Paso a Paso » Projects

Update from the Brian team trip!

director — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 03:46:19 +0000

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Psalm 118:1

I wanted to share an update from Brian and Brian the two guys that have come to Guatemala to support Paso a Paso.

God had a different agenda then they did for this trip, and it's been an exciting and amazing adventure. Stephanie,
had to leave Guatemala for a family emergency. Even without Stephanie, our connection to the community, the guys have been welcomed in the community and have been helped with translation by
several friends whom Brian and his family knew when they lived in Antigua. Rolando, a pastor from the local church, has also been a constant
companion. They have given out supplies, visited families, surveyed damage from the tropical storm and yesterday they bought supplies for
two families to rebuild their houses, destroyed by the storm, and for 3 families to replace their roofs.

Please pray for these things: for their physical protection (they are roofing and out in the sun all day), for wisdom for what projects
to take on in these last few days and for grace on both them and the community as they prepare to leave. The needs are great and I know if
will be hard for them to leave. Tomorrow they will go on a prayer walk through the community. Check out the ministry site to learn more
about Barrio La Cruz at pasoapasomissions.org. so you can pray with them.

Here is a link to a video they posted from a visit to a small house
church. http://vimeo.com/12366892
I've added a few photos, but there are so many more, Look for an update in the future from the actual
travelers and photos to be posted on flikr.

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Rolando receives the rest of his Braille Bible.

director — Sun, 23 May 2010 05:01:39 +0000

It is kind of funny, as I sat in the little 10×10 room with Rolando he began to share more about his blindness. He had asked for several books of the Bible he was missing to have a complete Bible. This is something I have heard and tried to help with for now almost 4 years. This past January Rolando received a Braille typewritter. We thought this was a wonderful thing as did he but hearing his thoughts on this were different than I knew.

He shared that he had never requested a Braille typewritter. He knew that he was still waiting on the Braille Bible as well. He realized that the day he received the typewriter and that God would provide the Bible that he became at peace with being blind. He had thought prior, that maybe he hadn’t received them because God would restore his vision.

After several, several years of asking, writing calling and much prayer Rolando received the 20 some books he was missing to complete his Braille Bible! He had aquired several books, mostly the new testament over the years but was never able to get the other books. We had tried very hard to get them to him and even had groups that were responding saying “they are on the way” but for Guatemala we know that can be years! But just last week a fellow missionary who had also spoken of Rolando had received the books in Braille that he was missing! Rolando now says, it is easy and peaceful to accept his blindness, God has now provided everything he needs.

Praise God for his faithfulness and for meeting his needs!

Rolando’s Braille Typewritter

director — Tue, 11 May 2010 18:49:00 +0000

With this letter, I, Cesar Rolando Garcia Alvarez want to express my deep gratefulness, first to God our Father and to you for providing this machine that arrived at my hands. I can assure you it will certainly be well used and taken care of and will be of much blessing for the ministry that God to placed in my hands.

I want to tell you I have never had a machine, reason being it is taking a little time to use it but with the aid of God I hope to practice more and then be able to write quickly. During the last 13 years I was writing with a small braille strip that a sister me gave me. It has been 18 years since I lost my sight but I can say to you that throughout this time God has been faithful to me and an example of that is that He had put in your heart to gift this precious machine to me. Once again thank you very much and may God Bless you and all your family. Please also receive the gratefulness of my parents Enrique Garcia and Berta Alvarez who send sincere greetings to you in the name of our God.

With much gratitude your brother in Christ Cesar Rolando Garcia Alvarez.

Thanks to Ed and his family for providing this to him.

Getting to know Barrio la Cruz

director — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 20:08:31 +0000

What a blessing to return to Guatemala! The people are so gracious that it makes serving so rewarding. This year I was able to participate again in preparing the school supplies to be distributed to the children. The week before the distribution the parents were required to attend a meeting. At that time, the guidelines were explained again on how it is determined who receives sponsorship and what is required of the children, e.g., passing their classes, attendance, etc. in order to continue receiving support. All were excited to see Stephanie and express their appreciation.

