Day 4: Wendy & Missy

I’m telling you- having recess on mission trips is the best idea ever! It makes all the hard work worth it!

Our day started in Libertad. Their school had an assembly that we got to be part of. We did a goofy skit that the kids did (but I’m sure the teachers thought we were nutty)(and we are) ☺ But anyway, it was fun, and the kids laughed. After the kids went back to class, a kid by the name of “Ben” came up and the group from Kearney who had been here the last few times were so excited to see him. He was excited to see them too! He’s a real sweet kid. I guess he doesn’t really have a home, and just kind of roams the town. He’s helped them out before when they’ve been here before.

We are SOOOOO tired tonight! Back in Corzel, at the school, the ceilings are tall, and it soaks up the paint! We did get all the walls primed, the ceilings primed, 2 coats on the ceiling in one room, and one full coat on the ceiling in the big room. Tomorrow we’ll finish the ceiling in the big room, then start on the walls.

But, back to recess. It’s so much fun! The kids run back to the building we are working on as soon as they come outside to tell us it’s time for recess. They LOVE playing Mother-may-I, hide & seek, Red Light- Green Light, and just laughing and talking. (my kind of kids!) They speak English, which is most helpful! They are just beautiful children.

Tonight, Terri & I both gave devotions. Terri shared about how she came to know Jesus really loved her, and I shared about how we can trust in God ALWAYS because HIS plans for us are better than we could ever imagine.

Enjoy the pictures! (on Facebook) I’m forgot to take my camera to Corzel, but I’ll remember tomorrow. I get to work in the classrooms with the kids tomorrow, can’t wait! ☺

Posted by Wendy Minshall & Missy Nance

Day 3: Wendy & Missy

Wow! This might be the coolest mission trip yet! I’ve never been on a mission trip where you got to have recess twice a day! It is GREAT! Our work project at the UMC School is to paint two rooms. That sounds really easy- but first we had to scrape the dried cement off the walls and floor, then prime it and then paint it. Cement is really hard. And it doesn’t come up very easy! We were worn out by the end of the day.

But- the best part- RECESS! The kids (all 420) are just adorable! They LOVE visitors, and I guess a few were heard saying “The Americans are here!” We got to play Hide & Seek, Duck-Duck-Goose, football, basketball (with a deflated basketball), soccer, and more!

Their week starts with an assembly in the church. All 400+ kids, plus their teachers, cram into the church and say prayers, sing songs, have a bible lesson, and that sort of thing. They are the most respectful kids! And when the bell rings- they stop whatever they’re doing and RUN to class! It was so cool to see them. Really makes me realize what a difference there is when God is allowed in school.

John, the associate pastor from Kearney that’s leading the trip is just great. He has really focused on us building relationships with one another, with the people here in Corzel, as well as with Christ. Devotion time has been so meaningful. Just what I needed. Just what most of us needed, I’m sure. One thing he has said that has really hit me was this: You have to anticipate the Holy Spirit, otherwise you might not recognize it. He’s really encouraged us to watch for those ‘nudges’ and take those opportunities to share Christ’s love. That is sometimes really hard to do. It really touched me when Nathan said: I realized- I came all this way to Belize… why wouldn’t I take 10 more steps to go talk to the kids. Bob shared how he was able to step out of his comfort zone and give a couple little kids bracelets- kids that weren’t at the school- but on the walk back to the guesthouse. Sherri & Anne shared how they realized that letting the KIDS take pictures, was more fun for the kids than them taking pictures of the kids, even if they are really nice & expensive cameras- the kids were more important.

Tonight Sherri gave the devotion about ‘being the flea’, and Jimmy shared about ‘the circle of life’ and how cool it is to ‘pass it on’.

Again- I’m amazed at the bonds we have made. It’s very cool.

My only complaint- the internet is SOOOOO SLOW!!!! But, as it was pointed out- it’s wireless internet- the fact that there even IS wireless internet is pretty amazing. (fine, I’ll stop complaining) ☹

Well- we better head to bed! Tomorrow we head over to the school in Libertad and we are putting on an assembly for the kids. This could be interesting! ☺

Goodnight!

