Well we have already had a little adventure before we even left home! We found out that our flight to Houston was scheduled to arrive at 7:40 on Saturday night. Our flight from Houston was scheduled to depart at 11:59 pm was canceled and we were reticketed on the 3:30 pm to San Juan. Now, it does not take a rocket scientist (a time traveler maybe) to realize that we could not possibly arrive at 7:30 pm and fly out at 3:30 pm that same day! With some help from Continental and the friendly ticket agents we were accommodated with a hotel stay and food vouchers for Sunday until our flight leaves Houston at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday. Our flight to Houston was made even more enjoyable, if traveling in a group of nine can be enjoyable, by our very friendly flight attendant! Her name was Dulce Cadar not only did she feed us, she took time to befriend all of the kids on the trip and she took time to tease and make fun of me. This made the mood light and enjoyable even though I was a little stressed about the sudden change of plans. She was another Christian woman who shared Christ with us in both word and deed. She too makes it her mission everyday to share the word of God to her passengers. She was a light in our little darkened space at that time.
Once we arrived in Houston, we were told to go to the service counter to get our vouchers for hotel and food. As I eyed up the attendants, trying to decide who would be "easy" to deal with, I was called to an older lady who reminded me of my old librarian at my elementary school. She scared me a little! After sharing who we were and our concerns, she turned out to be not only helpfull but very friendly as well. She gave us the "extra special" treatment and put us up in very nice hotel. She also gave us supper vouchers for Saturday night as well.
We decided to get up around 8 am, have breakfast and then get in the pool for a couple hours before we needed to be back at the airport. The pool was nice, the weather was hot and the company was adequate! Just kidding the company was great! We hopped on the shuttle from the hotel and now, here we sit. The side story of our trip so far. While we will be getting to San Juan about 8 hours later than we were supposed to, at least we will get there. Everyone is so excited just to "get started" on the real reason we left home. Hope every one is doing fine back home and the weather is good! Thank you for all of your prayers as we travel and represent the members of Cross Lutheran Church!
God Bless,
Jim
Hey everyone, its Jenna!
Today was such a great first day. Our group was allowed to work together on work projects. We started to paint a house for Angel, the janitor of the church, and we (well the guys) started to fix his steps and tomorrow we are going to build a gate for him. When we first started our day, Angel was so apprehensive and angry that we were going to work on his house. We were so close to not even being allowed to work on his house at all because he was worried that we would mess it up. Although the day started out tense, Angel really opened up and started to trust us. He could only speak Spanish so I communicated with him in my very fine Spanish skills haha. Since I was the one in the group who could speak the most Spanish, I really got to see how great of a guy Angel is. He started out not even wanting to talk to us but only a few hours in he was talking to me nonstop and being very patient when I couldn’t understand. He showed me a book of nature he had and even read to me in English to see if he was pronouncing things right. By the end of the day he was joking around with the guys and quizzing them on sports. He even brought out a shirt that he wanted us all to sign so he could remember all of us. It was just so amazing to see the difference we could make in one guy. He started out so against us but quickly accepted us as friends. I just had a really great time getting to know him and helping him out. After a hard days work, we returned to the church sweaty and dirty and we couldn’t wait to hop in the showers.. oh but wait.. the city had turned the water off and no one could shower! But thankfully we will get to shower tomorrow. Even though we were dirty and kind of smelled, we got to go out into the city and get some ice cream. The plaza was so pretty and even though it was raining and we got a little bit soaked.. it all worked out because then we got our showers after all J. Finally tonight at club we got to see members from the community come in and dance and play music for us. It was so fun and I really enjoyed seeing it. But now its time for bed.. we didn’t get in until after midnight last night and had to get up pretty early so we are all very tired. Thank you all for all of your support! We are really doing a great thing here and we wouldn’t have been able to without your support. Thanks so much.
God Bless,
Jenna
The staff here at this site have been truely amazing. We have had some rain and some unexpected things come up already but they have handled it like pros! We have found ourselves blessed yet again in a place were we are called to be!
I can not even express how proud I am of our small group! Jenna talked about the apprehension that Angel had to start out the day but she greatly downplayed the circumstance! Angel did not want American's working on his house and made it very clear that he was unhappy about the whole situation. I think, the parts i understood, he did not trust Americans and did not want someone translating to him because he felt things would not get done right! Tony, our site director, assured him that we were the group for the job and things would go great! I have been completely overwhelmed with pride and emotions today as I sit here and type about the day even. I can not believe how this small group of kids completly changed the face of Americans in the eyes of an important community member. Our kids launched right in to the "go gettem" mode as soon as we arrived on the site. I truely believe that the way they work so hard and the way they get along with each other, can not be represented by any other group from any other church! They put their heart, soul, mind and relationship skills in to every thing they do. I wish you all could see this happening. But, for now we will just have to keep you updated through our website and our stories when we return. We have been asked not to take a lot of pictures the first few days but we have posted some and will post more as we can. God Bless you all for helping make this trip possible and we wish you were here with us!
