Construction!

On Saturday, three of us (Ann, Maegen, and Sara) came to El Salvador to see the progress of the orphanage and to bring some much-needed food to the volunteers. We got to go out to the site and see how much work has been done, and it is amazing. Walls are going up, and we're beginning to see how great this building is going to be.

When we got there, we saw this!



We headed down the mountain to see some more views.

We got to see the giant hole that the guys dug. Nice work! This will be the future septic tank.
There's still a lot of work to do, and Josh is there to do it! Maria Lydia, who lives down the mountain, has even started a little catering business.
And, the guys are enjoying their lunch at the "Hotel Radisson." :)
And, Robert has a new friend, Rigoberto. Rigoberto has been working at the site, and he's been such a help to us.

Please keep all of the volunteers and workers in your prayers. We are grateful for all of their hard work, and we are grateful for all of your support.

So, What's Going on in El Salvador?

In case you thought we'd fallen off the map, nothing could be further from the truth! In fact, things have been pretty busy here at SHIP, with even more people headed to El Salvador to work on the new building. Just a few days ago, a new group of five volunteers (including SHIP board member Robert Horton) joined our Brittany, Julie, and Cameron at the El Salvador orphanage.

With this new group of volunteers, much of the work has shifted to the new orphanage site, with Julie and Brittany still working with the children. But, the guys have been going out to the site and digging trenches. In what might have been a lapse of judgment, someone decided to let the guys loose with the camera. I'm still not sure whose idea it was, but we might need to have a talk. :)

Anyways, just check out how much the work has come along since our last update! The guys took these pictures, and it's pretty amazing to see the progress!






Now we see the guys hard at work.



Just look at their hard work and dedication to the project!



And, in this picture you can see...



Um, wait a second. I'm not sure how that last one got in there. And I'm not sure what they're up to. Any guesses?



And if anyone can explain that last picture, we would surely appreciate it! Whatever is going on, it looks like a lot has been accomplished and all are having a good time.

SHIP at Texas Reds

Would you like to help out a good cause and have a lot of fun while doing it? Well, this Saturday, you can do just that at the Texas Reds Festival in Downtown Bryan, Texas. SHIP will have a booth where we'll be selling beautiful granite crosses and other items made by our good friend John. Part of the proceeds of the sales will go to building the new orphanage in El Salvador.

If you haven't seen the crosses before, they are truly amazing and come in many different sizes and styles. I'm not sure how many of those crosses I've given as gifts, but they're always a huge hit.

And, if you haven't been to Texas Reds before, you really must go. The great thing about Texas Reds is that so much of it is free. You can enjoy concerts by many bands, including this year's headliner, Robert Earl Keen. He's also an Old Ag, so that deserves a Whoop!

So, please come out to Texas Reds and check us out. Our booth will be close to the new Must Be Heaven, and there will be plenty of us there to answer any questions you might have about our work in El Salvador, how you can help, how you can go, or anything else you might want to know about. Just don't ask us any math problems. Most of us aren't any help in that area. ;)

What Are We Doing Here?

This little boy makes me smile every time I see him. Even when he's being bad, though I try to hide it then.

The other night, we all sat around watching TV, and he sat in my lap. He was obviously tired, and after a little while he fell asleep. One of the older girls took him to bed, but shortly after, he came out of the room crying. He had fallen asleep with someone holding him but had awakened alone. So, I picked him up, took him to the rocking chair, and just held him until it was time for the children to say prayers and all go to bed.

I kept thinking that, with so many children at the orphanage, there just isn't a lot of time for each child to have someone hold him. But, then I had to think that, though there is little time for the individual attention that each child needs, the children at the orphanage are the fortunate ones. They are the ones who have people who love them, who have the guidance of kind parents, who wake up and always have someone there for them.

Most of the children at the orphanage are not truly orphans. Like so many children in the orphanages in and around this area (and in every other part of the world), most of them have been abandoned. Parents leave them with other relatives; those relatives are unable or unwilling to care for the children; then the children are either comepletely abandoned and left to live in the streets or find shelter in an orphanage. Earlier this evening, I learned from a good friend of our organization that, in this area alone, there are over 2,800 children living in state-sanctioned orphanages.

