Water Survey, Community Meeting & Convenant Signing!

Having limited access to internet. Just managed to get the photos uploaded to the blog.  The captions will give you a good idea of Saturday's events, but I will follow up with a detailed description of the day David and I had on Saturday, November 6. Stay tuned and check back.

Presbytery of Honduras Meeting

Walking into the worship space at Pena de Horeb Church in Tegucigalpa I was suddenly struck by the realization that I was going to know many of the pastors in attendance. Why this has not occurred to me before, I can't say. It seems surreal that Jane and I have spent day upon day travelling to remote villages to meet with Presbyterian pastors in their local churches, and here they ALL are at this monthly continuing education meeting of their Presbytery.

The door is locked as always, so we rap on the metal several times. When it openes, our greeter turns out to be Pastor Antonio from the church in Agalteca. He seems pleased that I recognize him. Upstairs, the next familiar face is Pastor Raquel, from the very remote community of Moropocay (the one without any electricity.) Although a lesson is in progress, she beames me a sweet smile of recognition.

David and I sit in the back with Mark Wright to wait our turn to speak. From that discrete perspective I eventually identify every single pastor that we have met with in May. Pastor Enrique from Quebrada Grande; Pastor Raquel, and Hermano Elmer of Moropocay; Pastor Antonio of Agalteca; Pastor Profirio of Candelaria; Pastor Christobal of Guimaca; and of course, Pastor Castullo of Puente Jalan. Pastor Fernando, past president of the Presbytery, who accompanied our group on most of our visit last time, is also in attendance.

Noel is our interpreter today instead of Dominique. Noel is very involved with the Presbyterian Church and is well known by almost all of the pastors. He shares our passion for the work that LWW hopes to do in the area, and his love comes through as he gives our message to the group. We can't help but feel that having him as our interpreter in this situation gives an added layer of credibility and trust.

Many of the pastors present have already been introduced to the LWW project, but may have been left without a clear understanding of the process. As with anything, it helps to hear things more than once, and at different times, in order to fully grasp a new concept. As David and I go through our presentation the pastors are very attentive. We speak of the practical engineering aspects but we also highlight the mission portion. We reiterate the point we made during our negotiations the day before in Puente Jalan that ours is a mission and not a profit-making endeavor. That the token price of the purified water is only meant to keep the operation self-sustaining: to pay for electricity, a basic wage for the operators, for the limited materials that are required for the operation, and to save a small cushion of funds towards the eventual need to replace filters, pumps, and so forth.

David ends our presentation with a reading from Matthew 25 where Jesus tells the parable of the sheep and the goats. Towards the end of that story Christ tells his followers that he has been thirsty and they have given him drink. "When did we give you drink?" they wonder. Whenever you give drink to the very least of God's children, he explains, you give it to him. Together, David says to the pastors, let us work to further God's purpose, and to give a healthy, safe, clean drink of water to all of God's children.

The questions that follow our presentation are focussed and to the point. We have accomplished out goal of heightening the understanding of and thereby the interest in the LWW project. As we explain that we are in the process of negotiations with Pastor Castullo at his church it seems as if he sits a little taller in his chair. By the end of the meeting his confidence in his decision to work with us seems to have grown. It is not lost on him that other pastors are asking questions that are moving in the direction of, "when can it be MY turn?"

After the conclusion we speak further with Pastor Christobal and his son. Jane and I have visited two of their churches and have determined that they were not good candidates for LWW, one because there was no perceived need, and the second because there was not a sufficient water source at the site. Now they bring to our attention yet a third location. We make tentative arrangements to visit there on Saturday, since it is not very far from Puente Jalan.

The  best news of the day comes to us via Mark Wright from Pastor Castullo. It seems that Francisco Varga, the Director of the Project for Community Health Development, has written up a flyer about our project and our impending visit on Saturday, and has DELIVERED THEM to each household in the community. It seems as if he is definitely putting HIS FAITH into ACTION!

Next entry will report on our congregational meeting at Puente Jalan, and our anticipated visit to Christobal's church at La Guadeloupe.

Into the Breach~

"How in the world do you FIND these places?" This comment, not from us, but from our native Honduran interpreter, Dominique. Even he is amazed at the intensely rural locations the Rev. Mark Wright takes us in the backroads of Honduras. We have just turned off the "main" road and onto the dirt track that will take us to Puente Jalan. Almost there, we pass this local farmer dealing with his team of oxen. Shortly before the church we pass Pastor Castulo's home, and he sees us and jumps on his bicycle to meet us at the church.



