Nuestros Ahijados and Security in the Valley

Well... due to continued security issues in the Valley, we decided as a team that it would be best for Ginger and the kids and I (DeeDee) to stay in Antigua for some time, where we could work on language school (and home school for the boys), invite Ginger's parents to come and hang out for a while, get out and walk around the beautiful city as often as we'd like, and perhaps do some volunteering.

I was very fortunate to make a connection two weeks ago with an organization in Jocotenango right outside of Antigua named Nuestros Ahijados, translated as "The God's Child Project": http://www.godschild.org/. Ginger and the boys came with me to receive a tour of their home base facilities, called the "Dream Center." At the Dream Center (which truly seems to be making dreams come true for many impoverished families around Antigua) is located a primary school, all administrative offices, a medical and dental clinic, a domestic abuse shelter, and space for the gathering of a Mother's Group that also benefits from a weekly food distribution. The organization also includes at different locations around Antigua a technical school, a malnutrition center/hospital for infants, a homeless shelter, and an institute to fight against human trafficking. AND the organization offers individuals and groups from the States opportunities to be involved through being Godparents to children in the program or through funding and building of simple houses for families in the program. To say the least, I was very impressed with this organization from the very beginning!

So, to make the best of my time in Antigua, and to get some extra practice with my Spanish, I decided to volunteer in the mornings at Nuestros Ahijados primary school, helping in both a third and first grade classroom. As a side note, I loved the fact that the school didn't end at noon (as the majority of schools in Guatemala do), but lasted until 3 PM, offering students a free and nutritious lunch, more hours of learning, and an alternative to selling candy on the streets in the afternoons. I was asked to teach the first graders their colors in English, and I had a ball teaching them a song that I had learned in my first Spanish class in high school. During my time there, I was blessed by countless hugs and kisses, by games of tag during recess that wore me out, and by a vision of what kids who really enjoy learning (and do not take their education for granted) look like. I believe that God used this experience to remind me of my love of teaching and to energize me for my presentation of our dental curriculum in the schools of the Valley.

On another note, thankfully, much progress has been made in the Valley over the past couple of weeks, and it seems as if the communities are actually beginning to work together to address issues of security. Just this past week, the leaders of the community came together to decide to expel from their villages two different families that were involved with the robberies and other negative activities in the Valley. Kris and Kevin have continued to make short trips into the Valley to work on water projects during the past two weeks, and it looks as if I (DeeDee) will be able to return with them next week and finally make a good start on our dental curriculum in the schools. Thanks for all of your prayers over the past month... God continues to amaze us by the ways he is working, and He continues remind us to live one day at a time, always trusting him for guidance and protection.