Chapelwood Global Missions

Upcoming Mission to Philippines

2011-12-19T14:30:00.000-08:00

Chapelwood will send its third mission team to the Southern Philippines Methodist College from March 17 – 31, 2011. The team includes team leader Dave Luther, Kathie Luther, Susan Patterson, Bob Lassalle, Marian Bates, Marsha Haas and Melissa Maher. The team of seven will be working alongside the administration, faculty and students in the region’s only Methodist college and training school for pastors and educators. With the help of Chapelwood, the SPMC is working on a five-year plan to upgrade the level of housing at the college and the curriculum and resources available to the students and faculty. Susan Patterson who traveled with the first Chapelwood mission team to SPMC in 2008 noted that it is very exciting to be a part of a plan which will launch the college into a brighter future. The team eagerly anticipates how God will continue to bring together our congregation with the mission of pastors and teachers in the southern Philippines.

We invite you to join us in mission to the southern islands to work with the Southern Philippines Methodist College. You can join as a prayer partner or as an educator that will work as a team to do some curriculum planning and seminars for the staff at the college. If you are interested in either opportunity to join the mission, contact Melissa Maher at the church (mmaher@chapelwood.org).

2010 Chapelwood mission team celebrates with SPMC students.

2011-07-20T08:44:00.000-07:00

Our team with our ministry partners of HAPI

Haiti Blog

Before our reflection on our journey to an amazing and wondrous place, we would like to begin by thanking each and every one of you for your prayers and support from the time it was in the creative thinking stages until now. We were and continued to be blessed by all of you and by God. Thank you.

For the thirteen of us that came to Mizak, Haiti we experienced God in many amazing ways and were deeply touched. Through joy, hope, love, fellowship, and play we found a common and special connection with the people in Mizak. The Haitians demonstrated amazing kindness, gentleness, patience, and love, and while we came to share and serve, they too shared, served, and taught us many things. Our connection during worship, play, and work made us aware of the sacred place we share with all and with God, especially as praise, thankfulness, peace, and love are raised to God. We were absorbed by “the warm, natural, unspoiled Haitian people” and were blessed by their amazing gifts, including by not limited to music, handiwork, and service.In our daily walks and journeys to the clinics, we found ourselves in “fields of dreams” among the mountainous region of Haiti. We were surrounded by corn fields, banana, grapefruit, breadfruit, and avocado trees, mountains, and blue skies. Red paths crisscrossing the land brought people from all around as if by magic. However, while the people and the land are gorgeous, we are reminded that the 35,000 people in Mizak have no electricity, no television, no telecommunication system (except some with cell phones), no plumbing, and no water filtration system. Seventy percent are peasants living under the poverty level of less than US$1 per day, and the majority of households have no measurable income and rely solely on barter and trade, with agriculture being the main and unreliable source of livelihood.

Our activities in Haiti were an extension of HAPI (Haitian Artisans for Peace International). HAPI encourages creativity, promotes gender equality, creates economic opportunity, and growing healthy communities, with an emphasis on creating a community of peace with justice. HAPI has evolved into a holistic network of activities that reach the Mizak community including microcredit, Peace Pals (a program for children and adolescents on Saturdays), Communities of Shalom, community based health care, and housing reconstruction. (For more information visit http://www.haitianartisans.com/).

Our activities

Community Based Health Services ~ Our Nurse Practitioners Vicki Williams and Jennifer Lakowsky Brueckner, along with the assistance with fellow teammates, translators, and others, saw approximately 360 patients over two full days and two half days. While we went to serve, we were blessed by those sent by God to be a blessing to us. We were blessed by those who came by to greet us and then stayed without hesitation to help interpret (Carol and Gregory), and for the kind woman who while needing treatment brought us something to eat. (Jennifer and Vicki assist patients at a school converted to a clinic. They saw over 200 people in two days.)

We were amazed by the love and care the people have for their community and by the outreach of support for each other, including people carrying a woman from a surrounding area to get her treatment.

“On a cliff, in a beautiful setting, in a school providing medical care to patients from 11 days to 100 years old, nothing could make me happier. I love what I do, especially when it’s in service for the Lord!”

Dental Clinic ~ Our dental clinic was the first in the region. It was led by two amazing dentists, Sarah Hummel and Michael Maher, with the assistance of fellow teammates who assisted in procedures, in-take, and sterilization and provided comfort to patients. Each person demonstrated enthusiasm and effort, treating each person with the best possible care; and the Haitians waited patiently to see a dentist (or nurse).

A teammate wrote, “I saw God in the comfort provided by the dental assistants to our patients thru a smile, a gentle touch, or just holding their hand.”

(Dr. Michael Maher and Bob Lassalle. One of many dental patients who received dental care)

Sewing Clinic ~ The HAPI center is for those around to teach woman skills so they can be independent and create jobs. The women desire to learn more and were excited that Vicki Roussel and Estelle Tees taught them new skills to make their work easier. Our team saw God in the women who worked diligently to create their own designs for stamping and the joy and passion they had in creating something new that would bless someone else. God was also at work in Eddie and Francoise who work with the artisans daily with joy, helpfulness, positivity, and patience.

(Jacqueline, one of the HAPI artisans learns a new skill of stamping.)

Peace Pals ~ On Saturday we worked with, played with, and enjoyed the Peace Pal staff and children. While we provided arts, teaching on dental health, and teaching on God through dramas the children participated in (and were written by Ted Desforges), we were blown away by the joy we received from each one of them.

A few of the special people we met along the way

Pastor Paul Prevost, his wife Aimable, and their three children ~ Pastor Paul had a dream and vision for peace in his community and is living this out. He is a source of strength for the community. His wife Aimable is a strong, faithful, kind, compassionate mother, wife, and friend.
Gertrude ~ A woman we met a long our journey who we visited at her home. She demonstrates amazing faith and love for others, in spite of her paralysis. She continues to pray for us, and we will continue to pray for her.

Gabrielle and Ciceline blessed us with their smiles, their welcoming hearts, and their love towards us. They have amazing spirits, and it was amazing to laugh, sing, and dance with them as well as all those who gathered on the porch every evening.

Our Team Mates ~ Our team was amazing, and each person was a blessing from God whom I personally learned so much from. They all expressed love in all their actions, each person going above and beyond and filling in when needed without being asked. They were full of joy and love for each other and God.

There are many others whom each of us could name and continue to carry in our hearts. We continue to pray for them and for all Haitians.

Haiti mission in pictures

2011-07-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

Our translator Ulrick.

Vicki Roussel teaches bible dramas with the Peace Pals children. 200 of them acted stories from the gospels!

Dr. Sarah Hummel and Dr. Michael Maher teach the Peace Pals children about dental hygiene.

Eddie is the Director of Finance for HAPI. He introduced the team to some of the women who are micro-credit clients.

Estelle Tees teaches sewing to a group of women artisans.

Vicki Roussel explains a new skill of stamping with the women artisans.

Carleen Woods assists Dr. Sarah Hummel. The team of dentists extracted many teeth in just a few days.

Nurse Practioner Vicki Williams worked in a mobile outreach clinic to reach families in a rural setting.

The team takes a picture after worship with the local Methodist Church.

More Haiti pictures

2011-07-19T11:00:00.000-07:00

Melissa Maher sterilizes some of the dental instruments in the make-shift yet amazing dental clinic.

Team Leader Patty Cordrey assists with the Peace Pals program. She and Ted Desforges organized all the skits performed by the children and the team. Ted was the author and director of the biblical dramas!

Noel Denison and Estelle Tees help the kids make shakers for the music time of Peace Pals.

Ted Desforges assists with in-take at the medical clinic.

Jennifer Lakowsky Brueckner and interpreter Carol take a break from the patients to smile for the camera.

Team photographer Nicola Ferla holds the youngest patient...11 days old. Nicola was the right-hand of the nurse practioners on the mission!

2011-07-06T17:57:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we leave for Mizak, Haiti to work with HAPI (Haitian Artiscians for Peace International). Our bags our packed and we are very excited to embark on our mission. We will perform a dental clinic, home visits by two nurse practioners, advanced training in sewing, and youth ministry. We thank you all of you for your generous support and prayers.

"Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God." ~ William Carey

Countdown to Haiti

2011-06-27T08:07:00.000-07:00

On July 7, a team of 13 missioners departs for Mizak, Haiti which is up the mountain from Jacmel. The team will work with a Methodist project named HAPI (Haitian Artisans for Peace International). The mission of HAPI is to empower the community and create sustainable programs. Some of the outreach programs of HAPI include a women's artisan group, children and youth ministry, and medical clinic. The community is in the process of applying to be a Methodist congregation.

The Chapelwood mission team will perform a dental clinic (the first ever for this region!), home visits by two CUMC nurse practioners, advanced training in sewing techniques and youth and children's ministry.

Thank you, Chapelwood, for the generous donation of toothbrushes and toothpaste!

Mexico Mission- Leaving Tlancualpican

2010-11-13T06:17:00.000-08:00

Hello and Adios!

We spent our last day at the Tree of Life Center finishing several projects including lining a trail with gravel and rocks. Look for Landon and Lindsay Schott's house to get new tile on the walls as they both learned new skills here in Tlancualpican. One of the projects we worked on was to tile several walls on the new dormitories which are being constructed on the property. Another job was to lay "pavers" or stones around the exterior, much like octagon shaped brick cobblestones which not only are functional, but add to the decor of the straw bale building.

We joined with the many workers at the center for a pizza party. Talk about good, let's just say no one has lost any weight on this trip as the cooking staff is exceptional. We finished with an outdoor service reflecting on the beauty of this wonderful place.

