Becky Cooley - Adventures In Missions - Serving in Peru

Peru Through the Eyes of My Sister, Esther

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Sent: Monday, August 03, 2009 Subject: Greetings from Peru

Well you guys, it's hard to believe I've already been here 5 days. They've been chalk-full of activities that help me know Peru like I really wanted to know it. Becky and Robert are at the hub of everything and have tons of people swirling around them including many Peruvians. So I will give you a little peek into what we've been doing. Becky and Robert bought an apartment perched on the 4th floor in a neighborhood classified as middle-class although their standards are much different than in America. It's gated and being on the 4th floor makes it a little bit safer because there are a lot of thieves. The first day here was great because they don't have a car and so we'd just set out walking for the post-office, the bakery, the food market and over to Kelsey and Ricky's house. The neighborhood looks more like a poor area by our way of thinking with little buildings squashed together usually several houses high, all with gates, very little gardening since cars are small and park inside the gate right up to the front door steps. They all look alike, pretty much square or rectangular with painted cement and brick with different colors. Wrought iron work is used more for keeping out thieves but partly for decoration. The streets are tiny. There are little fruit carts that travel around even on the highways that are made out of cut-up motorcycles, which is crazy because you should see the way they drive here. I thought Italy and L.A. was bad but they don't hold a candle to these guys. They honk constantly and now I understand why. They want to warn you that you're going to die within the next 2 and 1/2 seconds. So say your prayers and make it quick!!!! So it was great to walk around instead of ride. There are not many white people in this neighborhood and we are certainly watched with usually keen but not unfriendly interest. You can't really read their facial expressions but I can see things when I look into their eyes. I think they don't mind us too much. It's fun purchasing things at their little food market and the bakery bakes bread twice a day because the people won't eat day old bread here. Kelsey and her family built a little apartment on top of Ricky's parent's house. That's how they do it here, just go upwards. Their little 1 and 1/2 year old is adorable with his little dimples and Kelsey is all grown up and makes a good mother. Friday we went to the Embassy to tend to Robert's passport and then on for a much needed doughnut at Robert's insistence. Then back to the house to prepare for the day's visitors which included Kelsey's family including two little nephews, a couple of young people who were here on missions, and then a couple more young women, one who is going to set up an crisis center for young unwed mothers, and the other who will be spending her life in Peru after her last year of college where she's majoring in Spanish studies. After they left Becky led a group of Peruvians in an English class. Wow! That was one day. Each day since has been just as filled. (Oh yeah, we also went to a garden nursery. I bought Becky a gardenia bush and pot for out in front of the little house.) Friday we went to a more Americanized grocery store (which was not anyway near as interesting) and bought food to prepare for an assistant pastor and his wife who were coming a 5:00 but got here at 3:30. You should see how fast we moved to get ready before they came. They were the sweetest young couple though and come from a Peruvian church that was kind of Pentecostal in nature. We went their last night. Fascinating!!! Three hours long with 5 speakers and lots of singing and clapping. One preacher talked for 1 and 1/2 hours all in Puerto Rican Spanish. I didn't have a clue what he was saying but loved the way he said it. He was hugely animated and kept the audience both captivated and in stitches because he was darn funny......We're getting ready to leave on a 3 hour trip so I'll write more later......Love you all, Mom/Esther

Sent: Tuesday, August 04, 2009 Subject: Re: Greetings from Peru

Hi all.....We just got back from the 3 hour trip to Chincha where the earthquake two years ago hit the hardest. We visited two locations, one where Becky and Robert helped repair homes that were damaged including a little church whose pastor and family they befriended. They also were responsible for getting electricity established but they don't have running water yet. The houses in this little community are built of thatch and straw and plastic roofs and adobe and the government provided some wood structures after the earthquake. Trouble is the houses are the size of my living room or dining room. One story. For whole families. And they're almost connected one to the other. Their floors are dirt. But the families are so sweet. We stayed overnight in a little hotel. Spent a little time at a fabulous food market where we picked up rice and lentils for 160 families. (Just wait till I show you the great pictures I took of a pigs head and some octopus tendrils!!!) Then we went to another little church that was being rebuilt and bagged the 160 bags of lentils and bags of rice. Then we filled up several taxis with the bags and went out to a little community of refugees from the earthquake who live in those tiny little dwellings. They all share some community bathrooms and sinks for water and washing. People started trickling out from every corner and got in a long, long line. Robert and I worked together to give food to each family as they filed by. The people really touched me. They hugged us and thanked us with such feeling. I got to look into each of their eyes. Becky told me one lady would go every day and sit on a rock and just look at the destruction and rubble that used to be her life's home. Such sadness. The children are sweet little munchkins. We then went into one of the homes and spent a couple of hours with a family they know. A little girl attached herself to Robert and a little 9 year old boy who helped me give out the rice set beside me and put his little arm around my shoulder. You know my heart melted. There were two deaf grandmothers and the deaf husband of one of them and they were great. One showed her prowess at some string games. There was a woman named Julie who reminded me of Aunt Marguerite. Well, I just loved them all. After that we went to a little restaurant with the pastor who helped us with the food. He and his family live in one of those small shacks just like the others. He was so kind and humble. He and Robert talked a lot in Spanish. Becky and Robert go to help these people in Chincha about once a month. The government stopped helping the earthquake victims about 6 months after it happened even though they lost everything. So churches and donators find alot that needs to be done. So much!!!! So.....another amazing day in Peru. I'm sleepy and dirty so nite-nite. Oxoxoxoxox

Sent: Wednesday, August 12, 2009 Subject: Last of Peru Trip

Hi you guys.....We've been gone for a couple days and boy do I have stories to tell..... We took an 8 hour bus ride to the highlands in the Andes mountains and it is my favorite place yet. We got some hotel rooms in a small town called Huaraz, where in 1970 an earthquake destroyed all but 10% of it. It registered 7.7 on the Richter scale and killed 70,000 people in central Peru. The town has been largely rebuilt all though there is still a lot of building going on as there is in most of Peru. (People will start and stop building depending on when they run out of money so it's always an ongoing process.) The weather was crystal clear. In Lima it's winter right now but in the highlands it's summer. We took bus tours on the 1st two days of the trip. The tour guide spoke only Spanish so we missed a lot of the history but I was so busy drinking up the country-side I didn't much care as we were winding up dirt roads past beautiful terraced farm land perched on the sides of the mountains. And, oh the mountains!!!!!! Spectacular!!!!! There are about 700 in that mountain range we were told. Amid the tiny little adobe brick villages was terraced farming, sheep and goat herding, floppy-eared burros, chickens, a mother pig and her little piglets, ducks, and guinea pigs, (which I ate one of, by the way since it's a great delicacy in Peru), and you can believe I got pictures of everything. Except the eaten guinea pig of course. The highest mountain in Peru (6768 meters), Huascaran, with its snow-capped top kept peeking in and out of the fluffy white clouds with all the other mountains in it's shadow and we climbed higher and higher. Our first tour took us to a small town that was buried in the l970 earthquake/avalanche, killing 18,000 people. There was a cemetery/memorial for that town that we visited. I got lost while we were there and they had to come back and find me. I know....Figures, Huh??? Anyway, I didn't cry, and everyone on the bus cheered for me. Besides, while I waited for them I got to bond with two of the cutest little sheep, and got to watch a Peruvian funeral procession march by me on up the dirt path to the cemetery. Isn't that something? We also inadvertently got to see a wedding happening in one of the little towns we stopped at. Then we went on up the mountains to see two lakes fringed by the most amazing mountain view. On the way back down we stopped in three villages, one for dinner, one to pick up some Peruvian desert and one to watch a potter make and earthen pot on his potters wheel. Robert bought a pretty vase for their table. I loved all those sweet little villages. It was like stepping back hundreds of years. The people live with very little money and only need about $2000 a year to live. They have no electricity but lots of running water since it comes down in abundance from the mountains. It was so strange to look for miles and see no lights at night and yet know all those little towns and farms were dotted across the country-side. The women were all dressed in their brightly colored skirts and shawls with tights and "practical" shoes with long braided hair topped off with distinctive hats that depicted what village they were from. (The men often wore hats too.) We met a little old woman carrying a bundle of alfalfa on her back, in full native garb surrounded by a couple of sheep. She had a sweet friendly face, kindly allowed me to take a picture of her, and talked to us through Robert who speaks Spanish quite well. She had tiny little feet with the shabbiest of shoes, totally worn through. Robert, concerned, asked her how much shoes cost, and she said 70 soles (or about $24.) She explained she had been widowed two years ago and couldn't afford new ones. In Peru there is no welfare system to help these poor women. Robert told her when he came up next trip, (he had a young pastor friend in that town, he would take her to the village and buy her new shoes.) We wrote down the address of her little adobe home and I gave him half the money for the shoes. Such a small thing for us, such an important thing for this dear woman. When you see her picture you will fall in love. We had been walking up a little dirt road in the village and were able to observe them tending their small plots of land which is how they made their living. As we wandered up through this lush farm land we were greeted by chickens and two burros (who let me pet them), a pig and all her babies and some sheep. All on one dusty village road. And children playing, a man leading a burro who carried a big bundle of sticks, an old woman by the side of the road sifting through some sort of beans in a pile, another woman washing some clothes in a stream. What a lot to see on one little walk. And most of the people were friendly to us. Even when I pestered them for pictures they were kind enough to say yes. Farther on up the road we stopped in at one of the farm houses, which are a little bigger then the houses not up in the hills, and spent some time with a young Peruvian pastor named Pedro. The day before this we had taken our second bus tour which took us to a partially buried temple that served as a religious site as well as for civil ceremonies. They believed in human sacrifices and had underground rooms with 3,000 year old engineering of a ventilation system that provided the rooms fresh air even though there was only one entrance and no windows. We also went to a museum in the town of Chavin near by. We also went to a mountain town called Mancos where we had the privilege of visiting a youth pastor and his family, including 5 children plus father and mother. There was a tiny courtyard that consisted of a sink for hand washing clothes as well as for cooking and washing up. In the same small courtyard they were also housing two chickens, a duck, dog and cat, and 4 guinea pigs as well as a regular pig. All in the space of my living room, maybe. There were lots and lots of flies and chickens roamed through the rather open house at will. This was a rare look beyond the adobe house fronts that give no clue to what lies beyond. They are extremely poor but as generous as they can be. As soon as we came the mother and daughter started cooking us a special meal of noodles and potatoes (Peru is where potatoes come from originally and there are many varieties,) and yes, fried guinea pig. Because that is used only for special occasions they prepared it for us but would eat none themselves. The woman and daughter didn't eat anything, nor sit at the table (not sure why) but did stand around us and visit while the father, his son, Becky, Robert and I ate. They were endearing. I took pictures to show you the family and all the animals. We were lucky to be invited into their home.......Do you see how amazing my trip has been, thanks to my daughters and Robert and Becky. I am so grateful!!!!!!!! Tomorrow's my last day and I'm flying home so I can show you all mine, Becky's and Roberts photos and to tell you much more, and to take a rest. :o) ------You can see the rest of the photos in the "Browse My Photos" link to the left------

