Getting Into Full Gear

As the opening week of the summer 2010 season comes to a close, every worksite has already seen major progress and visible change thanks to all the hard work put in by the 39 member crew from Houston-based West U. United Methodist Church. We broke ground at the elementary school and have provided countless hours of entertainment for the students. Apparently there is something very intriguing about a bunch of gringos armed with pick-axes and shovels, but although the sight of over three dozen hot, sweaty, and energetic young workers has become a daily occurrence for the local people of Carrillos, the Strong Missions crew has also positively impacted the community, especially the local children, in a variety of ways. Over the last two days, West U has held an exciting VBS program for the local kids, which included arts and crafts, games, and of course, plenty of soccer. The kids' excitement about the program led many of them to follow the group to the local indoor soccer field afterwards for an evening of 6 on 6 competition. However, as the folks from Texas have surely learned, one of life's greatest joys is found through the act of service. Today we took them to visit the Methodist Church of Los Guidos, which is situated in one of the most impoverished neighborhoods in the country, where they literally gave up their own food in order to provide lunch for the children there. As always, the very presence of volunteers lit up the kids' eyes and put smiles on all their faces, giving them plenty of energy to participate in the scheduled activities that the group from Houston had prepared for them. As the first group of the summer season, the people from West U. have definitely set the bar high, and we at Strong Missions are stoked to see what else God has in store for the local community as we look forward to welcoming the hundreds of volunteers still to come this summer.

PAZ,

Johnny