Guatemala Initiative Part 2
Within the last year, Concordia finalized a five-year commitment with CALMS (Central American Lutheran Mission Society) to send three teams (every Thanksgiving break, Spring break, and May) to a small village outside of La Union, Guatemala. According to Dr. Preuss, the Dean of School of Arts and Science and a strong supporter of the initiative who has gone three times in the last year says, “Concordia is a great match as much can be done to help with spiritual formation, health and wellness, and education.”
Concordia sent a team in May of 2015 to explore the possibility of working with CALMS and the village of El Progresso in particular. Immediately after their return to the US, the team began to plan the program. Concordia has pledged to send three teams a year (Thanksgiving Break, Spring Break, and a May Term). In November of 2015 we sent a group of students to lead VBS activities, collect and publish stories from around the village, and figure out ways to practically help the community move forward. A group of business students took down 5 backpacker-style water filters to give to a select group of families in the hopes that more could be purchased and distributed by future teams.
A second student team was sent in late February where we followed up with the initial contacts made the previous times. Armed with suitcases full of crayons and other craft supplies, the team lead two days of vibrant VBS. The lessons focused on the power of water in the gospel. The children learned about the promise God made to Noah through rainbow, as well as the humility of Christ as a servant washing his disciples’ feet.
Thanks to donations from both the Men’s Soccer and Volleyball teams as well as other donors, the Spring 2016 team was also able to bring down sports equipment to host a sports clinic for two days. Activities included stations for jump rope, tee-ball and baseball, soccer, volleyball, and when all else failed, red light green light.
Following up with the more pressing issues of water filtration, the team also spent the week distributing 25 water filters to families chosen by the COCODE, the local community government. The team asked about the effectiveness of the filters in the village and were met with positive feedback. The community is asking for 250 more filters so that every family can have access to clean water. Dr. Preuss and other leaders, particularly members of the CALMS team are working together to find a practical solution that will help the community gain a better standard of living while also encouraging independence and entrepreneurship.