On June 3, 2007, a small group from Arkansas flew south to Guatemala. Over the next week they worked hard and played hard with the people there. They ran medical clinics. They distributed food. They built miniature houses.

They saw lives changed.

Beautiful Scenery

Crops were grown virtually everywhere. The view from the roof of the mission house where the team spent the week.		The Guatemala Department of Tourism touts the country as the “Land of Eternal Spring.” They have two seasons - wet and dry. The mission team was in Guatemala during the wet season. The temperatures were cool at night and warm during the day. Even though Guatemala is much closer to the equator than Arkansas, because of the altitude in the mountains (about 6,000 feet above sea level), the temperatures are generally quite pleasant. Guatemala has numerous volcanoes - four of which are currently active. The resulting rugged terrain makes for breathtaking views and adventurous driving experiences.

The Construction Team

Each day a construction team worked on building small houses for families in need. These 12 foot long by 12 foot wide “casitas” made of tin and wood with a two inch concrete floor had one window and one door. Sometimes one or two people would live in one of these. Often entire families made them their homes. Over the course of the week, the construction team built and dedicated 10 houses.

Dedicated houses and a Bible for each home.

The Medical Team

On two days during the trip, a medical team went out and distributed much needed medical supplies to needy families. They had a bus stocked with medical supplies (above) that they took with them to the field.
  

(clockwise from top right) Caleb and Raleigh screening at the entrance; Aiden has found a new friend; some of the medical team during a lull in the action; Jay in the middle of a medical consultation; Cathy distributing a “controlled” substance; the building that the medical team worked out of.

Food Distribution in Remote Village + Stuck Vans = Awesome!

On the way to the food distribution, torrential rains prevented the vans the mission team used from scaling the last few hundred feet of this hillside.	But with some manpower added to the horsepower, the vans made it to the top of the hill. The team then hiked down the other side to the rural village.

Team vs. The Volcano

On the last day of the trip, the mission team scaled a volcano and emerged…alive.