(PS- there are no pictures of us working because we were working!!!) (that’s mostly for Chris) ☺

Posted by Wendy Minshall & Missy Nance

Day 1 & 2: Wendy & Missy

Day 1 @ 2:

We’re back!!! ☺ This time they let us leave the country! (scary, huh!) So far, this has been a wonderful trip! We are in Corzel, Belize, working at a school that’s run by the UMC. We are with 12 other people and the group has bonded better and faster than I would have ever thought! The group is made up of 7 people from Woods Chapel Church and 7 people from Kearney UMC.

The day started very early for us on Saturday, Feb. 6th. We met at the airport at 4:45am, and I’m quite proud to say that Missy and I were actually EARLY! (actually, we WOULD HAVE been early, but we thought we were supposed to meet to drive to the airport at 3:30, and since Anne was running late we went and got Terri first. After trying to get ahold of Anne, calling the other car-full of WCC folks, and looking for her at the church, we realized that we were supposed to meet at my house at 3:45- so by the time we met up with Anne we were actually a few minutes behind.) But, we were SO CLOSE to being early that I thought it was worth mentioning. ☺

Our flight left at 6:00am, and we really enjoyed our 5 hour layover in Dallas. We played “Mafia” and I’m pretty sure people in the airport thought we were some kind of weird cult because sat in a circle, bowed our head and ‘slept’ (but it probably looked like we were meditating) then ‘woke up’ and accused one another of being murders. It was entertaining though! We even made a new friend, Maria, from California! She ended up joining in and playing with us! ☺ (and Tasha- this was BEFORE you told us not to talk to strangers, sorry!)

We finally landing in Belize around 4:30, and after customs, and 14 large suitcases and carryon’s- we loaded into a big van and headed to Corzel. We are staying at a neat little guesthouse called Hokol Kin, which means “rising sun” in Mayan. For dinner, we had what anyone would expect to eat in Belize, Chinese food. (What the heck?) It was actually pretty good, but we could have ordered 1/4th of what we did and we still would have left full! Our wild and crazy first night in Belize- I think we were all in bed by 9:30!

Sunday morning was another early riser- we attended our first church service at 7:00am at Corzel UMC. Pastor Kofie is the nicest man, and the congregation was very friendly. Gina gave the sermon and did a WONDERFUL job! After church we went back to the guesthouse for breakfast and then headed to our second church service in Libertad at 10:00am. This was a much smaller church, and Kofie is the pastor there as well. Gina gave the sermon there as well and the funniest little girl, Beyonce, entertained us all!

At that church I was reminded again how much I love the United Methodist Church! We have ‘open communion’, and ALL are welcome at the table of Christ. (even the little dog that sat watched at the door until it was time to go up for communion. (you HAVE to see that picture!) ☺ Pretty funny stuff!

After church we went took a ride across the bay in a boat that I’m pretty sure did NOT have capacity for 15 (legally, at least), to visit a Mayan ruin. It was very interesting and SO beautiful!

In the evening we ended up at a cool little place close to the guesthouse where we watched the Saints win the superbowl! It was really fun! Again, more bonding time and lots of laughs. After the game, we came back and had our own little game- we played Presidents. I ended up winning and it was decided that we are changing the parliament and we will now have a Princess that will rule the land! (I think that was Rob’s decision… guess he took my pink visor literally!) But, hey! I’m game!

Tomorrow we start working- can’t wait!!!

Posted by Wendy Minshall & Missy Nance

Field Trip!

Today was a very busy day, indeed. We began with walking the half-mile or so down the road to the Methodist school/church in Corrozal, arriving just in time for the 8:30 a.m. assembly.

We performed our skit (again) for the kids here – yesterday, if you remember, it was for the children of Libertad. Today, when I got up to speak to the children about the lesson of patience, I got a round of applause. Ahhh….an actor’s dream.

After the assembly, it was time for work. Some of our group headed to the new school addition – while others of us got an opportunity to assist in the classrooms.

Wendy, Missy, Nathan and myself each got put into a preschool classroom, where we all did “screenings.” We’d take an individual child outside where we’d go through a list of questions/activities – similar to Kindergarten screening.

It was actually interesting to work with the children one-on-one – and it was also interesting to see the different abilities.

Our lunches are taken at Pastor Kofi’s house – and today it was barbecue chicken, coleslaw and pork-n-beans. Yum!

