Stove Top Chimney
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
I was told on
my last visit to San Lucas Mission in Guatemala (2009), that a part of you will
always stay in San Lucas~ that was especially true for me. The people of San Lucas have never left my
heart. I prayed how God could use me to
help their family. I learned how on this
last trip November 22-Dec 2 while traveling with 13 others.
The more I've
gotten to know Bonifacio Cuz Tzunun and his family the past 4 1/2 years through
letter writing, the more connected I felt.
I wanted to share that connection with everyone else... especially with
you my faith community. Bonifacio was
orphaned at 7 months old. His mother was
brought to the San Lucas clinic and died. Bonifacio was found, very sick in his
mother's back-sling. He was taken to
Casa Feliz Orphanage and there he grew up with the other 175 orphans and became
an adoptive son to Father Greg Schaffer, the founder of San Lucas Mission.
As Bonifacio
grew up, he married his beautiful bride, Anna.
They have been married over 18 years.
They have six children and learned in 2007 that their seven year old
daughter, Ana (Anita) had leukemia.
Years of chemotherapy treatments, and numerous trips to Guatemala City
each week, the family was sponsored by Father Greg financially, just to feed
their family.
I visited them
on my last trip to San Lucas in 2009 with a group from Fulda, Mn. I was fortunate enough to write Bonifacio and
Anita's stories.
There was something about their family... they are so
humble and meek. They are quiet mannered
and have a strong faith.
I learned that
a hurricane ripped through Guatemala three years ago.
Bonifacio's humble home was built of pieces of wood,
corrugated metal and plastic. Their
family lost everything in the torrential flood waters.
Luckily, there was no loss of life. They built up the
land and started over.
Also during
that time, Father Greg's health began to deteriorate (he was diagnosed with
melanoma) and he needed to move back to the U.S. It was a very sad time, knowing that he
wouldn't have Father Greg near his family.
Sadly, Father Greg died May, 2012. He had touched so many people...over
25,000 people mourned his death.
One this
trip, I spoke with Bonifacio and his wife Anna at length. I asked them of their
hopes and dreams... and Bonifacio shared of someday having a home of his own....a cement block
home. And I knew that was how I could
help him... to help build his family a permanent home. This
Christmas, I plan to donate towards building Bonifacio
his "dream home". I
have been very blessed in my life and want to give
something that I know will make a difference. I want to keep my promise that I
made to Father Greg, that I would not forget the people of San Lucas.
If you feel called
to help or donate, please contact Nichole Paladie,
The crops in Guatemala have been planted this way
forever. They grow corn all year round,
planting the seeds at different intervals.
When it's about knee high, they plant a bean seed next to it, so it will
weave around the corn! Between the corn
rows, squash is planted! Nothing is
wasted here in planting.
In coffee fruit to shelling process, even the outer shell
is used as compost afterwards. The Mayan
people are so reverent to the earth and see their great responsibility to care
for it.
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Our first tour day on Sunday, to the small town of San Antonio... seeing the weavings the women
from San Lucas Women's Center made. All
proceeds go to the Women's Center and their fair trade activities.
Another tour through pottery artisan's shop, Ken Edwards
.
Sylviano Mayorga
interpreted for the painting apprentice.
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Friday, Nov. 29th
It has been a productive last day for all of us at San
Lucas.
Our day started for some with mass with Father Kurt followed
with breakfast. Jaclyn, Katherine, Tim,
Karen, Sillviano & Sherry hiked the mountain across from Lake Alitlan . The hike took two hours and from the top
there was a beautiful of San Lucas. Coming down was very interesting. J
Today we finished the stove we had started earlier in the
week. Some of us also went to the medicinal herb garden and the Women’s Center.
In the herb garden the herb’s that we shucked turned our hands bright orange!
They will probably still be orange when we get back.
This is the last day we will spend with the wonderful people
of San Lucas but it was also the beginning for two Guatamalens. Nichole Paladie
was on a mission here four years ago and she made a promise to two San Lucas
residents. Today that promise was fulfilled. Nichole, with the group, delivered
two pet carts and now these two people have means to get around without the use
of their legs. God bless you Nichole. You gave two people hope and so much
love, the love radiated from their faces and their families.
We have all had some awesome experiences throughout the
week. It has been a blessing for all of us.
Thursday, November 28, 2013
Happy
Thanksgiving! J
We
started this special day traveling to a nearby town called Santiago, where an
American, missionary priest, named Father Stan Rother, served. He was
assassinated during the civil war. He is considered a hero and martyr by all.