After greetings and introductions we settle in to the business at hand. Actually, it turns out that the President of the water committee has not arrived. A quick cell phone call discovers that he has no transportation. Rev. Mark and Pastor Castullo jump in the truck to go pick him up. David takes a couple of men from our group and takes measurements on behalf of Dan Sugarman, who has not been able to join us on this trip. The result is a nice diagram of the footprint on the property.

Once the water guy comes back courtesy of the pickup, we settle in to talk about details. Six hours later we have been wading through village politics, some hidden and not-so-hidden agendas on the part of the Water Board. Seeing a potential opportunity to gain some profit for the water board, the water guy begins to make noises about a "fee" separate from the normal water charge. We politely but firmly explain that Living Waters for the World is about providing clean water to communities as a mission, NOT as a profit-making venture. He is not happy to hear this, but sees eventually that we are resolute.

Pastor Castulo has also invited a gentleman from Puente Jalan who happens to be the Director of The Project for Community Health Development. Francisco Varga tells us at length that many local people are not used to seeing the church in active outreach. They are accustomed to the church being about worship and prayer, but not acts. He is excited about a project that reflects our own values of Faith in Action. The passion he has for improving the health and life of the people is palpable. He wants to do anything he can to make this installation a success.

When we got to the question of who would be named as the ones responsible for the installation and operation it became apparent that many of the likely candidates had day jobs and were not available that day for discussion. We will go back on Saturday for a general church meeting. We hope to make significant progress then.

We are at somewhat of a disadvantage in our discussions because of Dan's absence. Fortunately, Harlon Mills, one of Dan's instructors from Clean Water U. and one of the LWW folks that Jane and I traveled with back in May, has made himself fully available for consultation during our negotiations. At least three times during our visit in Puente Jalan we called him (at his home in Memphis!) to answer specific questions, and for general advice. Today (Friday) David and I spent about a half an hour with Harlon on a Skype face-to-face chat to help us think through things. Many thanks to his dedication and openness.

Stay tuned for a report of our visit to the general meeting of the Presbytery of Honduras where we will make our pitch for LWW in front of so many of the pastors all at once!

The only rule is: THERE ARE NO RULES!

Tegucigalpa is the capital city of Honduras. Our local PCUSA liaison, Rev. Mark Wright again has been bravely carting us around through the rush hour streets of Teguc, and along the deeply rutted backroads of the countryside where we travel to the remote communities that we hope to help. If anything, I think that his driving skills have become honed since our trip in May. He dodged all over, right and left, skimming past obstacles (say, large trucks and busses) without even a second thought. "Wow" I said, "I wish I had gotten a picture of that time when the bus and the truck were coming at us from the wrong side of the road and we skirted around them on the wrong side!" "What?" he enjoins, "I don't remember that . . . "

Just another day in the life of the PCUSA Mission Worker in Honduras.

Stay tuned for a more substantive update once we've had time to process our intensely full day, and sort through the pictures so you, our esteemed reader, don't have to see all the blurry ones taken at breakneck speed from the window of Rev. Mark's Dodge "Galloper"

Arrival in Honduras

David and Esther arrived safely in Honduras after a 3:00 a.m. pickup by car service for the 0'dark hundred departure.

Rev. Mark Wright met us and brought us to the lovely Humuya Inn where we settled in and rested for a bit. Then a quick trip to the mall (egads!) to acquire a Honduran cell phone. Tonight we have met a wonderful group of Episcopalians from the Bay Area who have been supporting a local church for 10 years. We joined them for dinner and fellowship.

We depart at 7 in the morning for Puente Jalan and all of our meetings. Lots to accomplish!

Esther

A Charge and a Blessing

Today in worship Pastor Nick Van Gombos charged three members of Wyoming Presbyterian Church: Esther Kirk, David Gellatly, and Dan Sugarman, to go to Honduras in the spirit of Christly brotherhood as they travel to Honduras on their mission of bringing a water filtration system to the community of Puente Jalan. 


The team's mission on this trip is to finalize the details and develop a Clean Water Covenant in anticipation of returning in early 2011 for the installation of the system, and  to institute a curriculum of health and hygiene to underscore the importance of clean water to the health of the community.


