About this blog

This blog was posted after we returned to the USA. I tried to record the events of each day as they occured, but there was no internet access where we stayed, so I decided to just post it when we got home. I hope it sheds some light on what an Impact trip from Lakeside could look like. It was unique in many ways, but Providence is unique in many ways. We are already planning a trip back in November 2008 and June 2009.

Please start this blog at the beginning, meaning on June 10th. You will have to read from the very bottom of the blog to the very top. If you start at the top of the blog, you will miss everything that led us to this point!

I cannot stress enough how each of us are just normal, everyday Lakesiders. People get the impression that those of us that choose to go on missions are somehow different than they are. Well we are not. We have jobs, we have families and we have responsibilities that seem overwhelming at times. We are imperfect people who have just made the choice to follow God on a great adventure! We all want to have adventures in life and there are many to be found on impact trips for sure!

There is nothing that feels as good as serving the Lord with your brothers and sisters in a land far, far away!

God Bless You,

Russ "Rico" Reyes

Wednesday, June 18th, 2008

I woke up early as usual, and found that the village of Tela was also a sleepy village. It seemed no one else was up! I wandered down to get a cup of coffee and just hung out on the beach for a while in prayer. I was so thankful for the many blessings God had provided us this trip. I also marveled at how God’s creation was so diverse. I had seen pine forest, rain forest and cloud forest. Here on the coast there are so many types of palm trees it is mind numbing! Driving in, we could see the dense African palm groves that are used to harvest palm oil. Here at the beach, the palm trees were longer and leaner than the thick African palms just a few miles away.

It looked like it would rain soon, which was great because we had not seen rain in 6 days! Eventually, I made my way back to the hotel and thought I would find Amber and Douglas up, but I was wrong. Finally, like a kid, I knocked on their respective doors and asked if they were getting up anytime soon! I said I was going to eat breakfast. So I went downstairs and ate. The restaurant was a curious mix of a couple of tourists, a few ex-pats and a bunch of locals. The tourist spoke English, but they sounded Canadian and kept to themselves. The ex-pats spoke Spanish with an American accent, but they kept to themselves too. I think people come to this little spot on the Caribbean to get away, far away! Only the staff and the locals would speak to me! Eventually, Douglas came down and finally Amber came down. We went to the little gift store next to the hotel and bought more stuff – man, I needed another suitcase! Then we took a dunk in the ocean one more time.
We cleaned up and checked out of the hotel, but stayed for a seafood soup lunch. It was awesome! It is a coconut based broth, with fish or seafood, plantains, yucca root, spices and curry and some other herbs. It is almost Thai in its taste, but Douglas said is as much a Honduran specialty as the local music called Punta, a rhythmic, afro-carib style music that is really kind of cool! Douglas (that's Douglas with the fork!) told us a lot about the local history, rich in pirate folklore, and we could see the modern day decedents of the pirate lifestyle all over the beach! I had a chance to Instant Message my wife, and I was so excited I would be home soon.

This place called Tela was real paradise, not spoiled by the influx of American tourists. Instead it had a rather edgy quality about it, somehow wild and yet pure. The colorful cast of characters that walked up and down the beach could have been clichés in a pirate movie or a Jimmy Buffet video. There was the shady guys under the cabana, drinking at 10:00AM, and shooting shots of turtle eggs they bought from the turtle egg lady who strolled up and down the beach selling her illegal bounty. There was a guy who looked like a pirate selling conch shells and necklaces on a blanket. Then there were the beautiful local peoples, some who were the descendents of African slaves, according to Douglas, who now populated the Honduran coastal towns. A few ladies were carrying baskets of warm coconut bread on their heads to sell. Douglas turned us on to that delicious bread. There were the local girls trying to talk Amber into getting her hair done in beads, and the young guy selling trinkets at a table under a palm tree, while propping his feet up and playing the guitar. The funny thing was, it seemed all this was for our benefit, and when we left, they would all go back to there normal jobs and lives, like they were just players in a play. There just were not any more tourists around, and as far as we could tell, we were it! But Douglas insisted this place was hopping on the weekends, which was usually when he and his family came. He was almost sad when we drove away, to get us to the airport in time. Childhood memories are precious, and I could relate to him and this beautiful place.

We got to the airport as the same time as the 1st team did the day prior. With no lines to worry about and a quick check in, Douglas bid us our final farewell. He needed to get up the hill before dark. We told him we would see him when we returned, unless he was working for the UN like he had planned, and he was stationed in Switzerland. He was a blessing, and I already missed him before he even left!

Checked in and happy, Amber and I waited to board our flight out. I was able to get online and talk to Lauren awhile which was cool. I could not wait to see my wife, and if Amber’s tears were any indication as she got off the phone with John, she was anxious to see her Husband.

Everything was going great until boarding time, when we found out our flight was delayed. That was not so bad, except that the delay was longer than the layover in San Salvador, so we would miss our connecting flight home! Things slowly deteriorated as the night progressed, and the worry about the canceled flight we had for the team the day before, ended up being our situation. Luckily, TACA worked out a solution that would take us from Honduras to New York and then on to San Francisco. 6 hours after our original boarding time, we left Honduras headed for JFK in New York on a 3.5 hour flight, curiously shorter than flying to San Francisco. We would fly over 6 hours out of our way, and have a 4 hour layover, just so we could get home. Honestly, even though it seemed like a huge inconvenience, God had actually provided for us one last time on this trip, because we were the lucky ones to get out of San Pedro Sula. Only those few passengers headed to LA, San Francisco and Miami actually left the airport that night. Everyone else got left behind, and had no where to stay! Like we had found out the day prior with Douglas, there were no rooms left in San Pedro Sula because of a week long festival, and there were many upset travelers in that airport as we took off!

