As we are approaching the end of the year and a full year of being here, we have so many different things to reflect back on and be grateful for this year.
Guatemala has been everything we expected it to be, but even better. We’ve gotten sick, we’ve learned Spanish (and a little bit of Spanish sign language and Kaqchikel), we’ve made many new friends, and we’ve witnessed miracles. We’ve settled into our jobs and roles here and finally got settled into our home in late August. When I look back on this year, I am overwhelmed with all God has done for us, in us, and through us.
We are so grateful for our supporters… without you, none of this would have been possible! You have prayed for us, encouraged us, and held us up in the moments where we’ve gotten discouraged or tired. Although we’re looking forward to a visit back in the states, I’m already excited to come back in 2017 and hit the ground running with our ministry.
There are a few exciting changes going on with what we do… A few new volunteers are coming in 2017, so that will allow me more time to do a few other things within the hospital. I am planning to start an English class one night each week for the hospital employees, and I also want to be more intentional about doing devotions with the moms within the hospital. Bryan and I also want to start routinely visiting the senior center to sing songs with them, we’re hoping to do this every other Sunday.
Our biggest change is going to be how we are receiving our donations. We have partnered with an organization called Mission Quest that is run by missionaries and for missionaries, and they will be handling all of our financial donations. This is such a big blessing because it will relieve some of the burden of the work for Hope of Life in 2017, and it will also allow us and all of our sponsors to access what contributions have been made. Possibly my favorite thing is that we have our own link, so the money will easily go directly to us.
To give a tax deductible donation, go directly to our site at missionquest.org/118
You can also mail checks and find additional ways to easily give here.
Tomorrow, I plan on posting again for tangible donations we are looking for in 2017, so stay tuned for that!
We pray that you are being blessed through our ministry just as we’ve been blessed through your generosity.
You are loved.
-Whitney
It’s the last day in November and I’m thinking about how thankful I am to be here in Guatemala and how just a couple of years ago we were still paying off student loans and a car but were praying that God would move and would help us get to Guatemala by 2016. God moved, transmission went out on one vehicle and I totaled the other car. He tested us and allowed some trials but after we came through them, God provided us with blessings. A car was given to us, Whitney got a new job, I got a bunch of overtime, and we met the Dechats.
Pete and Judy Dechat became supporters of #sendthesaultons even before we had the catchy hashtag. They became supporters the night we met them. I was catering a charity event for Safe Haven Village and Pete introduced himself to me and gave me a check because he knew that God was calling us to Guatemala and he and his wife wanted to help us get there.
Before we met Pete & Judy, they had been to Hope of Life and had been praying about remodeling the kitchen at the elderly home and praying that a chef would move to Guatemala and help to ensure that the food quality is always improving, that the proper equipment is bought, and that it is all well maintained. So while they were praying for a chef and I was praying for a call, God was moving and connecting us.
Since then, I’ve been able to help cater a wedding for some of Pete’s family, cook dinner for them, borrowed their truck several times, and got to know them better by enjoying some quality double dates!
Pete and Judy’s hearts are very much connected to supporting missionaries like us and others and Whitney and I are incredibly thankful for them!
Wanted to post a picture of a couple of Pete and Judy’s favorites from the elderly home. Hipolito & Gladis.
Thank you Pete and Judy!
-Bryan
*To support us like Pete and Judy, go to https://missionquest.org/118 to give a tax deductible donation.
One of the best things about our donors is getting to share what we’ve been able to do with that support. I am so thankful for that and to express that I have to tell a short story.
Back in March, Whitney and I were back in the U.S. using up some free flight vouchers that we had. Just before coming back I had noticed that kitchen at the hospital, elderly home & Kelly’s House were in serious need of an improvement in the blender department. This is something that is easily ignored by the average person. But to me, a chef, I notice these things. When you have a crummy blender and need to puree foods, you have to add a lot of water, then to keep it from being too thin, you have to thicken it up again. The problem with this is that the kids end up with a lot less of the nutrients that they need because it’s so watered down. They also end up breaking fast. This is why in the restaurant industry you buy the nice commercial blenders like Vitamix or BlendTec. These blenders are made to puree soups, meats, beans, whatever. I’ve seen them even blend car keys!
All this to say, I knew we needed a Vitamix. I knew I couldn’t afford to buy one. So I posted about the need of Facebook and asked if anyone would be willing to purchase one or help purchase one. I don’t know who responded first or how fast it was but I want to thank everyone that helped purchase or purchased a Vitamix. Thank you (in no particular order): Jeremy & Paula Watts, Matt & Christine Simmons, Paul & Erica Sheets, & Paul & Katrina Dysart.
Thank you all so much for your radical generosity! Thanks to you all we were able to purchase 2 Vitamix blenders and a BlendTec blender. Children at Kelly’s House & the hospital that are unable to properly chew foods or feed themselves have pureed foods that aren’t watered down so that they’re able to get the nutrition that they greatly need. And those at the elderly home can still enjoy food even if it’s pureed because it still has its original taste because it hasn’t been watered down.