He followed Christ’s example, “A shepherd does not abandon his sheep.” Father
Stan laid down his life for his people.
Jesus
asks us all to take care of poor. Sometimes we are afraid to truly give up ourselves
to others. As Americans, we do this to make ourselves feel safe and
comfortable. The people of Guatemala do not think of themselves as poor, even
though they do not have many material goods. Most are grateful for a simple
meal and roof over their head. We are learning to appreciate the simple things
in life and to let go of our tangible desires.
The
youth took part in an avid soccer tournament and had a great time! They played
with the other group of kids as well as a few locals. Compared to locals, the
Americans were not very good. It was a great way to experience their culture
and develop relationships.
This
Thanksgiving was not the typical day for us. Americans from neighboring towns
all came to the mission to celebrate. The Americans who live here currently
were very excited to celebrate our tradition together. One family came from an
hour away!
This
Thanksgiving we are truly thankful and it is a day we will never forget.
November
27
We started
the day celebrating mass with Fr. Kurt. Our work day started at
9:00 with
a group going back to finish up the stoves and the rest worked in the medicinal
herb gardens and coffee bean sorting. The herbs turned everyone's hands bright
orange and the cement from the stoves just made everyone dirty. It was
completely worth it. Jaclyn and Katherine made sure that a soccer ball was
taken to the children they had met the day before when making stoves. The kids
had a lot of fun playing with their new ball.
Karen met
a new family of children and was very tired from running around playing freeze
tag with them. All of the children here are so happy and can entertain
themselves by doing the simplest things.
Victor
from the medicinal garden has written a book on natural remedies. We will be
purchasing the book but unfortunately it is in spanish. Most of us will need it
translated even though our spanish is improving.
We spent
the afternoon sorting coffee and also deciding how much coffee we all wanted to
buy. so look forward to having a nice cup of Guatemalan coffee.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Everyone is fine. The week is going quickly and the
experience is beyond our expectations. Dios vayan contigo!
Tuesday November 26, 2013
We started our day with Fr. Kurt celebrating mass with us.
After breakfast we loaded into the back of a pickup and proceeded to a village
20 minutes out of San Lucas. Our project today was building stoves. We were
supposed to build two stoves but there was confusion and only enough materials
for one stove. The family we visited was a joy to be around. There were four
little girls who really opened up to us and we had a great day playing with
them. We even played some soccer with a few little boys. Returning to San Lucas
we observed a funeral procession going down the street. The children lead the
procession carrying beautiful flowers as they carry the casket from the church
to the cemetery.
Some of the group went to visit one of Nichole’s friends,
Bonafossia, from her last visit to Guatemala. They took a “tuk tuk” ( a little
vehicle) which was pretty fun. Seeing his house was a very humbling experience
as him and his family of eight practically live in a hut, but a hut full of love.
His family is looking forward to the cement house they are going to have built
soon.
Another group went to the cemetery in San Lucas where Fr.
Greg is buried. This is a very interesting cemetery as everything is above
ground. There are cement huts in which everyone is buried.
We also celebrated two birthdays today. Eileen and Hannah’s
(a senior from the other group). Jaclyn and Katherine frosted a big, round
chocolate cake that Chona (the cook) had made. It was delicioso! Also, Happy
Birthday to Torey in Minnesota. Your mom loves you.
Monday, November 25
Monday morning started with breakfast at the mission. We have all our meals together with whoever
is here working – this week we have a group from St. Paul –Cretin-Derham
hall. They do this through their school
– wonderful kids who are full of joy & fun (just like our SCHS kids).
First off we went on a tour to all the different sites at
the mission. The Women’s Center was really neat. It is a place where women can
come with their children and learn how to weave, cook, and sew and to find a
peace of mind in a place of their own. The women work inside while the children
are outside at the playground. We plan on going and playing with the children
this week. Next we went to the clinic. We met the doctors and looked at the
surgery rooms. The other group was there building a wall around the clinic. At
the Reforestation Center we learned about lots of different plants, especially
some of the different herbs used for medicines. Then we learned about the
coffee process. From the planting to the harvesting. This is a major source of
income for many people.
The remaining of the day was spent learning the history of
San Lucas. It is unbelievable to know that only sixteen years ago there was a
civil war going on here. The grief and terror that the people here experienced
was far from anything that we can imagine happening to us. The mission has been
so important in maintaining the livelihood of the people of San Lucas and many
neighboring towns. But as we all know everything passes away and moves on
except for the Kingdom of God.