13 hours later we landed and two hours after that I saw my family again. It was exactly 24 hours from the time we checked in to the airport in Honduras. Even with all that, I would still do it all over again. God is an amazing God, and he alone knows why these things happen. All of us knew that we may not make it home on time, but everyone still went with a servant’s heart.

I hope and pray that many more Lakesiders will take that leap of faith like these 5 people did and let God reveal Himself to them in strange and wondrous ways. After all, life is not about the destination, but the journey. We all know our final destination and it is a wonderful place we call Heaven. It is our faith that allowed us to take a risk and travel half way around the globe with strangers who share a heart to serve, and in that we got a glimpse of God smiling. He is looking for more good and faithful servants with the courage to leave the known behind, and seek Him in places that are foreign to us while spreading the Good News and His love, because after all, He is the one who has told us to GO! This team of 6 found out God will take care of all the details! So don't worry, just GO! Better yet, come with us next time, you will be glad you did!

Tuesday, June 17th, 2008

The morning was filled with excitement at going home for some of us. Although the expectation was that all of us would be here another day. Our travel agent expected the flight out of San Pedro Sula to be canceled, so we prepared the team for that should it occur. It was a flight glitch we did not know about until Ed, our travel agent tried to book Amber on our flight, and was told NO! We ended up dividing the team so Amber would not have to travel by herself, but as far as Ed was concerned, none of us were leaving on Tuesday. Alfredo was coming over to give us his testimony and the history of how La Providencia was born, and after we would stop at the office to see if we could get the team on the plane.

Alfredo came over and spent some time telling us his story. I cannot emphasize enough how powerful it was. I could not possibly do the story justice recounting it here, but suffice it to say it is a story of how a Powerful and Mighty God can do anything with any life! Alfredo’s story could be a blockbuster Hollywood movie, and may well be someday when Providence is a thriving and productive community. Right now it is still largely an untested vision that God put on his heart, and God has surrounded him with people who share his passion for that vision and an unshakeable faith. It will be years, really decades before the fruits of Providence begin to flourish, and when they do, real and significant change will come to Honduras. I hope every member of this team will be a part of this place for a long time to come, if it is God’s will, as my brother Mizael would say!

After this moving story, we headed over to the office to check in. Peggy was able to get the first four on the plane, so far all was good. We said more goodbyes, and Israel decided to come with us to the airport. If Amber and I could get out we would, otherwise, Douglas would stay with us in Siguatepeque so Providence would not have to make two, two hour trips down the hill. We left to come home.

We arrived at the airport in San Pedro Sula about 3:00PM, and the team seemed to check in just fine. There was no problems and so far no cancelled flight. We said our goodbyes to Peggy and Cliff, Rodain and Dave, and Israel and David left to go back to Providence. Douglas, Amber and I headed out to San Pedro Sula proper on a mission for Alfredo and the Leader Trek team.

Three hours later, we had not got a frantic call from Dave or Rodain saying the team got stuck at the airport, but Douglas had no luck finding accommodations for the Leader Trek team due down the hill on Thursday. We did not know it at the time, but there was no room available anywhere in San Pedro Sula that week. We had failed the mission to find a bunch of rooms for the team. Douglas had the idea that for us, instead of staying in San Pedro Sula, we drive an hour to the coast and stay on the Caribbean for the night. He had called ahead and got three rooms at a beach side inn, and we were off!

Douglas had become such a good friend to the entire team through out the week. But now, he seemed like an old friend. He was strong man of God with a huge faith and he wanted to share a part of his childhood with us by taking us to Tela for the night. This was unexpected and really quite cool.

We arrived after dark, and the smell of the ocean was in the air. A breeze was blowing through the palms, and we could catch bright bursts of lightening racing across the sky in the distance. It was hard to tell what the seaside village of Tela looked like at night, but it did seem to be somewhere Jack Sparrow would feel quite at home.

Douglas was glowing as he talked about his childhood memories here in Tela, and he took us to a restaurant where we could get some classic Honduran coastal foods. He ordered some seafood soup that rocked, and we enjoyed different seafood plates they offered. After a quick dip in the warm pool, an equally quick dip in the Caribbean, which was as warm as bath water, we retired to the sound of the waves. I made a mental note to return here with my wife and family! The kids would love all the pirate lore!

Monday, June 16th, 2008

It was apparent at the breakfast table that our time here is almost over. It is a sad and happy time all at once. We are all going to miss this place and the people, but we do want to get home to see our families. For the most part, communications home have been intermittent and unplanned. After breakfast, we met on the porch for our usual prayer time and it seemed somehow more solemn. We were headed out to our last day of work, and we were eager to get more posts into the ground. But before we would hit the job site, we had two side trips to make.

The first was to see Peter, Douglas’ friend who sold things at the market. He was a hit, as we all spent the rest of our Lemps (Lempira’s) on all sorts of things, but mostly machetes! Yeah, our little band of missionaries were armed to the teeth with 24 inch swords that looked equally suited to cutting through dense jungle as close combat! But, they are so cool! They come in a very cool sheath made of leather. No one more than Cliff enjoyed his machete more the first day, as it completed the Indiana Jones outfit he had been wearing. So with it strapped to his side, we made our way to the second stop of the day, the nutrition center where the kids we held VBS for got their lunch.

