This last month has been a whirlWIND. My dad guided four short term WIND teams back to back to back to back. All four of them left quite an impact to the region. First, a Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) team comprised of 9 young women, including my awesome cousin, arrived a month ago from Central Washington University. They organized activities at the school which the children enjoyed immensely. They also installed stoves in the afternoon. Many families cook over an open fire in the home and each of the 10 HELPS International designed stoves built by this group will significantly reduce the amount of smoke inside the houses. They are also much more efficient requiring less firewood, meaning less trips walking long distances gathering firewood for the family. One of the girls shared her testimony of when she lost her leg in a boating accident and how she relied on God through that time. I have never seen the children that silent before listening to a story. On that Saturday, we had a field day at a nearby park where the group organized some games. This was a tough group and despite battling a variety of ailments, every person showed up to the school each day, and nobody complained. I know the all the girls left changed.
Two dental teams also arrived back to back through Medical Teams International (MTI). It was really neat to see MTI, WIND, and Agros all working together in order to put this on. One of the visions of WIND is to work together with other NGOs already in the region and it has been fun watching that come to fruition. The dentists served about 500 patients from the surrounding area including around 140 associated with Colegio HOREB. Tooth decay is very common here because families do not understand the importance of brushing and also drink too much soda because it’s cost is equal to that of clean water. Besides treating patients, the two teams also provided much needed dental hygiene education.
The final team was a group of high schoolers from Westminster Chapel in Bellevue. They worked five mornings at Colegio HOREB teaching English worship songs, crafts, drama, and physical education. They bring a youthful energy that the children love. In the afternoons we installed 10 more stoves. On our final day, the entire school stood in one big circle with the group holding hands as my dad said a prayer, talking about us being one family. It was such a beautiful moment. We sang some songs in our circle while the team passed out bracelets. God clearly was working strongly within this group and I have never come across children that age with such strong faith.
These groups were such an encouragement to me. As the only native English speaker and only member of my culture working in Cotzal, sometimes it feels like I am alone. It is hard to keep my faith high but sharing in fellowship with these groups revitalized me and also helped prepare me for the transition ahead. I only have two more weeks working in Cotzal, with my flight returning home scheduled for August 4th. I will be coaching High School swimming while praying about my next steps. I have many stories to share from my time here this year and hopefully I will get a chance to write the important ones in the coming months to provide encouragement to others.
Thank you so much to all who have supported me through prayer and finances. I am excited to share more about how I have seen God work during my time in Guatemala. I hope you take a chance to check out the WIND of God Facebook page which provides photos and information about the short term teams that worked here the last month!
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