Esther will be talking with Pastor Castulo about the proposed installations of the water filtration system from Living waters for the World, and building the covenant between our 2 churches.  Dan will be meeting with other community leaders who are currently directly involved with management of the community's water supply. Together they will measure for that installation, discuss details of plumbing, electrical, water storage tanks and the pipe needed. David will need to find teachers and medical minded community members whom he can recruit and train , he has to plan a community program of education.

Sunday Worship with our Honduran friends

Sunday worship, Honduran lunch, then an emotional visit to Micah House

Sister churches Iglesia Presbiteriana Terre Promiteda: Agalteca, Candelaria

Hope to write entry later on today. Pictures are fairly self-explanatory

How Jane spent her birthday

 

We visited 4 churches today in search of likely partners to work with for a clean water project. Only one was a really good candiate. The small, impoverished community represented by this young girl at the well has access to water through this one well that works on this hand pump. We performed tests on the water that this young lady pumped up for us by hand. Unfortunately, as we spoke with Pastor Cristobal Flores we discovered that the capacity in this well is so small that adding an electric pump would almost certainly deplete the water supply in about five minutes. We will almost certainly not be able to help this community.

Having technical difficulty uploading the number of photos we took today. Will work on the problem from this end and try to get a slide show mounted soon. Tomorrow we are scheduled to visit another 3 churches.

A Day of rest and meetings

Today we were waiting for the folks from Idaho to arrive, so we have a leisurely morning, sleeping in and then lounging on the roof terrace until lunchtime. Rev. Dennis, Penney, Glen and Melinda of Idaho had set up a meeting with the local Habitat for Humanity which they graciously allowed us to sit in on. We met on the roof terrace to hear about local work. Habitat is in process of creating an impressive number of new homes here. We were interrupted by a huge thunderstorm which had us scurrying downstairs like frightened church mice.

Rev. Mark arrived to ferry all of us (now a complement of 9) out to see a camp run by the Heifer Project where mission groups often choose to stay when working on projects within an hour or so of Tegucigalpa. With the ability to house 35 people in rustic but not squalid conditions (6 to a bedroom, but with bathroom in each bedroom) and a nice kitchen, dining room, kitchen, and an able cook. Out back, a garage with two large busses for transportation, and a lit basketball court for recreation after a long day of mission. Resident dog, two kittens and a cow (well, what is a Heifer Project camp without a heifer?) nicely adormed the grounds.

Tim and Gloria Wheeler, mission workers with both Heifer and PCUSA showed us around the camp, then invited us back to their home nearby where Gloria insisted that we all sit down and enjoy her homemade banana bread, flan, and pineapple tea. Coffee plants made a beautiful hedge outside.

Tomorrow we are back on the road, with a plan of visiting 3 communities. Should be interesting with 4 additional bodies crammed into our van. We will all be very friendly by the end of the day!

We have BEEN to the mountain top!

It's not the end of the world, but it's the last stop before it! Go an hour and fifty minutes outside of Tegucigalpa, Honduras to the rusty bridge, turn right. Go another 45 minutes up a steep gravel road. Dodge (not to mention the bones of the unfortunate steer whose parched bones tell us it succumbed to the harsh environment.) Take the first left, continue 10 minutes. Where are you? In Morocopay, Honduras, at the Iglesia Evangelica Presbiteriana Verbo de Dios. No electricity, no running water. The one spigot for the community is turned on once every two days. when Dionisios Dominguez, Treasuror of the Water Committtee, unlocks the access and turns on the flow. Fillipe Silva is the president of the water committee.

Pastor Rachel Canales flashes her sweet smile, tinged with the slight flash of gold. She is clearly the matriarch of the community. Children have followed us up from their huts below, wanting to know why these gringoes are  here. Two little girls are so excited by our arrival, they go home and come back, freshly washed, sporting their Sunday best. Take a picture of us! they indicate with their smiles.

Elmer Moreno, student pastor under Rachel, helps answer our Water Issues Survey questions. One in 25 children die before their fifth birthday due to water-related illnesses. 5 children per day (in a community of 250 persons!) miss school each day for the same types of illnesses. Adults and children alike suffer from this. Average monthly household income is 1500 Limpira per month. Okay, so that translates to about $75 per household per month. And many spend up to half of that on transportation costs to get down the mountain to their field labor jobs. Literacy rate is about 50%.