I mentioned earlier that during the service Thursday night, many members of the team performed with some local church members a drama which folks who attend Mercy Street might be familiar with. It's a short skit, only about five minutes in length. I have been able to upload it on to YouTube, so here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RKQrCsOVqA

So Adios from Puebla, as we head home to Houston tomorrow.

Mexico Mission- Church and Faith

2010-11-12T05:39:00.000-08:00

As we continued our pilgrimage in Tlancualpican part of the day we spent learning about the Methodist Church in Mexico. Perhaps you might not know the Methodist here are not "United Methodist" as they were united well before the Methodist in the United States. Here "South of the border," both the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Methodist Episcopal Church of the South established their ministries in Mexico in 1873. However, in 1930, the two merged to become the Methodist Church of Mexico.

Today there are about 50,000 people who call themselves Methodists in Mexico, with another 50,000 who attend services regularly. Mexico remains overwhelmingly Roman Catholic with nearly 90% of the population with ties to the church, however the ties are not necessarily all that strong. We have also learned in some areas, the Roman Catholic priests will preach that all Protestant Churches, not just Methodists, should be considered cults. And in certain places there have been some unfortunate conflicts. Still there are some 320 Methodist Churches in Mexico, 40% in rural areas, another 40% in small towns, and 20% in cities, like Puebla, Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Mexico City.

Last evening was "Church Night" as our group led the service at the Templo Gesthemi in Puebla. Mercy Street Youth Pastor Landon Schott gave the message about God's power which was translated in spanish as he spoke. As we prepared for our visit, the team prepared a short drama which incorporated some local actors which was directed by Ted Deforges. We shared some arts and crafts with the youth and many adults, then dined on hot dogs in the cool night air. There were plenty of smiles as the folks walked back to their homes.

It's hard to believe the week is wrapping up. We'll spend another day working and then head back to Puebla Saturday and then catch a flight to Houston early Sunday morning.

Mexico Mission- Vegetarian Day!

2010-11-10T14:19:00.000-08:00

Another beautiful day in Tlancualpican as it remains unusually cold for this time of year. There isn't any heat in the dormitories as they are built for the scorching temperatures of the summer. But an early front blew through just before we arrived on Sunday, and the mornings and evenings are in the 50's, which makes for comfortable work days as they are in the 70's.

This is vegetarian day which means most everything we are eating today is grown. There was some leftover chicken which found its way in the empanadas, but the chalupas were wonderful. A crushed bean base with locally grown tomatoes, lettuce, cheese garnished with avocado, a green chili, and cream. Mexican food aficionados should be envious.

Before hitting the work sites, we spent a good hour learning about GETTYE's health mission. Obviously in rural Mexico, there are not enough nurses, doctors or hospitals, so the center sponsors several health programs to teach young women the basics. The women then return to their villages and become sort of first responders as they are equipped with first aid kits. We met one of the women who learned how to give injections during the training. She admitted she was kind of fearful of having to inject others, but now is the person called on when the need arises. She is most grateful of the training, and told us how her knowledge of the Heimlich Maneuver saved her Aunt from a choking incident.

As for the work detail, "Builder" Bob Lasalle and "Agile" Allison Gower perhaps had the most fun building a dam for the irrigation ditch which runs along the property. The timing couldn't have been better as the rainy season finished about a month ago, and the water hadn't flowed down the ditch for eight months. Bob and Allison admitted while they didn't really understand what they were building with the boulders, their leader cried out "Agua, Agua!" and they looked up the hill. Sure enough just as they finished the project, the water started flowing down the embankment and the dam held, diverting the water into the irrigation ditch to water the many recently planted plants on the property.

C.J. Yeoman, aka "Mrs. Clean" drew up the dirty job, and for that we'll let her tell you the story.

We thought we had finished painting the guest house, but were surprised with the word that the outdoor shower needed painting as well. Carleton took a look and realized it was quite stained with something ... workers were dispatched for the local version of "Formula 409" and some really tough scrub pads. It was only after I had scrubbed for about 20 minutes that the house's occupant said the stains were bat guano! Not exactly what you deal with in Houston, TX. Oh, well, the painting will wait for tomorrow, but the tiles are clean now ...

Mexico Mission- Back to work

2010-11-09T13:29:00.000-08:00

Buenos Dias from Tlancualpican, Mexico. It's been another work day here at the Tree of Life Center as we continue to learn about our surroundings and the work done here. It was another early call, today's music from the Lion King "El Circo de la vie."

We then blessed the animals as this is a working farm. There are a few milk cows, but the greatest number of livestock are goats and "hair sheep" as opposed to "wool sheep." These sheep are bred to be sold at the marketplace. Once again we split into work teams, team leader Carleen Woods removed mineral deposits from a dry composting toilet. As Carleen noted, it was a job that was needed to be done, but most importantly she had the chance to visit with Yoni, one of the young women who works here at the center. Carleen also had the chance to help beautify the place planting flowers in a tasa, so now it is a chistosa tasa, which means a "funny toilet." The center teaches folks in the area how to build straw-bale houses. The "bricks" are much larger than adobe and are easy to make. Recently a family built an entire house in 20 days. On site there are many straw bale buildings including the guest house which caught fire after an electrical short. While the damage was extensive to the interior, the straw bale did not burn, although it was discolored. The fact that it resists fire is one of the many attributes to building this way. C.J. and Carleton worked together painting the exterior of the home alongside several of the workers on the site.

We are planning a "teatro" with some of the children later this week, but the rehearsal is soon.

Mexico Mission- Rural Solidarity Day

2010-11-08T14:03:00.000-08:00

The alarm, actually some music, went off early. 6:00 a.m. local time, same as Houston. We were told this would be "Rural Solidarity Day" and as such we would be eating the same foods and at the same time Mexican families would be eating. At 6:30 there was hot water for instant coffee or tea and then a breakfast cake before we would be heading out. The team broke out for tasks in several areas. "Builder Bob" Lasalle and I were chosen to work harvesting rocks. There is a mile long dirt road from the "Tree of Life" center to the main road that leads to town. Unfortunately, rain and irrigation has eroded several areas making the travel very bumpy. The missionaries Terry and Muriel Henderson often kid. They say one of the most frequent questions they are asked is, "Why don't you fix the road?" The fact is they work on it often and today was no different. Working in an area where rocks are plentiful, the detail is not all that difficult. Rocks of all sizes are needed meaning there wasn't a lot of thinking to today's task, just stooping. I can tell you fire ant bites in Mexico are just as painful as the ones in Houston. We filled about 5 pick up loads and spread them out in some of the worst pot holes. Rain isn't in the forecast, but we should know how successful our work was when we ride out to town in the coming days.

As an educational ministry, we will learn many skills this week, like making tortillas, and yes it's an art form. It is a skill which young women are required to learn, and there's no question our teachers have had years of experience. After flattening the batter in a tortilla press, we cooked them on a specially made wood stove. The center also is teaching villagers how to make these stoves which are far more efficient than cooking on an open flame. They also are well vented meaning the air in many homes is a lot cleaner. We're told women who often cook in their homes all day, are exposed to smoke equivalent of smoking 10 packs of cigarettes a day, so having a well vented stove is much healthier. But making tortillas was not only "women's work" today, as the guys on the trip each made their own tortilla.

For Rural Solidarity day, the women do "women's work," which started with raking and shoveling up all the "leavings" in the goat pen ... oh yeah! After that, out to the pasture to chop wood for the fire. (Note Melissa Maher with her machete.) Then half of us did laundry the old-fashioned way, with laundry bar soap in a sink with a washboard bottom. One wash, two rinses and then hang things on the clothesline. There's a washer here at the Center, but many women in the small towns still do their laundry in a bucket or a river. The other 3 women sifted soil and added ash to make the solution for the dry-composting toilet. Changing tasks again, a different group of 3 women started digging out a trail that will be filled with sand and gravel. That's when you could really tell who works out ... and who doesn't. Ouch. And Estela who works here at the Center made us all look bad.

We've been harvested

2010-11-07T18:46:00.000-08:00

After a brief tour of Puebla on Saturday, the mission team headed Southwest to Tlancualpican, arriving at the Tree of Life center on a beautiful, star-filled, and unusually chilly evening. The team spent Sunday visiting the village market, meeting locals and have just returned from a wonderful service at Gethesmane Methodist Church.

The team had an orientation at the Tree of Life -- learning the importance of both crisis and development response. The Tree of Life center focuses on development response, with its core mission being education.

One of the technologies the Center teaches is how to build a dry composting toilet. Without getting into all of the details, the toilet does not use any water, and in a rural area like much of Mexico this is a huge advantage.

The bell to dinner is ringing. We'll have more tomorrow!

Pilgrimage to Tlancualpican

2010-11-04T14:00:00.000-07:00

On Friday, November 5th 10 members of Chapelwood leave for a 10-day mission to Give Ye Them to Eat in Tlancualpican, Mexico. The members of the team are
-Carleen Woods, Allison Gower, Bob Lassalle, CJ Yeoman, Carleton Cole, Landon & Lindsay Schott, Mary Lou Strange, Ted Desforges and Melissa Maher.

We will be participating in the AWARE program learning about the technologies available to rural communities to improve their crop production, livestock health, community health and water sanitation. Numerous groups of indigenous leadership from surrounding villages visit the Tree of Life Training Center each year. These leaders then train leaders in their own villages in the five development programs.

Join with the Chapelwood team in praying for God's greater mission of restoration and hope to be revealed. We will try and post pictures and stories as we have access to the Internet.
Here is the scripture from our group prayer journal for Friday, November 5th:
Psalm 46:10
"Be still and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world."

Gracias a Dios!

Farewell and Good-bye!

2010-07-08T03:07:00.000-07:00

What a send off by the Administrators and Staff and Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges. We were treated to a wonderful “Thank-you” dinner and exchanged gifts before saying our good-byes.

