The rest of the team has arrived!

On the ground in Honduras!

Friendship building has begun!

The rest of the team has arrived and new friendships are being made!

More opportunities to learn and serve!

Getting to know Baxter Institute Preachers in training.

The days are flying by and God continues to present opportunities to learn and serve. Tuesday was a day of major preparation for the arrival of the remainder of the group. That means lots of trips to the stores, visits to stores we have never been to before and new experiences. Who ever thought a store like Home Depot would also have a section for school supplies. Chris and Phil spent a very interesting evening traveling an hour outside of Tegucigalpa to meet with a group that has begun a program to combat malnutrition in Izopo. Chris Paul will write later to give more details of the “wild” evening.

Making new friends at Breaking Chains.

Wednesday we visited Amber Foster at Breaking Chains. What a great chance to renew friendships and to make new ones. We are close to finishing up preparations for the remainder of the group that will arrive on Friday. We now have planned out an exciting week of learning and work. When you add to it all the unexpected that is a part of ministry in Honduras I am sure it will be a wonderful week!!

Phil Banta

Learning, serving, growing in Izopo.

Emma and Senora Maria

An important part of our trip to Honduras this year, is learning more about the culture, daily lives and ways we can partner with our brothers and sisters here to bring glory to God.  On Monday, we all went up to Izopo and spent wonderful time with Marlon and Emma.  Marlon is the school teacher here and an integral part of advancement in the Izopo communities.  I spent most of the time questioning and talking with Emma (via translators Phil and Michele) about the daily lives of the families, concerns in the community, and available healthcare.  Emma has such a beautiful spirit!  She graciously welcomed us in her beautiful home, answered our many questions, and showed us her gardens and chickens.  She is very enterprising trying new items in her gardens; strawberries were in a field happily growing.  Her hens and rooster looked so healthy, as did her peach trees.  She and Marlon are setting such good examples of how to take care of their home, grounds and raise food to be healthy.  Her many thoughts and insights will be integral to Phil, Kathy and me as we prepare to have our first 'Health Fair'.  Phil will be discussing the harmful effects of smoking, drugs, and alcohol, Kathy will cover First Aid and have a special Women's class, and I will cover Nutrition and Dental.  We are praying that these will lay a foundation for future opportunities to help the health education of the people of Izopo.

Personally, the beauty of the mountains just enthralls me.  The sweetness and smiles of the people simply touch my heart.  We got to meet Emma's mother yesterday, Senora Maria.  I have a picture of us together and I look so tall standing next to her!  This is one of the few places I get to feel tall! Ha!  We look forward to sharing more of our experiences here.  Perhaps you could come next year!


Blessings,
Jeanne Evans

Advanced Honduras Team Arrives!

Awake early and at the airport. (Photo by Steve Evans.)

The Honduras advanced team had no hitches in their travel to Honduras on Sunday. That may seem like a small thing but the team we talked to at immigration in Tegucigalpa was just arriving after having missed their plane in Houston on Thursday. We were received with a warm welcome from Amber Foster of Breaking Chains, Michelle Gross, longtime friend of NCCOC, and a really hot humid afternoon.

After finally getting some sleep Sunday night we headed out to the mountain village of Izopo after breakfast Monday. Some things never change like the warm welcome of the people we saw like Marlon, the elementary teacher, his wife Emma, and daughter Fernanda. We also got to talk to Cindy but many of the adults were gone. Some of the team enjoyed a ride in the back of the truck with Susan Paul as crazed, rough-road driver.

We had a very, very insightful two hour talk with Emma about health concerns of the community. Jeanne will share in a future blog some of the many things we learned. Many things in Izopo are the same but some things are changing (see photo). Keep us in your prayers as we have busy days visiting more people and making preparations for our serving time next week. This is going to be a growing time!

Working in fields with a new backdrop.

Surviving rough roads with a smile.