The church, manse, and Sunday School building have been built over time by other Presbyterys and NGO's. They come and go. The people stay the same. Devoted, simple, trusting. Yes, we drink this water. No, it is not treated. Sometimes we put the plastic bottles of water out in the sun to purify it. Can we build a building to house a filtration system? Yo creo si!

The lifestyle these people lead is so far removed from ours it almost beyond comprehension. Drinking the water you see in these pictures because you have no other option tells it all. Elmer turned on the water tap so that we could do our water tests on it. It was an extremely hot day. We watched, poignantly, as the children all flocked to the running stream with cupped hands to slake their thirst with the tainted water.

The ride back to the City

We returned in the dark,there was conern that we should not be on the road late at night.The trucks are moving excessivly fast caressing the slower cars, no rules here ,if you can take the shot and pass a vehicle sometimes 3 at a time (width ways )on a single lane. I am the worst back seat driver, so I am a wreck with all the trucks &a road strewn with boulders,speed bumps, busses turning in the middle of the highway, foot pedestrians---combine all that while driving around the mountain. Relief to return back to the hotel. We had no water in our room, good job we bought all those wipes. Dinner we asked for many items on the menu but we were given 3 choices, what is on the menu only comes partially presented: so what if the rice and the trotillas are missing!

Quebrada Grande; Iglesia Presbiteriana Jehova Nisi

Check out the slideshow at right, and the captions for a quick overview of our first site visit. Mark Wright collected Harlon Mills and Dave Parks (LWW, Tennessee) at the airport, then we joined Dominique, our able interpreter. One more stop to pick up Pastor Fernando from his church in the city to take just over an hour's ride out into the country through mountain roads to the little Presbyterian Church in the tiny community of Quebrada Grande. Pastor Enrique Ochoa met us there. Once we explained (through Dominique and Rev. Mark) that we were there to speak about water, he whipped out his cell phone and called the president of the community water committee, who appeared with his son within minutes.

Although the community does have some issues with water-related illnesses, it seems that they are still way ahead of most of the communities that need our help. Since they have running water (most of the time) and since it is treated to some degree, it is unlikely that LWW will seem like a good idea to them. Although the folks we met with were very nice, and we went through the Water Issues Survey carefully, this community does not seem high on the list of probable successful partners.

Monday 5/17/2010

Rev. Mark Wright greeted us just outside of customs and drove us to our lovely Inn in the van he has rented in order to take the three different groups all around the countyside this week. We were only a little disconcerted to be greeted by a porter who doubled as an armed guard to help with our luggage. After a short time to drop off our luggage we were lucky that he had the afternoon to drive us to Valle de Angeles, a village just outside of Tegucigalpa which is your standard tourist type spot. Jane went just a little crazy buying local souvenirs, but we were more or less assured by Mark that this would be our only opportunity for shopping, since the villages we will visit the rest of the week don't see tourists.

We met up with the rest of his family back at the inn for dinner. Wife Ashley came with sons Ethan, Elliot and Gabriel. We sat in the covered open-air courtyard and enjoyed getting to know them a little better. Mark's responsibility here includes enhancing the relationship between our US Presbyterian congregations and the Presbyterian Church of Honduras. Our Living Waters visit is a great opportunity to further that mission!

On the one hand it feels a little odd to be in such a comfortable setting, with Wi-Fi, TV, etc., but on the other hand, since we have been told NOT to wander from the inn, we are more or less captive here until Rev. Wright comes back to pick us up.

Midday the folks from the church in Tennessee will arrive, and then Mark will take all four of us to our first remote site.

Running low on battery here in the lobby (signal is poor in the room). Hopefully Jane will add to my entry before we leave for the day.

Take a moment to look at the slideshow of all the pictures we took yesterday.

Esther & Jane Commissioned today- off to Honduras

Preparations and Partnerships

Time for our departure is fast approaching. Jane and I have gotten all of our inoculations, begun our Malaria regimine, filled our antibiotic prescriptions (just in case!) and packed our mosquito netting. We are scheduled to depart Newark early Monday morning, arriving in the capital city of Tegucigalpa late morning. Tegucigalpa is two hours earlier than Eastern Standard Time.

We are excited to be partnering on this trip with PC(USA) pastor Mark Wright. The Wrights are the first Presbyterian mission co-workers to serve with the Presbyterian Church of Honduras. We have chosen now for our scouting trip because one of our Clean Water U. instructors, Harlon Mills, will be in-country at the same time. He is the Honduras Coordinator for Living Waters for the World.