Some Pictures

Decompressed, I think that a few photos will bring back memories and enlighten readers.

Flying into to Tegucigalpa: hillside shacks. Ubiquitous yellow school buses.

Arrival at El Hogar. Children meet us on the loading dock we would then demolish -- in one day.

The other project that would in fact take the rest of our time and involve all of us in serious hard -- motrin inducing -- work. About 5 truck loads of compacted clay and rubble to be dug up with pick axes and shovels and moved with wheelbarrows.

 

The entrance to the shack serving as "home" to one woman and nine children (others at the women's shelter attribute 11 children to her).

Standing outside the shelter that serves as home to the mother of two children that are at El Hogar. There is no electricity, sanitation or running water. The walls and roof have holes and when it rains, water streams down through and around the property, threatening its collapse or demolition by boulders on the hillside above.

 

"Dangerous Dave" looking pensive as he contemplates the home visit.

 

It is not a Maytag...

Water break during pick-axe work.

Having removed five truck loads of clay, we start to form a sand base to lay the concrete on. We need quite a bit of sand ... over a truck load.

Still digging clay at the back we spread sand and tamp it down to form a level base.

That thing weighs quite a bit. Thump, thump ....

I don't think that the children of El Hogar have ever ridden one with tires.

At the end of another work day, we say our prayers, sing a hymn and relax a bit in each other's company.

Security is everywhere in Honduras. This is at a filing station on the way to the "Farm." He directed the way to the banos for Bill, a friendly guy.

School buses from all over North America are the main form of transport. Clean, chromed wheels, shiny paint ... they roar over the land.

At the farm, bananas grow, cattle and other livestock are raised, and children learn modern agricultural methods to bring back to their villages.

Our resident architect and tractor driver. Did I tell you Liz's tarantula story? Apparently, they can get kind of big down here.... But we didn't see any. In fact, no bugs or mosquitoes.

This mural was done by an El Hogar grad. It is in the chapel at the Technical Institute and we were privileged to see its grand unveiling.

Some slight Soviet-style feel, but I assure you the welcome was warm.

The El Hogar van had some technical problems ... the rear seat collapsed leaving some volunteers to "low ride" back from the Institute.

Poverty -- across the valley from Haciendas behind gated community walls and razor wire. Most of El Hogar's children come from this sort of background or straight off of the streets.

On the way to Valle Angeles. About 7,000 feet up and it looks a lot like Northern California, until you see the local houses.

Cooking in the kitchen. On the road to Valle Angeles.

The local iron work is simply amazing.  So are the crafts ... irresistible. My bag o' crafts is out of picture being guarded by Frank and Gayle (thanks again).

Iris, back at El Hogar.

'Til next time, "Dangerous."

 

Gracias, Padre Thomas!

Dos amigos. 

Gracias, LeezKeenchen (that is all one word, spoken very fast), from all of us.

Several of us are not pictured -- this is largely because I shot mostly video with my iPhone and also due to the fact that I will get around to posting video at some later date. We will also create a Picassa Website where all interested can browse hundreds of photos.

Its good-bye for now ....

It is Friday night and we have finished our devotions, planned our cleaning duties, contemplated tomorrow`s schedule .... And we all feel incredible sadness in leaving, while at the same time being eager to return home.

Today, we rose early to prepare to go to the celebration at the Instituto Technico Santa Maria, given in honor of Padre Ricardo Kunz who is leaving the El Hogar project and Honduras to return to the United States. After 6 years in Honduras! The journey out to the Technical School (for older El Hogar boys) was again an exercise in faith (largely in Raul Castro who seems to have the ability to levitate the El Hogar van over potholes that should rightfully consume it). Yet, after some fits and starts we made it to the Institute, set in a tranquil rural lanscape, quiet and comforting.

The idea today was to surprise Father Richard with a fully-operational chapel: windows in place, painted and boasting a marvelous mural painted by an El Hogar graduate now in his final year at Hondura´s leading art school.  Father Richard had no idea of any of this, he was simply asked to come by for a meeting before he left Honduras. As the Epiphany crew walked in (thank goodness we beat Richard and his wife Barbra out there!), we saw all three El Hogar project schools already in the Chapel: there must have been hundreds of kids there! And their behavior was simply amazing ... I fear that a similar group from our own hometowns would not have fared well in comparison.

Father Richard and Barbra arrived and walked into the chapel to a thunderous standing ovation from everyone, a moving moment indeed. The service was long, especially given the heart-felt thanks given by so many that had been helped by this incredible man -- the love was tangible. And so too, was the sensation of real participation in the service. I am extremely grateful to have been present. Some of the Tech boys comprised the band that served for musical support ... and they were wonderful. The rythmn guitar also played drums and the drummer proved to have an excellent set of pipes. The keyboard player also played a five string bass, the lead guitar ... channeled Los Lobos.  They continued to play long after the service was finished and some members of our group had to be dragged out to lunch ... I might resemble one such.

