10 November 2010

Today was a day of celebration.

We celebrated the gift of clean water in San Andres where we at FVPC installed a water purification and in San Marcos, where Bay Pres installed their system. In spite of all the glitches, both systems were finished on time and produced clean water today. Between the two celebrations, there were speeches, diplomas, gifts, singing, marimbas, fireworks and of course the drinking of clean, healthy water from the systems. It was an emotional day as we received thanks from the communities of San Andres and San Marcos, and we thanked them for the opportunity to serve them and enjoy their gratious hospitality.

¡Jesuchristo es agua viva para nuestros cuerpos y nuestras almas!

Jesus Christ is living water for our bodies and our souls!

Some of the children whose lives will be improved by the gift of clean water

Tomorrow we leave Jacaltenango and travel to Antigua. Then Friday night we return to the US. It has been a wondrous and fulfilling trip.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

The new San Andres LWW clean water system

We had a very successful day today. San Andres now has clean water! After a simulated rain shower when the feeder pipe to one of the water tanks on the roof of the water house failed, and after finding and fixing two leaks in the system itself, Greg and Tracy produced clean water. They were even confident enough in their results to drink the water without waiting for the results of the final bacteria test. Val, Kayla and Cindy finished up their teaching today as well and will be able to present 19 certificates to students who will now spread the word about how to use their clean water and how to keep it clean. The Bay Pres team had similar successes today. Tomorrow we celebrate and praise the Lord for the gift of friends, new and old, and for the gift of clean water.

The FVPC mission team and some of the newly trained operators

Monday, November 8

We now have two work days under our belt. Sorry we didn´t post anything yesterday but everybody was too tired to stay up. Everything is going really well. Tracy and Greg are almost ready to run water through the system in San Andres. Val, Kayla, and Cindy have 17-18 women in their health and hygiene class. The people of San Andres have been wonderful; very organized and ready to install the system and learn how to use it and the clean water they will soon have. Our friends from Bay Pres got off to a little slower start but things are going very well for them now too. They just need water for their system. Our hosts, the Rojas family, have been warm and welcoming. Their influence reaches far and wide here; we are teaching the spirituality, health and hygiene class in the classroom of Leslie´s nephew´s wife, Rosa. Tomorrow is our final work day so we hope by the end of tomorrow to be producing clean water!

We Made It

We made it safely to Jacaltenango. After our 4 hour flight that left around 3:30 a.m. and our 8.5 hour bus ride, we were welcomed with open arms by the Rojas family. We did stop and have breakfast at the same restaurant we ate at last year. The rickety bridge and beautiful koi pond is gone. It got damaged this year from the severe rains. As we drove through the mountains, we saw the damage that was done by mudslides. A lot of it still needs to be cleaned up. The road makes sudden detours around the huge piles of mud and rock.

After we settled in to our rooms at the pensione, some of us walked the streets while others took a little nap.

We had a delicious meal together with our wonderful friends from Bay Pres and Claudia Caballeros, our in country coordinator. A surprise birthday cake was delivered to our table for Tom Peate and Cathy Nichols.

It´s time to say good night and get ready for our busy days ahead of us. We will begin the installation at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow and the health and hygiene class will begin at 1:00.

Buenas Noches.

The Journey Begins

Val, Greg, Kayla, Tracy and Cindy are leaving for Guatemala Friday night to begin the clean water mission to install Fox Valley Presbyterian Church's second Living Waters for The World system. It's a 4 hour flight to Guatemala City and then we are immediately taking a 9 hour bus ride up the mountains to Jacaltenango.

They system will be installed in a school, Escuela Oficial Mixta Canton San Jose, San Andres Huista, Jacaltenango, Guatemala. This system will bring clean, safe drinking water to over 600 students and many others in the surrounding community.

Please pray that we have a safe and successful journey. Above you will find a prayer calendar that our congregation will be following.