The evening started with several songs and games from Emelyn Castillo, who’s proved to be more than a music teacher and leader, she has the gift of motivating others. Before the evening was over, we witnessed Milson the building contractor dance, everyone clap and sing, and Janet McCarty, the host missionary shed a few tears.

The gift exchange was more than we could possibly return. Our Philippine hosts gave us several mementos and even a couple of “diplomas” for the lectures and class teachings done at the school. We responded with Chapelwood crosses, three prayer shawls, and a “shovel.” The iron of one of the shovels purchased for the team, cracked in the middle rendering it useless. Since it wasn’t very warn, the shovel became a “trophy” as we signed our names on it with the glitter pens we brought to Kidapawan for Vacation Bible School.

For the record, the first 13 foundation holes have been dugout, each at varying depths. The plan is to construct the new two story building in phases which is common in developing countries. The new “kitchen” has been erected with the concrete poured even as the rain was beginning to fall. And Dr. Ed Lynch completed nearly 70 physicals.

Already some of the medical follow up on the more serious students has begun.

So we leave knowing we have left an impact. How much may be never known fully, but when you look around at all the grace we received, we leave as blessed people. At breakfast in Kidapawan this morning, one of the students Gemma Labagan left us a letter. Her closing words gave us a lift as we began the long road home, “Thanks to all of you. You inspired me as I continue my journey in life. May God bless you more with your families be a blessing to all people. To God be the Glory!” And then one last line, “I hope we’ll see you again.” We do too, Gemma.

Leaving a Legacy

2010-07-06T17:38:00.000-07:00

It is hard to measure the impact of a trip such as this. While it’s easy to note the completed tasks like how many student physicals were given, the number of foundation holes dug out, and the construction of a kitchen in the rear of the men’s dormitory, the real impact is the relationships that will continue.

As I headed to the men’s dormitory to help with the kitchen this afternoon, I was stopped by a student who was going the other direction. “Thank-you Sir,” he said. I first responded nonchalantly, “You’re welcome,” and started to pass him by, but he persisted, thanking me again. “You are part of the mission team?” he asked, in a way to keep the conversation going. I replied, “Yes, I am.” He then smiled and proclaimed, “Chapelwood! your church has made it possible for me to be here, I’m getting a scholarship.”

As it turns out Zaldy Aganan has quite a story. At age 51, he is the father of 10 children, four of whom are already grown and are married living in Manila with four children of their own, so Zaldy is a “Lolo”, a grandfather. He is from the northern island Luzon in the Bicol region which he describes as very poor and remote, so traveling to the Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges is difficult. “I come from a place that is very far from here. It is a two day travel by land.”

Zaldy has been serving as a local pastor in Bicol for the past couple of years, and the District Superintendent encouraged him to go to a theological school to continue his education. Even though he is much older than the other students, Zaldy believes the time spent here is well worth it. “At age 51 maybe I will be waiting until age 55 [to graduate], but for me serving the Lord, there’s no retirement.”

And his family is encouraging him too. “I think this will give more bonding to the family because that’s what my children are always saying to me, ‘Papa you continue to study!’”

Chapelwood supports a number of students by donating $6,000 to the college. The amount each student receives depends on need and their course of study. Bob Lasalle, who visited the school when the first Chapelwood mission team was here two years ago, is sponsoring another student sparking an interest from Kathie Luther. She and team leader, husband Dave, have decided to underwrite a scholarship for a young woman who is going into teaching, Kathie’s profession. The student’s story is compelling as she lost her mother to cancer at an early age, and her father, who was a poor farmer, died a few years ago. Still, the young woman has great faith writing in a letter she submitted for a leadership scholarship. “When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left and could say, ‘I used everything you gave me.’” If you or a prayer group would like to sponsor a scholarship, which cost $400 to $450, contact missionary Janet McCarty at the school. The email address is jmccarty50@yahoo.com.

Carleton Cole

Back to Work

2010-07-05T18:45:00.000-07:00

Entering our second week in the Philippines the mission team is focused on getting as much work done as there can be. As we have come accustomed to, the day began with stagnant grey clouds and threatening skies. We walked from our quarters at the guest house about a mile through a small community to the Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges. Again we were met by the foundation holes. Still saturated by a weekend rain, and more surely to come soon. While we waited for more lumber to work on the men’s dormitory stove, the shoveling began.

There is no question that when you are digging muddy clods from foundation pits, you surely ask yourself, why would anyone take a plane, travel half way around the globe to work so hard. Then you are hit with mission moments. Our foreman, as it were, is a genteel man named Millson. His rename is Carmillo, but his father shares the same name and decided he didn’t want to call his son junior, so he came up with the nickname Mill-son. Millson called out to me, Carleton you played with my grandson! I had to think a bit but I remembered on Saturday there was a little boy who was being a little bit of a toot during Vacation Bible School. “Carleton I knew it was you because the three year old told me , Tambok picked me up!” I now know a new word in Tagalog, Tambok meaning “Big Man.” Again my thoughts turned to my family as for so many years I carried little brothers and sisters, my daughter and several nephews on my shoulders. In this case all I was trying to do was to help quiet an unruly child. Instead I made a “huge” impression on a three year old and his grand dad, a little thing, but something which won’t be forgotten.

The rains did come, and they always do, but we did have enough dry weather to continue work on the men’s dormitory stove after lunch. I always find it fascinating how third world carpenters get as much as they can out of the supplies that are on hand. U bolts are made out of 10 penny nails by bending them hard around the rebar. It may not sound like much but sawing through the soft lumber is an interesting sensation. In Houston we’re more accustomed to taking a power saw and zipping through pressure treated pine. Here there are no power saws so all the work is done by hand. While the 2x6 was firm, it didn’t take long before the teeth of the hand saw chewed through the board. In no time a scaffold was assembled to erect the frame for the roof of the structure.

On a final note I would like to share with you something called the “Dionsia Clap” Readers of the sports pages back home may be familiar with a boxer named Manny Pacquiao. He is a local hero coming from the Island of Mindanao and highly revered by both men and women students at the college. Dionsia is Manny’s mother and she has popularized a cheer much like “The Wave” or the “Tomahawk Chop” which we are used to seeing at football or baseball games. On several occasions the students have treated us to the “Donisa Clap” as an appreciation for helping them. For the record it’s three claps of the hand, three stomps of the feet, and then a salute as they call out the words, “Thank-you Sir!” with an emphasis on thank-you. Again I have to say, “No thank-you, I am so happy to be allowed to serve in The Philippines!” It is just one of the many examples of seeing God’s Grace as we encourage the people of Kidapawan.

Carleton Cole

July 4th in the Philippines and in Houston

2010-07-04T17:39:00.000-07:00

It is Independence Day, a day to pause and remember, “The Spirit of 1776,” a living document which keeps our country united today. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

It is fitting that as I write this, I just heard the 9:00 a.m. Patriotic Service from Chapelwood, (10 p.m. here in the Philippines,) and the words of Jefferson and Monroe still ring so clearly around the world. I am proud to know a new friend in Leobert Don Laforteza, someone you have not met, but if you were at Chapelwood today you heard his voice as he narrated a video produced this week at the Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges. The words are inspiring whether heard in the Chapelwood sanctuary or half a world a way via the internet in Kidipawan. “We live in a much more connected world than at any time throughout history. Despite all the diversity there is in this world, we share so much in common. We together, Spanish, Filipino, American, Russian, African, all of us are the body of Christ in identity, as his beloved, and in our calling to serve wherever we may be today. We are made one by God's Holy Spirit that resides is both you and us.” I’ll admit, the video along with the singing from the Chancel Choir, made me a little homesick.

Here in Kidipawan, our “Forth of July” began with a special event too. We were invited to visit the Branscomb United Methodist Church. A quaint building near where we are serving, sitting on the fringe of a city park that offers picturesque views of a descending stream. Smiles from the many friendly faces greeted us as we enjoyed a two hour worship service complete with the sharing of the Holy Communion.

The mission team helped lead the congregation in song, singing “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands,” and “Father I Adore You.” Gleefully, the church members joined in, and we are especially grateful for the talents of Emelyn Castillo who not only kept us on key, but is the music teacher at the Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges.

One of the highlights of the service was to hear in Tagalog the Lord’s prayer. For me this was especially meaningful as my wife Hazel and I visited the Church of the Pater Noster recently in Israel where it is believed Jesus taught his disciples how to pray. Mosaics in 80 languages adorn the church on the Mount of Olives including one in Tagalog which I had caught on camera. Who would know I would hear the inscribed words said by native Filipinos. Chapelwood staff member Chris Archer added to the moment as he gave a sermon on the Lord’s prayer sharing insights to the individual words, “Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be your name.”

All worship service is personal, but today’s service in Kidipawan had deep meaning for team member Ed Lynch. As is custom here, the church celebrates members birthdays for the week ahead by announcing their names from the altar then singing to them. When the team was introduced to the congregation all of us had the chance to something about us, and Ed had the most to say in perhaps the least amount of worlds. He admitted he was moved by the singing of Happy Birthday as back in the states his first born son is celebrating his 53 birthday today, and he wished he could be with him. As I reflect and get ready for bed, I can only think of the words from George M. Cohan, “I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy, born on the 4th of July.” Indeed it is a “Dandy Day”, two worship services celebrating July 4th birthdays, one for those who are with us in the flesh, and the other for a spirit which inspired a new country 224 years ago. Each however, connected by the Holy Spirit who calls us to serve both near and far.

Carleton Cole

Vacation Bible School

2010-07-04T17:32:00.000-07:00

I don’t think there is a more anticipated event on an international mission trip than Vacation Bible School. It’s hard to say who gets more out of it, the children or the team.

It was evident school teacher and team member Kathie Luther put in a lot of thought in Houston gathering supplies, and thinking about the messages for the children.

