So upon my return to San Buenaventura I immediately went to check on my trench from the previous year. To my delite i saw that it has been used nicely and is now home to pipes that handle sewage I guess.....? Whatever the trench is still awesome. This year has been even better then last year so far due to the fact that there are even more kids here this time!!! It has also been very cool to see some of the kids i remember from last year again this year!!! Today we worked, ai helped cement a floor......exhausting. I also dressed up as a clown yesterday for the field day and learned that small children either love clowns......or have an extreme phobia of them. I And yes for all of you wondering......i´m still finding a way to work out hre in Honduras everyday......haha
-Casey Ward
Monday, April 6, 2009
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Holy Week in Honduras
(OK. I posted this on the wrong blog. It was meant for mine... The teens will be doing this from here on out... Amanda)
This is my first experience spending Holy Week here in Honduras. It is already clear it will not be the normal Holy Week. At home, this is a somber time as we move, day by day, to the foot of the cross. Here…it seems impossible to be somber. I realize everyone has a different reaction to what they see and experience here but to me, our time is about witnessing fruits of the Resurrection.
But first…Our morning started very early – 5:45 AM at St. David’s to caravan (thank you Cottage School and Lloyd, Peter, and Mike) to the airport. Until you see 28 HUGE suitcases, 28 pieces of carry on, including a guitar, you have no idea how much stuff a group can haul around! Several of the suitcases contained ceiling fans (thank you Steve and the great folks at Progressive Lighting!) There had been many groans and complaints about the early hour. After we whisked through checking in and seeing the endless line of people waiting we all saw the wisdom of our early start. By the time we got to the gate, Philip had awakened enough to zip tie Carolyn’s backpack to the chairs. Um… no one has scissors, knives, etc to cut the zip tie on that side of security. While the grown ups puzzled over how to liberate the backpack, Carolyn, Mary, and Maddie found a policeman to help. He was very accommodating, especially when we all fingered the guilty party! Philip turned beet red as the policeman called him over. He received a stern “warning” with threat of intense interrogation if it happened again. (Not to worry, Hollie and Steve, the policeman was enjoying this as much as we were…)
The flight was comfortable, full, and uneventful. While we were waiting in the very slowly moving immigration line we suddenly heard a loud THUMP. Anna was on the floor! She had brilliant idea to sit on her roller bag forgetting about the roller part. As she sat, the wheels moved and WHUMP down she went. Auburn, in a display of Christian charity, immediately doubled over laughing! Getting through customs was no problem, although they did pick one of bags to inspect – the one with 93 beanie babies! “Por los huelfanos” (for the orphans) I piously said. They cooed over how cute the beanie babies were and sent me on my way.
After a quick lunch at Erika’s, we headed off to San Buenaventura. The people who hadn’t been there since last year were amazed at the changes. I was here 3 weeks ago and I was amazed at the progress too! The school roof is on, doors installed and window frames in. Toyita and Abel’s house, where the teenaged girls are living has been painted.We had a wonderful time playing with the children. The new folks are already in love with them. I will let some of the pictures speak for themselves.
We returned to Erika’s – a full house this time. There is another group of 21 (15 teens) here from S. Carolina. They are eating on the patio where we normally eat and we are eating in the lower courtyard. Right now, we are all hanging around the living room while Philip is playing guitar. We did a quick icebreaker led by Amy and then Compline.
So back to Holy Week here. Each day is filled with such joy, hope and triumph over the most horrific situations. In March, the teenaged girls at SBV eloquently communicated in a drama they wrote and performed for us that we must all put the past behind us...be thankful for our blessings...and trust in God. That is what we see and fall in love with here. The Lord is risen indeed!
Everyone is pretty tired,especially poor Fredrick who flew into Atlanta last night from Germany... Hasta la vista!
Auburn and Dilcia
Anna with Dulce and Suyapa
Amy and one of the precious nursery boys.
Maddie and the kids
Cool Cindy!