Veronica Raquel Caycho Astete

Sat, 14 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

In January of 2008 I visited an orphanage in Chincha, Peru, with a mission group we were working with from Brooklyn, New York. The orphanage seemed well run with a little over 60 girls living there ages 3 to 18. I spoke with one young woman, Raquel, in my limited Spanish, and

learned that she was 17 and would need to leave the orphanage when she turned 18. She would still have 2 years of high school to complete before she could graduate with a diploma. She said it was her greastest desire to finish school and needed a family to live with who would help her reach this goal. I thought about her request many times. Robert and I became "empty nesters" September 1st the previous year and were fond of our freedom and restful home. I didn't really want to give that up, but I knew there was a young lady who needed a room, just like our guest room. I thought and prayed about it then a while later asked Robert what he thought. He thought and prayed about it for a while, too, and then said that he would be willing to take Raquel into our home. I didn't see her again until June of that next summer when we visited the orphanage again with a mission team. I immediately looked around for her and she was the first orphan I saw. She didn't seem to recognize me and seemed very sad. I spoke with the director through an interpreter about Raquel coming to stay with us. We were referred to their psychologist who referred us to the judge responsible for her case. They wanted us to become Raquel's legal guardian or adopt her. I had only felt led by the Lord to help Raquel through 2 years of highschool and befriend her. We saw that she would turn 18 long before all the legal paperwork could be done so we chose to just offer our home to her. We'd hoped to pick Raquel up from Chincha on her birthday December 22nd, but the judge, psychologist and Director of the orphanage seemed to be giving us the run around. We went to Chincha a couple times then called often. Finally on December 27th, Raquel called us and asked why we hadn't picked her up, she'd been waiting since the day before. We quickly took the 3 hour bus ride to pick up Raquel and were back in our apartment by 9:00 that evening.

It has been 6 weeks since Raquel began living with us. We have found that things aren't exactly like we anticipated they would be and she has entered a different world from what she knows culturally, economically, and spiritually. Although Raquel is a sweet fun, loving girl, who is very capable of whatever she puts her mind to, we found her not to be very motivated to do what she needs to do to get ahead. We felt she was taking advantage of us instead of working together to succeed in her goals. Thankfully Robert is good at thinking things out and knowing how to progress. We have many people praying for us and helpful friends and Kelsey here to give us advice and translate for us to make sure she understands. Presently we seem to be progressing towards a good school year. After Robert gave her 2 weeks to improve in her behavior and additude (sound familiar parents of teenagers?) or else leave our home, she has become the most cooperative, pleasant, hardworker you can imagine. There really is a lot of potential in her.

We had several other serious conversations with Raquel through the 6 weeks, but this was the most direct one spelling out the consequences of her actions. Putting Raquel through school and caring for her other needs is more expensive than we imagined and we don't want to waste any of the money God has provided for us while we are working for him as missionaries in Peru.

We are looking forward to making a difference in Raquel's life, but don't want to waste our time and resourses. Our greatest goal in her life is that she gives her heart to Jesus and follows him. Presently, she isn't open to that. We've been loving her through our actions, though a couple of well meaning peruanas have shared the gospel with her directly. She is not open to Jesus making a difference in her life yet, though we have great hope for the future.

There are other pictures of Raquel and her time with us in the "Browse My Photos" link on the left side of the page.

Thanksgiving Shared in Peru

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Though 99.999 percent of folks in Peru don't celebrate Thanksgiving, we had the priviledge of sharing it with our daughter's in-laws. It was a precious time of thanking God for his limitless blessings and then sharing turkey, fruit and nut stuffing, mashed potatoes, green salad, rice & "Russian Salad" (two Peruvian staples), and pumpking pie (made out of sweet potatoes for lack of pumpkins in Peru) with whipped cream and apple pie. It is wonderful how Ricky's family has welcomed us into their family and shared their own customs with us and been open to our americano ways.

The day before Thanksgiving we were priviledged to share white rice and lentils with a community in Chincha Peru who have been living in a refugee camp since the devastating earthquake on August 15, 2007.

Since our visit a couple weeks ago, the 300 families have moved out of the refugee camp into a government built community where they were given a small one room building.

Thanks to Stanford Baptist Church, in Stanford, Kentucky (who came to Peru last July) we were given money to buy the people there some rice and lentils. We partnered with a local church we have been working with in Chincha since the earthquake, Iglesia Adoni, to package the food and bring it to the Velma Leon community. Many of the men work by driving mototaxis receiving 1.5 to 2 soles $.5-.66) per trip.

They brought the 400 kilos (881.83 pounds) of rice and 100 kilos (220.46 pounds) of lentils to the community in their 4 vehicles.

It didn't take long for people to hear about the distribution and a line immediately began to form. After waiting about a half hour for the news to reach throughout the community, Pastor Rodolfo shared the gospel with the people. He talked about how God had given Robert a heart for the people there and that Robert doesn't come to work with them because he has to but because he loves God and God loves all of them.

The community was told that there would be only one distribution per family of 2 kilos of rice and 1/2 kilo of lentils.

Pastor Rodolfo passed out the rice and lentils to one line of people.

While his wife, Maritza, handed food out to another line.

Though most of the people were women and children, the men, who were busy working on their homes, lined up to get their share at the end of the distribution. Everyone who came received something, though there was just lentils for the last couple people.

Afterwards we were able to go and visit "baby" Carol. She is a three year old beautiful little girl with cerebral palsy that we have been working with since the World Racers spent 5 weeks ministering to her family in Velma Leon last January and February.

The World Racers raised money to buy formula and medicine for her. Her family could not afford these necessary things. We've been bringing them $80 of it at a time.

Carol's family reports there is some improvement, that she is moving her arm slightly and able to sit up a little. She is alert and likes the attention of her family who have rented an apartment until they are able to safely move into the new one room homes.

Electricity is expected to be installed in the new community in December.

Though the living situation is far from what the people had before the earthquake, you could really sense the feeling of hope and excitement from the people.

They are survivors and will build again. One of Carol's aunts explained that the distribution of food was peaceful compared to other times when people were fighting over it.

We went inside Carol's aunt's, Jessica's, new home where she and her husband have added a couple rooms (out of bamboo and thatch) to the one the government supplied. I do believe thes Velma Leon Peruvians know how to make the most of what they have. May God bring his kingdom into that community as the local churches reach out to them. What a blessing it is for Robert and I to work along side them.

Jesus' Brothers

Sun, 25 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus tells how he will separate the people when he comes in his glory and sits on his throne. He will put the righteous on his right and they will receive their inheritance, the kingdom that was prepared for them since the creation of the world. The unrighteous will be placed on his left and will go into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Of the righteous, he said, "whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."

Jesus speaks of giving the hungry something to eat and the thirsty something to drink and clothes for those who need them. He spoke of sharing their home with those in need, taking care of the sick and visiting those in prison.

As I read this passage this morning, I thought that Duane Counts would be a good example of someone who cared for "the least of these brothers of mine".

Last October AIM scheduled 4 Earthquake Relief Mission Trips to Chincha. Duane was on the 3^rd one. While he removed rubble from properties in Los Jardines, " he bent over a wheelbarrow and breathed in some dust that burned his lungs (his daughter, Kim, wrote 3 days later). He began to loose all of the feeling in his hands all the way up to his elbows and in his feet also; he couldn't even hold a cup of water. A local pastor (Pastor Nestor) prayed over him and while he ran to get anointing oil, the translator asked why he was praying about the angel of death. While the pastor anointed my dad, all of his feeling began to return. The next day my dad found out that the pastor had seen a vision of the angel of death before my dad got to Peru. He realized the angel of death was coming for my dad. Basically the prayers of the pastor saved my dad's life.