The day began early as the team assembled at a fairly large chapel on the school grounds. Five stations were set up, each with fifteen chairs for the corresponding craft for the children. At station one there were coloring sheets each with a Christian message which they drew over with the multi-hued crayons we had carried from Houston. At station two there were soap bubbles which are always at hit with children of any age. These represented the promise of the rainbow from Genesis. There was a craft at station three where the children erected small crosses from thin foam like material to take home with them. Balloons were blown up at station four, with smiling faces drawn on them representing God’s love. And at station five, which was the second craft, the children made little fish out colorful beads as a reminder that Christ has called us to be “fishers of men.”

As the team prepared for the children, we received a lot of help from the mothers and some volunteers from the school. Not only could they converse in the children’s native dialect, they helped maintain order which was quite remarkable considering the number of kids. Vacation Bible School can often be “organized mayhem,” but on this Saturday morning, the children were very well behaved, helping insure the event was fun for everyone. After the kids went through a rotation of stations, each getting to participate in all the activities, we threw frisbees and kicked soccer balls outside on the wet grass slickened by a fresh fallen rain. The day also included a “fast food” meal, which is a real treat for the children and other family members as most everyone brought home the left overs to share.

There’s no question the day highlights the “purpose” of the mission trip, not just the “task,” which in this case is to construct some foundation holes. The smiles on the children and their parents can warm the heart of even the dourest of curmudgeon. It vividly serves as a reminder of the words in Matthew found in “The Great Commission” to go into the world and share Christ’s love. I was especially moved by several incidents which I think offered some insights to the humanity of the day.

First as B.J. Castagnetta held a bubble producing toy sending a multitude of soap spheres descending on the kids, a mother giggled, “I never had the chance to do this as a child. Now I am with my two children.” Then after the meal, and after all the fast food boxes were gathered, a kindergarten teacher carefully recycled much of the cardboard and the cups to recycled them as supplies for crafts later with her kids. I remembered my mother doing a similar kind of thing as a child growing up in a large family. My mother’s cardboard of choice was the oatmeal canister which made for a great drum. I then envisioned how these gently used soda cups will be used to thin water colors for the children to draw pictures on the carefully torn up cardboard later on. Another Christ-like image flashed through my mind, as He commanded His disciples to gather up all the remaining crumbs from the loaves and fishes at Tagbha two thousand years ago.

And lastly as I walked back to our guest house there was a young family, a mother and three youngsters, walking down the muddy trail along side me as they were heading home. The smallest was singing a familiar tune. “Five little monkeys sitting on the bed, one jumped up and broke his bed.” It was the same little nursery rhyme my daughter Whitney used to sing, and this little girl, maybe three years old, was toddling home with the same joy in her heart which I had seen on Whitney’s face so many times before. I chuckled a little and then joined in like I did with Whitney when she was a similar age. The entire family was grinning and laughing now as the little one sang out with even more gusto than she had done before, a priceless moment for sure. It is then when you fully understand the calling of coming to such a far away place.

Carleton Cole

The Big Dig

2010-07-04T17:16:00.000-07:00

You may have heard about a transportation project in the east coast dubbed, “The Big Dig.” Of course Chapelwood members are familiar with the Katy freeway expansion. Well, in Kidapawan, The Philippines, “The Big Dig” is the many foundation holes that continue to grow at the Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges. No question it is hard work, with B.J and Warren Castagnetta, Dave and Kathie Luther, Bob Lassalle, and Chris Archer doing the heavy lifting. You would think just shoveling out the dirt doesn’t take much thought, but in a climate like the Philippines there are special challenges.

Take for instance the rain. You would think after living in Houston the team would be adequately prepared. However in Kidapawan, it rains more than 120 inches per year, nearly 3 times the amount that falls on Houston annually. So rain isn’t just a some times thing, it’s an everyday thing. So when you’re digging out a hole, it gets muddy, the shovels get heavier, and you look like a mess. But there are things to do during the rainstorms. The tap dance is to make sure you have a tarp over some of the holes you are working on so when it rains you shovel out them. But when it’s sunny outside, that’s when you begin clearing out new holes, knowing you’ll be back under the tarp at anytime. So you see even in digging out construction holes, it can be a science.

It was mostly sunny today, and the team got a new construction project which goes hand in hand with the other. The men’s dormitory is in badly need of a new stove area, so today the job began. So guess what, that meant digging holes in a new area, although these weren’t as deep. Only four holes for this project and then the fun to make suitable concrete to set the rebar to anchor the base. Since it’s Friday, the concrete should have time to set so more work can be done on Monday. After just digging for the past few days, this project was a nice respite.

Doctor Ed continues to see students as he is providing much needed medical services to the school. The count is up to 50, or nearly half of the student body, pardon the pun, this week alone. The good doctor also finished his lectures on the history of Christianity. Frankly, other than his wife Nell who took the tours with him, I don’t know a person who has visited more Biblical sites than Doctor Ed and put them into a PowerPoint presentation.

Kathie Luther not only taught another English class today, but she got a music lesson this afternoon. It’s a very good thing because many of us can’t carry a tune, and we have a command performance at Church on Sunday. We endeavor to hold are own, but we’re happy to report will be singing with a group a students, not all by ourselves. I’ll let you know how we do on Sunday.

And for the first time in perhaps 15 years, I played some full court basketball. The Philippine youngsters are especially curious about my size. You may find this hard to believe, but in the 6th grade I was one of the smallest kids in my class. Now at 6’1” and a bit on the heavy side, I tower over the Filipinos. I sort of looked like “Big Country” out there with my overalls, but I did hit a couple of shots earning big cheers from the adoring fans. Well it least it gave them a thrill. As for me, I was a bit winded after only a few minutes and I’m not going to talk about my shooting percentage.

Carleton Cole

Teaching Moments

2010-07-01T17:26:00.000-07:00

It is not often people get the opportunity to share their gifts with other folks from a far away land. We are blessed to have several team members who have professional knowledge and experiences to help teach the courses being taught here at Southern Philippine Methodist College.

Kathie Luther, who teaches at Mayde Creek High School, was asked to give several lessons for an English class. The board members of the school require all courses to be taught in English, yet Acting Director Janet McCarty freely admits the biggest barrier at the school is language. English is a priority for several reasons primarily because it is the language of world commerce. And while the national language is Tagalog there are several local dialects, so even among Filipinos, they may have English in common, even though they might not be familiar with the dialects from the north or southern islands. Kathie had brushed up before delivering her lesson noting that in English we learn the rhythm of Subject Verb Object, in Tagalog it’s different, it’s verb subject object. Another of the God moments. Her husband Dave shared with us, it was the first time he ever had seen his wife teach in a classroom environment, and yes his eyes welled up.

Dr. Ed who continues to provide physicals for his students, took off his “white coat” and gave a 3 hour lecture on the history of religion. Dr. Ed and his wife Nell have visited more than 82 countries over the years. His lecture began with the “Fertile Crescent” and took the students through the beginnings of Judaism through to the birth of Christ. Another lecture is tomorrow. By the way let me rant about compatibility as it relates to computers. This is not a Philippine problem, it’s universal. Ed brought his flash drive with him for the PowerPoint presentation. While it plays fine on my laptop, the MAC wouldn’t connect with the Epson projector even though it said it would. Hey Apple and Microsoft, what is up? Eli Whitney overcame the problem of interchangeable parts in the 19th century. C’mon computer geeks, like hello, let’s keep to just one standard. Am I asking too much? We went through three computers before one of the local Pastor’s came up with a system which finally could run the program.

Thank-you for letting me get that off my chest. I feel better now. I did conduct a lesson for the journalism class which lasted nearly 3 hours tonight. The journalism teacher told me before the class I might have trouble getting the students to ask questions, so I was kind of concerned I might have to “tap dance” through the lecture. I’m happy to tell you the students had all kinds of questions, and very good ones at that. The nice part is the teacher invited a local newspaper reporter to come to hear me and afterwards he addressed the class briefly supporting all the advice I shared.

Carleton Cole

Inauguration Day

2010-06-30T17:30:00.000-07:00

It’s a national holiday today in the Philippines. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino took office. At noon everyone was to clap for him, and out of respect, the Chapelwood mission team stopped eating lunch and clapped and cheered. To be perfectly honest, I had no idea today would be a holiday until I was told about it when we arrived on Sunday. Aquino won the election on May 10th by a landslide campaigning on a strong anti-corruption platform, promising to investigate the alleged wrongdoing of outgoing President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. I’ve added a picture of the new president in today’s blog.

The holiday actually turned out to be a gain for the mission team as students, who would normally be in school, joined the mission team helping to dig out the foundation. Chapelwood members can certainly relate to building programs as it wasn’t so long ago our church property had a giant hole. Now that’s been filled by the very beautiful youth building, so it’s always important to remember buildings like Christians need solid foundations.

There is no question the Philippine people are so happy we are here especially missionary Janet McCarty who is the acting president of the Southern Philippine Methodist Colleges. In the blog yesterday I mentioned Kidapawan is a city of about 80,000 people. Today I leaned Janet is the only American living in the area. “I was told once there was another American here but I’ve never seen him.” Janet says. “When I was here once before and there were security problems, my driver said to me, ‘Well we can’t hide you, you’re too white!’ so yes, I do stick out. But the Filipino people are so friendly and so kind and so willing to help there is a lot of support.”

There are a lot of smiles and a lot of camaraderie especially working together in the rainy wet pits. Today team member Warren Castagnetta had a number of kids hanging on him as he pushed, or rather slid, a wheelbarrow full of dirt away from the job site. Let’s face it, digging foundation trenches is not the most glamourous job, but even in dripping sweat, the task has its moments. “I think it’s important for our students to see that people from another country care about them,” says Janet. “And one way they can show they care is that they actually come.”