We saw many of our little friends show up with their parents for lunch, and we got a few smiles! Cliff showed off his new toy, and Amber found a beehive the size of those orange Igloo water coolers! It was cool to see the children again, but we left to head back to get some work done.

Lips Update: Dr. Turcios helped Amber with some medication, and her lips are back to normal from what we can see. Case closed!

Over the course of the rest of the day, we got 8 posts set, mixing about 1800 lbs of concrete. We seemed to have dug the holes too deep and too wide, so it took a lot of concrete to fill them! We were determined to finish the posts we had brought down, so we could feel some sense of accomplishment, but we knew the real mission was accomplished days ago, when we became part of the La Providencia family, and kept the story and mission close to our hearts.

We left the site, looking back one last time as the shadows grew long on the ground. We had worked longer than we had any previous day, maybe to finish the job, or maybe to just spend one more moment in such a magical place. I think God met us there, and each one of us were touched in a different way. It will interesting to see how the future will play out for each of us, and how much of La Providencia we take back with us. It will also be interesting to see how much of ourselves we left in Honduras, in order to bring back something new and better inside.
I watched as the bus took us out of view of Providence, and I felt joy at what God had accomplished in this team, with this team and for this team. We had been blessed, but there was more to come!

Alfredo invited all of us over to his house for dinner. It was dark when we arrived, and Alfredo has a huge, walled front yard, so a lot of people were hanging out outside. That included all the Leader Trek kids and the research team from Wheaton, plus all the Providence staff, Mizael and Bessy, Israel and Holly and the interns. It was a full house of about 50 people, and there was so much going on! There was ping pong, games, and Cliff even found time to give a golf lesson to Alfredo. Cliff, Golf Pro Missionary! We ate carne asada, Honduras style, rice, beans, chismol and tortillas, and it was so good! Chismol is sort of like a mild salsa. The Hondurans put it on everything. So did we! Alfredo had cake for us that said “Have a good trip” in Spanish, it was then we realized this was our going away party! It was a joy to spend more time with our friends, and I really enjoyed talking with Israel about his decision to move his family from Nashville to Honduras, leaving behind a comfy life to serve the Lord at Providence. Talking with him planted seeds inside me of what could become something of significance in the future. We will have to see what God’s plan is for me and my family and how it relates to Providence, but I felt a stirring inside that had not been there before.

After a long goodbye, we made our way back to our house and the geckos that scampered across our walls in the house. Even they came out to say goodbye! We talked a lot about the trip and how we could make it better in the future – if that is possible. I was so proud of this team. They were a model of a servant’s heart through and through. I felt honored to have served with them on this trip and a connection to each of them. They came to Honduras not knowing what to expect as we were the first team down from Lakeside. Some had fears and others doubts, but the reality was God knew all along what He had in store for us. He showed us there was nothing to fear in Honduras, and in fact it was probably safer to walk the streets at night in Siguatepeque than in Folsom! This team was the hands and feet of Jesus, and sometimes even His camera! Amber’s lens was a tool God used for His glory, and I am sure when the pictures get posted you will see a little of what God sees when he looks at his people in Honduras.

Sunday, June 15th, 2008

We were invited over to Doña Lucy’s house again, this time for breakfast! We all got dressed in our Sunday best and Douglas and David drove us the 15 minutes over to Doña Lucy’s house in Aguas del Padre, the same village where La Providencia is located. When we arrived, she took us on a tour of her lush garden, and showed us where that delicious coffee came from! This was like a garden at a theme park, or the Jungle Cruise at Disneyland! It was amazing. There were beautiful blooming flowers, shaded coffee bushes, large stands of banana trees and plants and shrubs I had never seen before. We walked the down and around and circled back up to her house. It was about an acre and a half of garden. Back at her house she introduced us to her twin boxers, two massive, muscular dogs who played fetch with boulders the size of cantaloupes instead of rubber balls! Man these dogs were serious, but so gentle.

Lips Update: Amber figured it out! She had an allergic reaction to TANG as a kid. She found some TANG in the cupboard, and Douglas asked if the TANG had been used for anything. It had been used as the base for the Guayaba juice we enjoyed at lunch on Thursday...oops! Mystery solved. She would get some medicine from Dr. Turcios on Monday at the clinic.

After a breakfast of Honduran pancakes, more like crepes but so delicious, and a bunch of Don Jose’s home grown coffee, we were off to church at Punta de Gracia, the church where Alfredo gives the message and Mizael and Don Jose act as church deacons and elders.

Punta de Gracia is a new church, just over a year old. It is composed mostly of 80% new believers. Alfredo had spent a lot of time working on his message to deliver it in both English and Spanish and have it come in at its regular length. The church is held in a multi-purpose room of a Christian School. It was very cool to worship with the local people and the whole bunch of us from the States. All the Leader Trek kids were there, as well as a few other mission teams working at other locations including the school we were worshiping at.