My dad came back to the US on Thursday and was admitted to the

hospital. They found out he had a heart attack (losing 40% of his heart function, how much of this he will recover we do not know), and he had 3 stints put in Friday morning. He also caught pneumonia at some point before coming in the hospital (caused by what he inhaled on Monday). Last night they also discovered he had a stroke sometime after the heart attack (blood clots formed in his heart after the heart attack and later dislodged and went to his brain) which is what is causing his migraines and unbalance."

Duane himself wrote: "I got out of the hospital yesterday. Before I was released, I heard the same statement from two medical professionals (an RN and a Neurologist) that I have heard from numerous doctors and nurses over the last week: "I'm looking at your chart and your test results. You have had a very serious stroke, heart attack and chemical attack on your lungs. The person I am looking at cannot be the same person. You cannot be doing the things you are doing. It's just not possible." I've told these people they don't know the power of our Lord nor the faith the people in Chincha have! After Pastor Nestor's prayers, I have never doubted my full recovery. Nestor walks closer to the spirit than anyone else I have known. In addition to healing prayers, he also gave me some insights on other parts of my life in which I have been seeking God's guidance. He knew things about me he through the Spirit that he would not know as a man. What a gift he is to me and the people of Chincha."

At Thanksgiving, a little over a month later, Duane wrote: "Since returning home, I have been sharing my testimony with anyone willing to hear the message. My Church recorded my testimony and put I it on "my space" http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=26356918. I have tried to think of an eloquent way of saying this but I just can't get there. I'll just say simply that I don't think I would be alive nor be as spiritually strong if I had not made the trip to Peru. Thank God. God willing and with my wife's understanding I hope to return someday."

Well Duane has come back twice now since his recovery. The first time he helped women in Chincha learn to make jewelry to sell and earn a living. He is in Peru this week seeking out other crafts that the people in Chincha can make to sell. He has begun a website to help make a difference in the earthquake ravished cities in Peru. You can see it at: http://web.mac.com/dacounts/PSM. He states that his purppose is to "Increase God's Kingdom in Peru through: Conducting mission trips, funding of local Church projects and missionaries, support rebuilding efforts, and prayer."

I am pleased to have been a tool used by God to introduce Duane to Peru through AIM where he can draw more Peruvian to the Lord Jesus!

A rat on Mother's Day

Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

My second Mother's Day in Peru was really very wonderful. It started off a bit strange, though. I went out our apartment door to wait for Ricky, Kelsey and Sammy who were bringing me to church. Before heading down the four flights of stairs, I noticed that my fern plant had a frond on the floor and dirt beside it. This was unusual so I looked closer to see what could have happened. In peering through the foliage, I notice a small brown furry animal had found refuge from the cold by burrowing itself deep into the dirt of my plant. I went back into our living room and said, "Heh, Robert, there's an animal in my plant!" He came to investigate along with Pastor David who was visiting from the jungle. Pastor David asked, "Una rata?" I said, "I don't think so". It seemed to be too small and brown to be a rat and I couldn't imagine there would be a rat in my plant. Pastor David came out and looked into the plant and poked the animal. It didn't budge. I began to think, if it is a rat I'd better close my apartment door. Soon Pastor David had the animal on the move and it was scurrying down the stairs but Pastor David cornered it and I hear the animal squeak. He asked for something to kill it and Robert brought his hammer. Pastor David made short work of it and I brought him paper towels and a plastic bag to dispose of it. He said, "Una rata!." Pastor David became my hero from that time on. (We invited him over on Wednesday for a spaghetti meal with Ricky, Kelsey & Sammy, Jason and his two friends and David a young gringo ministering in the jungle.) We all went together to church for a wonderful time of praise and a great sermon by a young professional woman. When we got back to the apartment, I was so relieved to see the bag sitting in the same place at the top of the stairs that we'd placed it. It hadn't revived and taken off so I'd have to worry about it showing up again. Robert brought it down to the garbage truck that evening. It is actually the first rat I've seen here in Lima....thankfully!

Ricky invited us to his sister's for their family's Mother's Day fiesta. There was a large gathering of family members, a Peruvian meal, music and dancing. It was an enjoyable time. Then when we came home I talked with Julia then Jennifer then my mother. It was a perfect day spent with all my family.

Another different aspect to this Mother's Day was that I participated in two school Mother's Day events. One was at the Hogar de Ninos' in Chilca and the other at a school in a San Juan Lurigancho, a poorer area in Lima, where I've been helping in their English classes. There were a lot of decorations and flowers to honor the mothers and a long program of poems, dramas, & songs from the different classes of children. They ended both programs by giving the moms a meal. I felt very honored to be a part of their Mother's Day event. I love working with the children and meeting their families.

Beautiful baby Carol

Fri, 8 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Robert came home from Chincha, a city hit the worse by the earthquake last August, and told me about a beautiful little girl named Carol. He said that something was wrong with her, she couldn't walk or talk though she is 2 1/2 years old. He was struck by her beauty and wanted to help out the family who lost their home, belongings and even their land in the earthquake. He had gone to Tamba de Mora to ferret out stories of the people who were still suffering from the earthquake. The World Race Team was coming soon and they were doing a documentary on the earthquake and how the government has done little to help the victims of it. When you see the devastation to the buildings you are struck with the force of the earthquake but it isn't until you speak with the people and hear their stories that you see the real extent of the effect of the disaster. The World Racers came and have reached out to this family. The mom told Robert that others have come and said they would do something to help them, but they never return. When Robert returned with 27 World Racers, he told her "I came back". The team has ministered to this family for 4 weeks now, praying for baby Carol (though she is 2 1/2 years old, she is at the level of a little baby and it is used as an endearing term) and the rest of the family and they have raised $1250 to get her to the doctors to see what is wrong with her and how she can be helped. Last Friday, I had the priviledge of going to the hospital with baby Carol, her aunt, 2 sisters, 3 World Racers and an interpreter. A brain scan was done and a blood test to see if a virus was causing the problem. Later we returned to hear the analisis by the doctor. It turns out that her brain was injured when she was around 8 weeks in the womb. The damage is permanent and the medical community say there is nothing that can be done for her, that she will always be like she is. She lays limp in her aunts arms but Jenn, a World Racer, was able to raise the biggest smile from her. It just melts my heart to see it. The family had such hope. The doctor gave Jessica, the aunt and main caregiver, perscriptions. Today, almost a week later, I was able to go with the mom and have those perscriptions filled. The doctor says a wheelchair could help and well as physical therapy. She'll need medication for convulsions at some point, too. The World Racers want to do more. They've found a doctor who will try to get a specialist in the states to look at the report and get another opinion. I was able to scan that tonight and send it to Caroline, the World Racer, who will send it to her doctor friend. Wouldn't it be wonderful if the Lord would choose to heal this little girl when everything else says recovery is not possible. Whatever he chooses to do, I know that he has already given her a family who loves her dearly and an incredible beauty that causes many others to want to reach out and help. Please pray for baby Carol.

Earthquake Relief in Chincha, Peru

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

We just finished an incredible week of ministry in Chincha. We cleaned up rubble in Pastor Desi's church and Compassion project compound from his house and classrooms. Then we went to a baby church from this church's pastor's home and did a bunch of tearing down walls, saving adobe bricks, and removing mountains of rubble. Some neighbors came and helped, also. After we finished with Pastor Nestor's home, we helped his neighbors on either side of him and then the group went out into the neighborhood doing some evangelism. Several people responded positively to the gospel and several relationships were started. The next day the team went to one of the neighbor's home that helped with Pastor Nestor's and did the same kind of thing there. Afterwards the team went out to visit the same people they met the first day they went into the neighborhood and then afterwards they played volleyball with folks in the neighborhood. The people laughed, played hard, had fun and wanted to play game after game. After dinner that night, we came back for a church service. It was the second service we'd attended there in a neighbor's home. The place had over twice as many people as the first day. Working on the homes, talking with the people and buying bibles and blankets for them really made a difference with their willingness to listen and check out the church. The church had only met 3 times before. Robert preached at both the services we attended there and at both services at Pastor Desi's on the two Sundays we were there. Each time he knew about preaching about 5 minutes before hand except the last time when he heard about it when the preacher invited him to come up during the service.

While we were walking back to Pastor Nestor's house to play volleyball, people were asking us to help them. One woman's son's glasses broke in the earthquake. She said he would go blind if he didn't get some help. Robert and our translator Dana went with the mom and son to a local optometrist. He indeed had eyes in very bad shape. It'll take 3 different sets of glasses to get his eyes to the strength he needs his glasses. The doctor said he would have lost his sight totally. It was good to be able to help and there's a good chance we'll be involved with the other 2 sets of glasses, too. Other people came up and asked us to pray for them. Two older daughters asked us to come with them to pray for their father who looks like he was paralyzed on one side of his body. He was maybe in his late 30s or 40s and was working at a recycling (Peruvian style) area. One of the men on the team prayed for him as he and I laid hands on him. It was beautiful to see the daughter's hope and faith that they'd bring us all the way to pray for him. The folks in the area said that we brought hope and light to the neighborhood. What a wonderful privilege!!!!!!!