But, those are just the children who are actually in orphanages. There are other children who cannot be accounted for because they live on the streets or go from shelter to shelter or find a relative to take them in for a while. These children grow up without the stability and love of a family. My mom sometimes says, "Imagine how many children go to bed each night without someone to tuck them in." Or, imagine how many children awaken from bad dreams and have nobody to turn to for comfort.

So, that is what we are doing here. We are here because we hope to provide shelter for even more children, and we're here so that no child will have to wake up alone and scared. Please pray for us. This is a big job, and we need all of your prayers.

From The Site

A couple of days ago, Cameron and I went out to the site with Maria and Carlos, who were in San Salvador to take care of some SHIP business. In addition to doing some work, they also spent time hiding out for fear that people would assume they were in town to see the El Salvador/Mexico match. I'm not sure that their hiding strategies were well crafted; in just the first day, they ate at two Mexican restaurants. One of those times was our fault, but I have no regrets about that because the tacos were amazing.

Maria and Carlos haven't been our only visitors. Just yesterday, Bob and Mark arrived in town to start filming a video for SHIP. They wanted to see the property, so earlier today, we headed to the site again. What we saw there was inspring. In just a couple of days, so much has changed. There were workers moving forward on all areas of construction. Walls are starting to go up. Land is being moved. I took some pictures while we were out there, so you can see a little of what's going on.

This first photo was taken just outside the walls of the site. I feel like I should say that Cameron really doesn't spend all of his time in trees. It just looks that way. Really, he's one of the hardest workers we've ever seen. When he's not in a tree, which is most of the time, regardless of what the pictures seem to show.

But, this is what we saw going on inside the walls. These men are working on an area that will become our learning center. Right now, the kids have a lot of distractions while studying, mainly due to a lack of space. This learning center will give them the space they need to really focus on their studies.

This space will become apartments for long-term volunteers. We'll also be able to house short-term volunteers who come as part of SHIP teams. This way, we will be able to have people who live right there at the orphange and can help with day to day needs or work with the children on their schoolwork.

Here, Cameron and Bob have headed for a good spot to get a shot of where the main building will go. With a little more time, there will be a dormitory here. Imagine waking up with mango and banana trees outside your door. Imagine children who have lived confined in a small area, completely covered with concrete, actually walking outside their doors to fresh air and a tropical paradise.

This is another shot of the apartment area. I love the trees there, and the views are beautiful.

Does anyone recognize the man on the right? That's our good friend Rey. This construction has given him a lot of work, and he is doing a great job.

And, in case you were wondering how to turn a mountain into flat ground, here it is.

Today it was so good to see how our dream of a new orphanage is becoming a reality. On the way home from the site, we picked up some of the children from school and then went back to the orphanage. Perhaps that was the best part of the day, even better than seeing the changes at the site. Seeing those children reminds each of us why we are here, why we keep returning, why we are building an orphanage that, quite honestly, we cannot yet afford.

It's because of them. And because of God who in His great wisdom brought us here, to a place we had never been and had never expected to go. Gracias a Dios. Thanks to God for His wisdom, for the great blessing of bringing these children into our lives.

Some Images From The First Week

In case you´re wondering what we´ve been up to here at the orphanage, here are some pictures to fill you in.

Brittany has made a new friend. This is Stanley, and he pretty much adores her.





Julie is now a teacher. Her students are working on their letters, and she also makes time for reading stories.

Cameron has discovered a new workout routine.

We´re not sure he´ll be able to keep it up once he returns home. After all, it can be a bit difficult to locate three small children to lift.

And, after a few hours of working out, he has to take a break.



Check back tomorrow when we´ll have new pictures from the worksite. You won´t believe how much work has been done!

Unexpected Talents

I´m writing this blog at the orphanage, and because the room is open to the outside, I can hear a lot of what´s going on out there. I don´t know how many times I´ve heard the name ¨Julie¨´since I´ve been in here, but it´s becoming pretty obvious that there are many children who love Julie, our SHIP volunteer. She first came to the orphanage while on a family road trip through Central America, and she liked it so much that she decided to come back. Julie´s going to be here for the whole summer.

It´s really no wonder that the kids love her. She speaks Spanish, plays basketball with them, and has been doing a great job of teaching (and also distracting) the little ones during the day. Today´s lesson involved sidewalk chalk. How fun is that?

