Vision Trip 2023

MONDAY - July 10

Pastor Bill, Julie and I arrived in Guatemala, Geovani and Ruth were waiting to meet us.   We enjoyed getting to know each other/reuniting before heading out for the seminary where we stayed. The Seminary is where HRI Mission Teams stay when they are in Guatemala City.

TUESDAY - July 11

We headed out to Santiago. We were able to stop for fresh pineapple and coconut milk on the way to our hotel.

Dani met us with the water taxi at our hotel.

Dani gave us a full tour of the HRI property. He told us about his crops, tomatoes, onions, peppers and other vegetables, and his new fruit trees. He shared about the condition of the HRI coffee plants and how they were attacked by bugs, causing a very small harvest last season. He told us that they are beginning to recover (after treatment and replanting) and that he expects to get a better crop this year.

We had lunch in Santiago. Dani shared about his life and how HRI came at a time when their family needed it the most. (See previous blog posts to learn more about God’s amazing work through HRI and their family)

Seeing the farm allowed us to catch the vision of what is there and what God could do there in the future.

We did a little shopping in Santiago then joined Dina, Ashley and their family at their home for dinner. Their story is powerful. Hearing them share about how God is working in their lives and all that HRI is doing to support them touched all our hearts. Ruth was impressed with how boldly and confidently Dina shared her testimony.

To wrap up the evening in Santiago the team joined Dani and his family at a local carnival.

WEDNESDAY - July 12

After breakfast and debrief on the patio of Ruth and Geovani’s room we packed up and returned to Guatemala City. The team really appreciated hearing about the impact HRI has had on the lives of so many as well as experiencing the culture of Guatemala in Santiago.

Once we made it back to Guatemala City we went shopping at the local Walmart to make bags of food to share with a few of the most needed preschool families .

It was a very full day of driving and shopping - so the evening was spent relaxing over dinner with Ruth, Geovani and their precious children. God is doing a mighty work through Ruth and her leadership at HRI. We praise God for her.

THURSDAY - July 13

We had a fun and eventful day. After breakfast we headed to the preschool where we sat in on each class. The kids and teachers were so excited to see us. We were able to help them during the breakfast time.

Due to the generosity of one of my friends, I was able to bring a suitcase of materials for the preschool teachers. We had the teachers come by after school and they were given the things. There were puppets, tambourines, a magnetic story board, a huge wall flannel map type thing and a few other things. The teachers were so excited and grateful!

Drew and Tony (two additional folks from Trinity Church) flew in. After picking them up, we returned to the seminary for lunch and met the pastors (Erwin and Ceaser) from the church directly across the street from the preschool. These brothers grew up in Zone 3 and have a heart to show Christ’s love to the children and families of the area.

When lunch was finished, we went to the graveyard/dump with the pastors. They shared the history of the area and dump. We prayed with them and they told Ruth to let them know if they could help in any way!

Meeting the pastor’s was so encouraging, they love the Lord and the community. I believe this church could be the answer to our prayer for a local partner church. Ruth would like to do some after school mentoring and Bible story telling, etc. We thought maybe some of the women from the church might be willing to volunteer time to do this. She plans on following up with this.

Going back into the preschool, Ruth shared her testimony with the group and we had a good discussion on the history of the preschool and on the part teams might play when they visit. We also talked about the scholarship program to prepare for meeting the scholars tomorrow afternoon.

Before returning to the seminary for dinner and the evening, we delivered two bags of food to 2 families from the preschool.

friday - July 14

After breakfast on Friday, we went back to the HRI building to visit the Sewing Center. We met with one of the teachers, who introduced us to the 3 sewing student who were there working. She showed us some new items they are going to be making and told us they currently have an order of 50 shirts as well as another order of 20 more. The ladies had made each of us a shirt and they had the sizes ready to go. Geovani then took the shirts and showed us how he puts the logos on the shirts. It was a great time learning about the impact of the Sewing Center.

We returned to the Seminary for lunch and then went to La Limonada. Kimberly gave us a tour of the area. We visited a family where the mom had been a scholar who graduated and set up a beauty shop in her home. She shared about the impact of HRI on her life and family. Her husband came home and also shared how grateful he is for HRI and how God has used HRI within his family.

Kimberly invited us to come to her home where Geovani prepared tacos for everyone including Kimberly’s family, with the team pitching in to help.

After dinner, the scholars came and we all met together on the roof. Some of the scholars led us in worship and testimonies. They went around the room and introduced themselves. This was quite moving - they were so thankful for HRI. Ruth had asked Pastor Bill (from my church) to lead a devotional where he had Geovani read scripture and then Pastor Drew prayed in closing. It was an amazing evening and the pastors were so touched and moved by what the scholars shared.

It was a great way to end the week. Ruth and Geovani did a great job in planning and presenting HRI to the pastors.