El Salvador Mission Trip

July 30 – August 7, 2008

Rather than write up the lengthy journals that I normally produce following a mission trip, this year I am presenting a summary journal which hits the high points.

Wednesday, 30 July

As usual, we are early at the airport in order to allow adequate time to clear security. I arrive about 4:45 AM! We had good flights to El Salvador, passed through Immigration, collected our luggage, and cleared Customs. I was surprised not to find Juan de Dios waiting for us. So we gathered our luggage together and waited for him. Shortly, I spotted his father, Don Carlos, coming through the crowd. He informed me that Juan was bringing the bus and had a flat tire! He showed up shortly afterwards and we loaded up and headed off to the western part of the country to the city of Ahuachapan.

There are 25 persons in my team, 13 making their first trip to El Salvador. 11 team members are high school or college students. They represent United Methodist, Baptist and Christian Churches.

On the way to Ahuachapan we made a brief stop in Coatepeque to pick up three teens from the Methodist Church there who are working on the project with us. We arrived at the Hotel San Jose (the simple hotel where the teams often stay) and move into our rooms. My roommate is Paul, a 19 year-old student at East Carolina University.

Thursday, 31 July

The bus came for us a little after 8 AM and we proceeded just beyond the edge of town to the very poor neighborhood of La Providencia. The average income for these poor families is about $60 per month. I led the morning devotions using Psalm 127.1 as the scripture theme. Then we divide up volunteers (both American and Salvadoran) and assign to the houses. House #1 is being built in the yard of another older and simple house.

House #2 is replacing a sun-dried mud brick house (with a dirt floor) that is badly deteriorated. Before construction can begin, most of that house must be demolished to make room for the new concrete block house we will build. Juan de Dios personally (and easily) kicked down one wall by himself.

House #3 will replace a house that also must be demolished first. It is a simple structure of plastic sheet over a spindly wood frame. When the volunteers arrive at the site, the family already has most of the old house down.

All three of these families are so poor that they could never afford the payments on a Habitat for Humanity house. They are blessed that the Methodist Church of El Salvador is coordinating this project to help them have a decent little house in which to live. At midday we gather at House #1 for lunch, because there is more shade there.

About a third of our group is actually a youth mission team from my United Methodist District. In the afternoons they will be working on a special food distribution project. So after lunch we went to a food wholesaler to but bulk food. We brought it back to the hotel and assembled 65 food parcels containing beans, rice, canned fish, oil, salt, sugar, and other staple foods.

In the evening the group went to the La Choza Restaurant on the edge of town, a very good pupuseria. There we had a great meal of Salvadoran pupusas, stuffed tortillas. Afterwards we stopped in town for ice cream before returning to the hotel.

Friday, 1 August

After breakfast, we all headed out to the work site, where the morning devotional was lead by our Baptist team members. Then off to work. At house #1 block is being laid. At the other two houses the foundations are still being prepared. Good news today! The $10,000 that I had wired a week earlier for building materials has finally cleared the bank! Praise the Lord!

There are many varieties of work to be done on the sites. Blocks must be moved (at House #3 carried up a hill), sand must be sifted, lots of shovel work on the foundations, and of course filling in between the blocks with mortar.

After lunch, the Youth team began delivery of food parcels. We visited in a number of homes including one house where a poor little old lady lived alone. It was a crudely constructed hut with a mud floor. Standing inside we could see where the sunlight shone through revealing gaps in the wall. Beside her little cot was a concrete slab. Crudely painted over the end of her bed were the words in Spanish, Dios es Amor (God is Love). She told us that at 3 AM that morning, she had knelt on the concrete slab and prayed for God to help her because she needed food. She now praised god because these young persons had brought her food.

She lived at the bottom of a little hill. The rain water ran freely through her house turning the dirt floor into mud. But she had a faith, a dignity, and a joy that we admired.

Saturday, 2 August

After breakfast we took off in the bus. Our first stop was at the pre-Colombian ruins and pyramid called Tazumal. Then we drove on to the capital city of San Salvador where we stopped at a large shopping mall for lunch at the food court. While the others did some shopping, Juan de Dios and I met with our friends Jose Luis Villasenor and his father-in-law, Efren Reyes. Jose Luis lives in NC and was in El Salvador with a United Methodist church team working on a Habitat for Humanity project. Efren is a Salvadoran pastor who works for an interfaith organization.