In fact team member B.J. Castagnetta was moved to tears. “To have the opportunity to work side by side with Brothers and Sisters in Christ there are no words for that. To be able to share in the work and sweat and the fellowship and the worship and spend the time it takes to get here that’s something that words and your heart can’t express.”

Carleton Cole

Working Hard

2010-06-29T17:15:00.000-07:00

We awoke early in Davao to make the morning drive to Kidapawan and to the Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges. The views are spectacular. For perspective, Manila is on one of the northern Philippine islands, Davao is about 500 miles southeast on the island called Mindanao. Where we are working is Kidapawan a city of roughly 80,000 people in the hills some 70 miles due west of Davao. To get there, it is about a two and a half hour trip on a road which twists and turns around inlets and rivers fitted between luscious green meadows lined by banana and coconut palm trees. Just as soon as we hit the outskirts of Kidapawan, we made a right turn immediately after a bridge over a small brook that outlines the property.

After a short lunch, we were welcomed to the Colleges in song. A music class was waiting for us and students were very happy to see the visitors from Texas. Dr. Ed Lynch set up a make shift medical clinic to administer physicals to the students in one of the dormitories. He was to see the women first, but when the nurse assigned to help him had another responsibility, he began examining some of the men. In only a few hours, Dr. Ed had seen 13 patients finding several medical issues which will need further attention.

Most of the team started digging. It is hoped the school can add a two story facility on the site in nine months to a year. But the finished product has to start with a foundation, and that means taking a shovel and moving a lot of dirt. There are already cries from the mission team to rent a backhoe, but in this situation, as with so many third world construction projects, the cost for renting heavy equipment is far more expensive than manual labor; especially when the labor is volunteered by a team from Chapelwood. The soil is thick, pasty and heavy, especially after a good soaking which comes regularly in the early afternoon. In fact as I am writing this, a thunder cloud has just sounded, a not so gentle reminder that any time you are working in a tropical climate, rain can be moments away.

I have to admit I didn’t get my hands dirty today, as I spent most of the time taking pictures and producing a short video which will be shown this Sunday at the special July 4th service at Chapelwood. Even in the hills of Kidipawan, the world wide web works, so the video has been sent to the communications department at Chapelwood and we hope you will enjoy it on Sunday.

I will be digging tomorrow, and I hope I can lose some weight. You see I had a battle during dinner tonight with an avocado colored green resin chair, something you might find in white at Lowe’s or the Home Depot. Let’s just say the chair lost. It’s now lying wounded in the corner in about five pieces. Falling to the floor, the only thing I injured was my pride, which can always be humbled. I am now sitting in a much sturdier wooden chair.

Carleton Cole

A Slight Detour

2010-06-28T06:37:00.000-07:00

The first rule for any international mission team is to be flexible. So is the second rule as well as the third. I was first reminded of that 10 years ago when Chapelwood member Colin Wilkinson led a mission team to Kenya. What was true back then is still true today.

When we arrived to the Manila Airport for our domestic flight to Davao, we learned Philippine Airlines had made a schedule change in their daily departures, but without notifying us. You would think after booking the flight three months in advance, the airline would contact the group, but not so. The surprise came when we checked in, although there was some good news, we still had seats on the plane. With the departure now being pushed back until 3:00 p.m. we now had a narrow window to drive to Kidipawan in daylight. Our host Missionary, Janet McCarty gave us a 5:30 deadline to meet her or we would be forced to spend the night in Davao. With the flight only an hour and 30 minutes, the plan was still a go, but when it took 40 minutes to corral all the luggage, are plans changed and we were forced to spend a night in a hotel in Davao. Driving by day in the Philippines is an adventure, and at night it’s just not safe. Kidipawan is not only a three hour trip during the day, at night the conditions are pitch black, far too risky for even the safest of drivers.

So instead of bouncing through a rural road at night, we got to experience rush hour driving through Davao at dusk. They say Rome has the worst drivers in the world; Davao can’t be that far behind. Traffic lights are mere ornaments, and pedestrians are obstacles much like the pot holes which the motorists try to avoid by keeping one foot on the accelerator and the other on the brake. When we did arrive at the hotel, we all felt like we had just been through the spin cycle of a Maytag washer. There was even a little rain to dampen the walk from the mini vans to the hotel lobby.

While on the subject of wash, all of the pictures of the team are with our red mission t-shirts. This is not a fashion statement, but it does make the stops through the various security checks along the way much faster. We breezed through customs in Manila, and today we got a discount on the luggage charge since the agent saw that we are doing mission work. Of course now that we’ve had them on our backs since early Saturday morning, the shirts are way past the “rank” state, so tomorrow we’ll break out some fresh clothes as we continue on to Kidipawan.

Carleton Cole

We have made it to the Philippines!

2010-06-27T09:48:00.000-07:00

Any kind of travel can be difficult, but international travel is especially different. Not only are the security concerns stricter, but there are certain to be some bumps along the way. Please don’t take this is a complaint, but rather something which always make for good storytelling.

After Doug Cheeves dropped us off at Intercontinental Airport, the fun started to begin. It’s obvious the person running the Delta Airlines gate Saturday morning, didn’t have much experience or much of a sense of humor. When we checked our luggage, we were told we would have to get our seat assignments from the attendant at the gate. While it seemed like a minor inconvenience it turned out to be a bigger pain. I can now tell you there are 67 rows on a Boeing 747-400, seven of the eight member teams ended up on the last two. Ed Lynch, whom the gate attendant finally ran his ticket , was isolated from our group getting to sit in the 23rd row. Of course all of us were happy to have seats to begin with, but we are still puzzled why Delta couldn’t seat us when we first arrived to the airport and then couldn’t keep us together.

Dr. Ed at least got to view whatever movies the air carrier was offering, those of us in the back didn’t. After we pulled out of the gate, the flight attendants realized the large screen to view the safety video, and later the movies didn’t work. We could see the small video monitors which were about 50 feet in front of us, but it was very difficult to make out what was on the tiny screens. About the best way to describe the situation is to imagine back in the 60s when there were Drive-In movie theaters. When you passed them on a road at night you might get a glimpse of the screen, but there was no way you could make out what was happening in the film. Delta graciously announced to those who were sitting in the rear 25 rows, we would be getting a “voucher” of some sort to be used in a later flight. When we got to the service desk in Nagoya, Japan the voucher was for a “complimentary” beer or glass of wine. Being good Methodists, we passed on their generosity.

As for the trans pacific flight, the pilots warned us it would be bumpy as there is a lot of turbulent air between Detroit and Nagoya, Japan. The flight plan took us over Canada, a little north of Anchorage, Alaska, and then down the Aleutian Islands on the way. But we learned from one of the veteran flight attendants, after the merger between Northwest and Delta, the pilots had been instructed to fly through the turbulence as much as possible to keep on course to save on fuel and money.

The 3 1/2 flight from Nagoya to Manila was pretty much uneventful. No the video monitor still wasn’t working, but by now most everyone was tired and trying to do their best to catch a few winks. Sunday June 27th will go down as the shortest day of our lives as we lost most of it when we crossed the international dateline. Manila is 13 hours ahead of Houston, so now as I am posting this, it is early Monday morning in the Philippines, but early Sunday afternoon back home.

Carleton Cole

Heading Out!

2010-06-26T04:45:00.000-07:00

Hello and Farewell!

The Chapelwood Mission team to the Philippines got up early, arriving at the Church at 5 a.m. to meet Doug Cheeves who drove the Turtle Top to the airport. Even on a Saturday morning, Intercontinental was buzzing with travelers going far and wide.

Our team is made up of eight pilgrims, all who have been on international missions previously. We are led by Dave Luther and Chris Archer the Associate Director of Serving Ministries. Other members include Kathie Luther, Ed Lynch, M.D., Bob Lassalle, Warren and BJ Castagnetta, and Carleton Cole. Our project is to assist the Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges in Kidapawan, and to get there it is quite an event. We are flying to Detroit, Michigan, where we will pick up a plane to Nagoya, Japan, but we won't see much there. The stop is only for refueling and to add a few more passengers. We'll continue southward to Manila where we'll go through customs and reclaim our luggage. Kidipawan in located on one of the southern islands, so we'll spend a night in Manila before taking a plane to Davao, hoping to arrive before the sun goes down. From there it's a 70 mile drive to Kidipawan which could take as long as three hours driving through the hills.

Chile Mission Trip: A Day to Enjoy Chile

2010-06-07T14:24:00.000-07:00

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Buenas Dias one final time from Villarrica!
We were able to spend one final day enjoying the sites of this most lovely part of God's creation. While making a visit to the tourism office yesterday, Kay Kelley and Julie Bailey inquired if we could hire an english speaking guide to go with us around the area. The woman at the counter said she could and in moments we hired Veronica. She agreed to meet us at our hotel this morning and from there she guided us to several places today.

Our driver Raphael, who stayed with us after the long travel from San Fernando Thursday, drove us first to the Mapuche Center which turned out to be a hotel operated by the Catholic church, which I am sure provides income during the tourist season. But more than that, the property is a working farm, and there is a huge conference center and a very large kitchen where cooking classes in the Mapuche style are held. We were concerned because although it wasn't raining, the weather wasn't cooperating, and the mountain air was foggy which prevented us from seeing some of the more spectacluar views of the morning.

Our next stop came about an hour later where we visited Pucan, the "rival" town to Villarrica. In yesterday's blog I noted Villarrica reminded me of Tacoma, Washington, Pucan(pronounced pew-cone) looks a lot like Colorado. With the mountains all around and the outdoor shops all along the main street, this is a place where Chileans like to come and play. There were plenty of places to find trinkets to bring home, and Veronica steered us to a wonderful restaurant to eat. There is always an advantage to coming to third world countries, as the exchange rate is favorable. Lunch for me was "Duo Piscado" two fishes, as in both sea bass and salmon. The bill coming to about $12.00 US. The atmosphere was wonderful and the service was excellent as the owner was fluent in english. While we were dining the fog burned off, and it turned out to be yet another outstanding day.

