Peru Christmas - Dec 31 - Jan 9

We had a party in Chilca yesterday. When we got there a huge crowd was waiting for us! There were so many kids there with moms and a few dads. I did face painting and it was really fun. Everytime I turned around there were more kids wanting more! We handed out all our gift bags yesterday. All the kids were so grateful! We had barrel chicken last night which is really good. We also had cake because it was the Peterson’s son Aaron’s birthday. Today we are working at Hannah’s Home then having a party in Olof Palme! I miss you guys!

Love, Julianne

Yesterday we worked a full day at Hannah’s Home.  We primed a large wall and then we carried sheets of plywood which were really heavy!  After lunch we shoveled dirt into wheel barrows and moved it from the back to the front… I was very dusty by the end of that haha.  Some of the guys were spraying pesticides on the plywood but they were inside.  They got a little loopy.  Joe found a rat smashed between 2 sheets of plywood.  Him and Jacob were freaking out.  An hour later Rachel went up to the rat and touched it with her foot… it was a leaf!  Haha pesticides are not for breathing!  Brenda bought us all ice cream which was good because it was hot!  We went back to Ola Grande and I learned how to player yuker.  Rick and I won haha.  Today we have a half day at Hannah’s Home and then we are having a Christmas party in Chilca!  I miss you guys!

Love, Julianne

7:30am…..really? Bright side: we had water.

Cold eggs…really? Bright side: protein.

Ridiculous heat…really? Bright side: ice cream.

We found a rat….really? Bright side: it was a leaf.

Spraying pesticide…really? Bright side: comical hallucinations. (see rat)

Digging 5 foot hole….really? Bright side: we struck oil……just kidding

Breakfast at 7:30 was followed by our daily worship which was held at Hannah’s Home this morning. It was the perfect start to the day because God was present in our worksite from the start. It was awesome to have some of the women who live at Hannah’s Home join us. At one point we spotted Sylvia signing along in English. Pretty sweet. We spent the next 4 hours at our specific jobs which included painting, dry walling, spraying, and lots of digging.

Our neighbor, Julia, came again today to get her dressing changed and really touched our hearts as she expressed her thankfulness to God and to the nurses who helped her.  As we sit and think about her situation, we agree that most of us would be complaining and angry at God…asking ”why does this have to happen to me” as we so often do…about everything. This woman is just so thankful for the little she has and the people put in her life to help her.  Glory A Dios!

We were payed a visit by Jack and Patricia from our journey yesterday to San Bartolo. Many people have said they would come down to see Hannah’s Home and the work being done but few follow up. It was great to see their passion and willingness to be a part of the work.

After lunch the effects of the hot sun baring down on us really set in. And maybe it was a little bit of the pesticide. Our group pushed through the heat and other obstacles that tried to stand in our way and were able to finish our tasks to the best of our (at that point) limited ability.  But we completed as much as God wanted us to today. 

 The best part was the ice cream bike that our bus driver chased down to serve our group.  Although the ice cream was delicious and a much needed refreshment, we found more joy in the fact that our driver, Toby, showed God’s love to the little boy pushing the cart.  There was a problem with the boy’s tire and Toby went out of his way to fix it for him. 

It’s amazing how we see God’s love and spirit working through all of the ‘little’ things that happen here each day.  ”Greater things have yet to come, and greater things are still to be done in this city…” 

Jessica & Corey

Yesterday we went to a small local church.  What an experience!  Everyone was greeting us at the door and hugging and kissing us.  The service started with worship like I had never seen before… the people had such a heart for God as they sang together.  I have no idea what they were saying but their praise was so open and raw.  The pastor invited all the Americans up to the front and had they whole congregation come up and greet us!  One by one each person hugged and kissed us.  It was so crazy! I am still taking it all in.  After church which was 2 hours long we went to San Bartalo to have lunch with people we met on the plane.  That was a God thing in itself.  This area is a resort and they treated us to frozen lemonade, seafood appetizers, lomo saltado, and dessert!  We were so blessed by them.  After that we went back to Ola Grande and played some Ola Grande.  We had a really great debriefing that night comparing how the rich and poor live here.  Oh and the other night some of us went for a walk.  It was dark and we saw something dark on the beach.  Anne and I were freaked out so Jon looked… it was a dead seal.  I have no idea how it got there! We took pictures by it haha it was hilarious and it smelled.  Today we are at Hannah’s Home and we are painting a wall on some scaffolding. I miss you guys!

