2012 Mexico

We took a team of four men (Pastor Phil McKeown, Kenny Shadday, Tony Evangelisti and Duane Oplinger) to Mexico in October 2012 to build an Awana court for the Huichol Indians in the Sierra Madres mountain range near the city of Tepic, Nayarit.

Friday, October 5, 2012

- Received an email from Debbie Mellberg: Tepic, tacos, Thrifty ice cream, talking on front porch, time out...tomorrow's another day. :)

Monday, October 8, 2012 - Received an email from Debbie Mellberg: After finally locating a replacement for a broken pulley on the cement mixer, keys locked in one of the transport vehicles, loading 2 boat-loads of people and supplies, 35 minutes up the river, Huichol brothers who carried absolutely everything to the village as we pale-faces barely huffed and puffed our way along the trail, a delicious dinner of hand-flapped tortillas, beans and tuna with corn stew.

Ask Pastor about 5 1/2 foot door jams at the entrance to Huichol church buildings. Praise God even for the abundant obstacles we knew we could expect because the enemy really doesn't want this week to be the blessing it was intended to be.

Don't forget to pray for the tema. Trust me, experience dictates that there WILL be more obstacles!

Wednesday, October 10, 2012 - Received an email from Debbie Mellberg. I just got an email message from Emilia from the village of Zapote de Picachos via the Old Testament translation project satellite terminal that sends internet her way and back to Tepic via Panama. Emilia's message, translated, says that Pastor Felipe is “very well, that he has now forgotten his ‘bump on the head’, and all the brothers are very well. Thanks to God that they have completed the second square; they are half-finished with the cement work. God bless you.” :)

Friday, October 12, 2012 - Received an email from Pastor. We poured the third pad of concrete on Thursday and the court is three quarters complete. Kenny, Tony and Duane have worked beyond expectations and we all are exhausted. The Huichols have worked beside us and have taken ownership of the project. We get up before dawn and Tony puts on the coffee pot. Huichol Starbucks as we like to call it. We sleep in the church building, which during the day heats up because of its metal roof. Trying to sleep is miserable because of the temperature and second all the critter sounds from dogs, millions of roosters, donkeys, coyotes and crickets. There are some sounds we haven't identified yet...which could be coming from us.

This morning we caught the boat back to the marina and Mario, who have living with us and translating, drove us back Tepic. We are taking Martin and Eren, who saved my life, to a thank you dinner tonight. I will leave on the bus for Guadalajara tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. and should be in Phoenix by 6:45 p.m.

The rest of the men will go back to the village on Monday morning and pour the last section. On Tuesday they will clean the court and paint the OANSA game circle. On Wednesday they will return to Tepic and Thursday to Phoenix. Dave Wolf with Indian Missions Aviation is going to fly them from Tepic to Guadalajara so they won't have to take the bus.

Their plane will arrive at 6:45 p.m. on US Air at the international gate in terminal 4. Encourage as many who can to welcome them back. The CM team has been a great representative of Jesus Christ and North Village.

Email from Debbie Mellberg on Thursday, October 25, 2012: Martin, Eren and I went to Zapote today with a group of 10 people from Sacramento, CA, who have been here all this week working in La Bendicion putting in latrines and firewood-efficient stoves. They had been working very hard, but we convinced them that they really needed to experience a visit to another village, and that there was a job to be done there, too. They loved the trip and got right to work measuring, helping tape and paint, but when we got back to the dam, they were wiped out! It was soooo hot and humid; we still had a renewed appreciating for the NVBC team that worked all week + in that sweltering heat.

The kids will LOVE gametime this coming Saturday! :)