Saturday, February 21, 2009

Welcome Visitors!

A friendly greeting to those from far away who have been visiting the blog. At the bottom of this page (and all the blog pages) is a "clustrmap" (looking like the image at left). If you click on it, you can see the number of people who have visited the blog and where they connected from! This was only installed at the end of the week -- there were many more visitors during the trip. We are delighted to see visitors from Jamaica! But Nepal, India, and the UK are pretty awesome, too! :-)

Random Reminiscing


Perhaps the very best memories of Jamaica are the children that we met. Bright eyes. Lovely smiles. Entirely curious and playful. One of the tragedies of Jamaica, we learned, was that present fathers are the exception rather than the rule. And it was clear that once the team was determined to be "safe" (and, indeed, "fun", as the pictures indicate), the children adopted us to temporarily fill that important role. We were alternately impressed by the toughness of the children (they seem to be expert rock- throwers by the age of four) and their honesty and generosity. One young man from the school went out of his way to return a J$500 that was dropped by one of the team. He needed it far more than we did. We pray God's protection and provision for all these dear ones.

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Nice to be Home!


After a long day of travel, and three different sets of flights, the team was (almost) reunited around the baggage carousel at the Dorval airport. We missed many things about Canada, but the family and friends that met us at the airport salved the itch we were feeling in our hearts. Thank you so much to all the support, and love, and messages, and prayers, and patience and understanding! We love you greatly, and are so happy to be home.
For your correspondent, this last week was delightful and meaningful. It was wonderful to get to know the rest of the team much better. And I have to say: these guys are great! I've seen enough patience, humor, stamina and industry to legitimately make our entire community proud. The skills and gifts that were brought to the projects were of the highest caliber. And by the grace of God, we not only got along, but we were able to come closer together and grow to appreciate each other in new and special ways. This is the way that the church is supposed to work together! :-)
This morning, I received a very short and broken phone call -- from one of the school-children of Bluefields. I hope that we were able to touch them as much as as they have touched us.
Over the next few weeks, I'll be intermittently editing pictures and posting them here. There are so many stories to tell, and there was so little extra time while we were there. Thanks for sharing this adventure with all of us!

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Heading Home

We are so looking forward to arriving at home. Sharing time in the vicinity of family and friends sounds r-e-a-l-l-y good about now (sitting in an intermediate airport looking out the window at the beautiful moon). But the week was a blessing, it was fun, and it was productive -- with thanks to God, our hosts, our team-mates and our support.
Things we accomplished:
  • Fence completed around the Salvation Army compound
    • 400 feet of new fencing
    • repairs to damaged sections
  • Water problems fixed
    • pump installed
    • pipes and fixtures installed and repaired
  • Internet Cafe
    • stairs, door, paneling, benches, electrical and lighting
    • supplied with four laptops
  • Chicken coop built
  • Storage shed: lighting and shelves
  • Church repairs
    • door and lighting repaired
    • roof resealed
  • Salvation Army school
    • room painted
    • latrine refurbished
    • electrical service supplied/repaired
  • Community School
    • painted
    • tetherball, basketball and games-lines for the playground
  • Cave Mountain Salvation Army painted

Friday, February 6, 2009

Mission Accomplished

They came, they saw, they clotured! (This bad pun sounds better without a proper French pronun- ciation). Four hundred feet of fence securing the grounds, the newly built chicken coop, and the internet cafe. These gentlemen worked very hard, folks!

Real Jamaica


Meet Berti, fence-builder extraordinaire. Berti is the caretaker at the Salvation Army in Bluefields. He is also a sugar cane farmer... and on the tour of his cane field, we received excellent instruction in the art of organic farming. Berti produces 4000 bottles of gingered cane juice a month. He is also a singer, composer, and delightful company.

Basketball Bliss


To be compared to the basketball rig that was shown here... Peter's brilliant angle-iron work at right will almost certainly last considerably longer than the previous backboard. We can only hope that the hoop (with no such reinforcement) has a few years of life in it.

Favorites


Strange as it seems, this last week has had an odd effect on some of my personal preferences. The picture on the left represents a certain sound that has been demoted to nigh upon "least-favored" status. On the other hand, this last week has given me a renewed appreciation for the sound of running water (in particular, through functioning pipes and bathroom fixtures). It hasn't quite made it to "favored status", however. I still prefer the sounds of certain folks at home.