We visited another area that was hit even harder than the area we were in. It was closer to the sea and the homes literally sank about 3-4 feet into the ground. The government won't let the people rebuild there. We visited folks and heard their stories. One 82 year old woman comes there every day to sit and look at where her house is just a big pile of rubble. She says she misses her home. Thankfully she's able to stay with her son about 15 minutes away. We asked how we could help and she said that many of her family have moved in with her son and they need more blankets. We got the address and brought back 3 heavy llama wool blankets and some rice. Another man talked about how dark warm water started coming up from under the ground before the earthquake started. People were bailing water out of their homes. Suddenly the earthquake happened and they all ran out of their community. A jail was close by and a wall fell down and all 400 inmates escaped. The man we were talking to said he was running with a baby in each arm and an inmate grabbed a baby and helped them get to a safer area. We asked more people how we could help and they said they could use food most. We bought four 110 pound bags of rice and brought them back to the area. Enroute, we poured the rice into smaller bags so we could hand it out to more people. After we handed out most of it in one area, we were leaving and folks were running along side asking for rice. We handed out the last of the bags as our driver was leaving. It was all an amazing experience to us. There's nothing so dramatic as being there to actually see it and incredible to talk to the people who lived through it all.

On the way home, after a 3 hour bus trip, as Robert was getting ready to get off the bus, he discovered someone stole his camera. His expensive camera he bought right before we came to Peru. He was bummed as were the rest of us. He walked the several long blocks home with a couple others on the team while the rest of us took a taxi with all the baggage. When he got home he said that it didn't hurt as much as when he lost his little camera in 2004 in the Andean highlands and that God was really teaching him about holding our stuff lightly. He said that God had his good purpose in all of it and knew God would provide him another camera if he wanted him to have one. Kelsey and Ricky looked at each other amazed and I was very proud of him and pleased how the Lord's worked in his life.

2 weddings in Peru

Sun, 7 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Our youngest daughter, Kelsey, was married this summer in both a civil ceremony and later in a christian wedding. The civil (official) wedding must be done first before the christian wedding is allowed. That is the way they do things in Peru. Ricky had asked her in February to marry him and she happily said yes. In May, Ricky asked Robert and I for our blessing. We very much liked Ricky and saw that they were crazy in love with each other. They both wished to serve the Lord in missions and it seemed to us to be God's will in their lives. On August 10th Kelsey and Ricky were married in a civil ceremony at Ricky's sister, Monica's, home with about 35 friends and family attending. During the next month they finalized their plans for their Christian wedding which was held September 1st at the beach near the orphanage ministry site connected to Ricky's ministry, ChildReach Ministries. Many family and friends attended the wedding where we were blessed with our third son-in-law. We are happy to welcome him into our family. Ricky and Kelsey are in the process of building an apartment for their first home and hope to move in soon. It is strange to have all our kids gone with their own families. We had a total of 12 empty nest days then a young woman, Barbara, moved in with us. She is the fiance of a friend of ours who is ministering in the Peruvian jungle. They will be married in April of next year. She is staying with us to learn English and americano customs before she leaves with her husband to the states next June. On September 19th we also had 2 young people, Jason & Rubie, join our ministry for 9 months in AIM's First Year Missionary discipling program. Robert said, "We have more kids now than when we came here." We are very pleased with the quality young people the Lord has brought into our lives. I've added more pictures of both wedding ceremonies in "My Photos" if you care to enjoy them with me.

A Gardener and a Security Guard

Thu, 26 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

As our ministry team walked around Santa Domingo with members of the church, we knocked on doors and talked to folks we came in contact with. We approached an old man standing on the street to share Christ's love with him. He pulled out his small worn Bible and told us of his faith in the Lord Jesus. The young people chatted with him and shared their testimony then left a New Testament with him.

We continued on our way to talk with more people and the gardener walked over to pick up his tools at the security guard's shed. He told the guard about us and showed the guard his new Bible. As we walked on, the security guard asked us, "Can I have a Bible, too?" Encouraged and excited, we turned around to give him a Bible and the youth shared with him the love of the Lord Jesus. As they talked about his need for salvation, the guard asked how he could ask Jesus into his life. Amazed and overjoyed, they guided him into the Kingdom. As we knocked on doors nearby, I looked back and saw the guard reading his Bible as though he couldn't take his eyes off it a moment to let cars through the gated area. The youth we amazed at how many people asked Jesus into their lives that day and how ripe the harvest is in Peru.

Easter in Peru

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT

After such an unusual Christmas experience in Peru, I kept asking people how they celebrate Easter here. I mostly got blank faces. A peruana from the Villa El Salvador church said that those who don't know Jesus drink or go camping because it is a long weekend. Families take time to get together which they do often. Since Catholicism is the official religion in Peru the banks were closed on Thursday and Friday. Everything seemed to be back to normal for Saturday and Sunday. Friday night Kelsey called me over to our front window to show me the procession heading down our street. The people in the crowd were holding candles and there was a casket carried in the middle of the group with an image on top of it. Ricky said that it was people from the local Catholic church here in Villa Jardin, San Luis. I am told that Catholics visit 7 churches on Easter to view the images. Going to the service evidently isn't necessary. For all I can tell, Easter Sunday is celebrated like any other Sunday at the evangelical churches.

I was grateful that the CMA church we attend had an Easter song and read the Easter story during the English service. Fourteen of the World Racers attended the service to support Jon who was the guest preacher. At the end of the service all fourteen went to the front to share about their work here in Peru and beyond.

Easter is a very important day in my faith and my family. It is incredible that God humbled himself and became a baby which we celebrate on Christmas. Jesus' death in our place is the best event of forever. But his resurrectionthat is our hope and our joy. There is nothing like it. That is something that should be celebrated to the fullest in my book. I enjoyed the lack of commercialism that surrounds Christmas, but Easter should have as much attention in the church, I would think.

We'll since there was going to be little help to celebrate Easter from my peruano amigos, I sought out other ways to celebrate. I asked the entire Squad A World Racer's to come to our CMA church service and then over to our apartment for lunch. I was told 7 World Racers would be coming for lunch so prepared Aji de Gallina and a chocolate cake the night before. Easter morning I watched Bethany Church's live service online from my daughter's church in New Hampshire. Robert headed out to do street evangelism with some of the World Racers and then to help with a service in the same area at 3:00. You can read how one woman and 3 boys came to the Lord through that outreach at Emilie's blog: http://emiliejanson.theworldrace.org/index.asp?filename=a-different-easter

Kelsey and I went to the CMA church at noon and learned that fourteen World Racers were coming to lunch. After the service I stopped at the local store for a few more groceries and then we all headed for our apartment.

The team streamed into our fourth floor apartment exclaiming how nice the place was and quickly set up their computers and used our two as well. Thank the good Lord for a wireless connection to share. Kelsey introduced them to our Vonage phone and they began calling their parents at home in the US. Amalia, a World Race interpreter and member of the CMA church, started to help me prepare lunch. Immediately Talia offered to help and then Jon joined us and soon Aaron was helping in the kitchen, too. Others pitched in as well and we prepared a large salad, garlic bread, Alfredo with spaghetti noodles, rice and warmed up the Aji de Gallina. The racers enjoyed their lunch and time in a "normal apartment" and were off to prepare for the evening service at Villa El Salvador.

We arrived at church in time to enjoy the evening service. The World Race Team prepared a dramatization of a song about Jesus being the Lamb of God. There was a guest preacher who preached an awesome sermon about the church's purpose and around 15 people of all ages came forward to ask Jesus into their lives. The evening ended with the worship team playing worship music to dance by after the service was all done. About 100 people came up to dance with joyincluding americanos from both the World Race and ChildReach Ministries.

We did not get to enjoy the family meal with our daughters, their husbands, our new granddaughter and our extended family at Bob & Gale Morse's home or the Easter service at our church, but God provided a day that blessed us immensely. Sharing with others with the gifts the Lord has given us and watching many new brothers and sisters stepping into His kingdom. Awesome! Thank you to all our supporters for making it possible for us to spend our first Easter in Peru!

Tears of Empathy

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Sunday Robert and I returned to the Christian Missionary Alliance church about 4 blocks from our apartment. An elderly couple share the pupit, in the English speaking service, once a month. I missed their previous sermon. Antonio spoke on the first few words of Psalm 23, "The Lord is my Shepherd." He did an excellent teaching contrasting the images of Lord and Shepherd. Then Betty took his place and continued the sermon. She talked about how the last time they spoke, a month ago, it was on suffering. The very next day she had gone to the doctors for a checkup. After a number of tests and consultations, they learned she has breast cancer. She talked about how her husband was suffering most due to his great love for her. The tears started trickling down my checks. It was one of those times when there's nothing I could do to stop them. They continued through the last song. I don't know why I have such a strong emotional response. I think part of it was the fact that our dear friend, Rena Bitzer, was within the last hours of her life after several years of battling cancer. Robert reached over and gave me a gentle hug. As we left church he said, "That's why I love you." It wasn't until later that evening we learned that the good Lord had taken her home to heaven Sunday at about 1:30. We hurt for her husband, Rich and their precious daughters, Ali and Carley. They could use all our prayers.

