Today we had Luis Paz and family along with Denny Boersema for lunch to discuss the church and the appointment of the pastor. Even though we come from varying points of view, I think we are in agreement about the type of person we need to pastor the church.
We also talked about Gathering Hearts and some of our plans for the future, including our plan to begin manufacturing goods for sale in the US. At that, Luis said, almost incidentally, that he had a vision of us using his house here and the rice processing plant as a place to begin manufacturing goods.
The meeting was held in the new church.
You could have knocked us over with a feather. In fact, I asked him to repeat it just to be sure we understood it correctly. We had thought that we would need to purchase that building to use it and wondered just how we were going to get those funds.
Other aspects of this manufacturing projects seem to be coming together as well. Yesterday Flor told me that Alfredo is planning to come back Honduras from North Carolina soon; it sounded like quite soon. From the very start, he is the one we had in mind to be in charge of the woodworking operations. Today we had a message from Margaret Brewer saying that she and Linda Bullock are planning a trip here shortly after the first of the year. They are coming in order to train the sewing ladies to begin making articles for sale.
We continue to encourage the sewing students to improve their skills. In preparation for the students to advance to a level to manufacture their products, new skills are introduced whenever possible. Linda Bullard taught the students how to make children's dresses out of pillow cases. These pillow case dresses can be decorated and trimmed in many different styles. The students so enjoyed Linda. What a blessing to have an American teach and lead the way. After the first of the year, we hope these students can design and make several products which can be marketed.
Norma Bonilla returned to Honduras April 24 after undergoing a successful knee replacement surgery in Brunswick, Maine. We were trying to locate a wheel chair for her use on arriving back in Seis de Mayo, but after our guard, Nikolas picked her up at the airport, he called very excited and said “she can walk”! Norma has been our sewing teacher for over seven years now, interning under our daughter Jennifer. Norma used to walk each day, crippled, and in the hot sun, to wait at the gate each day for a place in Jennifer’s sewing class. Norma not only got admitted into the class but she passed all three levels of the sewing curriculum and became an excellent sewing and Bible teacher to the women in the surrounding villages. Through a dear doctor, Dr. Rosquete, who comes to Honduras to provide orthopedic surgeries, arrangements were made for Norma to travel to the States for her knee replacement.
Through this experience Norma has shown herself to be a very courageous person. She had rarely been out of her village, much less travel by plane to the United States. Understandably she was very anxious. Gary and I were concerned and asked for some help in getting her a contact person who would look after her during her hospital stay. Kelly Junk, missionary coordinator at First United Methodist Church, Tulsa, OK, put us in contact with a couple in a Methodist church in Maine near where Norma would be having surgery. Greg and Holly Lane were our hands and legs in caring, praying, and providing translation for Norma and keeping us updated about Norma’s condition. They took ownership of her care, just as we would have done. We are so grateful for the Body of Christ to care for their own, regardless of the distance, culture or language. Here is an excerpt from one of Greg’s letter to us:
Norma
"OK, think of a wagon wheel. Norma was the hub, the rim was God's providential plan, and the spokes were the individuals and groups involved. Very few of the spokes knew about the other spokes,evenwhen they got to the hub. The Lord 'recruited' believers and unbelievers. One spoke was Sherry (orig. Panama) and Maggie (orig. Mexico) who were informed of Norma's need by Mary Hermann, wife of former Maine Governor Angus King (they live locally). Sherry and Maggie provided translation when I showed up Wed. evening. "
What a testimony to the effectiveness of the body of Christ.
Today we picked up an entire load of fabric, some very expensive fabric, from Cisar- Holt, Inc. When I say load, I do mean load! Mary Ann and David Carey had taken all but the front seats out of their van and we filled it up. We are most grateful to Kirk Holt for his generous gift. He is moving his business and has donated decorator fabric and trim to our ministry for the sewing class. As we have said, one of our most important new projects is to begin producing handbags and other accessories to sell here in the United States. This was an important next step in that project.
