Mauricio came out today and brought his head engineer who took a careful look at our production facility. They are going to help us get enough machines in good working order to get us started –and at no cost to us….. We started Friday trying to get money out of the bank for payroll. When we went to the exchange house in San Pedro, as we normally do, we found they had gone out of business. So, we set up an account in another bank in Cortes and the money was supposed to be there today by wire transfer --- but it was still not available. It’s supposed to be ready in the morning and we will literally stop by on our way to the airport. Eric and I will both be leaving about noon. Nicolas preached in Gran Villa yesterday.
Yesterday was the little children's Christmas party/program. I counted 47 in attendance. They began in the classroom at 10 o'clock with a meal of chicken and rice, tortillas and a drink-- and then chocolate cake. You would think they wouldn't be hungry at 10 o'clock in the morning but they obviously enjoyed the food even at that hour. After eating they proceeded to the church to sing their songs. I was disappointed that only a handful of parents were in attendance. After the program each child received a gift bag and then Nickolas and I hurried to the airport as Eric came in at noon. This is his fifth visit and he seemed glad to be back. He and Joel visited 30 homes in Seis de Mayo today collecting information about the water filters. Tomorrow is the employees Christmas party and graduation from Norma's students. I went to town today and bought 13 Christmas gifts and spent the evening wrapping.
I am meeting with Nelson's advanced English class. I spend a half hour, one-on-one just having a conversation, including issues concerning their faith. I have been impressed with how they are so young and yet speak English so well. Some have told Nelson, "If it weren't for this class I don't know where I'd be." Today Santos finished the little house that we are building for the third family. I went out yesterday to see it; the family who will be living there is extremely happy and grateful. Speaking of houses, there is a crew working on the house where our new pastor will live. I was surprised at how nice it’s going to be. Yesterday we drove through three different villages and in each one children were calling out wanting to know when the Christmas gifts will arrive. The Children’s Christmas Gift Project will be next December since we do it every other year now. Nicholas left work a little earlier than usual yesterday in order to prepare his sermon; he was preaching at a local church last night. This afternoon I went out and watched Nelson and his students play soccer -- no time clock, no substitutions, no timeouts.
I (Gary) arrived back in Honduras on Saturday; Cheryl stayed in Tulsa in order to tend to other important matters there. In order to save money I flew standby and had very good success. I didn't get bumped, and arrived in San Pedro on time. Everyone at the mission center is very excited about Christmas. On Thursday the children will have lunch and cake in the classroom and then proceed to the church for their musical presentation. Hopefully some of the parents will come to that. With school being out, there are about 50 children in attendance these days. On Saturday is the employees Christmas party including a white elephant gift exchange. There will also be lunch and cake. This event also includes graduation for Norma's students. This time she will have eight. On Thursday, Eric Lam from the engineering school at Oklahoma State University will arrive. He will be here about a week working on the University’s water filtration project in Seis de Mayo.
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