Our First Grandchild

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT

On February 28th the Lord gave us the precious gift of our first grandchild, Eliora Marie Thomas. Eliora means, "God is our light". She waited until Kelsey and I returned to Connecticut from Peru on the 18th of February, and then waited, and waited somemore. When she was one week past her due date, the doctors decided she needed to be induced. Seventeen hours later, Julia safely delivered Eliora. God is so very good! All are well and getting used to the new family life. It is hard to discribe how your life will change when you add a totally dependent child to the picture. Julia, who is very independent, active and works hard to pursue her goals in life has entered a new chapter of her life. Even Joe, who is the 5th child of 10 children in his family, wasn't quite prepared for the reality of parenthood. They are both embracing it with much love, joy, and hard work. It is also wonderful to see how well Joe fits into the daddy role. Though the feeding moments are reserved for mom, he is ready to take care of her in every other way and spends a lot of time talking to her and holding her. Julia says that Eliora loves the sound of his voice.

Kelsey and I were very happy to spend the remaining 2 weeks we were in Connecticut visiting with Julia and Joe and holding little Eliora. It was sad to say goodbye, but we loved the time we had.

Robert was unable to go back to Connecticut due to the World Race Team arriving in Peru the middle of March. He adores babys so it was a hard one for him with it being his first grandchild. He loved preparing for the World Race, so that helped.

I have put more pictures on "My Photos" for our times with Eliora in Connecticut. I am a proud grandma :o).

Proverbs 17:6 "Children's children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children."

We probably won't see Eliora again until she is walking and talking. This was the most difficult part of coming to Peru, but I willingly gave it up to follow the Lord's leading to serve him here. I know there will be other rewards that will naturally result from serving Him. Praise His holy name!

God's Gift of a New Home

Sun, 28 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT

God has blessed us with a home of our own. On January 10^th we moved into an apartment in San Luis, Lima. It is on the 4^th floor of a 4 story apartment building. Though it was built 4 years ago, we are its first occupants. It is in an area where people have owned their home for many years and is relatively safe. It is one of few apartments there. As is true all over Lima, there is a pretty park close by and a small market to buy groceries and a few essentials. Though we are next to two main streets that are very busy and noisy, it has a wonderful cross breeze and we get to view beautiful sunsets above the large population of San Luis, Lima. We are blessed to have a place to invite friends and minstry partners over to share a meal, prayer and fellowship.

Our first night in the apartment, Eugene and Christian stopped in to visit. Eugene started the AIM base in Tibet, China, and Christian is a peruano from the highlands who has ministered with Eugene for a year and a half. They both came back to Lima to recruit more peruano missionaries to return to Tibet with them.

At our first meal, our table was graced by Ed McQueen, Ryan & Nicole Richie and Ricky Mavila. Ed McQueen came recently to help us set up ministry partners to plant churches with the World Race Team. He spent a year ministering in the Peruvian jungle recently and will be returning in May to help lead the Real Life mission trip. His friends Ryan & Nicole came to help him. They have since felt called by the Lord to work with the Hogar de Nino orphanage. They moved there, an hour south of Lima, this week.

Ricky is AIM's peruano setup person. He housed us for 2 months and helped us with our many needs since we arrived in Peru. May the Lord richly bless him as he has us.

We already have a request to house a missionary for a few days after his return to the states enroute to his home in northern Peru.

Pastor Moises and his family will join us for dinner on Tuesday. He is the pastor of a large church in San Salvador, Lima, and has committed to partner with the World Race Team to plant a church in Lima. We are thrilled.

Thank you Lord for our new home and the beginnings of the AIM Peru Base!

Orchestrated by the Lord

Thu, 4 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT

On the 31^st, Robert and I visited a Christian Missionary Alliance Church 2 blocks from Ricky's house that has a noon service in English. It was their 3^rd service of the day, the others being in Spanish. There were only 15-20 people in attendance but it was good to fellowship together with other believers who we could understand their words as well as see their heart for Jesus. We sang worship songs together in English and heard a good sermon about having a clean slate to live for Christ this coming year. As the service ended, all were invited to stay for refreshments and fellowship but Robert was inclined to skoot. As we headed for the door, several friendly people insisted we stay and have some soda and Panaton bread with them. We ended up meeting a couple who own a language institute close to the church. He is Peruvian and she is Americana. They invited us to try out their Spanish class. They also said they planned to have us over to their home when we told them we were here with Adventures in Missions. A professor of Art History told us he'd like to give us a tour of downtown Lima and his wife, a doctor, gave Robert a prescription for the stomach bug he's had the past 3 weeks. As we walked back to Ricky's, Robert said "I think this has been a 'God thing'". We will see where the Lord leads in the future with these kind people and their church.

Happy New Year

Thu, 4 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Happy New Year to you all. We had a nice little barbeque with Ricky (our host) and a father and son, Rick & Matt, here from Wisconsin to lead a short term mission trip for their church (the rest of the people are arriving tonight) . They bought some firecrackers that we lit out in the street. Kinda scary when you see the power in the blast as they lift off into the night(right next to us) and glad they are going the direction intended. There's a couple more picture of it in "My Photos".

Ricky, Matt, Rick, Pamela and Kelsey headed off for the beach for the day and Robert and I stayed at Ricky's house. Lima sounds pretty quiet. The stores are all closed. They actually made both the 1st and 2nd national holidays so people can have family get togethers. One of their favorite things to do is go camping at the beach for New Years. There is plenty of places to go since the beach stretches the entire length of their country.

Begging on Christmas

Mon, 1 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Peru has a high rate of people below the poverty range: 52% (under $58/month) and extreme poverty of 19% (under $32/month). One-fourth of children under five are malnourished. Many who live in the Andes Mountains come down the mountain to the port city of Lima to look for work. You will see the women and children in their layers of highland clothing sitting along the overpass of the highways holding a felt hat out hoping someone will drop a coin in. They usually sit like statues on the hard cement with another hat low over their eyes. Their children are either snug under some blankets next to them or running around nearby. Several times I've seen the same cute little dirty faced girl in braided pigtails go through the crowd with a cup thrust towards anyone she saw. It would seem that begging is done only by the women and girls.

The day before Christmas, as people were out busy shopping, there were others out begging. They sat near the shopping centers and the overpasses, full of travelers, looking for coins from the shoppers. As we sat is Ricky's home a woman knocked on the door and asked for clothes for the poor. Kelsey answered the door and asked us if we had any clothes to share. We had come to Peru with minimal clothes and couldn't think of any we didn't need so Kelsey got one of her 10 sole bills and gave it to the woman. A minute later, another knock came at the door and a child asked for toys. The maid answered that time and gave him a coin. We could hear the maids send others away.

Giving to the poor is an unsettled dilemma for me. Do you want to encourage them to feed themselves that way or to do an honest bit of work for pay. To drop a sol (equivalent of 33 cents) in their hat could help them eat that day. Not having a car, we have adopted the Peruvian way of life of walking and catching buses to get where we need to go. That is where you see so many of these people. It is rare to see anyone else give these women coins, yet they sit there for hours waiting. I spoke with a Peruvian friend, Carolina, who felt confident that it was unwise to give coins to beggers. She felt that it is best to give them food if you felt you wanted to do something for them. She worked for a non profit agency who tried to better the life of the poor by training them to work and have the additude they should work for a living. She talked of how often children beg for others who take the money and give them a shabby place to stay or minimal food to eat. Sometimes the children will buy drugs with the money. We will listen to what the Lord wants us to do on an individual basis. Often he nudges me to give them a coin and sometimes to bring them some bread. They are all his children.

Christmas Packages

Wed, 27 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Our daughters wanted us to have a few small things from them for our first Christmas away from home, so they each sent us a package. We told them not to send checks or anything valuable and that UPS would be the safest way for things to arrive. Jennifer brought her package to UPS and was told that it would cost $200 to send. She opted for the $30 charge at the local post office. They told her that it should arrive either Friday or Saturday before Christmas. The package arrived right on schedule. We got a notice in the mail Friday afternoon that a package had arrived for us and we could pick it up at one of the 4 facilities where packages from outside Peru go through customs. It was too late to pick it up before Christmas so Ricky took us to the postal office the following Tuesday. It was a 35 minute drive. Ricky had to show the postal slip of paper to enter the guarded facility. Inside, he filled out a form to request the package. From there he went into another line to hand in that form where he had to show his National ID card. Then there was over an hour wait for our turn to go through customs. When Ricky's name was called, the inspectors opened the box behind a glassed in area and went through the contents notating them on the form. Then the form was sent to another window to determine if the contents should be taxed. The Skippy peanut butter jar (yes Robert has been missing his Skippy), two pairs of earrings and an emergency flashlight were deemed within the $100 limit so taxes were not charged. Ricky took that form and went to another window to retrieve the package. At the gate, the form filled out inside had to be registered before we could then take the package to Ricky's car. The whole process, once at the postal customs, took 2 hours. Add the drive time and it was easily a 3 hour learning experience. It reminded me of a day at the Department of Motor Vehicles in CT, USA. Robert wrote Jennifer and Julia about it and we got word back from Julia that she'd sent a package of pictures to us. We were very pleased, to say the least, when it arrived at Ricky's home via the postman today.