Alfredo’s message was on temptation, more specifically, material temptation. He is a very eloquent speaker, and his words are few, but powerful. It was during his message that he flipped the entire mission purpose we thought we were on here in Honduras. We knew we had come down to do some work for La Providencia, but more importantly, we knew we were down here to forge lasting relationships, which was the primary goal. It is through relationships that God does his work and we could see his hand in all we experienced while in Honduras. But when Alfredo was speaking about how in many ways, these people in Honduras, who in some cases are poor, and in many cases, do not have access to the bountiful choices we have in the USA are actually better off than we are because they are not constantly being tempted by all the choices we have here in the USA. He said that these people here in Honduras would pray for us, that we may not succumb to all the temptations of material things we do not need. He flipped our purpose of being here in Honduras from us helping the people here, to them helping us see we do not need all the stuff we have back home! It was as if the Honduran people were missionaries to us, helping us see God’s word more clearly and helping us to see the dangers we face daily while in our “have anything we want” culture. It was a profound moment for me, and I know it made the whole team think about why we were there! Alfredo spoke of his homeland with pride and passion. The people at Punta de Gracia may not drive BMW’s or live in 2500 square foot homes with pools, but they were rich, rich in family, faith and love – living simple lives in a beautiful, safe place.

After church we spent some time in fellowship with the people of the church, sharing a light arroz con pollo and tortilla lunch, while Amber got some great shots of the kids and Rodain played guitar for everyone. He is quite the musician! Then we headed into town to do a little shopping. Unfortunately, most of the store were closed, so we headed home. We needed to clean up and get the house ready for our guests. Alfredo #2, who is one of the drivers, but he also seems to be involved at the church and he does a lot at La Providencia, is the king of karaoke! He was going to bring over his stuff for us tonight. Doña Lucy had made tamales, which in Honduras are wrapped in banana leaves, not corn husks, and they are big!

Everyone started arriving around 6:00PM, and it took two loads of gear to set up the speakers and all the stuff for karaoke! It was serious stuff! Man, I did not want to sing!

Alfredo #2 and Douglas and Rodain seemed to get the party started, and then Mizael and Bessy along with Israel and Holly showed up. Alfredo even came over to see the spectacle! With a full house, person after person started to sing! It was funny to watch and even funnier to listen too! Eventually, I was put under intense peer pressure as the leader to get up there and sing…so I did.

Sweet Home Alabama was the choice, and I made it through with a few shards of dignity still clinging to my back! I think the show stopper was David Bagenski’s remake of Barry Manilow’s Copacabana! It was a timeless rendition and got the crowd on their feet. I hear he is touring Folsom in the fall! Mizael and Dr. Tursio’s son Clinton also did a rousing rendition of the Macarena, with Douglas providing the dance moves to those who forgot! He could really shake his booty! Of course the moving moment was the touching, and tender Sonny and Cher classic, “I Got You Babe” by Cliff and Peggy. Overall, I had no idea that this team could sing so well, and so late! We ended up hitting the hay after midnight! Good think Siguatepeque does not enforce the sound ordinance laws! Oh did I forget to mention Amber and Peggy belting out R-E-S-P-E-C-T! They earned it after that one!

Saturday, June 14th, 2008

Doña Lucy and Elsa had prepared us another great breakfast, and we ate it heartily! Mizael and Israel came over for breakfast too, since they were going to go with us to the cloud forest. It was about an hour away they said. Mizael had invited us all over to his house for dinner that night, so we could hang out and watch the Honduran National Soccer team take on Puerto Rico. We looked forward to nice relaxing day and night spent hanging out with our new friends and enjoying God’s creation.

Lips Update: No change, still large and full. Cliff has started calling her Hotlips, after the M.A.S.H. character! She says they still hurt.

We got to the Parque Nacional Cerro Azul by about 10:15, and we were taken on a tour of the hotel and restaurant by the caretaker. She told us it was only $40 a night to stay here in the heart of the rainforest in these beautiful, romantic little rooms. We wandered over to the park map and decided on a direction to take, up into the rainforest towards the cloud forest. If we figured right, we would be at a waterfall within an hour.

The hike was steep and everything was damp. Alfredo had warned us to keep our cameras in a plastic zip lock back until we wanted to take a picture otherwise the moist, damp air would ruin them! Words cannot describe the beauty that this place had to offer. I have never seen so many shades of green, such wondrous and prehistoric looking trees, moss covered vines hanging in random patterns across the jungle, and these high pitched electronic sounding humming bugs we never got to see! It was like being in Jurassic Park; we were just waiting to see Raptors behind the ferns! Every now and then, the jungle would open up to expose the neighboring cloud shrouded peaks of the cloud forest. We looked and wondered if the mountain we were on looked the same way from there! We wound our way up through the dense forest on a trail that was marginally maintained at best, but speaking for the team at that time, we would not have wanted to be anywhere else!

When we approached the roar of the waterfall, the scene can only be described as something in the Garden of Eden. Lush tropical trees and ferns, a 30 foot high waterfall, and huge boulders at the base. We decided to eat our lunch here and just hang out for a while! Mizael was the first one to head into the waterfall, and he made it look so refreshing. I did not mention it was HOT, and wet in the cloud forest! Our clothes clung to our bodies as we hiked, so that waterfall was looking pretty good. Mizael kept trying to get me and the rest of us in the water, but we held off for awhile, until Amber said why not. Well, how could us burly men let a girl go into the waterfall and not go ourselves! Me, Rodain and Cliff all found our way into the cool water that pounded us from above. It was like standing under a bunch of people with closed fists pounding you on your head and shoulders, the water was falling at such a high velocity. I dare not open my eyes as it might have just washed my contacts into the Honduran cloud forest! We got a group picture there that is priceless!