On another day, several ladies gathered at the church to talk about the dolls they have been making. Last year several ladies were introduced to doll making and are progressing very well. A pattern book was donated along with some different types of yarn and the ladies had fun developing new ideas for doll clothes and hair color and styles. They also spent some time cutting out doll patterns so they could take them home and work. Check out the large dolls at http://www.flickr.com/photos/14597608@N08/sets/72157623125964334/ and small dolls at http://www.flickr.com/photos/14597608@N08/sets/72157623001328207/

Each women receives all the profit from the dolls and it is used to help support their family at home, work and school; in addition to giving the women a sense of self-worth. By the women selling just 1 large doll a week, it is equal or more to a week worth of income.

We had several opportunities to spend time with Rolando and his family. He continues to minister to the people in and around the community. To some his blindness would appear be a hinderance; however, God continues to use him in mighty ways and he walks up and down the mountains much better than most sighted people. He knows everyone and I mean everyone by their voice. Through Charles Stanley’s ministry, we were able to obtain 40 messengers (they looks like the old transitor radios). Each messenger contains 35 sermons in Spanish and is capable of being charged either by electricity or by solar power. Our hope is that over the next several months between Rolando and Stephanie they will be able to provide the messenger to the people in and around the community. There are many people who are not able to make it to church or who cannot read and this will be a great tool to help them grow in the Lord.

Another highlight of our trip was to visit the property that Rolando’s family owns which is partially planted with corn and coffee plants. In Guatemala if the land is not fully planted when the parents die, the children do not necessarily get the keep the property. To help provide for Rolando in the future, we felt it was important that the property be fully cultivated and planted. It will be done in the spring. Thank you Lord.

Thank you everyone for your prayers. I hope you will plan a visit to Guatemala in the near future. You will not be disappointed. You will not only be blessed but will be a blessing.

written by: Marge Stearns

Mix, stones, and sand make more than a floor…..

director — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 06:51:34 +0000

I always say when I travel down to Guatemala that I want to do work. I don’t speak Spanish very well, so I have thought the best way I could help would be to pick up my shovel and carry the load, literally. This trip down certainly filled my sore muscle void and a little more.

If you have never seen the hills that Barrio la Cruz occupies, then it is hard to have a standard picture in your head. There are very few houses that can be found on those hillsides, but there are plenty of homes. Most houses are makeshift construction of bamboo, and corrugated sheet metal (if you can afford it). The floors are usually dirt that has been hardened and flattened by the barefoot children and hard working parents that rise to the sound of the free roaming roosters each morning. The house we were looking at that morning was no exception.

I have to admit that I have never really worked with concrete, but I had seen it done in the states many times. I had a hard time picturing how I would get a cement mixing trailer or a set of barrels and buckets up the side of the mountain to “properly” mix the components into the correct proportions for making a solid concrete floor. No cement mixer, no barrels, one bucket, and three people to carry twelve 65 lb bags ¼ mile up the side of the hill. That quarter mile started to look more like 5 miles, and the hill felt a lot more like a mountain with one of those bags across my shoulders. We carried all the bags up to the home and where the kids, none older than 14 years, had accumulated all the sand, and rocks that were going into the mix.

All of the family’s worldly possessions were piled between the makeshift kitchen and the open latrine that is their bathroom. We mixed all of the concrete on the open area in front of the house, and the kids carried the mixed concrete into the house with the same plastic bowls they had eaten from that morning. Before long all of the concrete was in the house, and starting to dry. The chickens were more than happy to walk around to test out the wet concrete and make their mark.

The dad, Marco, provided most of the know-how, and more than his share of the manual labor. He usually has to go away to find work, keeping him away from his family for varying periods of time. The mom, Yolanda, not only made a meal for all of us both days, but also went step for step with me carrying the concrete bags up the side of the hill. That would be much less amazing if she were not half my size, or she actually wore shoes while she was doing it. The things that families in Barrio la Cruz deal with on a daily basis pale anything most of us have ever experienced even during our most financially or physically trying times.

Making the floor only took us two days, but it was clear by the looks on their faces that it had made a huge difference to their family. I was so thankful that we were able to help them, and I truly hope that their life and their family are healthier, safer and more enjoyable because of what God allowed us to do that week. Perhaps there will be another week and another floor somewhere in our future.