After a nice lunch for all outside in the interior park of the Institute (and a tour of the facilities), we set out for a town in the Valle de Angeles where they sell artisanal crafts representing Honduras. The ride was essentially a backtrack of the morning`s route followed by a long haul into the mountains Northeast of Tegucigalpa. On the way over a particularly nasty bump, the rear seat crashed to the floor, so three gentlemen seated there spent the rest of the journey on the floor. The mountains are the "real deal": I guesstimate about 4,000 additional feet up making for perhaps 7,000 ft in total.  At that altitude the air was pristine and the countryside astoundingly beautiful. I was reminded of being in the Coastal Range of Northern California, only the constant reminders of grinding poverty would alert you that you were in fact in the second poorest country in this region.  Truly, Honduras can be a land of contradictions: gated communities for the rich existing within a stone`s throw from shacks with no power, clean water, sewage or hope. Signs of danger represented by armed security guards offset by sunny smiles, warm welcomes and honest hospitality. Desperately poor people outside of malls boasting the latest fashions and fast food.

We returned to El Hogar to quickly bolt our tortillas, beans and creme queso and go to the dormitories to particpate in the talent show with the children. Members of our choir bailed us out with a stunning rendition of a blues-folk song as an example of "our" talent. For my part, I croaked or lip synched at the back trying not to be obvious for my lack of talent!  The boys and girls gave us an enjoyable show and we were sad to say good night -- although we did manage to sneak in a few photo ops.

For my part, I wish we had been able to spend a little more time on our projects. There is a feeling of investment in our labors and I can`t help but wish that I-we could see them through to completion. I know that I have to let go ... what is done is done and what is not done is not done ... but that just doesn`t seem to cut it. And it will have to. Tomorrow morning we will have one more time to be with the children and at 10am we will be on our way. I am thankful for the fellowship, care and faith of the members of this team. I know that you readers will hear many stories about this mission trip and I hope that each of us can share with you how truly important El Hogar is, how enriching the experience is and how critical our support is to protect these children. Bless you all and see you soon.

BHL

Thursday - Off to the Farm

Today we all went to the farm - a hair-raising ride to say the least.  Raul got us through spectactular scenery and a variety of road surfaces from really good to hardly there to arrive at the bucolic El Hogar farm.  We met with Hector  and he gave us a tour - obviously very proud of all that is going on at the farm.  We started with the coffee beans (near ripe), through the vegetables and spices, and on to the animals.  The chickens lay about 140 eggs per day, and right now the farm doesn`t have any pigs.  It did have cows, horses, geese, sheep, goats, turkeys, and a brand new litter of puppies.  The guest house there is very nice and MUCH quieter than in the city, with a beautiful view of the mountains.  After our tour we had a very nice lunch, consisting of rice, something like cole slaw, and a slab of breaded chicken, with Honduran cheese on the side.  Then back in the van for another hair-raising ride home.  We got stuck in traffic and took a couple of memorable `short cuts`` , to arrive almost an hour late for the send-off party for Rich Kunz that was given at the orphanage.  There were skits, singing, and tributes to Rich and Barbra from any and all.  The kids marimba band was in full swing.  We have a quiet night tonight, rehearing for OUR skit tomorrow night.

On Tuesday afternoon we were suddenly diverted from moving dirt to go on a home visit.  We piled into our favorite van and cruised way up into the hills on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa.  The van bottomed out a number of times on poor roads, and there times when I thought the van couldn`t go further without all of us getting out of the van.  We finally wound up at the end of dead-end `road``  (almost a cliff) to find the mother of two of the El Hogar children, who were with us.  It was a precarious climb from the road up to her house, especially for Claudia Castro in her spike heel, with some of the handholds covered with barbed wire.  There were somewhere between 8 and ten children there, and the mother may have been pregnant again.  There was no food in the house, and the only drinking water available was rain water collecting in a disgusting trough that you would be afraid to wash shoes in.  The house had been condemmed by the government because of the danger of a landslide (the hill was almost vertical behind the house), so she spent most nights in a nearby shelter which we then went to.  The shelter was 1 room, with no toilet and no running water.  There were a large number of children just sitting on thin matresses on the floor, and a number of mothers about 13 years old.  Claudia Castro questioned the woman in charge pretty hard about the state of things, and ulimately decided that the two children that are already at El Hogar would not be allowed to visit this shelter.  Claudia tried to bring another girl back to El Hogar from the shelter (sibling of the two kids with us), but the mother said no.  So we witnessed sad good-byes and piled back in the van.  We all thought long and hard about this experience that night.