It was at this point where we decided to continue on up to the cloud forest and not just double back to the visitor center. That decision would test our resolve, patience, faith and health to the very limit.

The next two hours we continued to hike what would eventually be a 5.4 mile hike up shear mountain paths, through the very top of the cloud forest, running out of water at the midpoint, and then descending out of the forest for about 60 minutes. It was tough going and I was worried about the team and injury. But, the scenery was amazing, and the view from the top breath-taking. I know we were all praying for God to keep us safe as we made our way down the mountain, tired, thirsty and soaking wet! Needless to say, none of us dried off on the hike because the humidity was so high! It was a joyous sight to see the visitor center and the chilled liter bottles of water waiting for us! All in all, it was a great hike, but next time we will be better prepared with the knowledge of the difficulty, the length of the hike, and the time needed to complete it. But we chalked it up to the experience of being the first team to hike the cloud forest in its entirety!

Back at the homestead, we showered and cleaned up. None the worse for wear, we headed over to Mizael’s house for dinner. When we arrived, the game was on TV, and there was a huge spread of Chinese food waiting for us to devour it! The funny thing is, when we heard that we were going to have Chinese food earlier in the week, we kind of balked at it in favor of more Honduran food, but in actuality, the Honduran people LOVE Chinese food, and it is a big part of the culture! Go figure! It is common to serve it to big groups and family get-together’s, so this was no different. It just meant less work for Bessy, Mizael’s wife! The Honduran team kept it interesting, but Puerto Rico would not relent. So as we watched the game, we had the typical Chinese food you would get in the states, with the exception of one thing. Where as we have beef and broccoli, they have beef and jalapeños! There was tons of food, so we each tried everything there, including the scorching hot beef. It turns out because David was asking for hot sauce earlier in the week; he developed the reputation of liking spicy foods, so they got it in his honor. I can only tell you that there was not a dry eye in the place after eating that stuff! I mean it was super tasty, really tasty, but HOT! My tongue was scorched the rest of the night and into Sunday! The rest of the food was awesome as well, and we did our part to eat it all.

After dinner, we watched as the Honduran team tied the game with the Puerto Rican team, and it ended in a tie. Rodain found a keyboard in the office and started playing beautiful classical music. We were blown away at his piano playing skills! After the game, Mizael and Cliff found a common bond, in that they both love Celene Dion….so Mizael put on a Celene Dion DVD, and they all started singing along! Now, this is the part of the blog I have to remember that I am a good Christian man, so I will behave, but I would rather have a root canal than sit through a Celene Dion concert, so I had no choice but to revoke Cliff’s man-card for a day! LOL.

He was a good sport, and stuck by his passion for Celene, and yes he sang along to the Theme from Titanic. He was such a powerful worker out there in the trenches, uh, holes, and he hiked the 5.4 mile cloud forest like a 20 year old, I gave him his man-card back, in good standing! But he got even. Somehow, because of his singing, they decided we should do karaoke on Sunday night, and it was set in stone! I have never done karaoke, anywhere, and really had no plans to start now, and I am sure David felt the same way. Little did we know that Rodain was the Folsom Marc Antony, Cliff and Peggy were the new Sonny and Cher, and Amber was the equal to Diana Ross? Who knew?

The night ended back at our house. We had really come a long way from Tuesday, and the melancholy feeling that the trip was half over started to set in. We really were enjoying being part of this big family here in Honduras. Our new Honduran family. God is amazing!

Friday, June 13th, 2008

I am not sure words can describe today, but I will try. It was joyous, challenging, amazing, heart-warming and humbling. We started our day with one of Doña Lucy’s delicious breakfasts. We would need our strength because we started the process of setting posts for the fence. Amber had woken up with Angelina Jolie’s lips! Actually, none of us noticed until she pointed out her lips were swollen, and she did not know why. Maybe it was sunburn? Maybe it was an allergic reaction? She seemed to be in some measure of discomfort, so we tried to make her feel better by observing that many women pay thousands of dollars for lips like hers!

Before we went to the job site, Douglas took us to the farmers market. Wow, what a colorful site! We bought all kinds of fruit, some souvenirs and a piñata for the VBS. The entire street was a rolling sea of colors, smells and sounds as people bought their daily food and just spent time catching up on the local news. We found some ripe mangos and pineapples for lunch and dinner!

We started the concrete mixing for setting posts for the fence. Alejandro and Josue were the actual ones to set the poles, as they had an intricate way of insuring accuracy! 50 lb test fishing line stretched the length of the fence, which crossed the road. Bicycle is a common mode of transportation so we saw some near misses as they passed through or under the string!

Mixing concrete is done the traditional Honduran way. You mix the first batch on the ground, with cement, sand and gravel, and then you spread it out to mix the rest of the batches on top of the foundation batch. The mixing increments are measured by wheelbarrow so the quantity is pretty large. It is mixed by hand! We agreed that we would rather dig holes through solid rock than mix concrete – it is back-breaking work! But, as with all the tasks we have been asked to do, the team did it with joyous hearts! About noon, and two posts later, we cleaned up and changed for vacation bible school. It was a mini Blitz camp in Honduras! Rodain and Amber went with the bus to pick up the 35 kids in the neighborhood, while Dave, Cliff, Peggy and myself helped our friend Bessy set up camp. Bessy is Mizael’s wife, and she teaches school and Sunday school, so she knows a bunch of kids’ songs to sing! Mizael is the chief architect and in charge of construction at La Providencia. More on him later.