The Toughest Job


Our unsung leader, Al Heron, spent far, far too much of the week on the road. To and fro between the parish's bigger hardware stores, responding to cell calls by going back for more, tolerating the draconian security policies at all of these stores, and (last but not least) navigating bumpy left-hand-driving roads and Jamaican drivers, Al's constant good humor blessed us all.

Internet Cafe


Steve Wishart, our friendly painting expert, completed the painting of the shelving in our internet cafe this afternoon. Situated a few feet from the Captain's house, this former storage shed will offer service to the neighboring schools. Supplied with the four laptops that we brought along for this purpose, we hope this facility will help us keep in contact with a number of Bluefields folk into the future.

Running Water


The pump, perhaps the largest single-item expenditure of the entire week, was quite a challenge to the patience of the persevering water-project team. With a defective starter, and multiple holes in the existing pipes, it threatened to become the only sour note in an otherwise extremely successful week. As of this writing, however, the pump has been filling the upper reservoir for a few hours. We are optimistic about its continuing to function.

Substitute Teaching


Teaching school was a surprise activity for Peter, Keith and Doug. At left, Keith teaches geometry to the High School class. We couldn't have had a better opportunity to get to know the children!

Cave Mountain



One of the project team braved the precarious road up to Cave Mountain for days straight in order to help the community there by painting their Salvation Army Citadel.

Children



One of the highlights of our visit so far has been the interaction with the children of Jamaica. Often respectful, sometimes violent with each other, but always hungry for attention, quite a number of these dear ones have become close to the team over the week.
At left, the children at the primary school beside the Citadel pose with Bob beside their newly-renovated latrine. At right, Ben shares a moment with some of the schoolchildren. Ben demonstrated outstanding patience during the field day as he engaged twenty children at a time for half an hour with a parachute. For many of these children, it was a stretch on their attention span...! Below, Keith accompanies some of the school children up the hill from the public school. A number of these children asked for Keith's mailing address, and friendly messages were even written to him on the dust covering the Salvation Army van.

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Odds and Ends

At left, Bob and Steve demonstrate the appropriate technique for using an antique wheelbarrow on rocky ground. The "wheel" part of this vintage equipment was slightly over-stated.
At right, Peter gives us a tutorial on the wonders of angle-iron manipulation. Besides steel drill-bits and replacement grinding disks, safety goggles are recommended. Oh, and don't try this while wearing sandals!
Finally, our wheelbarrow demon-strators enjoy the temporary air-conditioning on the school's latrine. The siding and roofing on that facility was just one of many new projects on the "nice-to-have" list. We are so grateful to have been able to check off so much on the "need-to-have" list.

Field Day!

Thursday's focus for half of the team was a "field day" at the local school. Can you imagine keeping 180 children between the ages of six and sixteen entertained for four hours? How about if you only have a quarter-(football)-field worth of rough concrete? How about if you can only understand a fraction of what they say to you? It was a stretch for us, too! But Brent, our local recreation expert, made sure we were sufficiently prepared with gear, and with God's evident blessing, we had a blast. The highlight for many of the students was the new tetherball, but the highlights for the team involved were the wonderful interactions with the students and the warm gratitude from the staff.





Quiet period

Just a quick note of apology for a quiet day, blog-wise. There was an unforeseen technical issue: your humble blogger was unable to connect for more than a day. Believe me, this was just as painful to him as it was to any of you!
Not to be outdone by Tuesday, Wednesday saw the completion of the fence, new siding on the school's latrine and panels and paint on the internet cafe. A home-spun basketball backboard was also constructed -- out of pieces of scrap and angle-iron! We won't even estimate the cost of the engineering-hours that went into its design... but we're all convinced that it will survive longer than the previous one!

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Danger? What danger?


A number of loved ones encouraged us to "look after ourselves" during this week. Well, the week isn't over quite yet, but we thought that we'd supply evidence that we are, indeed, looking after each other. As you can see, Real is in no danger as he services the drain-pipe. We are certain that Ruth will be very pleased. So far the only contribution from the uber-first-aid kit has been a few band-aids -- mostly for blisters.
On the other hand, Doug is rethinking the wisdom of exposing the school-children to the fun of twisted ballooons...


Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Great Progress

Tuesday. End of a long day. One team returned to Cave Mountain to complete the painting of the Salvation Army facility there. The fence team finished their installation of the chain link (to be followed tomorrow with the painstaking business of a gazillion wire ties). Yves, our electrical expert, provided service to the internet cafe, which is now functional, if not quite hospitable. The pump was suitably mounted on concrete and we are looking forward to running water any-time-now! Finally, the school team was able to introduce the students to tetherball, and were able to acquire a backboard and hoop to replace the one featured in a previous post.
While we're hoping that the resolution of these pictures doesn't altogether betray the somewhat sloppier personal
maintenance some of us have been entertaining, we do hope that the same photos demonstrate the wonderfully positive spirit of fun that pervades all of our interactions,
and (we hope) is also reflected in all the work we are doing. At the same time, we are continually surprised at the progress that is being made. At this rate, the Friday post will contain photos from the beach!

Serving the Community



There are two schools in the vicinity of the Salvation Army Citadel. The affiliated school (just up the hill, with the pressure-supplying cistern) has students only up to grade three. Down the hill, is the community school, serving up to grade six, with an "extention" grade nine class. As you can see, these students all wanted to help with the installation of the tetherball pole.

The Height of Fashion

The concrete look is "in" this year. Besides concrete for the fence-posts, we concreted a platform for the water-pump, a foundation for a tetherball pole, and a modest refinish of the basketball court at the school, ensuring that almost the entire team got dirty. And check out that vintage wheelbarrow in the first picture!
For the record, Brent wasn't just bossing Peter around -- you can see from his clothes that he's been at it, too. Quite a number of t-shirts will be recycled as rags before the end of the week.

Feeling blessed

Many thanks for the love and prayers sent and felt. Missing everyone at home -- but be sure that you are in our hearts.

Monday, February 2, 2009

General Impressions

The amount of work that sixteen guys can accomplish in one day is remarkable. But to both get the work done and still be able to smile is the impressive. To get the work done and smile without running water is nothing short of amazing. These fifteen guys I am with have been fun, energetic, gentle, patient, and working very long days. Ok, so it is only Monday... but it has been quite a blessing to see these friends not just working hard, but working hard together. And it is hard not to notice things happening exactly like the church is supposed to work: everyone exercising their own gifts, giving room for the gifts of the rest, and covering for each other with continual good cheer.

Internet Cafe Project


Our internet cafe project team has set the standard for flexibility and patience.

Since making a porch where the door was appeared to be infeasible, they decided to create a door where access could be provided. As a result, the door faces the house (better for security), and the porch is close to the ground (better for safety). Due to the central location, the cafe team has also been the go-to guys for all the tools. The number of interruptions for tools alone has made the progress achieved quite remarkable!

School project


The admini-stration at the school was thinking big: they wanted to have a fence built and a field graded. They desperately needed a replacement latrine(!) But this week, more than anything, they needed teachers: when we arrived, the principal confessed to us that five of her staff were sick! On the spur of the moment, and without lesson plans (let alone Education degrees), two of the school project team looked after the grades five and six classes. The rest of the team installed a tetherball pole, and will (hopefully) replace the basketball facilities...

Water project


The water at the Salvation Army has been an ongoing problem. The water comes from the city only intermittently, and the cistern beside the house cannot deliver sufficient water pressure. There was, however, a large rain-fed cistern up the hill at the affiliated school. So our ingenious water project team is installing a pump. Now, whenever the city supplies water, it will be pumped up the hill, and gravity will supply the pressure everyone needs!

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Building the fence

Tomorrow morning, the indefatigable fence project team is getting back to work in a big way. On arrival, we were surprised by a good amount of prepatory work, and by a team of local friends of the Salvation Army who pitched in to help dig down through the very rocky soil (or, perhaps more accurately, the lightly soiled rocks). Hauling bags of cement up the hill was also a task that made us grateful for the help. Only a few fence-posts remain to be installed.

First full day...



I had to check my watch to be sure that we hadn't already been here for three days :-) -- it has only been one day, but we have accomplished a great deal. Yesterday, after waiting an hour in the line-up to clear customs, we arrived at our lodging just as the "A team" was returning from their day's work.
We joined them for dinner at a cafe down near the beach, and then returned for a devotion led by Jon S. The evening was lovely and cool, and there have been no mosquitoes detected as of today. The cloudless night sky provided a glorious view of even lesser known stars. And the cresent moon was bright and beautiful. While there is a bit of a difficulty without running water, but the ocean (a short drive away) and a bar of soap is quite effective. After waking up before an exhausting 4am this morning, it was an easy matter to fall asleep, in spite of a very small mattress. This morning, everybody's favorite alarm clock, a chorus of roosters, gave us plenty of warning that the sun was about to rise. We wonder if the diner down by the beach would give us a discount if we arrive with freshly plucked "chicken"... Before Sunday service, we scrubbed the lower floor of the school and painted the second color (of three) in the upper floor.