Children in the Work Force

Sat, 16 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Elsa is twelve. She hasn't seen her mother for 1 years. Her 19 year old sister works as a maid in a home in Lima and her 16 year old brother is away from home going to school. She is from the highlands where her mother still lives. Elsa watches, Renzo who is 2, does laundry, cleans, and chops food for the Senora to cook with. One day as Kelsey and I were hanging out together in the living room, Elsa came down the stairs of the home we are blessed to stay in. She said, "Senora, buenas tardes." as those who are servants would address someone in respect. We have been living together for 3 weeks now and I noticed that she looked sad. I replied, "Buenas tardes. Como estas?" in response. She told me that she was good, "Buenas", but it was obviously not the case. I mentioned it to Kelsey who was able to ask her how she was really doing. Elsa said that she was sad because she missed her mother and began to cry. Kelsey tenderly spoke with her about it and asked to see Elsa's picture again of her mom that she'd shared previously. She also shared with us that she wants to go to school but doesn't have the money to get the uniform and had already missed a semester of classes. She had talked with Cecelia about it who had promised to buy her one piece of the uniform within the next few days. Talking with her when she felt sad seemed to build a bridge between her, Kelsey and I.

A Christmas Fiesta

Sat, 16 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Yesterday the ChildReach Ministry mission group and the 3 Cooleys put on a Christmas fiesta for them. We came around lunch time to just hang out with them. Then around 3:00 we started cooking a special meal for them of roast beef, rice, salad, potato salad with peas, beets, potatoes with a Peruvian cheese sauce, and a hot Peruvian aji sauce. Others of the group continued to spend time with the children and did some crafts with them. They thoroughly enjoyed making paper chains out of wrapping paper strips. The place was well decorated with the chains and a Christmas tree. They also made wood medallions that the children put their finger prints and on. Then a little animal was made out of the fingerprints after which they were hung on the tree. The meal went off very well. We fed about 35 people in all. The hotel (where we were staying) owner, Hector, and his wife and son joined the party as well. It was a mix of americano food and peruano food. Bruce, from Childreach, slipped out and and doned a Santa suit. The children were all brought into the larger room where presents had been put under the tree. Stockings were stuffed and placed around the room where the children were to sit. Soon Santa arrived ringing his bells. After many ho-ho-hos, the children got to go sit on Santa's lap and receive a toy. They had also been given a set of clothes. Then the meal was topped off with some special Christmas fruit bread, hot chocolate and some chocolates that were picked up in the states for the occasion. The night was full of fun, music, laughter, and dancing. It was a fruitful day as we were able to bless those children with the love of the Lord and share the blessings that he has given us. We said our hasta manaas till the next day when we'd be back for the last day of the mission trip. Robert, Kelsey and I are very happy that we can say "hasta luego".

A Peruvian Boy Named Jesus

Sat, 16 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Childhood was delayed for a Peruvian boy named Jesus. His mother worked all the time and left him to fend for himself on the streets. A gang of boys would taunt him and began to abuse him. At three his mother completely abandoned him. He was homeless and the gang of boys considered him "their boy". They would gang rape him. This went on for several months until a pastor found him on the street and took him. He and his wife tried to feed and care for him, but the gang of boys found out where he was. They intimidated the pastor and threatened him until he was afraid for his life. In the middle of the night, the pastor took Jesus and knocked on the door of Hagar de Ninos. The pastor asked Fleix and Erica, the directors of the orphanage, if they would take him in until they could find another home for him. The pastor never returned. Jesus is now 10 and you wouldn't know by looking at him that he had experienced anything tragic in his life. He is vibrant, fun loving and has one of the biggest smiles on his face of all 15 children at the orphanage. I had a picture of Jesus that I wanted to share with you but learned that I cannot put pictures of the orphans on the internet for fear of them being exploited. Others have tragic stories of one sort or another, too. Felix, Erica, love and discipline all the children equally as their own. The children watch out for each other, too, and are amazingly happy. We are the ones who are blessed when we go to the orphanage to visit. The children all run up to us hugging us, welcoming us and many wanting to be picked up and snuggled.

December 8

Sun, 10 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Poverty is common in Peru. Many people come from the highlands to the cities along the desert coast to find work. They live in shanty towns--some with no electricity or running water. As we walk to our bus stop to go to school, we pass some of these people selling various goods along the way. There are walkways over the highways where many station themselves to seek customers. The walkways and spiral access are wide. Thursday, as we rushed to school, we saw a man walking along the houses near the walkway with a black bag over part of his long matted hair. He wore a brown shirt that had many hole worn through it and loose long dirty black pants. As he walked, you could see that he had no shoes on. He walked over to the grass to relieve himself. As we came around another corner of the spiral walkway, we could see him under the spiral part of the bridge where it was close to the ground. Evidently he slept there the night before. I had seen another man like this the previous week. I had wondered if we could bring food to leave with him the next day, but evidently they don't stay in the same place every night but move on. Another day we were riding in a taxi near the orphanage and a man was walking along the roadside wearing nothing. I wasn't looking in that direction, but Kelsey and Robert noticed it. Robert said "He had no tan lines." showing that he was accustomed to walking around that way. We suspect he probably has some type of mental problem. There is so much here in every direction you turn that needs the merciful hand of God.

December 9

Sun, 10 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

We joined Terri and his wife Brenda as they prepared for their mission trip group to come. We took a taxi to their hotel and called a man who was coming with his VW van for them to use for the week. He said he'd be there by 11:00. When Ricky called, he said it would be another hour because he realized he needed to put the seats back in his van. We decided to walk through the park to a mall and have some coffee at Starbucks and wait for him there. It ended up taking 2 hours for him to show up. Terry says you have to plan this kind of time allowance for all the mission trip plans. If you want to eat at 7:00, you tell the local people who are preparing it to have it ready at 6:00 and it might be ready at 7:00. We stopped by Pastor Moises's home and picked up bedding, clothes, shoes, and kitchen supplies that ChildReach had brought down during an earlier trip for Hannah's Home. Pastor Moises stored it in a locked area in his garage since last March. We picked up boxes of water for the americanos (we can't drink their water without getting very sick) and dropped everything off at a locked room in the house at Hannah's Home and then stopped by to visit with the children at the orphanage. Since Robert, Kelsey and I had plans to visit with Sara Coello and her son Bruno, we couldn't stay long.

Ricky drove the VW bus and brought us to Bruno's. It has no power steering so it is very difficult to maneuver through the streets of Lima, particularly with the way people drive here. It also won't stay idling so it is a huge challenge to drive. Ricky uses this vehicle because he can borrow it for $20 a day. It would cost the same to have the owner drive but ChildReach would also incur the cost of his meals.

We had a wonderful reunion with Sara Coello and Robert and Kelsey got to meet her son and his family for the first time. After visiting and praying we all left to have chicken at a local restaurant called Roky's. Roasted chicken with salad, French fries, and Incakola is a favorite in Peru. Bruno and Santa (means holy)'s 3 year old son, Jonathan, played with Kelsey the whole time. She continues to be a kid magnet. Santa had just returned from her church where she was practicing with the chorus Christmas carols in Spanish and in English. After the dinner, we took a taxi back to Ricky's after another nice visit over chamomile tea. Sara and Bruno walked us out to the main street and made sure we got a decent fair and honest appearing driver.

First days in Peru

Thu, 7 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

The last two months before we left for Peru was a whirlwind with selling the house, finding homes for our things, most of which we gave away, participating in training at the AIM base in Georgia, selling Robert's business, finalizing support raising and endless small details that need to be done before you leave for a new country.

The final day was the craziest with closing our storage shed, visiting with friends who stopped by to say goodbye and trying to pack everything we had left still in the Moger's home. Only about a third of what we had would fit into those suitcases and not go over the 50 pound limit. We did bring one extra one which we had to pay $80 to transport. The rest of the things were put in boxes and placed under Harvey and Carol's ping pong table to be moved to friend's basements. With no time for sleep that night, we got ready to leave for the airport at 4:30 for a flight at 6:20 a.m. With long lines at the ticket counter and even longer lines at the security line, we were the last to get onto the plane before departure.

We had layovers in DC and Atlanta GA with an estimated arrival time of 11:45 p.m. in Lima, Peru. We boarded the full large 767 plane and taxied to the runway. The captain said there was a problem with a door and we'd need to return to the terminal. Once that was repaired, we taxied again then had more problems, this time electrical. We returned the third time to wait for a repairman when the captain instructed the passengers to deplane. The shortened version is that we did finally take off in the same place to arrive in Peru 5+ hours late.

Our Peruvian contact, Rick Mavila, met us at the airport after a short 2 hours of sleep and brought us to his home. He had taken a taxi to the airport and got us a van to fit the four of us, 7 suitcases and 5 carry-ons. After being assigned our rooms, Robert went to sleep and Ricky brought me to the grocery store to see how to purchase food. It was similar to stores in the US but everything is in Spanish and anything from the US is very expensive. I've made 2 dinners now and found it a big challenge to find the ingredients I need. I'm hoping that I will find someone who will teach me how to cook Peruvian. Tonight I made beef stew and Ricky added Aji Rocoto (hot pepper sauce) to it. It was a definite improvement to the flavor.

