Hola friends and family!!!
Becca Corlee and Andrew Baugher, here known as Becky and Andy.
Today we went to the dump. The ground was covered in trash and it was impossible to tell where the ground was. Around us were walls that appeared to be made of rock but on closer inspection were nothing but trash mounds. People here lived amongst the garbage day in and day out. It was really hard to see the life styles of the people there. The daily routine was to wait for trash trucks to deliver their load, then tear open the bags to look for anything worth using or selling.... or eating. When trash is delivered dogs, vultures, children, and adults alike rush to the pile in desperation. There is no seperation between the species. It truly seemed like hell on earth. It was one of the hardest things to witness. It felt good to bring what little happiness we could to the people there. We gave them a good and clean meal with fresh filtered water. After serving the people we played with the kids and is was awesome to see the smiles we brought to their faces. It was again hard though to see the little boys literally rolling on the ground after failing to catch a frisbee. On a lighter note though, after the dump the group got to go get pizza and then head to Casa de Esperanza which means House of Hope. This is a childrens home, where we helped mix concrete to start building a place for the children to play soccer. We also got to play with the kids when they woke up from their nap. Some of them spoke english which was nice because there has been such a language barrier for the past week and a half. It got really really cold and started to rain so unfortunately we had to leave early. So after an hour and a half bus ride, freezing cold showers, and warm food we are now sitting here typing about our day. Sadly there aren't enough words to descride the situation we saw today but we thank God that we are so blessed to have such a clean and wonderful place to live, and families that love and adore us. Though a long term solution is far in the future, we can at least be thankful that God provided us with the resources and love to share with these people.
Special thanks to the Alameda crew today- Robbie Mulinax, Matt Sutterfield, Brandon Cook, Hilary Meyer, McClane Daniels, Robin Parker, Korry Rogers, Kate Parker, Kristan Clingan, Kimmy Berry, Allie Berry, Stan Berry, Josh Hendrix, Randy Hendrix, Lincoln Hendrix, Dawnita Montgomery, Gail Blaylock, Hailey Woodard, and Kevin Woodard.
Becca Corlee and Andrew Baugher, here known as Becky and Andy.
Today we went to the dump. The ground was covered in trash and it was impossible to tell where the ground was. Around us were walls that appeared to be made of rock but on closer inspection were nothing but trash mounds. People here lived amongst the garbage day in and day out. It was really hard to see the life styles of the people there. The daily routine was to wait for trash trucks to deliver their load, then tear open the bags to look for anything worth using or selling.... or eating. When trash is delivered dogs, vultures, children, and adults alike rush to the pile in desperation. There is no seperation between the species. It truly seemed like hell on earth. It was one of the hardest things to witness. It felt good to bring what little happiness we could to the people there. We gave them a good and clean meal with fresh filtered water. After serving the people we played with the kids and is was awesome to see the smiles we brought to their faces. It was again hard though to see the little boys literally rolling on the ground after failing to catch a frisbee. On a lighter note though, after the dump the group got to go get pizza and then head to Casa de Esperanza which means House of Hope. This is a childrens home, where we helped mix concrete to start building a place for the children to play soccer. We also got to play with the kids when they woke up from their nap. Some of them spoke english which was nice because there has been such a language barrier for the past week and a half. It got really really cold and started to rain so unfortunately we had to leave early. So after an hour and a half bus ride, freezing cold showers, and warm food we are now sitting here typing about our day. Sadly there aren't enough words to descride the situation we saw today but we thank God that we are so blessed to have such a clean and wonderful place to live, and families that love and adore us. Though a long term solution is far in the future, we can at least be thankful that God provided us with the resources and love to share with these people.
Special thanks to the Alameda crew today- Robbie Mulinax, Matt Sutterfield, Brandon Cook, Hilary Meyer, McClane Daniels, Robin Parker, Korry Rogers, Kate Parker, Kristan Clingan, Kimmy Berry, Allie Berry, Stan Berry, Josh Hendrix, Randy Hendrix, Lincoln Hendrix, Dawnita Montgomery, Gail Blaylock, Hailey Woodard, and Kevin Woodard.
Hey Everyone,
So today was definitely a roller coaster for me. This morning I found out that one of my good friends from college died a couple of days ago in Afghanistan - the helicopter he was flying in was shot down. This immediately put me in a state of grief not only for me, but for his wife, and for the world being absent of him - he was a really great individual. Thankfully, though, several of the people from our church that I've grown to love so much were right there when I found out and they were exactly what I needed when I needed it. His name is Joel Gentz and his wife's name is Kathryn. Please pray for them - I can't even imagine what she must be going through right now. Also, Joel's death has hit really close to home for me. It is the first time that I've had a close friend die - I've read about the people dying in combat, but I've never actually knew any of them. I have a lot friends in the military and we all understand the inherant danger that comes with the job, but it doesn't make it any easier when you lose someone you love like a brother or sister.
For the rest of the day my friend was constantly on my mind, but I didn't let that distract me from the mission that needs to be completed down here. When I told Amber about Joel I told her we should continue to work and that we should dedicate today to our friend. And that's what we did, we worked for him.
I went to the dump today and it was hard to see people in that situation. We were told before we went in to remove items that you wanted to keep, because if you were wearing a hat, sunglasses, watch, etc... you would be asked by the people of the dump for that item. This was a safety precaution that was put in place to keep our people from getting in a compromising situation. Once there we served them spaghetti, cookies, water, and we played with them. Playing with the kids there I realized that no matter how bad their circumstance is, they are still kids. You could see that sparkle in their eyes when you blew them bubbles or threw them the frisbee. It really made me love them all that more and want to do something to better their life. They didn't let us take cameras to the dump, so unfortunately we don't have any pictures - but the experience will stick with everyone that went for the rest of our lives. Here are a few more pictures:
God Bless,
-Robbie
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