During our lunch recess, I’ll be darned if a Belizan Red Cross truck pulled into the school parking lot – they were at the school to do some education. I got an opportunity to talk with fellow Red Cross volunteers and get a picture of the van – how cool is that? Although I’m American Red Cross, it’s cool to see Red Cross volunteers all over the world.

After lunch, some of the group went back to painting, Missy & Wendy went back to screening, and Nathan and I hit the school jackpot – FIELD TRIP!

Yes, our two classes were headed to the Santa Rita Mayan Ruins – and so we loaded onto the bus with the children, teachers and parent chaperones – and headed about 10 minutes down the road to the ruins.

The children climbed and scampered about the ruins and a nearby park – burning off some energy. I stayed busy swatting off Belize’s national bird – the mosquito. Ugh.

It’s awesome here - the weather, the food, the children, the people – safety is never an issue, the accommodations are great – and we’re loving these children.

Peace.

Posted by Sherri Odell

Concrete Dust & Kids

Lots and lots of children...and lots and lots of concrete dust... My impressions of our first day at work in Belize.... We spent the day working in some new classrooms - where we scraped and scraped and scraped the "bumps" off of the concrete walls and floor...It was hard, dusty work - but thankfully, God gave us cool breezes today so we didn't die of heat prostration! Every time the school had "recess", so did we - we'd drop our tools and head to the playground where we'd play with the kids. Kickball, soccer, football, frisbee - and photography lessons. The kids are fascinated by my camera - so I lined them up and let them "play" with it and take photos. I ended up with 200+ pictures of myself. Not exactly what I was wanting - I kept telling them to take photos of their friends - and so all I can say is, thank God for the "delete" button! Very good day - the children are awesome. They hug us, they love on us, and they have welcomed us with open arms. Who knew "recess" could be so magical - even as an adult?!

Posted by Sherri Odell

Recess is the Best Word Ever!

What a great mission trip so far -

Belize is a beautiful country - the beauty begins with the physical surroundings and is then reflected back in the people.

We have been working in a village called Corrazal, which is 20 minutes from the Mexican border. So - the people here speak Spanish, as well as English - which makes things very interesting! Our days are spent getting up (early!), having breakfast at the hotel (delicious bacon!), and then walking about a mile down the road (right along a big, beautiful bay) to the school.

The children are all in their classrooms as we work in a new "addition" to the school - we have been doing some priming and painting of ceilings and walls....at 9:30, there is recess - and when the children have recess, so do we. We drop our tools and rush outside to play with the kids - we have soccer, football, basketball, frisbee, Duck Duck Goose, and photography sessions with our cameras.

The children are extremely outgoing and friendly - they love to run up to you and just throw their arms around you for giant bear hugs - or they sneak up behind you and do a surprise tickle attack.

Morning recess is about 30 minutes - and then darn it - the bell rings - and the kids head back to the classrooms, and we head back to work.

Lunch is at noon for us - and we head over to the Pastor's house where a delicious lunch awaits us. Yesterday, it was rice and beans, which is considered a staple of the Belizan diet. Today, it was beef and mashed potatoes - yummo!

Lunch is an hour for us - and so we eat quickly so we can join the children (again) on the playground...they have lunch from 11:30 to 1:30, as some of them go home for lunch.

In the afternoon, it's back to work - until afternoon recess at 2:30. Afternoon recess is a very short 10-minutes, which goes by in a flash.

We wrap up work around 4:00 or 4:30 each day - and then walk back to the hotel - hot, dirty, sweaty, covered in paint, and surrounded by the love of the children.

The fellow missionaries from Kearney UMC are absolutely wonderful - we couldn't ask for a better group of 14 people. I love the nightly devotions in which we sit in a circle and share our thoughts - it has brought our group so close....

I hope to post more later - our days are so full, and time is short...pictures will follow....!