Since it was a local voting day, Ricky also showed us how they vote in Peru. It is mandatory to vote here or you are fined. We will start our search for a place to rent tomorrow. Nothing is open on voting day. In fact, it is illegal to have any alcohol 48 hours before the voting begins and throughout the day. We have a lot to learn here.

11/21/06

Thu, 7 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Today Ricky brought us to the American Embassy and we had to go through a metal detector and show our passports twice to be able to speak to an American administrator. The embassy was large and beautiful and had a very familiar eagle emblem on it. They told us we would need to validate our American driver's license with Peru and where to extend our tourist visa. It wasn't particularly informative but it was an interesting experience. Then Ricky brought us to the Language school where he attended 3 years learning English. Kelsey took a placement test for Espanol and was put in level 6 out of 12 levels. Robert and I were, of course but in level 1. The lesson plans are for a full year. We will try it for a month and see if we can progress at their pace and learn sufficiently well to continue. Getting a tutor can sometimes be less expensive then taking it in a classroom situation, but Ricky felt it would be helpful to take it at this school. The remainder of the day I went grocery shopping by myself, it takes 10 times as long to figure out what things are without being able to read the labels. Kelsey opped out this time to help me. Then cooking dinner in Ricky's house is a challenge, too, but thankfully I brought some of my own kitchen tools which make cooking a whole lot more fun. Right now we're in Ricky's living room watching Kelsey play with Ricky's 1 year old nephew Renzo, with Robert nearby with his new camera. We bought coffee this morning at a Dunkin Donuts and had trouble ordering a coffee with milk. We had the Spanish correct--Cafe` Regular con leche. However, apparently most Peruvians do not drink milk in their coffee. When we asked for the above, they gave me a latte. It took a little bit to sort that through. We have a long way to go.

Ricky brought us out to a movie tonight. He drives fast and weaves in and out of traffic but is very calculated about it. We drive through back streets past a pile of sand taking up half the width of the road for a construction project in a house. He has to turn often to avoid the "gated" communities where people in an area pool together funds to put up iron gates across their streets which they close at different times. This makes it more difficult for burglars to come into the neighborhood. Burglaries are very rampant here. The homes are all built behind walls which have pointed iron bars on top of the walls. Ricky's family has an electric fence as well. He said that, in the 35 years his family has owned this home, they were robbed once when a a thief tricked a maid into letting him through the locked door as though they were a friend of the family. Ricky was in his room sleeping. When the maid became suspicious of what the man was doing, he had already stolen a television, stereo and a few other things. Kelsey had a dream that we were robbed last night. Hopefully it was from concern with the talk of it all yesterday and not prophetic. Ricky has also been robbed while in his car at gun point. This type of robbery is less frequent here.

The movie was in English with Spanish subtitles (handy for us) and both enjoyable and intriguing. The movie is in a large modern mall with a parking garage. To get into it the attendant writes your license down on a form and hands it to you. When you drive out, you have to give them the form and they check and make sure you are taking your own car. If you don't have your form, they check your license and title. Pretty handy for making sure someone isn't taking your car. Interesting that it is common enough to have to have constant safeguards against it.

11/22/06

Thu, 7 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Today we got up and were working on our computers when we realized Ricky wanted us to go with him in 10 minutes. Kelsey was still in her p.j.sa common occurrence for herso she had to move fast. We left with him to pick up a legal paper for his dad at the bank and then headed south to meet with a couple and a relative of theirs to sign papers for a piece of land that ChildReach (the other organization Ricky works for) has been trying to buy for 6 months. Ricky has been trying to get all the paperwork straight for all that time. The couple is old and since they still owed $3,000 plus on the land which they borrowed 14 years ago, they had to promise to pay that within a specific amount of time or they would be fined $1000 each month it wasn't paid. The interesting part is that another paper has to be signed by all their children saying it is okay for them to sale the land and one of the sons has been unwilling to sign it. The paperwork was suppose to be done today, but there ended up to be yet another snag and so Ricky has to catch a bus for a 2 ride south to an office to get a paper for them to sign and then meet them again to then sign those papers. He will pick us up to go with him again (today we waited with him 3 hours while they looked over the paperwork and made some changes in the contract) when he goes back to meet them tomorrow he'll pay them $15,000 with another $10,000 when the past debt is paid for (they have 10 months to get it paid off).

After the one paper was signed today, Ricky brought us to a restaurant in the harbor town. It was right next to a beautiful pool where water rushes back and forth through a long tunnel under a mountain from the ocean. We had chicken and ceviche (raw fish soaked in lime juice and hot sauce). Then we walked a little around the harbor area. There were many boats that were back from their morning fishing. It was a beautiful, quaint and romantic areaPeruvian style.

Then we went to the orphanage Ricky and ChildReach are involved with. ChildReach is buying the property across the street from the orphanage to build a home for unwed mothers. The orphanage is owned by a Peruvian organization but ChildReach has done many things to help them. Ricky knocked on their door and out came many children ready to hug and kiss us and hang on us the entire time we were there. There are 15 orphaned children and 3 from the director and his wife. They showed us around the place with the private school, sheep, chickens, guinea pigs, and dormitories. It is humble to say the least, but the children are exuberant and happy. Robert felt lead to give Felix, the director, $120. Ricky thinks highly of the director and his wife and hope that he will come and work at the girl's home that ChildReach is starting when his commitment with the orphanage is finished. The children are sent to the orphanage by the courts for abuse, rape, etc. It is amazing how much they want to be with us the entire time we are there and sad to see us leave. Kelsey had three to four girls happily vying for her attention. Two little girls settled on me and I enjoyed their affections and company. They were all very happy to hear that we would see them again tomorrow.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all. I hope it is a wonderful time. Julia said she thinks that is when it will hit her that we are really here and not there. I haven't asked Ricky if they celebrate Thanksgiving. Kelsey said she thinks they do but on another day. Their oven doesn't work, so I'm not sure how I can make anything special for it. Ricky's sister-in-law and her two maids use the kitchen, too, so it is hard to know how not to be in the way and what is okay and what is not. Since I can't speak Spanish, it limits things much more. I made a beef loin on the stovetop and beef stew. All the food I'm used to cooking with is very expensive. I'm not sure how to find out how to cook the way they do. They eat a lot of rice and other things I don't recognize. Last night's dinner looked good. It looked like sausage, cabbage and potatoes. Ricky added some aji sauce to the beef stew I made, so I did too, and it was a tasty addition to it. Aji is a hot pepper sauce. I had bought some in Hartford so am somewhat familiar with it.

It is 7:30 here and Kelsey left with Ricky at 6:30 this morning for a 2 1/2 hour bus ride to a town south of here for a legal paper he needs for the ChildReach land acquisition. We went with him to do that on Tuesday. We saw the countryside which looked much like driving north to Trujillo. They will come back around 11:00 and then we'll go with him to what should be the final signing with the owners. Afterwards he will bring us to the land where they are making a home for unwed mothers then to the orphanage across the street where he brought us yesterday. He said we will buy them some food to bring there.

11/23/06

Thu, 7 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Ricky and Kelsey caught the early morning bus to pick up the legal papers. I got up at 7:00 and went into Ricky's bedroom to use the internet. I was able to answer a few emails but found myself way behind due to the minimal time with access as well as time to use it. When Robert got up he used the internet after me. That gave me a little time to straighten the room and learn how to run their wash machine and hang a load up on the (flat) roof of the house. I anticipated we'd be back later in the afternoon to take it down. It was a beautiful sunny breezy day. We actually didn't get home till almost 11:00 pm so the clothes are still up there and now need to dry after the evening moist air.

When Ricky and Kelsey got back at 11:30 am, I fried up some sausage and made sandwiches for lunch then we headed out for another signing of the land purchase papers. We arrived early enough for Ricky to make sure his papers were filled out properly by the notary republic and get them copied down the street. While we were waiting for Ricky, Robert got out his new fancy camera and was looking for photo opportunities in this fishing village. A policeman asked about the camera and Robert let him check it out. Kelsey interpreted while the policeman asked Robert many questions. Ricky returned to the store/street area and the policeman asked him many questions, too. All the while he kept hold of the camera. When it was a couple minutes past the appointment time with the land owners, Ricky left and it was then that the policeman gave Robert back the camera. He made us pretty nervous. He obviously really liked the camera. I remembered being told that anything that you give a Peruvian, they can think that you mean for them to have it, not necessarily look at it or use if briefly. It turned out the man was a Christian from the Assembly of God church. He spoke of his long hours in the police force. He can work from 8 in the morning till 8 the next morning, have two hours to himself and then have to go back to work.

As we waited again with the land owners for all the details of the land purchase, Ricky made a call for the $15,000 to be placed in the land owner's bank account by Ricky's lawyer. After a half hour and several phone calls, she wasn't successful. When that much money is transferred the banker asks many questions, some of which the lawyer didn't want to answer. So Ricky had to drive the owners back to Lima to the bank to make the deposit. That too was very complicated but we didn't get to witness it because Ricky had the land owner's brother who lives on the land, take us to the orphanage.

