Happy New Year 2019!

  

We hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!  We sure did, celebrating with family here in Peru.  A lot of you knew that we were moving to Peru in time to spend the holidays with Walter's family and also to spend a week in the mountains doing a ministry outreach in the village of Yaurin before Christmas.  We believe the outreach went very well and has definitely led to future plans of further ministry there.


CHILDREN'S ACTIVITIES
We had hoped to do children's activities in two towns, but in the end our connection for the second town was unable to assist us, so we concentrated solely on the town of Yaurin.  We ended up with about 35 kids from (I'm guessing) ages 4-16.  Walter led them in some of the same games we do at the youth camp we work at in the jungle, but these kids seemed to wear out faster than the kids at camp.  We didn't think of it beforehand but the altitude there definitely had us winded more quickly than normal, and these kids' daily lives are anything but luxurious, so they were probably somewhat worn out before they even came to us.  They didn't want to stop playing, they just needed to take breaks between the games. They all had great attitudes and enjoyed the fun we had planned for them.  After the games, we had the teams color, cut, and paste letters and pictures onto giant papers to put together a Bible verse (Matthew 1:21) and then take a break for some much needed paneton (fruit bread) and hot chocolate.  After they were feeling a little refreshed we gathered back at the church and I shared a short message comparing the temporal, material gifts of this world (such as the toys and candy we were about to give out) with the perfect, eternal gift of Jesus Christ. They were a little antsy for their gifts at that point, but I was pleased to see how many moms participated in the whole event (I'm guessing the dads were working?), including sitting and listening to the message, so hopefully it got repeated and/or discussed in homes later on. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHURCH
Sunday morning we went to town early for church.  We quickly found that there was no real set time for the church service, it just began when everyone got there.  So as we waited for two hours, Rosa Perez (she and her sister are the ones who each received a double mattress purchased with donations that were collected for this trip) invited us to her kitchen for some breakfast.  Rosa, aside from being the town's "nurse" who administers everything from shots to herbal remedies, also acted as our hostess on behalf of the church.  She's an extremely sweet-spirited lady who made us feel at home right away.  Her kitchen--and just about everything in the village--made us feel like we had stepped back into biblical times as she cooked over a wood fire inside her dimly lit mud-brick home with dirt floors.  As we entered her kitchen to indulge in some freshly toasted corn kernels and hot tea made from herbs grown right outside her door, she shooed away the guinea pigs (which she raises for meat) that were wandering freely under her table.  She was easy to converse with and was happy to oblige with answers to any questions or requests to take photos of her home and town.  She and I exchanged phone numbers (yep, she has a cell phone) so that we can keep in touch and so she can teach me more about natural remedies :)   

 

 

 

Once church began, we enjoyed a sermon very much like one my U.S. pastor, Gene Flack, would give, but in Spanish, reminding us that all Christians are to be missionaries wherever life takes us, and challenging us to step up and make disciples.  We met a family with two young sons and inquired as to why they didn't come the day before for the children's activities.  They told us that it takes them two hours to walk down from their home higher up in the mountains to come to church and then, guess what?!  After church they have to walk back UP the mountain to get home!  You never would have known they had made such a trek based on the size of the smiles on their faces.  We still had left-over candy bags and toys from the activities day so we decided to pull some out to give to these two sweet boys.  We also gave each family in the church a whole paneton to take home, and laid out all of the donated coats we had collected in the U.S. for the people to each choose one to have....there were only about five families in church that day but somehow, when we started pulling out toys and food and clothes, the people multiplied!  When someone in the church realized we had stuff to give away, they left the service to go tell some friends.  Those friends told other friends, and those friends told more friends.  We left church empty-handed that day.  But it was great to see that all the people who came to receive their donated goods got to talk with Pastor Lucho.  Now he knows where they live and he can go visit them, which I have no doubt he will. 

 

 

 

SCHOOL AND COMMUNITY
One of our biggest projects we were hoping to get done was to build a new home for a single woman, Justina, and her mother, whose current house is unlivable.  Unfortunately, when we planned on building ASAP we were not considering the fact that we are currently in the rainy season.  Justina herself said she'd be uncomfortable building anything before the month of May at this point because the construction could get ruined before it's finished if a big rain comes through.  So we have set the money aside and are weighing all the options for how to build (community volunteers, missions team, paid professional?) so that we'll be ready to move forward as soon as rainy season is over.  Although we did not build, we did get to visit with Justina and her mother one afternoon and Justina showed us how she spins wool into thread and sews blankets and shawls.  We asked about all the dried corn hanging in the house they rent and she explained that she works in the fields of another family's farm.  Often they can't pay with money so they pay her in corn.  We also noticed a nice gas range/oven in her house and asked about it.  She said it was a gift from her brother but she never uses it because she can't afford the propane...she prefers the flavor of food cooked over a wood fire anyway.