After lunch we then headed a bit to the north, on the back side of the lake to see some waterfalls rushing down one of the many mountains that make this place such a glorious place. It is interesting to note the waterfalls were found in a private park which was crowded by tourists enjoying the Saturday. There was an entrance fee, 300 Chilean Pesos per person, or a little more than 50 cents a piece. Let me say it may have been one of the best 50 cents I've ever paid as the sites were something to behold. The only downside is we didn't have long to enjoy the rushing water. Now about an hour away from Villarrica, we had to drive back to the hotel and prepare for the long day back to Texas.

As a team we decided to have an early dinner, but before enjoying our "last supper" we packed up the nine team bags making sure they would all make weight for the flight back. Dinner was much lighter than lunch, and then we all enjoyed a treat from the Chocolataria which has deserts only team members can describe. I will say I enjoyed the creativity of the chocolate Volcan Villarrica. It was too rich for me to order, but I know several people enjoyed the creation complete with white icing on the top. It is too bad the agricultural restrictions are so tight that we cannot share the delights. Let me just say there's a good reason to come back to Villarrica. We closed the evening with a devotion which including an exercise that "binds us all together." There is no question these mission trips are life changing, and as a group all of us now share a common bond.

Tomorrow begins our trek home, and what a trek it will be. We'll leave around 7 a.m. to begin what is expected to take 12 hours back to Santiago airport. From there we'll catch a plane to Dallas and then it's on to Houston and if all goes well, we'll arive at Chapelwood around 9:30-10 a.m. Monday.

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Chile Mission Trip: Moving on to Villarrica, Chile

2010-06-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

February 6, 2009

Buenas Dias from beautiful Villarrica, Chile!

We arrived very early this morning, 3:15 a.m. after a long bus ride from San Fernando. Our final day at the worksite was long and wearisome, but we completed our task which was to put a second floor/ceiling on the church. We knew it would be a long process, and as a team we decided to work up until the last possible minute before heading back to the hotel to catch the bus.

The task was successful, but more than that, by securing a new friendship with Jean Paul, he has assured us he will assist in "building on what we have started." We can really say that as a team we were the "hands and feet of Christ," and by sharing his love, Jean Paul was impressed enough to lend his considerable talent which we all believe will help the church grow.

It is interesting that when Nydia welcomed us, she spoke about parable of the mustard seed. She lived the faith not only in San Fernando but in Curico. For health reasons she was not able to continue her ministry here, and now she and her husband serve in Texas. But by having her come back as our translator, she was able to help identify needs. While our task is done, there is plenty of more work to do, not just in San Fernando, but also in Curico. Now it's up to our team to make some of these issues known even further to the entire congregation at Chapelwood, and to many of the decision makers who support mission projects for the Methodist Church at large.

We had little time to reflect about our project in San Fernando since we had about an hour to get ready for the bus to take us to Villarrica. We knew the ride would be long, but we were getting several different travel times so we really didn't know when we would reach the hotel. The bus was scheduled to leave at 5:30, but it was another hour before we hit the road. (Let's just say estimated times of departures are never exact.) Kudos to Susan Patterson and Julie Bailey for going to the supermarket and buying sandwich fixings as our dinner on the bus had to be portable. The corn Doritos never tasted so good, especally after another long workday.

We wouldn't learn how lovely a place Villarrica is until we awoke this morning. It was a short night's sleep as we arrived at 3:15 a.m. and then were up for today's breakfast at 8 a.m. The hotel sits on a site that overlooks Lago Villarrica, with a beautiful volcano on the other side of the lake. With its snowcap, it reminded me a lot like Tacoma, Washington near Mount Ranier. While the snowcap is white, it changes color with the sky, even a shimmering pinkish hue as the sunset tonight. It is very beautiful.

The team split in two general groups. One enjoyed the shopping in Central Villarrica, while 6 others, including me, took an hour long boat ride on the lake. We were guided by a couple who are from the native, Mepuche tribe. Their history predates Spanish Colonial Chile, and they sang and played a variety of instruments including a 25 string guitar. The husband of the married couple spoke very good English. When I asked him where he learned it, he told me it was self taught, only by practice and by his experience with others. I was very impressed, especially when he said he can speak Portuguese and the native Mepuche language which was taught to him by his Grand Mother and his God Mother. We also learned today the city was originally known as Villa Rica, but in time the two names were merged to one.
Some of the team gathered later and "zip lined" from one of the hills nearby. I served as the team photographer, and have some wonderful video of several team members enjoying their first experience at "Canopy" which it is called here. We all then gathered for a team meal at a local restaurant to plan our tomorrow's final day in Chile.

Chile Mission Trip: Hard at Work Wednesday February 4, 2009

2010-06-07T14:16:00.000-07:00

Buenas Dias from San Fernando, in fact this will be my last blog from this city as we leave for Villarica late tomorrow afternoon.

What a day it has been as we rose bright and early for breakfast at 7:35. We had been up late Tuesday as we held our team dinner at a local restaurant, La Trattoria Tuscano. While the name is Italian, the dinner was a traditional Chilean meal. Most of us had Salmon which was fresh from the Pacific garnished with a mushroom sauce. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, we are very much in the "garden area" of Chile, so we had lots of veggies and fruits. At dinner we said our good-byes to Nydia who has to be back in Harlingen to preach with her husband at their home church. Nydia was a welcome addition to the trip. She is very proud of the ten years she served in the region, both in Curico and San Fernando along with her husband. I had the chance to interview her at length and she mentioned to me the church in Curico was a "dump" before she was able to raise funds to build what has become a beacon in the community.

We know we don't have much time left to complete our task so we didn't waste any daylight hours. In fact we worked so late this evening (9:30 p.m.) we had to take taxis back to the hotel because the bus had stopped running. But even though it was a long day we got a lot done. The most difficult task is building the frame work for the ceiling/floor boards to fit on to. By the dinner hour, we had all the fitted cross beams up except for one. While on paper it seems to be a fairly simple task, not all boards are true, so each beam and cross beam has to be custom made. The drill was to make all the measurements, cut the necessary boards, build the beams on the ground and then hoist them into the rafters. Again on paper it should work, but it seem every time we hoisted the beams, some adjustments had to be made. Kudos to Carl Sandlin and Vicki Roussel for the "Yankee Engineering" to get the job done.

After dinner we had a couple of hours of daylight, remember it's summer here and there's daylight savings, so we attached the final beam and then hoisted three sets of six ceiling/floor boards into the rafters. We believe we should be able to finish the task by the afternoon tomorrow, that is if we don't have any setbacks.

Speaking of setbacks, we had a near miss when a wind gust knocked down a section of the roof. When I write this, it sounds serious, and it could have been, but it's bascially causing us a minor inconvenience. While we were working on the beams, some wind caught the tin roofing material which is badly fastened to the top side of the building. Not the top mind you, but some siding which was poorly nailed to some, for a lack of a better term, bricks. Some of the stones fell to the ground as well as three aluminum sheets, (So I guess you could say we all were three sheets to the wind.) Fortunately no one was standing along the sidewalk when the stuff fell, and we thank God for that. One of our last task tomorrow will be to cut out a plywood surface and attach it to the side of the roof rafters. We will then nail in the aluminum sheeting and seal it, certainly improving what was there.

It is late, I will try again to attach some pictures to the blog, but if there are none, know that it is because the "file" is too large for the internet from here. Last night I spent a great deal of time trying to post pictures, but the program wouldn't let me.

Chile Mission Trip Team Perspectives February 3, 2009

2010-06-07T14:13:00.000-07:00

Buenas Dias from San Fernando.
For pretty much a week now you have been getting the news from our trip from just one perspective, mine. So today we asked some of the team members to write their thoughts and I would publish them. The first is from Julie Bailey who was part of the Curico Sewing Project.

The sewing project with the ladies in Curico turned out to be more than we had originally envisoned. Our plan was to teach some sewing skills and the use of electric sewing machines to a group of the church women, who although had sewing machines which had come as part of a mission trip three years earlier, were not in use now.
The project evoled into a plan for a cottage industry in which three women who were skilled seamstresses, agreed to teach the other church women to sew, using the church sewing machines and supplies. All would participate the fabricating some craft items for sale with the profits realized being used to purchase materials for use in personal sewing projects for their families.
The women were excited about the vision; they chose officers and set up a schedule for meeting beginning with three times per week during the summer months. We saw it as a great time for fellowship and a natural opportunity for evangelism as the women invited non church friends to share in their sewing skills.

From Susan Patterson: The ladies from the local church came to learn basic sewing skills. There were a lot of experience levels with the most skilled assuming the roles of "maestra" or teacher. This certainly helped with the language barrier. The project was making basic hand towels with a lace trim. Some of the ladies decorated them with bows and scraps to further embellish their towels. We suggested the ladies to make the towels and other decorative items to sell to help finance the classes. From Pastor Nydia I learned people from this area feel no one cares about them because they are so poor. We were able to show them that God cares about them by sending us to Curico to work with them. We are truly "Sisters in Christ!"

Workday Monday February 2, 2009

2010-06-07T13:47:00.000-07:00

Monday, February 2, 2009

Buenas Dias from San Fernando!

We were back on site early this morning even though many of us were up past midnight because of our travels to Curico.