We stayed at the orphanage till 8:00 pm waiting for Ricky. We played with the children trying to think up games that didn't need anything beyond what could be found there naturally. Kelsey taught them duck, duck goose and tried red light green light and Simon says. Robert drew a hop scotch in the dirt and the children knew the game and started playing, but the lines didn't stay well in the dirt. The director came and gave us chalk to draw it on the cement area. The children were actively involved in the game for over an hour. It had been a long time since I'd played hopscotch and it all came back as I watched them. They only had rocks to throw into the different squares and they would frequently miss their target. I remember using keys that would land where you want them more easily. While I watched them play, other children would climb on my lap and play hand games or swing their heads downward toward the cement in play, over and over again. There was never any lull in activity or boredom shown even if all they were doing was hugging us. The children are delightful and very good.

When it got dark, we went into their assembly room and Kelsey and the kids sang and did motions to songs. Felix came in and played on the guitar and the children sang robustly and did special dances with the songs. Robert played a few songs in English for them which they enjoyed.

We called Ricky several times in the evening, especially when it was time for the children to eat. They wanted to wait for him to return and us to go before they ate. They waited till 8:00 and then they could wait no longer. Felix stayed with us and his wife fixed us tea and crackers with jelly. They expressed how much they appreciated the money we gave the day before so they would have food to eat.

Earlier in the evening I was feeling sad about not being able to communicate with the children. I tried something I thought I knew and it was all wrong. Robert laughed and it just hit me the wrong way. Emotions from many things came to the surface and I started crying and couldn't stop for quite a while (Robert says an hour). The sweetest thing was how children tried to comfort me stroking my face, catching the tears, hugging me and fetching me tissues. One older girl, Liliana who may be 11, sat down to comfort me and cried with me. It was very touching to me. I would gather myself and then lose it when I saw her red eyes. She hugged me and I hugged her and afterwards she told me that she loves me. It was all very touching and amazing. The children are so very sweet and good kids. They are very good with each other, too.

11/24/06

Thu, 7 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Today we got to go look at houses. Ricky drove all around an area about 15 minutes from his house and showed us apartments that were for sale that he'd seen in the paper or that we happened by. Robert was planning on finding an apartment to rent but after talking with Ricky we said we'd look at some apartments that are for sale. Ricky feels that it would be an investment instead of giving the money to someone else. With an apartment, there wouldn't be a yard to care for and there would be little upkeep in the beginning because it is new construction. The first apartment we looked at was first class costing $60,000. It was brand new, had parquet and tile floors, three bathrooms, a nice kitchen and was roomy and attractive in its design. It really was pretty, but much too nice for a missionary family. We looked at quite a few more from $37,000 to $75,000. Most were new constructions and a few older. The last one he brought us to we were very pleased with. It was across from a very pretty park, had cheery flowers hanging from each story, and had pretty Spanish style tile decorating the front. The living room was very spacious and there was parquet and tile throughout the house. The three bedrooms were small but there were 2 bathrooms. The kitchen was very nice, too, which I am not expecting but would really enjoy. Another good thing about this one is that it is only 5 minutes from Ricky's house. Since we are going to be working with him, it is good to be close by.

We had calls from Carolina, an interpreter from when the church had the adult mission trip last summer and from Pastor Juan who Deryk and Serena Livingston from AIM suggested we talk to. We'll go to Pastor Juan's for lunch tomorrow and see Carolina on Monday. Sara Coello wrote, too, saying that she'd like to see us when she comes to Peru December 6^th after a mission trip to the jungle. Ricky also plans for us to help Terry Hunka, the director of ChildReach, during a mission trip they have this December. Also, there are the classes that start next Tuesday. That's pretty scary but oh so necessary. Robert is picking up words and places we are driving. I think that my hearing problem limits me picking up the language in the same way. I feel unable to pick it up still. I hope our friends are praying for a miracle for me with learning Spanish.

November 25, Saturday

Thu, 7 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

We had a good day of visiting new friends and going to an English speaking church. After doing some laundry and such things at Ricky's house, we went to Pastor Juan and his wife Maria's house in Miraflores for lunch. They knew Deryk and Serena Livingston when they lived in Connecticut. We had a wonderful Peruvian lunch and shared what the Lord had called each of us to do. Pastor Juan is with South American Mission Society and is seeking to encourage and draw together the 7 Episcopal church's in Lima. He and his wife are a friendly and sweet spirited couple happy in their service to the Lord. Maria has a ministry to a poor area in Lima where she has Sunday school for 120 children on Sunday morning then does a teaching for the adults in the afternoon. They are Colombian and have been missionaries in Hondurous for 10 years before they came here 1 years ago. They have 3 sons, one who is in college in the states. The other 2 go to the English highschool in Lima and are very Americanized. We had a lovely visit with them and were invited to go with Maria the next morning.

After this visit, Ricky brought us to meet two interpreters for AIM. We went to Starbucks and enjoyed some mango drinks and discovered that Sophia is a lover of coffeesomething we haven't had much of here. Sophia is very lively, friendly and talkative. The other interpreter, Marolina, was a little older and I talked with her about what it was like working for Christian organizations. She tells me that AIM provides better for the interpreters than others which pleased me. Marolina brought us to an English speaking church after our meeting. The pastor is from Boston and the whole service is in English. It gives people a chance to practice their English both in listening and speaking. Last night was a special Thanksgiving service where Pastor Steve gave a history of Thanksgiving a lesson from Scripture on giving thanks to the Lord. Afterwards the people had a chance to share what they were thankful for. The microphone was passed around the room and many people shared how God had blessed them through the year. There were healings and salvation of family members that topped the lists along with good jobs and gratefulness for God working in their personal lives. After the service, they served turkey sandwiches, pound cake and coffee.

November 26, Sunday

Thu, 7 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

We got up early to take a taxi to meet Maria at her house to take the bus to the ministry sight. After being dropped off by the bus we took two motorcycles up the hill and then walked very steep roads to the ministry sight. The building has reed sides and a metal corregated roof. Even though they have a guard taking care of it, they discovered they couldn't leave anything in the building so they rent a space in a home across the street. We helped Maria move 25 plastic chairs, 4 wooden chairs, 9 benches, 5 little long tables, and 2 more tables for the children to sit at. A group of 55 children swelled to closer to 100 when the classes began. They took attendance, required the children to pay 10 centimentos ($.032 cents), gave a lesson on getting ready for Jesus coming (Christmas)having him clean our hearts, gave out balloons, gave the children a chance to color a picture about the lesson with a verse, and then fed them a quinua drink and a roll with egg inside. More moms kept coming to enroll their children but Maria has to turn them away because she is at her limit of how many children she can handle. There are 120 signed up now. After returning some of the furniture to the rented storage area, we went out to a popular chicken and French fry lunch. Maria will return and teach a lesson to the adults during the afternoon. The land was given to the ministry by the community but it is located on a steep hillside that has had garbage thrown into it and dirt from other construction sights. There is a need for a wall on both sides of the building to keep the sand/dirt/garbage/etc in place. The workers started the wall but the hillside kept collapsing so they stopped. Pastor Juan and Maria hope they will begin again this week and have success. Later they plan to build a clinic and doctors will volunteer their time to come and offer their services for small amounts of money. She hopes to have a classroom that can be kept cleaner eventually as well. She also plans to have a day care where the children can stay in the day time while their mothers are away at work instead of being alone in the streets. It is good to see the work that is being done in one of many areas in need.

November 27, Monday

Thu, 7 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Today Ricky taught us how to catch the bus to our school. We walked about 15 minutes to the bus stop through the neighborhood, over a highway, and on to another highway where we waited around 8 minutes for the right bus. Thankfully, the buses are different colors according to where they are going. We were told to look for a white bus with brown strips. Several passed before we found one that had some standing space. The bus ride took 20 minutes, or so. We stood for most of it which meant being jostled around with the stopping and going of the bus. We also couldn't see where we were going when we were standing, but gratefully, there was a distinctive circle before our bus stop. We will need to know the name of it and let the person by the door know that we need to exit there. The door person stands at the door and hops out at every stop calling the name of the destination of their bus and then collects the sole it costs to ride the bus. From that point we walked as many blocks to the school. In all, it took 1 hour from Ricky's house to the school by bus. We could take a taxi but that costs 8 sole each direction. We are very tempted to do so but it costs a lot of money when you consider both directions, five days a week. From the school we stopped for coffee at Dunkin Donuts and then headed back from a different bus stop on another brown and white bus. Since it is the beginning of the route, we were able to sit from the beginning. The landmarks for getting off weren't as obvious from that direction. Tomorrow Robert, Kelsey and I will attempt taking the bus without Ricky for our first day of school.

During the rest of the day, we went with Ricky to pick up the legal papers saying that ChildReach now owns Hannah's Home, visited at the orphanage across the street, and saw the HH property. It is a sizeable piece of land that the former owners farmed though probably not as much as an acre. Much work will need to be done for it to be used for its purpose. We had lunch by the ocean again and walked over the rocks where the water comes into a pool from a tunnel under the mountain. It is so pretty there. On the way back to Lima, Ricky stopped to make plans with a hotel for a group from ChildReach coming December 10^th. He has invited us to help with the Hannah House work with Terry, the director of ChildReach Ministries. After making chicken curry, which Ricky did not care too much for, we met Carolina, an interpreter from Covenant Presbyterian Church's adult mission trip to Trujillo in 2005. It was very nice to hear all about her 6 months work on a cruise ship based in Barcelona. She speaks Spanish, English and Italian.