Frederik and Miliedy
Teens by the chapel (minus John who was looking for Cindy)
Mary and Dunia 
John, his girl Cindy, and the kids
Me with Astrid, Reina, Paty, and Elias
This is my first experience spending Holy Week here in Honduras. It is already clear it will not be the normal Holy Week. At home, this is a somber time as we move, day by day, to the foot of the cross. Here…it seems impossible to be somber. I realize everyone has a different reaction to what they see and experience here but to me, our time is about witnessing fruits of the Resurrection.
But first…Our morning started very early – 5:45 AM at St. David’s to caravan (thank you Cottage School and Lloyd, Peter, and Mike) to the airport. Until you see 28 HUGE suitcases, 28 pieces of carry on, including a guitar, you have no idea how much stuff a group can haul around! Several of the suitcases contained ceiling fans (thank you Steve and the great folks at Progressive Lighting!) There had been many groans and complaints about the early hour. After we whisked through checking in and seeing the endless line of people waiting we all saw the wisdom of our early start. By the time we got to the gate, Philip had awakened enough to zip tie Carolyn’s backpack to the chairs. Um… no one has scissors, knives, etc to cut the zip tie on that side of security. While the grown ups puzzled over how to liberate the backpack, Carolyn, Mary, and Maddie found a policeman to help. He was very accommodating, especially when we all fingered the guilty party! Philip turned beet red as the policeman called him over. He received a stern “warning” with threat of intense interrogation if it happened again. (Not to worry, Hollie and Steve, the policeman was enjoying this as much as we were…)
The flight was comfortable, full, and uneventful. While we were waiting in the very slowly moving immigration line we suddenly heard a loud THUMP. Anna was on the floor! She had brilliant idea to sit on her roller bag forgetting about the roller part. As she sat, the wheels moved and WHUMP down she went. Auburn, in a display of Christian charity, immediately doubled over laughing! Getting through customs was no problem, although they did pick one of bags to inspect – the one with 93 beanie babies! “Por los huelfanos” (for the orphans) I piously said. They cooed over how cute the beanie babies were and sent me on my way.
After a quick lunch at Erika’s, we headed off to San Buenaventura. The people who hadn’t been there since last year were amazed at the changes. I was here 3 weeks ago and I was amazed at the progress too! The school roof is on, doors installed and window frames in. Toyita and Abel’s house, where the teenaged girls are living has been painted.We had a wonderful time playing with the children. The new folks are already in love with them. I will let some of the pictures speak for themselves.
We returned to Erika’s – a full house this time. There is another group of 21 (15 teens) here from S. Carolina. They are eating on the patio where we normally eat and we are eating in the lower courtyard. Right now, we are all hanging around the living room while Philip is playing guitar. We did a quick icebreaker led by Amy and then Compline.
So back to Holy Week here. Each day is filled with such joy, hope and triumph over the most horrific situations. In March, the teenaged girls at SBV eloquently communicated in a drama they wrote and performed for us that we must all put the past behind us...be thankful for our blessings...and trust in God. That is what we see and fall in love with here. The Lord is risen indeed!
Everyone is pretty tired,especially poor Fredrick who flew into Atlanta last night from Germany... Hasta la vista!
Auburn and Dilcia
Anna with Dulce and Suyapa
Amy and one of the precious nursery boys.
Maddie and the kids
Cool Cindy!
Frederik and Miliedy
Teens by the chapel (minus John who was looking for Cindy)
Mary and Dunia 
John, his girl Cindy, and the kids
Me with Astrid, Reina, Paty, and Elias
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Holy Week in Honduras with the Jovenes! (pronouced Ho-ven- ess)
We are just days away from the second annual teen mission extravaganza! We return to the lovely San Buenaventura and the precious children... We arrive on Saturday, April 4. Visit this blog every day and follow our activities and see pictures of all of us!
Monday, April 14, 2008
Sunday, April 13, 2008
The Last Day
Saturday was a great day. We went to the "President's House" and learned a lot. Then we went to the Cathedral in Tegucigalpa. It was very beautiful. After a long morning we went to San Buena Ventura for the last time. First, we ate lunch with the kids and watched a program they had planned. We heard a few testimonies and they were sad yet happy.
I have never known such a mature ten year old such as Julio. He has been living at the home for what he says, five years. Before he came to the home he had to work to support his family and was beaten by his step-father often, and his mother did nothing.