dsg  - aka `Dangerous Dave``

greetings from the witness tour

 greetings from the witness tour here in Honduras....
day 4 or 5 i believe although it is hard to keep it all straight at least for me.
we are trying to get a team member to take a cut at this daily in the hopes of opening the aperture a bit on el hogar. the land of love and hope..which i can now persoanlly confirm it is in fact.
so, i signed up today - first  and perhaps last blog tbd.
where to begin and when to stop..suffice it to say this has been one of those life adventures that i had hoped to have and have been fortunate enough to somehow make happen here.
although  it is not about me and not about us it is hard not to personalize and take all that we are seeing, doing and witnessing deep into our very souls. the folks on my team, our team are simply amazing to me.
the breadth and depth of the experience set, international seasoning, personal commitment and deep caring and desire to make a difference in this community and these children's lives is beyond anything i expected.
our wake up call is usually laughter from one of the ladies and then the children in the yard playing after breakfast at 6.30 am. is laughter the best medicine ? it certainly is a tie that binds.
the children, our children--
they are everything you would imagine them to be..beautiful, fragile, hyperactive, playful and longing for so many of things we and our children and families take for granted every second of every minute of everyday.
the leader of the school and the guardian angel angel and legal guardian of the circa 100 boys and girls is Claudia and she must be seen to be believed.. not clear how she bears the tremendous burden of the school and the children day in and day out but i am thankful we have her. you all should be too.
i am blessed to have this opportunity and spend time with the children, the staff and my fellow teammates.
it has been humbling and heartbreaking at times and i have reveled in the team bonding and intensity of the experience..i could and will ramble on with anyone who is interested when we reenter the atmosphere in the commonwealth over the weekend.
just got frozen out and am now back and do not want to push it..
time to hop.
before i do wanted to end with a shout out to my peeps mlada karolinka, superG and RB.
peace to all and to all good night.
what is done is done and what is not done is not done.
wjp

Tuesday, 5 October and Wednesday morning 6 October

Tuesday Breakfast was delivered promptly, as it always is, at 6:30. The day was all about digging dirt and moving it with wheel barrows. Chip Bell´s architectural training came in VERY handy because he pointed out a different way to rebuild a retaining wall and create a good drainage system. Raul and the Honduran workers liked his idea! The boys at El Hogar helped us with the wheel barrowing as well as the digging. Evidently soccer wasn´t quite as appealing as pick axes and things with wheels. We were all touched by their joy and willingness to pitch in.

On Monday afternoon Claudia Castro told Liz that one of the boys, Carlos Israel (age 14), had to be informed that his mother had just died. This was all the more sad because Carlos had just spent the weekend at home, and his mother had been here on Sunday afternoon. She did have cancer, but her death was not imminent. Thomas offered to help Claudia tell Carlos. Claudia was spectacular in her compassion, conveying her own sadness with tears, lots of hugs, and promise after promise that the community at El Hogar would be there for him. Claudia asked Thomas to go with her and Carlos to the family home, a few miles outside of the city centre. The death had only occurred a few hours earlier, but the Honduran custom is to get a casket immediately and to dress the body for burial. So Carlos was able to see his mother´s body, and to be welcomed home by extended family, including his aunt and his 21 year old sister. One of his friends from El Hogar went with us, and the two of them stayed with the family that night; Claudia and Thomas came back to El Hogar. On Tuesday Liz and Thomas, along with 10 boys from El Hogar and some of the staff, went to the funeral, which was in Carlos´s maternal grandfather´s living room. There were probably 50 people, some outside on the porch, the rest of us crammed into the small living room. Father Freddy, El Hogar´s chaplain, officiated and preached about Jesus the Good Shepherd. Freddy invited Thomas to participate in the service. Liz and Thomas were honored to be part of it.

Tuesday afternoon, after Thomas and Liz got back to El Hogar, Claudia arranged for our team to make a home visit. There´s a lot for us to share about this experience, which was, of course, different for each person among us, but the gist for today´s blog is that we were deeply moved, all of us. We´ll post more later today.

Later in the evening we were glad to host the Castro family to dinner at a local restaurant, and even more glad to get back to the guest house and fall into bed. Today we´ll spend the afternoon with the dirt pile. Liz and Jane have some El Hogar board business to tend to, and Thomas says he promises to actually do some manual labor!