We knew before she even got here that Julie had a lot of talents, and we were very excited to have her come back. But there was one talent that we didn´t know about.

Check it out!

Denis was doing a pretty good job as well.

But, Julie is undoubtedly the champion of this sport. She solidified her status as champion when she did this trick.



We have been so excited to have Julie here with us. She´s done an amazing job with the kids, and they love her. Please remember her in your prayers.

A Picture Is Worth...

My favorite part of being in El Salvador is getting to spend time with the kids. They have so much energy, so much excitement about them. What becomes apparent is that language doesn´t have to be a barrier. So many people who come with us to El Salvador speak no Spanish or took Spanish in high school, which for some travelers (not naming any names) was a long time ago.

But, on this trip to El Salvador, we have two volunteers, Brittany and Julie, who speak Spanish. It´s been a real blessing to have them with us and has helped communication immensely. Because they speak Spanish so well, Brittany and Julie are helping the children with their homework and working with the children who are unable to go to school.

However, even without a command of the language, it´s easy to realize that children all over the world have some similarities. They like to play, color, a just generally have fun. Brittany brought some coloring books, and they were a huge hit.

Here´s Brittany. In this picture, she´s making use of her conversational skills, or maybe she´s just eating something. Whichever the case, it looks like a good time.



But then the coloring begins. They love it!



You must realize that these are little kids with (as mentioned previously) tons of energy. Look how intent they are on coloring.



It´s a little surprising that coloring books can capture the attention of kids who love to run and play soccer all day, but the kids absolutely love to draw and color.

´

But what´s most surprising is that, when they´re finished coloring their pictures, the children give them away. They give their drawings to us. Each time I´ve seen them do this, I know that it´s coming. I know to expect to receive their gifts even before they give them. But part of me is always a little surprised, a little overwhlemed that children who have so little would give me the things they make. And maybe it´s that unexpected gift of love that keeps all of us coming back.

Brittany will be here for the entire summer. She´ll be doing a lot of work with the children and helping with translation. Please pray for her while she´s here. We give thanks to have her with us, helping us all.

If At First You Don't Succeed...Push Harder

Children of various ages live at the orphanage, and, as so often happens, the children tend to stick together by age. The older children, especially, the girls, do a great job of helping out the younger children, but when it's time to play, it seems like the little ones want to play with people their own size.

Jhonny, the orphange director, refers to this group of youngest children as "los pequenitos." These children might be small, but they have tons of energy and more than enough creativity. Sometimes that combination is a good thing; sometimes it's not; and sometimes, well, sometimes it's a little difficult to pass judgment on the goodness or badness of what these little ones are up to.

Saturday was one of those days. There's a bit of construction going on at the site of the current orphanage. And, as with any construction site, there are plenty of tools around. The little ones really aren't allowed to go near the construction site, but Cameron, one of our SHIP volunteers, spotted a construction tool that seemed like it had some possibilites for fun.

The wheelbarrow.

That's right, folks. What could be more fun to play with than a wheelbarrow? If you're a little one, you can go for rides, and there's very little that's more fun than being pushed around in a wheelbarrow at break-neck speeds. Okay, so perhaps the wheelbarrow doesn't have the potential to break the sound barrier, but if you're six years old, a wheelbarrow ride seems pretty fast. And pretty fun.

The little ones enjoyed their rides for a while, but they had something better in mind. Their plan didn't get off to a very good start.


In fact, it looked like they would lose Cameron completely. Oh, and the kid with the tail? That's totally not his tail. But it is pretty funny.


As you can see from this next picture, they didn't lose Cameron. These little kids worked hard to keep him safe, and they wanted to give it another try. However, it seems like Alberto's faith in this endeavor might be flagging. He's the cutie in the purple shirt. Notice the look of despair on his little face. He looks like he might give up.

But then Alberto (and the rest of the little ones) are off!

These two watched the whole thing. And laughed.

But, even though it seemed like the little ones wouldn't get Cameron going, they finally did. And they had fun doing it.

Cameron will be here for two months, living at the orphanage and working at the construction site. He's been so great with the kids and has given more piggy-back rides in the last two days than any of us have given in our whole lives. The kids just love him, and we're so blessed to have him working here. Please keep him in your prayers.