Beautiful dolls, Beautiful Ladies..

director — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 15:18:00 +0000

It has been long overdue for an update on the dolls and the progress on our work in Barrio la Cruz, so I am starting with the ladies. The ladies have been making and perfecting their waldorf dolls with much work and patience over the last two months. We have a group of about 16 women that continue to do work on the dolls very faithfully. They have taken much our comments and suggestions to better the construction of the doll better than we could have imagined. As we with any project there are learning curves and struggles but thanks to the help of Rolando and the community we have made progress. We have heard wonderful things from the ladies. Great comments from Marecela, how it is giving her a better sense of self worth integrity for what she was doing. We also even selected a group leader, Zaida to help the other women in leading them with questions and concerns when we are not there.

We will be putting all the dolls on Etsy, a site to sell them, where all the sale price goes 100% to the women and then we will link that do our website as well so that anyone interested may purchase them there or send us an email and inquire.

A Place to Call Home

director — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 04:57:36 +0000

This is the first home we have built for a very deserving family. What a blessing to have Justin and Bud come and built it with the help of Estuardo and Nancy. Here is a bit about Justin’s experience and take on building his first Guatemalan house.

A finished product – mainly made of sheet metal, which is very common in Guatemala.

Had you told me that I would be building a house that was only 12 feet by 12 feet, I would told you that was nothing and that it was more like a shack than a house. I could have never imagined some of the living conditions I’ve seen here – bamboo stalks for walls, sheet metal roofs, 5 or 6 people packed into a 3 meter by 3 meter home. There are sheds and tree houses in the U.S. that are much nicer.

The family that we built the house for has had a pretty rough time. The mom’s name is Marilena and her two young boys (10 and 9 years old). The husband/father was an abusive alcoholic, and so they escaped the pitch tent they were all living in and moved in with one of Marilena’s sister. One of our concerns was that if we built the house, would the husband just come back and occupy the home now that they had their own house and repeat the same cycle? Nancy, another sister of Marilena, has a fairly nice sized area behind her house – mainly a dirt pile leading up to the edge of the mountain. Because you have to pass through her Nancy’s house in order to get to their space, this made it a legitimate place to build Marilena’s small home.

Marilena and her family with Nancy and Estuardo and Justin and Bud.

They cleared the dirt pile to make a pseudo flat area for us to build on – maybe about 18 sq. feet. Apparently, this home is supposed to only be temporary – maybe somewhere around five years. This is sometimes common, and the family literally picks up their house and moves. For that reason, we decided that we would use wood for the frames, lay a few cinder blocks, use sheet metal for the walls and the ceiling, so she could take those with her when Marilena moved. We figured we’d splurge and put down a concrete floor as well. I was surprised how many stores there were that sold hardware, lumber, and other necessary supplies. Since this was the rainy season, we were unsure how we would contend with the intense downpours they get here. But the Lord gave us beautiful weather to accomplish the construction in a week. The following day it poured down, but the house stayed dry.

Bud and Justin laying down the cinder blocks.

I was glad Bud Rinker came, because he’s obviously the expert, but all along he said, “I’m not sure how they do it in Guatemala, but I don’t want to just come in and do it my way because that’s how we do it.” But at the same time, the Guatemalans were like, you guys are building the house, so we didn’t want to tell you how do it our way and offend you. We started with laying cinder block on the unlevel dirt, which meant that our wall wasn’t level either. So, after we laid the first layer of cinder block, I turned to Nancy’s husband – Estuardo, and said, “so what do you think?” He shrugged his shoulders and said, “está bien.” I asked him if that’s how they do it here, and he explained that they usually bury two cinder blocks deep and build on top of that. Bud was like, “why didn’t he tell us that to begin with?”

Justin packing cement around the posts.

Once we finished building a wall 3 cinder blocks tall, we worked on framing. The funniest part of the whole project was trying to saw wet lumber with a hand saw. Bud was working hard, because I couldn’t do it, and so after toiling on cutting two pieces of wood, a neighbor peaked his head out of his house and yelled, “hey, I have an electric saw if you’d like to borrow that.” Who would have thought that someone would have an electric saw in these parts? So, we put that thing to good use, and it probably saved us like 3 hours. It seemed like every night Estuardo would work on the house when came home from work. One morning we arrived and found that he had poured cement mix into the framing columns, which saved us a huge amount of time. His wife Nancy while watching three kids, helped us tremendously, especially when it came to laying the floor… oh the floor!

Laying down the framing.