Our prayers are with the family of Mary Little, who´s funeral is this morning, and for the repose of her soul, and Carlos Israel´s mother, Norma. May they rest in peace and rise in glory.

Monday, October 4

We started off pretty early with lots of strong coffee. We were all out in the quad for "devociones" right on time. The students stand in a big circle in their smart uniforms while the leader calls the role. Then there are prayers, a little talk from one of the teachers, and then they reverently unfold the flag of Honduras and sing the national anthem. Dona Claudia introduced us all and told the students about us and our visit here.

Next we met with Dona Claudia for a talk about the school, giving us many stories of the children´s lives and background. Several of the kids joined us to tell us how much El Hogar means to them. Dona Claudia shared her philosophy and pedagogy with us. She is always looking for new ways to bring love into the lives of the kids and adopting new teaching ideas she finds during her trips to the states.

Our first assignment for the day was to divide into groups. Some did hard labor: working with shovels, pick axes, and wheel barrows to clear away a mountain of broken concrete and wet clay, others took apart a wooden deck, while the third group went into the classroom and read with the children. We switched off on tasks every half hour. The men felt like soldier ants with an unending stream of wheelbarrow loads back and forth. But the huge deck did come down and the area looks much nicer.

We enjoyed a lunch of chicken and rice outside under some trees. Then from one to three we were in charge of ALL the kids while the teachers had a staff meeting. (Some strong souls preferred hard labor!) So six of us split up into teams. One team played sports, one did jump rope with the girls, and the other did arts and crafts in the cafeteria. The kids were overwhelmingly enthusiastic about all our endeavors and we ended up exhausted but sooo happy to have been with them!

The weather is being very kind to us. It has been clear and cool with a nice breeze the whole time. There has been much laughter and fun as we relax on the porch. Our evening ends with Padre Nuestro... the lord`s prayer in Spanish.

We miss you all ...

Gayle

Sunday Day 2

We arrived safely after a happily uneventful flight yesterday to Miami and then to Tegucigalpa.  As you  may imagine, it was warm and sunny when we arrived and it was a pleasure to be greeted by Raul, Rich and Barbra.  We piled luggage and all 14 of us into two waiting vans to be driven with the usual abandon through the city to the gate of El Hogar.  As we arrived, there were children waiting for us outside of the office, eager for the first glimpse of another set of visitors.

After settling into the volunteer house, we were given a tour -- shadowed by curious children --  of the grounds of El Hogar de Amor y Esperanza, the elementary school campus. Touring the dormitories, we were struck by how neat, tidy and cheerful the rooms were, and impressed that the metal bunk beds were made by the El Hogar boys at the Technical Institute.  We also noticed that there was almost a complete lack of personal possessions, which posed a stunning contrast between our children and the children of El Hogar. We were largely exhausted, and were happy to turn in early after a dinner of beans, rice, plantains and -- of course -- tortillas.

Sunday morning arrived early and we were dressed for church in plenty of time. For breakfast we had pancakes, scrambled eggs, and beans.  Not to mention the 3 pots of coffee. While the service at Santa Maria, the church in Tegucigalpa, was recognizably Episcopal, it was also a totally different take on the liturgy. If you can imagine a Spanish version of the Book of Common Prayer set to electric guitar, drums and keyboard with a choir of three singers, amplified like the Supremes...  We were deeply moved and amazed; imagine singing the Lord's Prayer set to the Simon and Garfunkel song, The Sounds of Silence!

After the service we once again piled into the van to head for lunch.  Thomas took his usual spot in the very back of the bus.  Our destination was Pollo Comparo, a local fried chicken joint a la KFC.  There we were joined by eleven of the honor roll students.  These children followed the universal rule that states french fries MUST be eaten first, along with quite a lot of ketchup. In our limited Spanish we chatted with the children, learning their names, grades and interests.

After another eventful journey in the van (Thomas once again in the far back), we were grateful to roll back into the school for a post-Pollo resposado. A small contingent of us bravely set off with Jose Arturo, one of the El Hogar teachers, into a Teguc version of a shopping mall;  thousands of people were milling around socializing and having a Sunday afternoon outing. Somehow we did successfully negotiate the crowds and returned with a few necessities to the Volunteer House.

Some of us went to play games with the children, such as American football and kickball (the El Hogar children are serious about their kickball-25 children to a team irrespective of age, ability or desire to follow rules.)  Claudia Bell IS the pied piper of El Hogar!  She knows everyone and they stick to her like velcro.

We ended the day with our nighly devotion, sharing our experiences, thoughts and feelings from the day.  Anticipating an early start to a promisingly busy week, we turned in by 8:30pm.

Hasta manana!
Your friends from Epiphany, Tegucigalpa annex