Jim
Dan
Hello everyone!! Today was much like yesterday in that we had to wake up early to get ready to go to Angel’s house to continue painting and building the steps. Before we got to Angel’s house we had to make a stop at the Home Depot to pick up a few supplies. After that we arrived at Angel’s house. When we arrived, there were a few of the locals the came and offered to help us. Their names were Sanel, Joel, and Ernesto. They were extremely helpful and a ton of fun to be around. Sanel and Joel were the kind of guys who like to joke around and laugh, and Ernesto did a really good job of helping Jim with finishing the steps. One downfall was that we found out that we weren’t going to be able to make a gate because it wasn’t Angel’s property. After a while we left for lunch and Sanel and Joel took us to this sandwich place that were called tripeletas, which was three different kinds of meat, ham, chicken, and steak that was put of a hoagie bun. It was really good, but really filling. After lunch it started to downpour, so we hustled back to the site so we could put away all of the supplies. Then, after we got back to the church we went to the beach in San Juan to go swimming in the ocean. This was also the first time that we were able to shower since we have been here, which was a positive. Then we came back to the church for Dominos pizza and a little free time and group time. The traffic on the way back to the church was extremely slow because there was a semi that tipped over so they had to clean in up. It is now time to get some much-needed sleep after a long day of work and play. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
May God Bless You All,
Dan
Hey Everybody!
Today we got up once again at 7. We had a breakfast of cereal and toast and bagels and then got ready for the HOT day. We had our devotions and the theme today was “Less here, More there.” Everyday we have a “Less/More” theme, Monday was “Less fear, More courage.” And Tuesday was “Less do, More be.” It helps us know what we should focus on. After, we were off to Angel’s house for more painting. We finished the first coat on the whole house and did the whole second coat today. The stairs are up along with a railing and they are stained and painted, respectively. The door needs one more coat of paint tomorrow and the stairs need another coat or two of stain. It looks fantastic! It’s a bright lime green color with brown trim and Angel loves the colors because they match the church. We had our lunch on the neighbor’s driveway and he came out and talked to us. Well, he talked to Jenna because he didn’t speak any English and the rest of us have terrible Spanish! The neighbor, Luis, brought out his granddaughter, Gabriella. It was great to see him come out and open up to us because he was very reluctant for us to be on his property at all at the beginning of the week. Today, he let us use his water to wash off our shoes and gave us more bananas. He even offered to let us use his bathroom, which is a big privilege. Jim sharpened his machete, as well, and Luis said, “Sharp. Thank you.” After him not even saying “Hi” in English, saying those three words was a really big deal. Because we finished early, we got to stop at Krispy Kreme and Wal-Mart/McDonald’s for a snack and a good bathroom. Then we headed back to church and had SHOWERS!! They weren’t the best in the world but they definitely worked after the long, hot, and humid day. Now Alyssa is going to write about the rest of the day! Adios!
-Megan
P.S. Nick, I CAN’T believe you called me Megan! That’s the first time in over 6 months that you haven’t called me Starchild! Amazing! Haha, Hope you’re having fun! We’ll call you from Disney World! :D
Well hey there!!!! My first trip to Puerto Rico has been amazing so far! I wish words could describe how amazing it feels to be helping so many people! Even though the only real project we’ve done is work on Angel’s house, we’ve still done SO MUCH MORE. We’ve built relationships between community members, helped the leaders and other participants out and learned a lot about each other and ourselves. So, after our showers, Jenna and I headed with the other girls to The Plaza while Megan and Molly enjoyed some peace and quiet and AIR CONDITIONING back at the church/living area. We shopped around with three girls from Georgia and bought some very cool rings! Then, we headed back because us “Pinas” were supper crew. So, we made tacos and peaches. After we ate, we changed into church clothes that none of us really had and then we went down to the church area for “Club” then had the privilege to attend a church service. It started off with lots of singing and prayers. The first prayer was about all the different things Missionaries require and the very passionate man split us up into groups to pray out loud for separate things. The second prayer was about the homicides that have been occurring over the past year. He told us that there have been over 460 homicides as of last night throughout Puerto Rico. The community members are devastated and ask for as many prayers as possible so, please pray for the Puerto Ricans as they battle through this rough time. Then, their pastor came up and spoke about the creation of the world. We had to listen to it through Bryan(our councelor) because the pastor did not speak English so, he had to translate for us. It was a very touching night watching all of the very happy, grateful, caring, and passionate people speak to God through church. It was an experience I will never forget. We then met back upstairs with our Church Groups so, Cross Lutheran piled into what seems to be some type of filing cabinet room “thingy” and shared how we thought the day went. Everyone was impressed with Louis and the church service for the most part. It has been another enjoyable day and I cannot believe tomorrow is already Thursday! Sounds like the agenda for tomorrow is Kids Club in the morning and finishing up some work sites in the afternoon. Hope all is well back in Wisconsin or wherever you may be reading this from.
