) and Alan (2), not pictured is son Abner (8) who was at school. 

Beberly was sent to us by the feeding center.  She had just lost her job and is a single mother.  They were going to make her leave where she was renting within the week.  The feeding center said they would pay her rent for another month if we could build a home for her within the month.  Her parents had land for her so we put out a donation request and were able to bless Beberly and her boys a home 3 weeks later.

                                                    

Campos

We were blessed this month with donations for chicken, sausage, and eggs for the children's meals all month.  They so enjoyed the meal as well as the music and devotion time afterwards. 

   

                                                          

 

 

 

 This month marked the first month for cooking classes at Campos de Sueños.   Rita was the instructor for this week and we baked a Coca-Cola choclate cake.   She gave them the recipe in Spanish and they did a great job following the recipe and instructions from us.   When the cake was finished we put a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top and it was the days refacción for both the cooks, the sewing class and the carpentry class,  45 kids in all!   

 

 

 

                                         

                              

 

 

                                                 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                     

 

 

 

 

 In addition to the cooking class, Campos have a class in which the older boys are learning construction.  The first thing they are making is a small table.  It is made from pallet boards since those can be purchased for about $3 each.  They will next make a chair, however each boy is going to make a table first so we have 14 tables to make and completed 2 on the first day.

 

 

 

 

                

                     The sewing class is led by Ana, one of the cooks at Campos.  They have 6 sewing machine and are learning to make aprons.

 

                                           

                                 

 

Around Santa María de Jesús

We are in the midst of dry season.   We have not had rain since the end of October and do not expect it for at least another month.   With the dry conditions and heavy wind,  fires have sprang up around Santa María.   Last month volcano Fuego had a huge explosion that could be seen from far away at night and this month a man was burning trash high up on volcano Agua and it got away from him.   Agua burned for 5 days until it was brought under control.  Many crops of avocados and coffee were burned in the fire.

Volcan Fuego on fire one night.

                                                    

Volcan Agua on fire as seen from Santa María.

Volcan Agua as seen from the South side with the fire burning at night.

                                                          

The staging area for the fire departments to fill the bambi water bucket was at the local high school in Antigua

                                                                                    

On its way to burning Volcan Agua in the background

                                                            

Life is hard and a struggle here in Santa María but we have the opportunity to share the gospel and His love in many places and situations.

                                        

The beginning of Lent season (cuaresma) has arrived.  For the next 40 days until Resurrection Day we will have processionals with floats and prayers at the church wall. 

   It is humbling to see the Guatemalan's praying at the closed door of the church.  Many times we think of praying inside, after the church has been opened but the precious reverence of kneeling and praying with the doors closed touched our hearts.
                                                    

Thank you to all our supporters both in prayer and financially as we strive to do what He has called us to do here in Guatemala.  We consider it an honor and a blessing to be able help spread the gospel with the support of so many of those back in the States who have the same heart and calling from God.