Love, Julianne

Today we went to church near Hannah’s Home.  We were warmly greeted as we entered.  The service was wonderful and those people really know how to worship.  Although our translators were interpreting it was hard to hear what they were saying.  We didn’t really need to anyway.  God was in the house and it was an amazingly fulfilling experience. - no words necessary.   Just observing the sincerity with which the congregation worshipped was awe inspiring.  The pastor had us all come to the front of the church and each person in his congregation greeted us with a hug.  Towards the end the children came in grouped by age and sang songs that they had learned in Sunday school.  The kids from Hogar de Ninos were there.  It was the first that I saw them.  Beautiful.  The children joined us in the service at that point.  Terry and Brenda were sitting in front of me.  A little girl about ten came and gave them each a huge hug.  They made a spot for her to sit between them.  She put her nose up to Terry’s and they just soaked each other in, nose to nose and eye to eye,.  She took Brenda’s hand and Terry’s hand in her own and sat there content.  I didn’t even really need to ask to know that this was the girl that they are trying to adopt.  It was a stunning sight to witness.    When the service was over we received the same sincere hugs and kisses as when we arrived.  While I know that God’s word is universal, it was amazing to hear and see the reality of that first hand.

For the next part of our day I have to give you some background.  We were on the plane from Cleveland to Newark with a couple who was flying to Lima.  During our five hour layover together in Newark Chris and Rick were talking with them and they found out that this couple, Patricia and Jack, have a second home in Peru that just happens to be about ten minutes from Ola Grande where we are staying and fifteen minutes from Hannah’s Home.  They ended up inviting us for lunch after discussing what we were here to do.  So about 40 of us went for lunch today.  We got stopped on the street going in because this is such an exclusive area that no buses are allowed there.  They let us through I guess because Jack and Patricia had arranged it.  It was such a contrast to drive through such extreme poverty to get to such a posh resort community.  It was absolutely breathtaking.  The homes were built on the hillside overlooking the Pacific.  I found myself wondering how these people could live this way when they were surrounded by such poverty.  And then I thought about the way that I live with the poverty around me - maybe not as in your face as it is here - but there is poverty around me.   Anyway, we enjoyed a wonderful lunch and conversation and then went on our way.  Patricia and Jack were truly excited to treat us to lunch - so gracious.  They are supposed to come to Hanna’s Home tomorrow.  I think this chain of events was totally a God thing for a lot of reasons.  Too many things fell into place and too much was learned, as we found out in our debriefing tonight, for it to not have been.

The students have been so amazing to watch on this trip.  Their maturity is inspiring to me as a mom with young kids.  They have taken Julianne, my 16 year old niece, in as one of their own.

To my children -  Matthew, Adam, Mallory, Jon Mark and Ellie - I miss you terribly.  Look under your beds for a note that I taped underneath them for each of you.  I am having an amazing time and I can’t wait to show you the pictures and tell you about it.  Kisses to each of you.  I love you Steve and miss your hugs.

Mom aka Michelle Schario

this is day number three here in peru and what an experience it has been.  i have seen poverty that i never even knew existed.  but at the same time i have seen the work, love, joy, fruits, and future fruits of the LORD that i have never seen before either.  it is one thing to see the homes and children through a video or pictures of them but it has been a whole new awakening to actually see and be in the middle of it all.

God  is truly doing amazing things down here in and through the lives of so many people and it has been a true blessing to be a small part of it.  We got to meet a man named Pastor Rudolfo in Chincha who had lost his church building in the earthquake that occurred there about a year and a half ago.  he told us his story and it was an amazing lesson for me in faith, trust, and hope in the LORD and the LORD’s plans for our lives.  here is a man (Pastor Rudolfo) who had lost some very significant things (he had very little to begin with) and was on the verge of giving up the  ministry that God had for him, but he trusted in God, giving God his everything, knowing that God would take care of him, his church, and his family.  what a story? and what a great lesson for all of us to take away?

i have learned many lessons in only a few days since being here and i feel like i have seen many different things while here. however, one thing is constant and that is God’s presence in all things, in everyone, and in all situations.  whether we are at our hostal at ola grande, at hannah’s home, or in chincha.  God is there, moving, and working through so many people.  what a beautiful, loving, gracious, and awesome God we serve!!!!