I had heard how Latinos lay concrete, and it was a lot harder than it sounded. First you pour sand on the ground, throw some concrete on it, throw some rocks in there, make a volcano, and pour water in the crater and stir. If I never do that again in my life, I’ll consider it a real blessing. Between that and mixing it in buckets, my arms about fell off, not to mention having to lay that out on the floor. That was some intense work, and I had gotten so dehydrated from the altitude and the sweating, that I thought I was going to pass out. But I honestly think Nancy did more work than I did – what a trooper she was.

The breathtaking view from the family’s new home with Volcano Agua in the distance.

When it was all done, it looked like a shack – unlevel which actually works for water drainage. It wasn’t pretty – just sheet metal hammered to some boards with a few cinder blocks. I wouldn’t want to live there, although her view of the valley below with the backdrop of Volcano Agua is breathtaking. But Pastor Rolando said to me, “This is a real blessing to the family. Those boys have never had a home this nice in their 10 years of life.” It really humbled me and made me appreciate what I have. The total cost came to less than $400, but it was probably the best $400 I’ve ever spent. I also was so happy to give to her and her family, though I wish I could have done more. There are so many families here with so little, but it’s amazing how much they appreciate what they have. 12 feet by 12 feet, that’s it, but as one of the missionaries prayed today, may this little house be a castle for this family. And may this first house built by Paso a Paso be just a building block for many more to come.

Paso a Paso 2009 etched into the cement floor of the new house.

-Justin Hibbard

Una Muneca

director — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:19:33 +0000

We have just about finished our doll making class, today Karlene and I will go back to Barrio la Cruz were about 15 women will meet us there coming from two different barrios. We are amazed at how well they are making the dolls and anxious they are to learn! They will finish their big dolls today and we will be bringing some small and large waldorf dolls home to sell via Esty and at events. Please continue to pray for us as we minister to the women today and the rest of my time here with them as well. Here is the post also written by Karlene below, the wonderful friend teaching the sewing class.

One of the precious daughters holding her Munequa that her mother had just finished.

I have been on many Mission’s Trips before, and even some with children, but this is the first time I have taken my own children to a foreign country with the purpose of building others up in Christ. And I am loving it. To see the world through a 3-year-old’s eyes is just precious.

Annalia started learning a few Spanish words before we left, and has been having a good time spotting unas vacas, unas gallinas y los gatitos. But these past couple days she has really taken the initiative to ask what something is in Spanish. One of her new words, most appropriately, is “muneca” (doll.) As I have taken my dolls around to the women in the community, inviting them to attend the doll making class, Annalia is often with me. And the women are often more taken with my life-size muneca then the dolls they are excited to make. And of course Annalia eats the attention right up. She tried to convince me the other day that “muneca” means “girl”, since that is what people call her. I wish everyone here could accept a title like that as easily as my little girl.

One of Paso a Paso’s goals is to build up community women’s self-esteem and self-worth. As we prepared to teach the women the skill of doll-making, we find it equally important to tell the woman just how important they are. At the beginning of each class, I shared Proverbs 31 with the woman, highlighting the fact that God views us women as precious; vital to our families, communities, and our world.

I asked each woman to write down for me why she wanted to take the class, and I thought you would like to hear what they had to say.

“Yo vengo aprender porque deceo saber hacer munequitas para poder algun dia trabajar en ello para poder ayudar en el hogar y ensenarle a mis hijos.”

She wants to eventually make money while staying home with her children.

Delmi has a hard time seeing, and it was so neat to see the other women come along side her to thread her needle, and do other things she couldn’t. She said “Yo deceo aprender para algun dia poder salir adelante.” She wants to learn so that she can one day get ahead.

A few young girls came, here is what Saida had to say. “First, I want to give thanks to God for giving the leaders the desire to share their thoughts with us. And at the same time, everyone here is here because we hope to learn how to make dolls. Personally, I am here because I love handcrafts and because it is a great opportunity that they are giving to us without us having to pay. I thank them very much and I hope God blesses them and cares for them always.”

Sewing take One..

director — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 05:53:23 +0000

We are back in Guatemala and going strong and so happy to be here! As I got off the plane with the kids and got to take a deep breath of the Guatemalan air; somewhat stale and stinky that I am so used to, I know we are back! We are also so excited to share the next two weeks with the Hibbards and their two girls and Stacey and her son. Karlene is teaching a sewing class and Stacey’s husband will join us for construction, while all of us join in for translating, children’s ministry and much more.