God Bless and Lots of Love!!!
Alyssa J
P.S: Mom, Dad, and Kaylee… I’m VERY glad you made it through the stream. That baby can be a beast sometimes and from your story I can just picture how it happened! I’ve been thinking a lot about you guys and miss you very much. Mom, I’m sure you’re having a tough week but, just remember that I love you and am doing great! I can’t wait to see you when I get home J that goes for all of you! Have a great rest of the week!!! Oh by the way, it’s like 100 degrees and sunny here!!! Lots and lots and LOTS of love XOXOXOXOXO!!!! (Miss you Sqweeks!)
GOOD EVENING EVERYONE!!!!
We had a very tiring day! I am sorry if you faithful readers were looking for a great post tonight but I am going to let the kids work on it at the airport in San Juan tomorrow! Thanks and watch for more updates tomorrow!
Jim
Hola Everyone!
Today was another full day. Though it was a full day it was a wonderful day! We started out waking up bright and early. We had breakfast burritos for breakfast of course. Our group was in charge of cleaning the church today. We swept, mopped, cleaned bathrooms, and also cleaned tables. After we cleaned the church we were off to Kids Club. This is the first mission trip that our group only went to one session of Kids Club. We had a lot of fun with the kids, this was probably the best day of Kids Club in a while. After Kids Club, Sanel the awesome guy we met on Tuesday, brought us to an awesome pincho stand. Jim and I had the hot pinchos, the guy cooking the pincho’s tested Jim and I. Our first pincho was not very hot, then the second one for both of us was so hot we were both sweating! Everyone except Jenna had BBQ and Jenna had a Mango one. From there we went our separate ways. Jim’s car (Jim, David, Dan, & Lauden) all went back to Angel’s house just one last time before we leave in the morning. While Molly’s car (Molly, Megan, Alyssa, Jenna, & I) stayed at the church and helped Chelsiea with the food inventory so she didn’t have to stay up late tonight. After the inventory the girls headed off to the showers, and most of the guys went to the plaza of Caguas, and to the corner store. Shortly after that, the guys were allowed to shower. Tonight was the weekly community cookout we had a pretty good turn out. The greatest turn out was that Angel came to the cookout. Molly talked to the pastor of the church we were staying in, and she found out that in the past three weeks Angel has never gone to the cookout. When we found that out we knew that it wasn’t because of the food that he was there. He wanted to see us. That made us all realize how much of a difference we made in his life in just one week! Jenna, Alyssa, Megan and I talked with him for almost an hour and a half he asked us many questions about Puerto Rico. We got a couple of them right. He is a very smart man we asked him many question about the states and he got all but one right. The one question he didn’t get right was the capital of Alaska, he of course guessed Anchorage, but the answer is actually Juno (thanks dadJ wouldn’t know that one without you). As soon as he said that he laughed and said really? We ended up exchanging more questions about sports and he also tried to guess all of the ages of the people around us. Every time he got one right he would pump his hand in the air and get a huge smile on his face it was priceless! We will get back to that moment later. Some of the ages he guessed were; Megan 17, me 26, Jenna 19 and Alyssa 17. It was so funny when I told him I was 18 the look on his face was pure disbelief. We left to go up for club shortly after that. Tonight was the foot washing just like Jesus did for his disciples in John 13: 1-17. This was a very emotional time for most of the members on the trip. There were many things that happened that will be kept in many of our hearts for a long time. After the ceremonial feet washing the churches all broke up, and all of us in our group met and started discussing our trip. This is where I jump back into my writing about Angel. Jim was talking with Bryan and Tony, he found out that Angel has never been to a cookout. The biggest thing that made all of us cry was that Tony and Bryan told Jim that they have never seen angel smile and Jim said when he looked at us talking to him and seeing him smiling made all three of them tear up. There is more. After we all went upstairs to start the singing part of club Jim told us that he was getting ready to come upstairs when he saw Angel putting on his helmet and walking his bike to the street to ride back home. Mind you his house is a two and a half hour bike ride from the church, and it was also 8:30. So Jim offered to bring him home and they talked baseball all the way to his house. Jim said the look on Angel’s face when they pulled up to his house was one of the greatest thing’s he’s seen. He said that he was smiling from ear to ear, with that Jim realized that this was first time Angel was glad to call his home…a home. The last thing Angel said to Jim as he was leaving was, “you’re my friend,” and Jim replied, “You are my friend.” Jim also gave Angel an air mattress, and he said Angel was a little reluctant at first but eventually took it and headed inside. He also said that it was so hard to leave his house because he knew that we wouldn’t see him for a while. After our church meeting we joined the other groups and we sang a few songs before finally heading to bed. Today was a great day that many of us will remember for a very long time!