The project has moved from "deconstruction" to "construction" as we have sufficiently cleared the ceiling of the "sheetrock" boards and nails. (As well as some other things which you might find but no need to mention in an old dusty attic.) The other project of lifting the roof is done. If there was a "Missionary of the Day" award, which there isn't, it would go to Carl Sandlin. He is using his talents as an engineer very well. Carl has not only designed a plan to put up the new floor/ceiling, he is leading the process. This is "grunt" work. Carl has to position himself near the top of a ladder, but mindful of not hitting his head on the roof which has nails protruding downward. If that's not enough, the space to operate is extremely limited. Carl has had the patience and the determination to work under these most difficult conditions along with Chris Archer, Bill Bailey and Bob Lassalle. Some of the most challenging work was done today, it is hoped the "framing" work will be a little faster tomorrow.

One of the wonderful parts of mission trips is to introduce people with skills they have never known, and today was an excellent example. Team leader Beth Dudley and Ann Allen each had turns with the power saw as we had to cut the joists to their proper length. It is wonderful to see each enjoy themselves as they expanded their horizons and their skill level. Ann also hammered the joists together, considering the nails are four inches in length, and not of the highest quality, that too was a chore. Speaking of Ann she has picked up several nicknames on the trip. As the first aid person, some of the women have dubbed her "Advil Ann" for having the right pharmaceutical to easy some of our aching joints. I myself dubbed her "Alka Seltzer" Ann as it is true in Chile as with pretty much all Latin countries, "Don't drink the water!," don't even put ice cubes in your soft drink.

I was happy to note that one of the people commenting on the blog was Jean Paul, the gentleman who has pretty much adopted us while we are here. Jean Paul has been a Godsend, helping Bob this morning with money changing as two of the banks would not change our currency. He also has assisted us with supplies, like finding us drill bits and other specific needs which occur on a trip such as this. Tonight he spent some time with us at dinner telling us about his travels as a foreign exchange student in Springfield, Missouri. Jean Paul speaks perfect english telling us he works for a division of the old Sutherland Lumber chain in the USA. Sutherland has had many names including Payless Cashways which some Houstonians might remember before there were "Builders Squares" and "Home Depots." He has really come to our aid, and has enjoyed our company as well.

Three of the team members, Kay Kelley, Susan Patterson and Julie Bailey left along with Nydia to go to Curico for a sewing mission project. Their project had to start late since many of the women they will be assisting work during the day. As mentioned in a pervious blog, Curico is about 50 kilometers to the south and they haven't returned yet. When I hear from them I will pass on their impressions in tomorrow's blog.

Church Visit to Curico Sunday Night February 1

2010-06-07T13:44:00.000-07:00

Hello again from San Fernando Chile. It is late here as we have returned back from Curico, (pronounced Cud-ee-co) where we had our church service. As I mentioned on an earlier blog, the translator for our team is Pastor Nydia. She served at the church in Curico, before she and her husband were transferred about a year ago to the Rio Grande Valley. So it was a homecoming for her tonight as many members of the church did not know she was coming back.

No question the church had a "Mercy Street" feel. Three guitar players helped lead the worship service. As you can imagine, much of the service was a nice tribute to Nydia, but of course the Chapelwood team was highlighted as the church members enjoyed hosting us. There was plenty of time for fellowship and a sharing of cultures. We enjoyed "Passing the Peace" where the entire congregation really gets involved. It might start with a handshake, but it didn't take long for the hugging to begin. Nydia's message was about Christ's love for us all, and it was expressed by everyone tonight. We were asked to sing as a group, and not to disappoint, we sang the "Chapelwood National Anthem," "Here am I Lord." After we sang, Nydia then translated the words to the congregation.

Curico is roughly 50 kilometers south of San Fernando. As you can imagine from a map of the country, Chile is a long strip on the southeast coast of South America. Ruta 5 is the "Interstate" which runs the enitre 2500 miles of the country, so travel is relatively easy. To get to Curico, we headed out to Ruta 5 which is at the east edge of San Fernando, and then took a turn southward. The Iglesia Methodista was on the corner of Curico, not far from the train tracks which run parallel to Ruta 5, but in a working class area. While Nydia mentioned in her sermon the city is a "poor town" it certainly was not run down. We saw many two wood framed home, some underconstruction which leads us to belive the city is growing. No question the congregation is made up of hard working families who share Christ's love.

The worship service which was conducted in both spanish and english included communion, and it was certainly special to break bread with our brothers and sisters here in Chile.

Tomorrow we will continue our construction project in San Fernando, and 3 members of the team will head back to Curico with Nydia for part one of a two day sewing project.

Sunday February 1, 2009 Part One

Greetings again from San Fernando Chile!

Today's blog will come in two parts as we have a split schedule for the day. Currently we have finished working for the day, and we'll head to the Methodist Church in Curico (pronounced Cude-ee-co) this evening. The custom in this part of the world is to hold Sunday service in the evening, 8:30 p.m.

Since it is the day of the big game back home I have sort of a sports report for you. Last night the "big game" here featured Curico the town where we are heading to tonight. It was a "Super Bowl" of sorts for them because their football (soccer) team had been promoted to the elite league. While we were eating dinner, we could hear the television on in the background and there was no question the family was in to it. We could hear "GOOOOOOOOOOOOOL" with all the lust from the television announcer, but we couldn't tell if that was good or bad. We did receive word the game ended in a 2-2 tie in time before the evening devotional, which was a good thing since the game did not cause an interruption.

Speaking of games, just before we broke for lunch today, Kay Kelly, Ann Allen, and I were sitting in the park waiting for the others to get ready for our short walk to the restaurant. While we were there, a middle aged man came up to us, clearly wanting to show us something. I could tell he wanted us to play a game as he made a motion like he wanted to bowl. I thought he was trying to show us bocce, which I had seen in Italy and other countries around the world, however we weren't making any headway because of the language barrier. We called for Nydia, our translator, who helped us out. The man wanted to show us his "field" where the game Tegos, (pronounced Teh-hose) is played.

The best way to describe it is to think about horseshoes and pitching pennies. The "field" is a 25 foot long alley with a wet clay quadrant at the head. The idea is to pitch a cylindrical slug, which weighs about a pound, to the quadrant. If it rests on any of the metal "lines", or falls outside the quadrant, it's a foul, but if the slug lands cleanly in the clay, it counts. You are given two tosses, and if your slug is tossed longer than your opponent you win. The man was very proud of his community center where many championship cups are on display. Nydia tells us the game has been played since Chile was a Spanish Colony, so there is a great deal of history, however unlike Curling I don't think Tegos will be an Olympic sport any time soon.

As for the work project, we have pretty much cleared the entire ceiling and have begun the process of putting up some of the new floor joists to hold the plywood planks. Vicki made a couple of sawhorses out of some of the recylcled lumber which will be a great help as we cut the planks and the new joists. Another group stay back to sort through what was left of the VBS materials. Some of the materials will be used by the Church here in San Fernando for future classes, and the others are being taken to the Church in Curico for the children there.

Break time is just about over, we'll have more on today's event tonight.

Chile Mission Trip: Sunday February 1, 2009 Part One

2010-06-07T13:42:00.000-07:00

Sunday February 1, 2009 Part One

Greetings again from San Fernando Chile!

Break time is just about over, we'll have more on today's event tonight.

Chile Mission Trip: Workday and VBS January 31

2010-06-07T13:19:00.000-07:00

Hello again from San Fernando, Chile!

It was another beautiful day in Chile, Central as the weathermen call this region. We're roughly 100 kilometers south of Santiago which is not only the capital city, but pretty much the center of the country.

We've learned San Fernando is indeed a prosperous city serving 250,000 people in the area. As we mentioned earlier our Hotel Mercando is downtown next to a supermarcado and "Doggis" a nice place for ice cream. I should also mention although longitude, Chile is due south of Miami, time change is 3 hours earlier than Houston because it's summer time and we have to account for daylight savings. Right now its 8:45 p.m. or 5:45 back home.

For us our day began bright and early at 7:35 a.m. with breakfast and a short team meeting. The breakfast is sufficient, a toasted bun with cheese, fruit juice and coffee. We decided we would work until lunch, and then break. The task was pretty much a continuation of day one. Carl steadily worked on lifting the roof which is quite an impressive task. He's using two small hydraulic jacks and negotiating them at points where the rafters meet the joists. It's quite an operation to watch. Often one of the jacks will be positioned on the first floor with a long joist balanced with a series of cut 2x4's to the spot where Carl wants the roof lifted. Then the count begins as Bill jacks up the contraption and the roof so that Carl can fit some other boards under the spot lifting the roof about six inches off its mount. Imagine repeating this process at 32 critical points, and you can appreciate the engineering of the task.

While Carl was working on the lifting the roof, several "attic mice," Susan Patterson and Carleen Woods are scurring on top of the ceiling joists continuing the process of knocking down the sheetrock which we mentioned yesterday. By lunch the task was completed as Vicki Roussel joined the "mice" and lent her skills. "Crowbar" Kay Kelley and Bob "The Basher" Lassalle continued their work at the front door running into a very difficult horizontal joist which seemed like it would never break. But finally after Bob's persistence he was able to "bash" it from below and the wood split like kindling.

Lunch was another Chilean speciality. It is called "Pastel de Chocle," basically a corn based pot pie. Corn meal is carefully pressed in a "Conzelva Bowl" and then vegatables, olives and a chicken leg are added. The corn meal is then added to the top and the entire bowl is baked. The meal was quite filling and very delicious.

We spent a couple of hours after lunch preparing for Vacation Bible School. The church building is located across from a small park with some benches and green area. We first policed it, which was badly needed since all kinds of papers and trash had been left behind by others. With little ones coming we didn't want anything to detract from the fun. The day had been very well planned out by Vicki. There were seven stations for the children; necklace making, music, crayon coloring, a craft, tatoos, frisbee, and photos, each with a Biblic context. Each was eloborate in its own right. For instance while a photo was taken on a digital camera and printed, the children made a frame. Then the photos were processed and each child could take the picture home. In that craft session, each child made a lamb using cotton balls and a cut out from a paper plate. We all lost count of how many children came, but it was made even more special when John, the gentleman we met yesterday, brought his wife and three young boys to take part.