After leaving the mall, we stopped at the memorial for Archbishop Romero, a Roman Catholic Archbishop assassinated in 1980 because of his advocacy for the poor. It is important for the group to understand this part of the history of the country. It was after this assassination that the civil war really fired up.

We then returned to Coatepeque and gathered my friend Estefany and her family for an outing to Pizza Hut. We had 44 persons on this small bus which seats 25. But the children really enjoy this

special treat.

Sunday, 3 August

Today we rode the bus to the mountain town of Juayua to sightsee, shop in the street markets, and have lunch. Along the way we stopped at a scenic overlook from which we could see the famous volcano, Izalco, said to be the most perfect volcanic cone in the world.

Then we returned to Ahuachapan to attend the worship service at the Iglesia Metodista Roca Eterna (Eternal Rock Methodist Church). Juan de Dios tells me that there is a man to be baptized that day, and they would like one of the American pastors to do it. Also there will be Holy Communion. I ask Pastor Laura to do the baptism since she is fluent in Spanish.

Pastor Laura baptizes by pouring water over the head of the man. It is the first time in I have been present for a baptism in El Salvador, a special moment indeed. I invite the other two American pastors, Pastor Judson and Pastor Jane, to assist in serving Holy Communion. It is a wonderful service full of spiritual power. We are grateful to be a part of it.

Monday, 4 August

Monday morning devotions are led by the Salvadoran Methodist young people. The rest of the day is typical with construction work in the morning. After lunch the youth team continues to deliver food parcels to poor families.

In the late afternoon, arrangements have been made to use a soccer field for an hour. Some from our group and the Salvadorans form three teams. They play a number of games. Juan de Dios told me later that all the Salvadorans were saying that our mission team had the best soccer players of any American mission team they had hosted. Our guys really enjoyed the soccer.

Tuesday, 5 August

Five persons from our group returned to the US today because of work commitments, going to the airport a little after 7 AM. Tuesday morning devotions are led by the District Youth Team.

We are really seeing progress in the construction now. House #1 is up to 9 rows of blocks. The other houses aren’t quite so far along, but they weren’t started so quickly because the former structures on those sites had to be demolished first. In the afternoon there were more food deliveries. We have found several families who appear to be pure Indian, with little or no Spanish blood.

They are living in poor mud brick houses and with a very low income. They are very happy to receive the parcels of food we distribute. The Methodist Church of El Salvador is planning to begin a new church in this community. Over this summer various mission teams from the US will help to build a total of 7 houses for the poor and distribute food parcels to dozens of families.

In the evening we return to the community for a special church service at House #1. Turns out it is also a community gathering to honor the international volunteers and tell us good bye. I have been very pleased both with the hard work and the open hearts of this group. They have made many new friends and shared much laughter and joy. They have also given a wonderful witness to the love of God through helping poor families.

Wednesday, 6 August

The morning devotion is led by the Page Memorial UMC team members, Pastor Jane and her children.

After lunch there are many photos and tearful good-byes. We return to the hotel and gather our belongings to move to San Salvador for our final night in El Salvador. After checking in at a hotel in the city, we went to a wonderful Chinese restaurant in the city for dinner where we were joined by some Salvadoran friends.

Thursday, 7 August

Leaving the hotel around 8:30 AM, we make the customary stop for shopping at the Artisan’s Market before leaving the city. Then we proceed to the airport for our flight home to NC.

Our hearts and minds are full from the experiences we have shared. Our journey has been one of good will, new friends, and hard work. It has also been a spiritual journey as we have given of ourselves to be witnesses to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We have opened our hearts to these people and they have opened their hearts to us. We have grown close to one another, as well as, to many new friends in a short but intense experience. God has blessed us greatly. We hope and pray that God has blessed others through us. Perhaps long after our names and faces have been forgotten, they will always remember that some gringos came from North America to work among them and share the love of God.

Glorio Dios. (“Praise God!”)