Posted by Sherri Odell

Lights, Camera, Action

Well, we will not be nominated for an Academy Award, but the children still seemed to enjoy the show. We started our day by putting on a skit at the UMC school in Libertad. There were around 150 children who watched our team acted out a skit based on Romans 8:15. We set the stage with a teacher, and a class of children from our team. Who knew we had such actors and actress among us? They did a great job of bringing the message that we should be patient to the children. During the assembly we also sang songs with the children and were pleasantly surprised when they added a "whoop whoop" to "Jesus Loves Me". After the assembly we headed back to Corozal to continue working on the classroom space. The blending of our two church mission teams has gone better then I could have ever imagined. We are enjoying the work, as well as playing with the children. At recess the children come looking for us to play with them on the school yard. These children love all of the attention and are some of the happiest children I have ever seen. They don't have swings, slides, or kickball fields to play on during recess. However, they do have each other, and they are happy to play a game of duck, duck, goose, or throw a Frisbee, or toss a football. All they want is some attention from adults. We have been enjoying our lunches at the Parsonage with Rev. Kofi Niles, and his family. After our work days we have been able to spend time reflecting on our days work, and looking for the places where God has nudged us. We are also taking turns giving devotions in the evenings. Everyone has a story to tell, and while every ones walk with the lord takes different twists and turns, they all end up back in the same place...God's love.

Anne

We've Arrived!

Our flight this morning was at an early 6:00 am - which meant checking in at American Airlines at 4:30 a.m. That's early!!!!

We met up with the group of 7 from Kearney UMC, and we had an uneventful flight to Dallas. There, we met up with some new friends who are doing missionary work in Guatemala. It was a God-moment to be able to talk with them at the airport about their work, and about possibly hooking up with them this summer in Guatemala.

We had a 5-hour layover in Dallas (ugh), but we eventually flew out at 12:55 pm and arrived in Belize City this afternoon. A LONG line through immigration, and then a scary moment while retrieving our luggage. All of the luggage was off of the belt - except for mine. I was missing my one piece of personal luggage - all of my clothes, etc - and there's no more luggage coming down the chute.

Uh oh.

This doesn't look good.

About when the group was going to give up and go help me file a report, an airline employee comes walking in with my suitcase - said it had been "taken off of the line" for some reason.

Woo hoo! I have clothes!

We then went through a LONG line at customs - apparently, school supplies and toys make a big stink coming through - and then we were on the bus, heading about 2 hours north to a small town called Corozal.

We arrived in Corozal around 7:00 pm and checked into our hotel - which is pretty nice, actually.

It's dark - it gets dark early here - and so we opted to walk just half a block down the road for Chinese. I thought that was kinda' funny - our first night in Belize and we eat Chinese. But, it was GOOD! And plentiful!

Time for bed now - it's only 9:00 p.m. and we're all exhausted. Church is at 7:00 a.m. tomorrow and we have to begin walking at 6:40 a.m.

If any of the church staff is reading this right now, don't even THINK about moving church services to 7:00 a.m.!

Peace.

Posted by Sherri Odell

Packing parties aren't just for girls anymore

Being the only guy from WCC is well... interesting. I am only kidding, I look forward to having a great trip with the WCC group and the group from Kearney. I know we will have a lot of fun and do some good work in Belize.

I finished packing last night, all except putting in my toothbrush and, on note from Sherri, checking the DEET level of my bug repellent. Can't wait to get going...

Nathan

Packing Party!

Posted by Sherri Odell

Tonight was our "packing party."

As I was heading to the party, I ran into the music director at church. He said, "I hear you're going to the packing party tonight. What IS a packing party, anyway? That must be a girl thing."

A girl thing??!!!

Nah....it's a mission thing.

A packing party is when you gather up your spare suitcases - and you pack them will of your donations and supplies that you're taking with you. For medical missions, you pack up all of your medications and medical stuff; for construction trips, you pack up your tools and painting supplies; for school/orphanage trips, you pack up the toys and school supplies.

Tonight - we packed up soccer balls, backpacks, painting supplies, pencils, paper, glue, and scissors. We'll be doing construction AND working with children...so we have a little bit of everything.

I think we had just enough space left in one of the suitcases to pack up some extra snacks. Cuz' that's important, you know. Something from home that is familiar - to take with you to the unfamiliar - just to provide that little bit of comfort and peace of mind.

In my case, that would be chocolate. I'm taking chocolate. Yum!

So - I'm packed. The supplies are packed. And now it's just a matter of time - waiting until we leave, bright and early Saturday morning.

Can't wait!

Peace.