Operation Kid-to-Kid

My parents Bruce (a mission team member) and Barb, along with my sister Jessica and her family are members of Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Fergus Falls. Jessica has been an active planner for their Vacation Bible School which was held this past week. Operation Kid-to-Kid was an optional program included in their VBS curriculum. The idea of the program was to tie-dye fabric bags, collect donations to fill the bags, and then donate the bags to children and/or families in need. Jessica thought our Guatemalan mission trip might be the perfect destination for their Operation Kid-to-Kid bags! She discussed the idea with me and together we thought it was a great idea!

The kids had a great time choosing their dye colors and applying it to their bag.

The bags are so cute! The say Jesus in different languages!



I supplied Jessica and the VBS team with a list of specific items that the mission is in most need of. Donations were brought in by church parish members and the VBS children. The items were stuffed into 30 bags and are now ready to be packed into our luggage!

A huge thank you to the VBS children and volunteers at Bethlehem Lutheran Church for sharing your time, talent, and treasure with the people of Guatemala!

One week from today the missionary team from St. Mary'swill be in Guatemala. Please keep them in your prayers. The pictures are from the last meeting the team had. The team had a series of meetings to get to know each other, and bond as a team before setting off on their journey. The saying on the cake translates to Peace Love Justice.

Congratulations Missionaries!

On behalf of the St. Mary's Justice Peace and Integrity of Creation committee I would like to commend all of you for answering God's call to go on this mission trip to Guatemala.

What a wonderful real life example you are providing the JPIC committee as we begin to highlight another of the 7 Catholic Social Teachings, that being Global Solidarity.

Solidarity involves having a learning experience about your own identity as well as the identities of the people you are visiting. One does not travel to the country with the intention to solve the peoples problems; rather one goes as an equal, not as someone who has answers to the peoples problems. A big part of solidarity is being in the country, sharing in the peoples lives, and having fun with them. Such an experience will lead us to see the world differently.

For those of you not going on mission here is a link to the mission that "our" missionaries will be visiting http://www.sanlucasmission.org

May God Bless and keep you, may God let His light shine on you and give you peace!

Guatemala Mission Team

Barb

Kate

Bruce

Jennifer

Sister Rita

     

Experiencing God's Love

Happy 4th of July!  I am sitting in the comfort of my air conditioned apartment watching a beautiful display of fireworks on my 32" tv and can't help but think how much different my situation will be a month from now.  I will be traveling my mom Barb, our new friends, Bruce and Jennifer - a father daughter duo, and Sister Rita to San Lucas, Guatemala.  I am thinking my source of refreshment will not be an air conditioned hotel room but rather a cool beverage at the corner pub.  This will be a brand new experience for most of us, a chance to take a 10 day break from work and the regular pace of our lives.  We will be leaving behind friends and family to make new friends and learn new things.  We will be working along side the people of Guatemala doing whatever is asked of us.  We will be on a mission to spread God's love, but somehow I bet the people of Guatemala and the people we meet at the mission from around the world will spread just as much of God's love to us!  So as we plan what we will pack in our suitcases and what souvenirs we will purchase we will also spend time listening to God's plan for us...

"For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, “‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”"
Acts 13:47 ESV

We will update the blog before we leave as well as while we are in Guatemala so check back often to see what we are up to!  Peace.