Hearing Test for Kimberly

A while back we blogged about Kimberly, the daughter of the pastor we work with in El Tejar. Her parents were concerned that she was not hearing as clearly as she should. When we took her to Hermano Pedro in Antigua they told us to come back in February when the audiologist would be there, but we didn't want to have to wait that long to find out about her hearing. Another organization referred us to an audiologist in the city and we were able to take Kimberly and her mother there today.

Kimberly was very nervous -- she was riding around with us in the city (which I think was her first time) and she was experiencing many things for the first time like riding in an elevator. Then we remembered that the last time Kimberly saw us was at the dental clinic and most of the kids then were getting shots and teeth pulled. She probably didn't know what to expect!

She was relieved to find out that she didn't need any shots today. They did find that she has hearing loss in both ears. The hearing clinic had received a grant and we were happy to find out that Kimberly qualifies to receive her hearind aids for free! They took the impressions today and her hearing aids should be ready around the first of October.

We are so happy for what this means for Kimberly. She has been in elementary school for four years, but has had to repeat the same grade each year. It's no wonder considering there are 60 students in her class and she has not been hearing the teacher's instructions. Thank you to Brad and Holly Clark for organizing a yard sale to raise money for different ministries in Guatemala. Because of their help, Kimberly has a much better future ahead of her!

Three Houses in Three Days

Robby had a very busy week building three houses in three days! Today Leah, Cohen, and I went along with him to visit with the families and to install the last stove. Orily and the kids had a great time together.

Here is the "before" picture of this family's kitchen.

Here is the mother with her new onil stove. She now has much more time because she doesn't have to gather a load of firewood each day to cook for her family. This stove just requires a small amount of wood and the smoke is vented out of the house. Needless to say, this mother is thrilled with her new kitchen!

Cohen jumped right in and started playing soccer. He was surprised to find out that this little boy was already five years old even though he was much smaller than Cohen. We talked later about how this little boy didn't always have healthy food to eat and how it impacted his growth. We also talked about how God wants us to care for people in need like this little boy and his family.

Leah made friends quickly when she saw this little boy's Jeep! Of course there was no battery, so the older kids took turns pushing the smaller ones around the yard.

The kids showing us their conejito - little bunny.

This mother is Eva who received a new home last week. She had already fixed up her house, lining the outside surrounding the house with bricks. Her stove is setup and she is selling chile rellenos (which smell delicious by the way) to support her family. She shared today that God had spoken to her in a dream telling her He was going to take care of her family and it is clear that she knows that this gift was from above!

August Newsletter

When we set out on this adventure to Guatemala we thought we would be here for a very long time. Maybe because we felt God calling us to Guatemala so strongly, we thought we would be here long-term. But because of many factors that we will share with you, we have decided to come back to Kentucky.

As you know, we have been working with the Greene family and Catalyst Resources International. When we first met the Greene’s, they were hosting between twelve to fifteen mission teams each year. That number has grown tremendously and continues to grow each year. While we are thrilled that churches are sending more teams to Guatemala, hosting and leading this number of teams each year is not good for our young family.

While we appreciate the work that the Greene’s are doing, we do not feel like we are being used effectively. We don’t feel like they need two families to do the work they are doing in Guatemala. We expected to be a part of the team, but many important decisions have been made without communicating with us.

Aside from Catalyst not being the best fit for us, there are other factors that led us to make this decision. Our support has never been at 100% so we made some changes to allow us to get by. We did not send Cohen and Leah to preschool and did not put money into our retirement account. This was fine for the year, but we could not keep going like this. We want a good education for our kids and need to be wise about retirement.

Cohen and Leah also continue to be sick. It is so common that they have incorporated it into their play. Leah asks her dolls if they feel bad and if they need to sit on the potty. We can deal with the stomach issues, but it is very difficult watching our kids have to go through this so often.

We know that we all have seasons in our lives and we are thankful for our time in Guatemala. During our time here we have definitely been immersed in Spanish and feel comfortable speaking (although far from perfect) Spanish. Our faith has grown tremendously as we have had to rely on God more than we ever had in the past. Relationships were made, lives were changed here, and you were all an important part of that through your prayers and support. We can’t thank you enough!

We trust that God will use the experiences we’ve had and the things we’ve learned here in Guatemala for the work He has for us in the future. Right now we don’t know exactly what that will be. Robby would like to work with Edge Outreach in Louisville on training others in water purification and traveling on short-term mission trips with them. Lori would like to meet and support Spanish-speaking mothers living in Louisville. We are also looking into fostering children through COTA (Children of the Americas) who come to the States for surgeries like cleft lip repair.

We hope you will support us in our decision to return to Kentucky. This is not a decision we have made overnight. After many discussions and prayers, we feel that this is what is best for our family. We plan to return on November 21 and Robby will start back at the Corps of Engineers in December. Until then, we will enjoy our last little bit of time here and keep you posted on the work we are doing.

Dental Clinic in El Tejar

We had a great time with Dr. Shutt and his son Bryan this past week. Dr. Shutt brought his dental tools and he was able to set up a clinic in the pastor's house in El Tejar. Orily visited with families the day before the clinic and we didn't know how many people would show up. I wish we would have counted how many patients came and how many teeth were pulled, but we are guessing over 50 people came and at least twice that many teeth were pulled! Robby and Bryan even got to pull a few teeth. Orily and each of the patients shared how thankful they were that Dr. Shutt came to help the people of El Tejar. Typically here it costs 100 quetzales per tooth that needs to be pulled, which isn't a lot of money for us, but to the people of El Tejar that is a huge expense. Not only did many people get relief from teeth causing them pain, but they also met the pastor's family who open their home to church services several times each week. We hope that this experience will bring in families who don't have a church home.

Cohen and Leah came along with us and played Pato, Pato, Ganso (Duck, Duck, Goose) and colored with the kids that were waiting. We were there much longer than we expected, but I think they enjoyed playing with all the kids. After seeing all those teeth pulled, they both have a whole new attitude toward brushing their teeth!

Abuelitas

Yesterday I went to the aiport to pick up Dave and Bryan Shutt from Louisville who are going to be working with us for a few days. We met up with Robby and a group from Florida to finish a home for two grandmothers. These abuelitas were very frail so we helped them move back into their new house. By moving all of their things, the team was able to see how they lived -- their old, dirty mattresses and the very little food they had. So the team chipped in and purchased new beds and some food for them.

Because the ladies were much older, it was a difficult experience for them. Of course they were thrilled to have a home that would actually keep them dry and they were amazed that they could now cook in their home without the house filling with smoke, but I think they were overwhelmed and nervous about the changes and not sure if they could trust a bunch of North Americans. So they were quiet and cautious, but as we prayed with them at the home dedication they joined in thanking God for taking such good care of them. They said that they would be praying for us and asked that we remember to pray for them as well.

The verse that kept coming to my mind was James 1:27 -- "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted from the world."