Monday, November 25, 2013
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Today was our first full day at the
mission in San Lucas. The scenery here is muy bonita. We are surrounded by
rounded mountains and there might have been a few volcanoes (were not really
sure because to us all the mountains look like volcanoes). The clouds are so
low and cover the tips of the mountains. Everything is green and lots of
flowers. Our leader at the mission, Katie, says that it is “perpetual spring”
here and everything is always blooming. That’s pretty impressive to us
Minnesotans. We are also right next to Lake Atitlan which is 2,000 ft. deep.
We all are feeling a little bit
better after getting a full night of sleep. Yesterday we had quite a long van
ride which consisted of 15 people sandwiched in a van for a three hour long
roller coaster ride. Oh and we got a flat tire too. This was miraculously fixed
in 5 minutes with a plug! We did eventually get to the mission around 5 in the
evening.
We live in hotel Iquita which is
three blocks from the mission church. There is a great balcony that overlooks
Lake Atitlan. The staircase has a very low overhang but it’s okay because only
a few of us have goose eggs on our heads.:) There is a sign that says watch you
head (in English) but who reads those anyway.
Today is
our free/tourism day. Mass was held at 7:30 this morning and ALMOST everyone
attended. Father Kurt led mass entirely in Spanish, which was a totally new
experience for most of us. I’m pretty sure everyone at least got the Amens. Breakfast
was held at 8:30 and we went on a boat trip at 9:30. We travelled in a suped-up
fishing boat across a lake in the middle of mountains. STUNNING! Our first stop
was to a town called San Antonio. We visited a clothing shop were most things
were hand-made. We may or may not have spent a lotttt of quetzals there. The
next store we “climbed” to was a pottery store. Everything was hand painted and
pretty amazing!!! Next we ate lunch at a
neighboring town and ate some local Guatemalan cuisine. We watched a soccer
game and then headed back to San Lucas. In San Lucas we went to the market and
found lots of little treats. The ice cream was very good! We also had to get
our chocolate fixes. We then had supper
and spent some time playing games and getting to know the other group (from St.
Paul!) at the mission. Then devotions and to bed to get rested for our first
day of work!!!
Friday, November 22, 2013
Friday November 22,
2013. We journey up to the Twin Cities
this afternoon!
What a blessing it has been
to prepare for this great journey to San Lucas Mission the past year!
We wanted to share with you
about the donations received...
We were able to donate over
$3500.00 to help build tile stoves for families and to meet the missions
immediate needs. Without your
generosity, none of this would have been possible!
As you can see from the
photo (attached) we are also bringing 6 suitcases full of supplies. One suitcase is full of toothpaste for Casa Shalom , an orphanage we
will be visiting a couple of days, and it is located just outside of San Lucas
Toliman. We also are bringing new baby
sleepers, quality toys, new sporting equipment for the mission school and
orphanage, medical supplies, and special supplies the mission requested.
We are also blessed to bring
over 100 homemade rosaries and lap blankets!
Thank you to everyone who
have helped make this trip possible!
What a privilege it is to be
able to travel with Fr. Kurt, my own priest and to share this trip with my
friends~ my brothers and sisters in Christ!
Pray for us that the Spirit
would lead us, protect us and that we would be instruments of Christ's love.
Pax et Bonum,
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
San Lucas Toliman Guatemala 2013 Mission and Awareness Trip
Team
14 parishioners have been meeting monthly for almost a year
now and are ready to leave November 23-December 2. We will be staying at San
Lucas Mission in Sololá, Guatemala.
The purpose of this mission trip is to learn more about a
third world country and our responsibility as Catholics to help the most
vulnerable. We are seeking to understand the lives of the poor and support
their strengths and to try to understand the problems they face day to day and
our role in them. Our goal is to see where we can help and how we can build
long-term relations with the people of San Lucas.
We are inviting the community to “Guatemalan Night” on
Saturday October 26 after the 5pm Mass at St. Charles Borromeo. The team will
be cooking and serving a typical Guatemalan meal for everyone. (free will
offering) Silent Auction items will be available to bid on, the last bid will
be Sunday the 27th after 10am Mass. A slideshow presentation of San
Lucas Mission will be shown. All donations will go towards our San Lucas
volunteer projects and expenses.
The missioners will be staying and working alongside the
villagers, visiting and helping in the orphanage, Casa Shalom, nearby, helping
tutor students in the school, building tile stoves for individual families as
well as helping in the healthcare clinic.
We ask for your prayers the upcoming months… we are excited
to be a part of this trip and doing the will of God.
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