Everything is all set and the bus arrives with a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds. Many were crying and asking for their moms! This was the first time they had been away from their moms for a church function as we would later find out! The three older kids that are the first orphans from la Providencia came too, including my buddy Jair! We really just planned the school last night, so the entire camp was off the cuff. We had chosen the story of Noah because we thought the kids would be entertained by the little animals we bought at the store!

Bessy took the kids through the entire Sunday school song book and the kids slowly began to trust the us. They began to smile and enjoy themselves. After songs we had a lesson, which “Pastor” Rodain read from the Spanish version of the same kid’s bibles we use in Kidsfest. He did a great job! After the lesson, we colored Noah’s Ark pictures with the kids. It was so cool being able to see the future of Honduras. The kids we were serving are kids that have been chosen to be a part of the Providence educational program. They along with the orphans will be attending the school when it is built. The purpose is significant. Orphans in Honduras are considered a sub-class, and are subject to ridicule from the rest of the students. Since these local kids will be going to the orphan’s school, and therefore interacting with them from the beginning, growing and learning with them, there will be no difference in class, therefore no ridicule! We saw that at this camp first hand! But, kids are the same all over the world, and they knew there was candy somewhere, so the next activity was highly anticipated! The piñata. We took the kids down to the soccer field where Rodain and Douglas had put the piñata, and the kids each got to take a whack at it. It was so fun to see them swing at this giant strawberry. Needless to say, showing these kids the love of our Savior was the highlight of the trip thus far! All of us were touched by the kids’ enthusiasm and love they had for God!

Dinner that night was at Doña Lucy and Don Jose’s home. She has been cooking for us all week, and so to be invited over to her house for dinner was a true honor! We arrived to a houseful of kids and parents most of whom we knew already from La Providencia. Israel and his family were there, same with Mizael and Bessy and their kids, as well as Douglas our guide and David our driver. She had made the most amazing “arroz con pollo” we had ever had! The atmosphere was one of a close knit family, and we were welcomed in as such! The house was a beautiful colonial Spanish home with a porch that went around the entire home. They had many fruit trees planted in the garden as well as coffee plants. After dinner we were treated to their own coffee they had grown on the property, and had roasted. It was probably one of the best cups of coffee I ever had.

Later that night, as the team sat around our little table and contemplated the day, the talk centered around how life changing this tip has been, and what things we would do when we returned next year, and how we would do them different. Tuesday we had been 6 strangers with a common cause. Wednesday we had begun to form a team as we built trust with each other as we worked for the Glory of God. Thursday we had jelled as a team as we overcame the “big hole” challenge together, Friday we became a family as we served these children together. Dave had suffered some injury when he sat on an anthill and the ants began biting him on his back and down his pants! Ouch! Cliff and Peggy hung in there, and worked as hard as anyone else. Amber showed obvious signs of pain throughout the day as her lips did not stop swelling. And Rodain was the constant workhorse. It was cool to seem him read scripture the kids, as he has a heart for kids as he has shown working with the little ones in Kidsfest.

This new family was ready for a day off, and a chance to explore Honduras. Alfredo had spoken to us earlier in the day about which activity we wanted to do, either go to the waterfalls or hike the cloud forest, which also had waterfalls. He said no other team had hiked the cloud forest before, and his wife Jennifer, who is really physically fit, was just beat after the hike. But we opted for the cloud forest. We would need our rest!

Thursday, June 12th, 2008

Have I mentioned the food yet? How about the amazing staff that is caring for us? Wow, the food is just fantastic! We are eating typical Honduran food everyday for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I understand most teams will ask for something familiar for a few of the nights, but not us. We eat whatever they put in front of us. The humility of this team is real and evident, in that the people we are relating to every day feel comfortable enough with us to feed us what they eat and they enjoy the intensity in which we devour their food and their culture! I can see each day how much more this team is drawing closer this country and La Providencia! Of course, the staff is making it a lot easier to love this place as they wait on us hand and foot! We are the ones, who are here to serve, and we do anything they ask us to do, yet, we have a cook, our own driver, a housekeeper, and a guide (Douglas) who stays with us during the work day! Doña Lucy and Don Jose have invited us to their home for dinner this weekend making us feel a part of this family here. God is working here with these people who serve Him with so much joy and love. Honestly it was hard to accept this type of service from the people we came to serve, but being able to accept grace and allowing someone else to bless us is a lesson that is hard to learn in our culture. So, we are not going hungry, nor are we spending time with just our little team. Man did I mention the fruit! We are fresh fruit junkies here, always eating fresh sweet pineapple, mango and banana! My mouth is watering just writing about it!

Day three started off as usual, breakfast, devotional time and then prayer. Every morning we gather on the porch of the house and we pray together as a team. Sometimes the staff will join us, and Douglas always prays with us. Sometimes, Rodain or Douglas will pray in Spanish while I pray in English, but it is a good time.

Our bodies for the most part felt fine, because normally the next day after a hard workout your body is sore... Cliff opted to spend the day sorting clothing for the Providence in a Box program, thus extending his life by a couple of days and Peggy stayed with her husband. Cliff is the senior member of the team and it is cool to hear the children we encounter call him Abuelo, which means grandfather. He has developed a friendship with the son of our housekeeper who is three years old. His name is Lesman. Lesman was given a squirt gun by Dave, so he now chases the team around the house squirting us at every opportunity! Cliff is a trooper, and is in every bit as good of shape as the rest of us, but there are multiple ways to serve here so it was good he and Peggy opted to help at the warehouse.