After the sad part we went outside and played with water balloons and tie-dyed. The kids seemed to enjoy this a lot. As we were having fun I realized that we were forming real friendships with these children. What surprised me the most was when a little boy ran by me and said, "Adios, Alyssa." I knew that it was Moises, but I did not know that he knew me. This was very cool and I will always remember that moment.
That day I got some of the best hugs ever because all these kids really want is some love from the people they care about.
Leaving was extremely hard. I didn't want to get in the van and just drive away. I walked as slowly as I could just to be able to spend that little extra time with these children. But what made me happy was that I knew somehow I would be back there again.
Already Missing LAMB...
alyssa
I have never known such a mature ten year old such as Julio. He has been living at the home for what he says, five years. Before he came to the home he had to work to support his family and was beaten by his step-father often, and his mother did nothing.
After the sad part we went outside and played with water balloons and tie-dyed. The kids seemed to enjoy this a lot. As we were having fun I realized that we were forming real friendships with these children. What surprised me the most was when a little boy ran by me and said, "Adios, Alyssa." I knew that it was Moises, but I did not know that he knew me. This was very cool and I will always remember that moment.
That day I got some of the best hugs ever because all these kids really want is some love from the people they care about.
Leaving was extremely hard. I didn't want to get in the van and just drive away. I walked as slowly as I could just to be able to spend that little extra time with these children. But what made me happy was that I knew somehow I would be back there again.
Already Missing LAMB...
alyssa
Saturday, April 12, 2008
The Las Afternoon
So this afernoon we hung out with the kids at San Buena Ventura. IT WAS AWESOME!! I have never had so much fun doing absolutly nothing. We basicly hung out the entire time and served as human jungle gyms for the kids to perform acrobatics on. I aslo discovered why hispanic countries tend to be good at soccer. We sat around and did soccer tricks for 4 hours, and time flew by. The enviorment and spirit of the game was amazing. I also made friendships that will last me a life time. When the whistle blew signaling that it was time to leave, I experienced one of the saddest momments of my life. The kids didn't want me to leave, and I didn't want to leave either. I didn't want to leave because this week with those kids, I experienced true happiness.
Friday, April 11, 2008
last day of work
Today was our last day on the work site and our last day of spending time with the workers. Thoughout the course of the week I have felt like I have been in the way and seriously slowing these people down. They are hard workers and fine craftsmen... and they were very patient with us. They outworked us and earned the equivalent of $25 dollars for the week. I pray that God will help me to remember them next time I am frustrated with someone's ignorance or complaining because I can't afford something I don't really need anyways. I pray that they sensed my admiration and that they know I hold them in the higest of regards.
The End of the Trench
Ok so Thursday morning before lunch i setout on a mission. To finish the trench!!! And man was that a grueling morning. I have concluded that back in Georgia, if you ever needed to dig a trench for a foundation or something, I'd be the man to ask. I've gotten it down to a science. Here is the order of tools your use. First pick, then shovel, then shavlin thing, then shovel, then pick, then shovel, then javlin thing, then shovel and so on. The last 10 minutes before lunch were possibly some of the ,ongest minutes of my life......I mean I had about 3 more feet to dig......but I wasn't getting any closer!!! It was very confusing. Anyway, after lunch I came back and dominated those last couple of feet with a few swings of my mighty pick/shovel/javlin thing. SO there you have it. The story of the trench.
-Casey Ward
Theta Nu Theta Co-founder
-Casey Ward
Theta Nu Theta Co-founder
Curses, foiled again!
I got up extra early so I could post the story of Matt and Katie. Rats. She beat me to it but her account of the incident is accurate! There was much hilarity last night as we shared our high and low points and recalled some of the other funny moments over the past week. One recurring memory is of Alyssa on our first night. We were tossing a hacky sack around and the recipient had to answer a question from the thrower. Becky tossed it to Alyssa. The hacky sack landed on the ground and Alyssa said, with much conviction, "I didn't NOT catch it. It just didn't hit my hand." (She stands by that to this day.) Philip (who by his own admission only pays attention about half the time) got confused the other day and asked Pamm if the lights had flickered or had he come in on the back end of a blink! Maybe the sun is getting to us!
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