As we always say on these trips there's always a "God moment" and for Susan Patterson it came while making necklaces. One of the women who came brought her own three children and four others. While her children were making the bead necklaces, it was clear she had never heard about Christ before. She was able to hear about Jesus with the assistance for Nydia who was a pastor here in Chile before she and her husband were sent to serve in the Rio Grande Valley. Nydia was not only able to share Christ's love with her, but also introduced her to Diana who is the youth pastor at the church we are working on. We understand the family will be back with Diana at next Saturday's service.

Following VBS we had dinner and headed back to the hotel to rest up for another long day tomorrow.

1 COMMENTS:

Jean Paul said...: I am happy to find this team. Thanks for coming, our city need workers for God.
If you need somethings...call me.

Jean Paul Fetis G.
San Fernando-Chile; January 31, 2009 6:44 PM

Chile Mission Trip: Our First Work Day, January 30, 2009

2010-06-07T13:03:00.000-07:00

Greetings from a very tired Chile Mission team.

We were up early for a nice breakfast and a short meeting to plan our day. Most of us took the city bus to the worksite while a couple of the team members took a taxi filled with all our work tools. We arrived at 9 a.m. and were soon busy at work.
We hope to put on a second floor to the Church in San Fernando. Right now it's an attic space. This means the entire ceiling needs to be torn down and to make sure the floor boards fit, the roof will be "jacked up" during the construction process. But today would be a day to tear things down.

We learned the ceiling was put up several ways. There is a wooden frame, and attached to most of the joists is sheetrock. This isn't however the kind of sheetrock we would find at the local Home Depot. It's more like a particle board. It doesn't break off easily, and it creates a lot of dust when broken apart. Another area of the ceiling is covered with thin boards, 1"x3" which are slotted to help them stay together. That's all great when the idea is to keep them together. To get them to split apart was much more difficult. Nevertheless it was a "fun" morning. "Crowbar" Kay Kelly, and "Basher" Bob Lassalle were able to come up with a system and much of the ceiling was down by noon.

While Kay and Bob were doing their thing, several team members were able to get into the crawl space and start whacking down the ceiling from above. While the "sheetrock" was coming down with a crowbar and sledgehammer, Carleen Woods, Susan Patterson and Chris Archer were hammering at all the sheet rock. This of course was making a major mess all which is necessary to the process. Bill Bailey came up with a make shift broom made out of joists to clear the big stuff while Ann Allen, Julie Bailey and Pastor Daniel then took the boards and pulled the nails out. This was not only for safety, but most of the framing boards and the 1"x3" were carefully pulled down and will be used later. We were all amazed at the process, and how much we were able to accomplish. We broke for lunch around 12:30.

We are very blessed to be served by a local restaurant. The cook is making meal which traditional Chilean families would eat. We understand soup is a staple, all kinds. Yesterday we were treated to "Conzuelva" a soup ladened with vegatables; corn with the cob, zuchinni and potatoes along side a chicken leg. It was very tasty especially after the long day. Today's lunch was a bowl of Asparagus soup and a plate of spaghetti. On mission trips we try to lose weight with all the physical labor, but I don't think that is going to happen. The food is very good.

While most of us were at the job site, Construction Leader Vicky Roussel and Carl Sandlin went to get supplies. What happend was one of those "God" things which certainly was unexpected. It seems at the hardware store, the manager named John heard about the project and stopped everything to help. He assited Vicky and Carl with getting the best banking exchange rate, the best rate for lumber etc. He even drove Vicky and Carl back to the site and set up the delivery schedule. John had been an exchange student in Springfield, Missouri while he was in high school. He had visited Texas, although he admits it was Dallas not Houston. As a Christian he was delighted we were assisting people in the area, and even stopped by the Hotel this evening to make sure everything was doing well. He let it be known should anything be a problem while we are here, to give him a call at the office and he would be at our aid.

Following lunch we headed back to the worksite continuing the tasks of the morning, and adding a new one as well. Carl Sandlin was able to purchase two hydraulic jacks. They would be used to lift the roof so in the future we will be able to put the decking down on the "second floor." The entire workday ended at six when we headed back to the restaurant for another homecooked meal, pork chops with mashed potatoes. We had our dinner and devotion and relaxed for a half hour enjoying the fellowship.

The day however didn't end there. Upon returning to the Hotel we knew more work would be needed. Besides heading to the church for the construction project, tomorrow is VBS, and plenty of work had to be done to get ready. It was wonderful to sit in the Hotel hallway cutting up paper plates and making "sheep" for tomorrow's lesson. Everyone lent a hand from making sheep tongues to cutting out shapes to insert pictures. It should be another wonderful day tomorrow.

1 COMMENTS:

Jeni Scarborough said...: Glad to know you are all safe and hard at work! Keep it up!; January 31, 2009 8:14 AM

Chile Mission Blog

2010-06-07T12:58:00.000-07:00

Thursday, January 29, 2009

We have arrived in Chile

Hello Chapelwood and Friends!

The Chile Mission Team arrived safely and we are already making new friends!

As with all trips we did have our share of obstacles along the way, but nothing which prevented us from arriving safely and on time.

We left Chapelwood around 3pm Wednesday afternoon with Melissa Maher piloting one of the Turtle Tops to the airport. However when we arrived, we met our first obstacle. American Airlines was having a "mechanical" with our plane to Miami. The first thought was to put us on a Continental flight to Miami, but by the time all the staff members at the American counter decided to proceed, only 10 spots were availalble, meaning two of us would have to stay. The next thought was to fly all of us to Dallas and from there fly to Miami. But again after reviewing all the seats, there weren't enough. Finally one of the receptionists decided, "Let's see just how bad the 'mechanical' is. She asked us to wait patiently for 10 minutes and she would check back with the flight controllers.

We all sat together, and while waiting, we opened the nice mail from our prayer partners. We also prayed as a team for safe travel, and to accept whatever course of action the airline planned. Soon afterward, team leader Beth Dudley took all of our passports and went back to the counter. Within about 15 minutes Beth had a big smile on her face as she said the "mechanical" had been fixed and the plane was in the air. The group would not have to split up and we would all proceed to Miami as planned, but with a little bit of a wait. That was no problem as we had a meal at Bush Intercontinetal, and then waited patiently for our flight to be called. Sure enough we boarded around 7 p.m. and we were off to Miami.

We knew the connection to Santiago would be tight. Originially the itinerary called for 1 1/2 hour layover, but that time had pretty much been eaten up (pardon the pun) back in Houston. Sure enough we landed in Miami and had pretty good walk and then a train ride to the next gate. In this case seconds would count, because as we all reached the gate to Santiago, the plane was just beginning to board. Once again God's timing was perfect. It may have been a little too close for our comfort, but right on time nonetheless.

The flight from Miami to Santiago went well. It was certainly crowded, in fact the gentleman whom I sat next to me said the flight is always full. He was an elderly man from Massachusetts going back to see many of his family members. He was grateful to hear what our team would be doing, and was excited for us.

As with any international trip, going through immigration and customs is always a chore. It's not only the long lines, but it always seems a minor problem can cause a real headache. Before leaving, we had been warned the Chilean government was sticklers when it came to food. No snacks, no gum, no fruit, NOTHING. The tip proved beneficial, sure enough as we collected our bags the agriculutral dog was sniffing all over bags making sure no "contraband" was going to enter the country. All of our team's bags passed the "smell" test. We proceeded to customs door with all the forms filled out and taxes paid, then a customs' officer asked me, "What are you doing here?"

I told him we were visting the "Iglesia Methodista in San Fernando"

"Ah" another replied. "John Wesley, he was a good man!"

I smiled and as the bags went through the X-ray machine. We were high fiving the customs agents as Methodist Brothers as they allowed to pass with ease. You see even in the littlest details God has a plan to see us through.

We then met our bus contact and headed for our two hour trek southwards to San Fernando. We are staying a nice hotel in the center of town with "quaint" rooms. There is a window, but it looks out to the hall. We certainly our not complaing, but the details are here to give you an impression of the place. The drive here reminded me of rural Southern California. It is an agricultural area as you can see vinyards all over the place. There is also a great deal of fruit and vegatables grown all around. San Fernando is more of a "town" than a city, but we've already ridden the bus to the church where our contstruction project will take place.

We have shot some pictures, and when I figure out how to attach them to the blog I will send them. I am very happy the hotel has "Wi Fi", but as you can imagine, it isn't what we back home would call high speed.

That's all for now.

Yours in Christ:

Carleton Cole

2 COMMENTS:

Ann Wasp said...: Hola Team,
Que Tal? I just read the blog and I was excitied to hear the women are using some of power tools. I'm sure you are all having a god experience whatever you do. If you haven't heard the Steeler's won the Superbowl,
Great Game! Anyway, Take Care and Tell Vicki to keep up the good work!; February 2, 2009 5:34 PM
Ann Wasp said...: Dear Team,
Read of your newest sewing adventures. I'm sure both working side by side as the Body of Christ is amazing, and even though they are poor Jesus holds them close to his heart. Take Care, and if you have enough material, Sew an extra towel home for me.; February 4, 2009 12:26 PM

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Chile Mission Trip: A Day to Enjoy Chile

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Saturday, February 7, 2009

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Church Visit to Curico Sunday Night February 1

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Chile Mission Trip: Workday and VBS January 31

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Chile Mission Trip: Our First Work Day, January 30, 2009

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Chile Mission Blog

Thursday, January 29, 2009

We have arrived in Chile

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