There are two holes that seem clear God has put them in our path to ensure we remain humble and allow Him the glory! They are both over solid rock and with a bar and pick we had tried to dig down two feet. Then we used a sledge and chisel that La Providencia had, but they were both too small. So on the way in, we stopped for a BIG HAMMER! Before that though, we dropped Cliff and Peggy off at the office and Peggy got on the Lakeside website to download a lesson for our Friday Project. We are hosting an impromptu Vacation Bible School for the 3 to 5 year olds in the community! 35 in all.

Somehow, it did not work out that Peggy and Cliff could go sort clothes, so they joyously came with the rest of us to dig more holes.

With our new Sledge hammer, Rodain and I started pounding away on the rocks; while Peggy, Amber, Cliff and Dave started the 24 other holes on the other side of the road. It seemed the digging was a lot easier than the rocks of the previous day, but the ground was wet from the rain, so there was substantial mud. That team finished about 6 holes in the time it took us to dig one inch in the rock we were trying to bust. That is how the morning went! The funny thing is, the foreman we are working with, Alejandro, had suggested to Douglas that maybe we could work on something easier today, because the work we are doing seemed to be taking its toll on our team! (There is a group of 25 college kids from Dallas working through a Christian program called Leader Trek and they are hardcore! They too were digging in front of the clinic to install wheelchair ramps. So I guess we were being compared to them!) I left it up to Alejandro, saying we are here to serve, so anywhere they need us we will go, but that we are quite content digging holes. So they let us stay. By lunch we had finished the 24 holes on the other side of the road and made some progress on the rock!

Alfredo visited us to see how we were holding up, and asked us if we would pray for Elsa, Lesman’s mother. It seems she was beaten last night by her husband and her husband’s mistress. He did not give us anymore details, but we did notice she had cuts and bruises this morning at breakfast. This behavior is pretty common, but not usually with the people who have given their lives to Christ, so it seemed Alfredo was particularly upset about it. He indicated that he and Mizael, whom I call brother, were going to go have “a talk” with him after lunch. So during our lunchtime prayer Peggy prayed a beautiful prayer of protection for Elsa and her kids, and we asked for grace and understanding for her husband.

After lunch we were expecting to be able to start setting posts for the fence. But our foreman, Alejandro had other plans.

Alejandro showed us the two holes on either side of the road, and said we needed to make them bigger, roughly 5 feet long by 3 feet wide by 3 feet deep! That is a HUGE hole, more along the size of a grave, than a hole for a fence post! I could see on the faces of our team, the morale deflated in an instant, as we thought we were done with the holes! Anyway, these holes were to support the giant 8” x 8” twin posts on each side of the gate that would in turn support the massive gate. Somehow, the team divided up into two groups – Dave, Cliff and Amber on one side and Rodain, me and Peggy on the other. It was amazing to see the transformation of 6 defeated people, turn into 6 people who had more to give! With the picks, shovels and steel bars, we tore through those holes the rest of the afternoon. For over 4 hours we worked the same holes as a team, and even had fun doing it! The team had allowed God to intervene and give strength, because I know these guys and girls were tired before we even started those big holes.

No rain came today to cool us off, but we left the jobsite a solid team, capable of anything, tired, dirty and full of bug bites. Yep, the bugs had found us, and we must taste good! Well, all of us but Cliff that is! He is bulletproof!

Dinner was awesome, chicken soup, but we had hoped it was rooster soup. We will see in the morning if it was chicken or rooster that keeps waking us up! Mizael, his wife Bessy and some of the interns from La Providencia came over for dinner. Of course Douglas was there too, as he stays with us until after dinner each night. Douglas is awesome, and we are learning a lot about Honduras from him. Bessy and the team talked about which lessons or stories from the bible to teach tomorrow at VBS. Noah, Jonah or Sampson are the stories we settle on. We know we only have about 5 minutes of attention span from the kids, so we decided on Noah, because Bessy knows some songs about him! VBS came together in about an hour, and we were ready to roll!

Wednesday, June 11th, 2008

Today we were awakened by a blind rooster at 4:00AM. He is obviously blind because he could not see that it was still pitch black outside! The rest of the night was pretty restful, as we were treated to a tropical rain lullaby that really helped us sleep. Back to the rooster, eventually, he got it right and the sun did start to rise on our first morning in Honduras. He was soon joined by a chorus of local birds who were eager to meet us as well! The birds are loud here!

Doña Lucy was here at 6:30AM to make us a typical Honduran breakfast. We enjoyed fried banana, refried beans, eggs, toast and apples. It really hit the spot. The morning is absolutely beautiful, big blue skies, some puffy white clouds, and the temp is probably about 75 degrees. While we were sitting around the breakfast table, we were discussing the AIDS problem that Honduras does not want to talk about. There are 65,000 orphans in this country which is the size of Tennessee. The are a bunch of reasons the country does not want to admit there is a problem, and most are political. The work day started with our group meeting Alfredo at the first house built at la Providencia We met the father Walmar and his wife and kids. The middle child, who is two, was named Jair, and he really took to Cliff and me. He would come up and just sit in my lap, and sit on Cliff’s lap. Alfredo took us through the entire story of how Providence works and how we are a part of it. We also took a tour of the property and saw all the progress since we last visited. Afterwards, we went to go build a fence!

Later that same day…..