Denny Boersema and I were talking today about our work in Honduras and how important it is that the people we serve make some sort of payment for the benefits they receive. People just don't seem to appreciate what is given away free. I mentioned that a good example is our students. The computer and English students pay a small amount of tuition, and they are required to pay each month in order to continue with the classes. On the other hand, the sewing students do not pay tuition. I was telling Denny that when we have a rainy day, every single one of the computer and English students show up for class even though there may be a downpour. On the other hand, when it is raining, not a single one of the sewing students will show. Evidence that what we have come to believe is really true.
First United Methodist Church, under the direction of Greg Boyd (Mission Director) and Peter White (College Pastor) sent a multi-task team of nine that arrived March 15th. They made presentations in the schools, taught the sewing classes, held a pastor’s training conference, and had a children’s VBS.
Praise & Worship during Pastors' Conference
Tuesday and Wednesday they went into the local village schools to make presentations, give testimonies and evangelize while another part of the team remained at the mission center to teach the sewing class a new, marketable skill.
The Sewing Class
Presentation by Carl Lewis at a local school
In one morning they presented in seven classes…a real work-out. In the last school, close to the mission center they invited the children to attend a VBS in the mission center Friday morning.
Friday morning around eighty children attended an intense program that included stations inside and outside the mission center that provided a Bible story and hands on crafts that few children here have experienced.
Mackenzie Cordova with Children
Twelve year old Mackenzie photographed each child and placed the picture in a frame that they made in one of the stations. One mother told me that her child walked all the way home cradling her craft carefully in her hands. These crafts end up being treasure for these families.
Peter White Teaching Computer Students
Thursday Greg and Peter taught both shifts of our students here in the mission center. Since there are sixty new students this semester, this is a great evangelistic opportunity.
Praise & Worship during Pastors' Conference
Friday around twenty pastors and their wives attended the pastor’s conference. Lunch was served and then both Pastor Boyd and Pastor White taught and encouraged the pastors. This is a remarkable turnout for our small villages surrounding our center. This is in part due the efforts that Eleazar Bermudez and his wife, Carina made last month in visiting and making contact with the pastors in the various colonials
Greg Mortenson who built schools in Pakistan similar to what Gary and I are establishing here in Honduras said in his New York Best Seller book, THREE CUPS OF TEA, "Once you educate boys, they tend to leave the villages......But the girls stay home, become leaders in the community, and pass on what they've learned." Many of our young men are leaving Honduras to live illegally in the United States. This has left a dearth in the villages. Many of the women are left to earn a living and raise their children alone. If the mothers leave the homes and work in the factories here the children are often left unattended, roam the streets and are "ripe" for the gangs "picking". For years now we have tried to teach the women a marketable skill but this has been met with many challenges. One of them is getting the women on a level advanced enough to have a product with the quality that could be marketed. Another big challenge is to find a market and someone to market their wares. This has been a dream of Gary Edmonson, Tulsa, for some time.
This last week, Margaret Brewer and Patrice Lott joined a team from First United Methodist Church, Tulsa, OK. Margaret and Gary planned to teach our sewing class how to sew a product that would sell.
Welder's "do rags", the caps worn under the welder's helmets are a possibility. Sizing them has been a problem, but last week Margaret and Patrice taught the women how to make tote bags and purses that African women have made and were able to market in Star Bucks. We were encouraged that our women picked up the skill quickly and that there very well may be a market for their purses. Do pray we could find a vendor.
Margaret Brewer teaching the morning sewing class how to make designer purses with designer fabric donated by an interior decorator.
The First United Methodist Church team went into 7 classes today and some of them are teaching the sewing class how to make something that could be marketed (totes and welder's caps)We ended up having to rent another van from another missionary. Our van is in the shop - our pump went out. Fortunately Sarah Cary and Michael could change it out...it took nearly all night but then it kept going out due to a short. A local electrician came to the rescue. We now have water again and with a much quieter pump.