It is so hard for me as a mother of two to think of how to prepare families to come and serve here in Guatemala when we are so acustome to living here and doing ministry. I was reminded yesterday and today how different things are as we went on the bus. Yesterday, the buses were rerouted so we were dropped off on the highway, yet still left to walk a good distance uphill on cobblestones and then back down the long hill to get back home. All to go to church and see the people. As I begin to think, ugh, I have to carry Austin, keep up with Bella; I then quickly realize the women that live here in our community do this daily and with several children and carrying food or firewood on their heads. Or today when a man and a young girl come on the bus to do a stand up clown routine just to make a few cents in tips to get by? Life is different..

Karlene who is teaching our sewing class wrote a wonderful post about her time here so far and I am adding it to this..

Friday we got to take our first trip into Barrio La Cruz, the community that Paso a Paso is dedicated to building up. And what an experience. First of all, let me share a little bit about how we get around here. I am extremely glad I didn’t bring my stroller! To describe the pavement as uneven is an understatement. With sidewalks just big enough for a couple school girls to walk side by side, and the random divots, bumps, pillars, and holes, we have taken our travel cues from the natives. So, Stephanie has Austin in a sling, I have Naomi in a sling, and Justin carries Annalia in the backpack, while Bella and Josiah walk. We make quite the entourage as we traipse through the city on our way to the bus station.

We only stick out a little

Our goal Friday was to meet with the pastor in Barrio La Cruz, insuring that everything is all set to go for the sewing classes on Monday. We also wanted to stop at the head seamstresses house and invite her to help. We walked the brisk 10 minute walk to the bus station and caught the chicken bus to the ‘burbs of Antigua. Now, when I say ‘burbs, I don’t mean rows of identical development houses where commuters live with their 2.5 kids and matching SUV’s. While Antigua has many of the amenities we enjoy in the United States, a 10 minute bus trip out of the city reminds us why we are here. Tiny cement houses cling to the side of the mountain, while the families that occupy them carve out a meager living for themselves and the multiple families that share a roof.
Our first stop was Clara’s house, where I met a very talented seamstress. She invited us up to her workroom where we showed one another our crafts. She “ooh”ed over my dolls, and I “ahh’ed over her beautiful hand embroidery. I am really glad she will be there this week to help with the classes.

Clara and Stephanie in Clara’s sewing room.

As we got off the bus, Bella ran into her friend Marciel, and immediately ditched us to head off to his house. Eventually, we went to pick her up, and were blessed to meet Marciel, the bootmaker. His business was the first to receive a microloan from Paso a Paso. He was such a delight as he showed us around his house. Then we headed to the backyard (his house only has 3 walls, so you really do walk right into his backyard.) to check out all the wonderful produce he grows for his family: coffee, avocados, limes, and other fruits I have never heard of.

Annalia was thrilled to take home an avocado and her very own coffee bean.

It has been great to meet the people. Saturday was Bella’s birthday, and the Children’s Pastor, Rolando, threw her a HUGE party, where all the kids in the program came. Boy, was she the Bell of the Ball as she danced and twirled around the center of the circle as her party-goers sang songs. The, we brought out the mother of all pinatas! Everyone had a blast.

And there was a Snow White one to match.

Tomorrow is the beginning of the sewing classes. Please pray for each woman coming to the class. Pray that she will have the courage to learn a new skill and that I will have the correct words and actions to teach. Also pray for the kids that will be joining Stacey while their mother’s take the class. Pray that she has plenty to do, and that God offers up opportunities to share with each kid the love of Christ.

A Stove for Breysi’s Family

director — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 02:02:27 +0000

Breysi is one of our students that suffers from Lupus and Rheumatoid Arthritis and kidney failure. She is always anxious to go to school and does not miss a day when she is well enough to attend. Her family was blessed to receive a donation so that a stove could be purchased for them. This makes a huge difference for their family. With her health being so fragile it is very important to keep things as clean and pure as possible which is very difficult to do there. There kitchen prior to the the stove was outside their one room home, on the dirt floor just an open flame stove on the ground. They now have a more energy efficient, wood burning chimney stove. It consist of 4 burners, they have a wall around the stove and most of all it is safer for Breysi to breath and for her younger siblings too, no more dangers of falling into the open flames!

Thank you to Breysi’s sponsor and the Lakeland Bible Study for making this stove possible.