 

 

Anyway, since we had some extra time on our hands that we had planned to use to help build a house, we took the two young women who helped with the mission trip (Angie from Peru and Morgan from the U.S.) out to see the sites that Monday.  But on Tuesday we decided to surprise visit the school just to check it out and see what needs they may have for future trips.  I felt a little bad just dropping in announced, but I think the students, as well as the teachers, enjoyed the visit.  I thought that we would just be observing but somehow I found myself at the whiteboard giving the whole school a geography lesson on the equator and the earth's rotation and different seasons (where they live it is nicknamed "the eternal Spring" because there's very little change in weather throughout the whole year, so the concept of four distinct seasons was fascinated to them).  We asked some of the kids to explain what a normal day was like for them.  One girl of about eight years old explained how she wakes up, helps her mom, goes to school, helps her mom, then goes to bed.  A fifteen year-old boy told us about how he wakes up, goes to school, then works in the fields.  He also thought it was funny that I was an adult and did not know that potatoes are planted from seeds (potatoes and corn are the main diet in the mountains of Peru).  We talked to the teachers and administrator about what specific needs the school has.  They told us that the basic text books are provided by the government but that they are lacking in library-type books in all reading levels.  The children love to read books (they don't have TV or internet) but they end up reading the same few over and over.  Also, the government does not provide the individual needs of each student, such as back packs and notebooks and pencils, which is sometimes difficult for families to provide.  They also informed us that there is one family in particular in which the parents separated and father is no longer present.  The mother moved to Lima to work and left her three sons (ages 15, 12, and 8) with the grandparents.  The grandmother has since passed away and grandfather is alone raising these three boys.  We exchanged phone numbers with the school administrator and will be in touch with her on more specific ways we can help the school as well as this family.  Walter is planning to go back with some friends this Spring to catch up and get a better idea of the specifics of our next trip.  We are hoping to lead another group from the U.S. on a week-long trip in August to continue the work in Yaurin.   

 

  

 

CAMPAMENTO EXTREMO PATRIOTA



Now that it's January, Walter and the core group of camp leaders are full-on working to prepare for the next Extreme Youth Camp to take place January 28 through February 3.  Stay tuned for info on how that goes.  Thanks for reading!  If you're interested, below are a few more photos from our hike up to the Lake Pichgacocha, the first of the Five Lakes (Cinco Lagunas) in Huánuco.  Hope you enjoy.  God bless! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yaurin Outreach December 2018

December 13.  That's the day we pack up our things and officially move south to Peru where we'll be diving back into our ongoing ministry and starting up some new ones. 

Before heading to our home town of Pucallpa in the Amazon Jungle, we'll be stopping in the region of Huánuco in the Andes Mountains for a week to do an outreach ministry in some small villages there.  Joined by Peruvian friends from the coast and the jungle, as well as a couple college kids from the United States, we'll be leading activities, bible lessons, and lunch for the children of two different towns; supporting the local volunteer pastor on Sunday morning by providing paneton and hot chocolate (a Peruvian Christmas tradition) and giving away more than two suitcases-full of donated, lightly-used coats to the congregation; and also providing the much-needed materials and much-appreciated assistance to accomplish several construction projects for three single women in the village of Yaurin who are struggling.  Honestly, everyone in the village has needs but we had to choose someone to start with, so we decided to follow the Scripture that says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress..." (from James 1:27). 

Pictured to the left is Justina.  She has no family except for her mother, whom she takes care of.  Above is a picture of their house.  It has been uninhabitable for a long time so they have been living with another family in the village, caring for the family's animals as a way to pay rent.  The most she can make in one week of work (with an hour long walking commute each way) is $20.  We asked her how we can help.  She asked for a roof so that she and her mom can move back into their house.  We are hoping to raise enough money to build a new house for them.  The town has already excitedly agreed to help with the construction if we can come up with the materials.  If we do not reach our financial goal of $1000 in time for the trip this December, we hope to come back in the Spring with the full amount needed to complete the job.

To the right is pictured a pair of sisters, both of whom are single mothers.  The older sister on the left has two teenagers and does her best to help her younger sister on the right, whose children are still young.  They currently sleep on the floor as their husbands took/sold all the furniture when they abandoned their families.  These women have asked for one mattress each to share with their children.  We hope to give more than just one mattress per family, as well as do some repairs on their roof and build a more suitable stable for their animals. 

We wanted to share this with you so that you could witness, as we have, the humble, genuine hearts of these beautiful people in need.  To us, they need so much, but for them, a few little things to make life more manageable will do.  Our friends in Peru who will be joining us on this trip have already received enough donations for two mattresses and continue to seek out more donors.  Aside from that, we are hoping to raise about $1000 to cover the cost of construction materials and the transportation cost to have them delivered to this village, Yaurin.  Any donations beyond that would help us to provide a full lunch for the children's activity days instead of just a snack.

If you would like to give toward our $1000 materials goal, please write checks to Glenrock Baptist Church with "Peru Fund" in the memo and mail to

Glenrock Baptist Church
P. O. Box  151
Fort Mill, SC 29715
 
Thank you again for your interest in and support of God's ministry in Peru.  We are excited to be getting back in the saddle and hope you will join us.  If you would like to contact us with any questions about what we'll be doing or how you can get involved, please e-mail ashleywaldmeyer@gmail.com.  Thanks so much...be blessed and bless others!