Suffering builds character! I kept thinking that as we worked day one of our project to build the front entry fence for La Providencia. To build a fence, holes must be dug for the posts, and someone had started digging square holes for the square 4x4 posts that would end up in the holes. Digging through dirt is no problem, but about 6 inches down in most of these holes; we encountered hard bedrock, or super dense, wet clay! Using a combinations of shovels, post hole digger and large heavy iron bars that look like javelins, we were able to finish the 24 holes on one side. God kept us safe from injury, and helped to humble our hearts to be able to do such hard work, but the team building and camaraderie was priceless! Every person worked until the point of exhaustion, and Peggy and Amber jumped in just like one of the boys! Cliff ended up making friends with a nest of giant red ants, and we would hum the theme to Indiana Jones for his benefit!

The weather is awesome. It stays about 78 to 80 degrees during the day, and around 4:00PM, the rains come in and they are so refreshing! It was a fitting end to the day. No injuries, no terrible bug bites and a new perspective on service. We are beginning to jell as a team.

That night at home, we discussed our day and how God was beginning to shed some light on this trip. We also learned how to play the card game Hearts, which was fun!

Tuesday, June 10th, 2008

Tuesday was just a part of Monday for all of us, since we all started our journey sometime Monday morning, and ended when our plane touched down in San Pedro Sula at just after 9:45AM. We were met at the airport by Douglas, our Honduran guide who will be with us throughout our trip. The weather was very hot and humid in San Pedro Sula, kind of like Florida in the summer. But God had kept us safe and everyone, even though they were tired, seemed to be excited to be in Honduras. Douglas said that today would be a rest day, so we would not be working. Instead, we were going to meet the staff at Providence World Ministries and see the site. Our drive to Siguatepeque would be two hours, but if we wanted we could stop for lunch near Lake Yohoa in the Honduran rain forest.

Honduras is a beautiful country, and our drive would take us through the 3 different types of forest in Honduras. We started in the lowland tropical forest that surrounds the farms and towns near San Pedro Sula. As we started to climb the mountains on our way to Siguatepeque, we would pass through the rainforest, and finally, when we reached Siguatepeque, we would be in the pine forests of the higher elevations. It was amazing to see the changes! We ate lunch at a restaurant by the lake that had a little museum and a tree house in the canopy with a view! Looking at the amazing beauty of the forest and lake, it was easy to see God’s hand in their creation!

At the Providence World Ministry Offices in Siguatepeque, we met the staff and Alfredo Cerrato. Alfredo is the very humble visionary leading the team of talented people who make La Providencia so special. A soft spoken man, his passion for this amazing project is apparent and contagious! After some time spent at the office, we went to our home for the week. Providence had rented a 4 bedroom rental home for the teams that come down, so we had plenty of room to spread out and relax. There, we met our caretakers for the week, Doña Lucy and Don Jose. Doña Lucy prepared our dinner of Honduran enchiladas and fruit, and we were hooked on the food from then on!

Everyone we met today has an amazing faith and love for Christ. Their servants heart and genuine hospitality made us feel welcomed, loved and a part of the family. The team is in good spirits and getting to know each other. Rodain is my buddy, we have been in a small group together for a few years and know each other pretty well but he only knows the rest of the group through our pre trip meetings. David and I go way back too, as we have been to Mexico on mission a few times, and it is good to have him around. Cliff and Peggy I met when they volunteered to come to Honduras with me. They seem to be a great couple who love adventure and each other very much. Amber I have known for only a short time, she is the step mom of my son Jacob’s good buddy Jack. Her and her husband came to a fundraiser I had last month and somehow she was moved by the message of La Providencia and signed on that night – two weeks before we left. She is a professional photographer and will be our photo journalist for the trip. 6 strangers in a strange but friendly land all with a heart to serve our Lord. This is going to be fun!

On the way to Honduras

A funny thing happened on the way to Honduras...no wait, A rabbi, a priest and a gorilla were all in a plane...no, that's no good either. Hmmm. How about this. Did you hear about the 6 people who flew all the way to Honduras just for a good cup of coffee and NO Starbucks in sight? Well then, meet the Lakeside Impact Honduras Team, the coffee connoisseurs with HUGE hearts to serve our Lord!

The team is excited and most got very little sleep last night. The team consists of Dave Bagenski, Rodain Soto, Cliff and Peggy Stapp and Amber Shoop. So far, I am the only one here at SFO (San Francisco International Airport) because I got here about 6 hours early! No, I am not crazy, well, maybe I am crazy, but that is not why I got here 6 hours ahead of my departure. Because I had to be in San Francisco to get my passport renewed (the same day I am leaving the country!) at 10:00AM, and I wanted to spend some time with my family - my wife Lauren, and my two boys Jacob and Brenden. So we left Cameron Park at 7:00AM. Needless to say, by 4:00PM, they were wiped out after all the driving and waiting and walking we did. The rest of the team will start arriving around 8:00PM.

We will keep this blog updated, assuming we have Internet access where we are staying. Otherwise, this blog will be quite boring! We are going to be working hard at La Providencia, which is a revolutionary new concept in how orphans are raised and cared for. We hope to spend some time with the new families and kids who have moved in to the first home, and we hope to get to spend some time with the staff. I pray that some long term relationships are built on this trip, and that the team has a passion to return next year!

Please pray for our safety, strength to accomplish what the Lord has in store for us, and that we keep a servants heart so that all honor and glory be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Hasta la vista mi amigos!

Russ "Rico" Reyes