Church on Sunday

Here is the team with our hosts, Anthony and Lisette. We enjoyed a wonderful, heart-felt greeting from the community as we worshipped with the Salvation Army this morning. We had a delightful time of song, sharing, and fellowship. And remind me not to complain when the Bethel service goes beyond 12:15pm!

Welcome to Jamaica!


We made it! Leaving the land of snow (and more snow...) we flew to Charlotte, North Carolina, and from there to Montego Bay. Captain Anthony Sanchez of the Salvation Army Bluefields Corps, our ever-smiling host, was there to drive us across the island. Picking up his wife and daughter, we squeezed nine people and twelve 50-lb bags into the little van. The weather was magnificent, and the drive to the southern coast was uneventful. Many goats, honks, back-yard tombs, orange trees, and digicel outlets later, we arrived in Bluefields, where we quickly found bunking locations and met the rest of our team. They had been tremendously productive over the previous two days. Almost all of the fence-posts had already been cemented, and one floor of the school had already received its first coat of paint. The picture is of the schoolchildren who came to greet the early birds on their arrival on Thursday.

Friday, January 30, 2009

All packed and ready to move out

But feeling a bit sheepish about two 48+ lb. bags! (50lb is the limit, and I'm close with both the suitcase and the hockey bag)

The word from an inside source (Becky S.) is that the crew landed safely, and that in spite of a shortened stop in Charlotte (can I call it, or what? :-) ), all the luggage arrived safely in Montego Bay! Praise the Lord! The same source, however, tells us that they are struggling to get a reliable internet connection, so I don't have any more information from Jamaica.

Awana tonight, then up "dark and early" to get to the airport at 5am tomorrow!

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Leaving on a jet-plane...

This morning at 5:00 am(!) the first wave of the team met at the P.E.Trudeau airport. We hope that they were able to get all their luggage onto the flight - perhaps even with some of the luggage-premiums waived for humanitarian reasons! According to schedule, they will be arriving in Montego Bay at around 2:30 pm, but if their flight was anything like my train this morning, the big snowfall last night might have caused some delays. Let's pray that the luggage makes the only-one-hour connection in Charlotte!

And I have only begun to pack!!

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Fifty extra pounds of luggage!

Last week, the "school" project team met at Brent's to discuss all the things that could be done for the neighbourhood school. The list was necessarily on the ambitious side as there may be some items that we discover to be infeasible when we arrive. We are considering:
  • painting of buildings
  • general repairs and maintenance
  • reading circle
  • basketball hoop
  • tetherball
  • four-square courts painted outside
  • climbing wall
and Brent is even consulting a contractor who might re-asphalt the playground area!

We are also bringing balls, treats, balloons and props for teaching and play with the students. Being around 180 children for an entire week demands at least some interaction!

This morning, we had our final planning meeting, and the logistics of travel were worked out. This afternoon, Jon arrived to deliver a 50lb hockey bag full of school supplies and children's clothes. This will be my second checked bag. Of course, this means repacking the entire thing! I now have a mattress, a mosquito net, all manner of odds and ends, and I am hoping to have some luggage space remaining for things like clothes!

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Roast beef!

This afternoon, some of the ladies of the church, including some of the wives of our team-members, put on a delicious lunch for the entire church. This gave us an opportunity to share some more details of the trip with the entire congregation.

Prayers were said and some donations were made. It is a great feeling to be working on a worthwhile project together with so many wonderful people.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

My first planning meeting

Ok. It seems a little more real now... and very much closer!

This morning was the second general planning meeting for all those going to Jamaica at the end of the month, and the first that I've attended. All sixteen of us were present. And it sure looks like we will be busy!

We talked about mosquito nets; we talked about fancy tools for fence installation; we talked about connectivity; we talked about suitcases; we talked about food; we talked about water -- and all before 9:20 in the morning!

The big project will be installing 400ft-ish of fence. We're not talking about a friendly neighborhood fence, either. Buried one foot deep. Three-foot cement footings for the fenceposts. Lots and lots of work. The project manager for the fence is Marc, and he's already done Monte Carlo simulations of worker efficiency to reduce risk on this one.

The next big project explains the need of the fence: we will be installing an internet cafe. An existing shed will be refurbished, and made habitable. It will be fed electricity and four laptops will be installed with a wireless router.

Other projects include playground reconstruction and the painting of a number of buildings in the neighborhood.
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