In Christ

mike suit

We traveled 2 hours yesterday to go to Chincha and have our first Christmas party.  Well first we had to get pulled over by the police. Haha that was funny.  Our bus driver had to go get some papers that he didn’t have.  So we pulled over on the side of the road and he walked to go get them.  He was not in a hurry.  We prayed that he would feel convicted to get going because we needed to get to Chincha.  A few minutes later someone looked out the window and saw our bus driver running back to the bus.  So awesome to see God like that! When we got to Chincha we unloaded all our Christmas bags.  I was walking around and these 2 little girls were sitting off to the side.  They called me over saying “un foto!”.  They wanted a picture with my camera.  This turned into taking pictures of each other and pictures of me with them.  It was awesome being able to talk to them in spanish (a little haha).  Their names were Maryella and Stephanie.  So many kids came to the party!  They had so much fun with the games.  We danced for them which was hilarious and did our drama for them.  Then we handed out bags to them… that was crazy!  They were so excited to get them.  Some kids didn’t have tickets and it was sad not being able to give them bags.  But the kids were so happy to get the bags! After that the pastor told us his story about the earthquake that hit them last year.  It destroyed his house and the church, but they are now rebuilding.  Through his faith he stayed in Chincha after the earthquake to rebuild the church.  After that we went to a restaurant  called El Batan.  I had lomo saltado which is steak and tomatoes and peppers and onions and french fries all over rice with this sauce stuff.  Its really good!  We got back late to Ola Grande and went to bed.  Today we are working at Hannah’s Home scraping paint from murals off inside walls and raking gravel.  Some people are doing drywall I think.  It is very hot and sunny and I have spf 70 sunscreen haha thanks mom.  Okay back to work!  I miss you guys! Pray for us and that our parties would go well.

Love, Julianne

We ate the usual breakfast at 8:30 this morning (scrambled eggs, bread with strawberry jam and butter, passion fruit juice, and delicious Peruvian coffee). After breakfast we sang a few worship songs that Jacob and Rachel lead, singing praises to Jesus in the morning just starts the day off right. When we were done singing everyone loaded up on the bus to head over to a town called Chincha. To give a little background history, an earthquake hit Chincha in August of 2007 and many if not all of the homes, tiendas (little shops), churches, etc… were destroyed. It was about a 2 hour ride to get there from Chilca. Chilca is where Hannah’s Home/Hope, and the orphanage is located. We had to stop by Hannah’s Home to pick up Sylvia (our translator) and our goodie bags that we made for the children. As soon as we arrived at Hannah’s Home we got pulled over by the police because they were suspicious of our bus driver’s legal papers. This little incident put us behind schedule a little but we knew God was in control and everything happens for a reason. After we got the paper situation straightened out we started our long journey to Chincha. We stopped at a gas station to use the bano (bathroom) and to stretch our legs. I don’t know about the men’s bathroom but the women’s toilet did not flush and we had to use our OWN toilet paper or Kleenex. This might be too much information, but I definitely did not sit on the toilet seat… it was kind of gross, so I squatted… My thigh and calf muscles needed a work out, haha! After our bathroom break we got back on the bus for about 30-45 more minutes. Once we finally arrived to Chincha we unloaded the bus and we put our goodie bags in the church. We began to set up for the games we were going to play and a station for face painting. The event started at 2:30 and we had around 265 children (not including adults) come to our little shin dig. It got VERY crowded quite quickly. I’ve never seen so many people in a tight little space before in my life. The kids seemed to enjoy all the games and face painting. They are so much fun to watch and ATTEMPT to talk to, lol! We played games with them for approximately an hour and then we went inside to teach them songs. Let me tell you… it was a MAD HOUSE trying to get everyone into such a small space in the church. We had to tell the adults to step outside to make room for the children, and not even all of the children were able to get inside. We taught them 3 songs: 1) Alleluia (it’s the song where the guys and girls would split up and the girls sang Alleluia and the guys would say Gloria Dios (glory to God), 2) Chuwa (it’s an American version of the Hokey Pokey… kind of…) 3) Chicken Dance- haha… it was fun watching the kids join us and it was even funnier watching our team sing all of these songs! After we were done singing songs we did our skit that we made up. It was about the birth of Jesus, how some people are so caught up in their own life that they reject Him when He tries to help them with their problems, and how other people accept His help. We ended the skit with the crucifixion and the resurrection. During the skit we had Jacob playing background music on his guitar and during the resurrection scene we sang How Great is Our God. After the skit we handed out our goodie bags to the children. We gave them tickets with numbers on them and they had to have their ticket to get a gift because the kids will somehow find a way to get back in the church to receive another gift. There was this one little girl who didn’t have a ticket and we weren’t quite sure if we were allowed to give her a goodie bag and she started crying. It made my eyes water… then the pastor said to go ahead and give her one… I was so glad!! After the mad rush of handing out goodie bags the pastor of the church gave his testimony about his experience with the earthquake. His testimony was very powerful… and long, lol! We then said our goodbyes and loaded back on the bus. It was a very eventful, hectic, crazy day but it was so much fun and God’s presence was definitely with us. Our team is starting to come together and we’re getting to know each other. I’m so excited to see what God has in store for the rest of the week!! Thanks for all the prayers and support.

Dios te bendiga,

Elisabeth Copenhaver