On behalf of myself and all of the cooks, thank you so much for your giving
One of the blenders at Kelly’s House on the left and the new Vitamix on the right!
A couple of the cooks from Kelly’s House with the new blender.
The nutritionist that works on planning foods for those at the elderly home and hospital is on the left and the other 4 ladies are cooks at the elderly home
The head of the elderly home got in for a picture too!
Did you know that on average, it costs more than $12,000 a year to raise a child in the US? Here in Guatemala, you can sponsor a child for only $35 a month and dramatically change the trajectory of their life.
In a country where the median annual income is under $2,000 USD and many children go to work out of necessity before even completing middle school, child sponsorship gives them access to education, healthcare, and food. When you sponsor a child through Hope of Life, you also have the option to contact the child, write them letters and send gifts… and if you’re ever here to visit us in Guatemala, Hope of Life will arrange for you to see your sponsored child too! How cool is that?!
This season, let’s exchange consumption for compassion and use our resources to bless others.
If you feel called to do something for those who are struggling in the states, let me know and I’ll be happy to connect you with reputable organizations that we supported before moving here. If you feel called to sponsor us in our ministry, you can find out more about that HERE.
Daily, Yolanda uses my phone to take about 100 pictures….I don’t mind at all though because I love looking through them at the end of the day.Plus you get to see sweet things like Yolanda kissing Juanito’s squishy cheeks!Juanita is 9 years old and is at the hospital for medical issues. She loves to help with the babies!Everybody loves Diego.. He’s 3 years old and deaf, but has no problems communicating what he wants and when he wants it! He has a rare genetic disorder called Russel Silver Syndrome. I love his giggles and hugs! And he’s one of the smartest kids I know!Crowd favorites — Delmy and Herminio. Delmy is 9 years old with VACTERL association and phocomelia, but that doesn’t stop her from moving about and holding conversations with anybody about anything!Yolanda and my sweet Auner! Auner had his finally surgery for cleft palate repair a few months ago. Since then, he has become very vocal and talkative! We practice sounds daily so he can learn to speak more clearly.Rosario & Erika — sweet partners in crime waiting for their nails to dry!Cute little Erika… could just squeeze you <3Diego saw everyone else getting their nails done and wanted his toenails painted too!! Hahahaha Nora painted them with clear polish.The nannies in our hospital are wonderful!They love the kids and are so patient with each of them. You can show love to these kids too by sponsoring them today!
Today, I want to thank Len Picha & family, Edna Thompson, and Ken & Ginny Thelan for sponsoring us!!!! Your generosity goes beyond what you are giving to us, and filters into the lives of each and every one of these children you see. Because you give, we are able to work with these children on a daily basis. Being around them all day every week allows me to target their specific needs and help them to develop in areas they are behind. Some children need help with speech (Yolanda and Diego are deaf, Auner has speech disabilities from a late repair to a cleft palate), some children need therapy (Herminio has hip dysplasia, Isaac has cerebral palsy, Rosario is just learning to walk) and other children need emotional support and love (Erika and Juanita). Every child you see has a story, and every child you see has a specific need. I communicate with the doctors and therapists to help make sure the children are getting the best therapy available to them, and each of them are thriving.. even here in rural Guatemala where our resources are limited. Because you send us, you allow these kids to grow to their fullest potential and to hear about Christ’s love for each of them every day.
Matthew 25:40 says that whatever we do for the least of these, we do for Christ. So I challenge each of my readers this holiday season– what are you going to do? Will you spend your money on things that only bring 5 minutes of fleeting happiness? Or will you do something bigger than yourself… and give knowing that your money is changing a life.
Stay blessed.
-Whitney
**TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT CHILD SPONSORSHIP, VISIT https://www.hopeoflifeintl.org/sponsor/
There are times when living down here, I see things so harrowing that I am too choked up and unable to share about… or sometimes I feel like I just cannot post images of children with such poor prognoses because it’s hard for me to share things that are so hopeless and beyond our control. It’s hard to see a baby with microcephaly and an inoperable meningoencephalocele and know that she’s not going to make it. It’s hard to see a baby with a hydrocephaly so large (78cm at 5 months) and watch his mother struggle to lift him or to raise his head enough to feed him without aspirating. It’s hard to see 18 pound 20 year olds who have suffered months, if not years, of extreme malnutrition. It’s hard for me to be public about such heart breaking stories because I never know what tomorrow holds for some of these precious children. It’s hard for me to be public after I have held their mommas in my arms as they bitterly weep about the condition of their baby who they know cannot survive. I am a fixer and a helper, and it’s so difficult for me when I am faced with situations that I cannot fix nor help.
However, tonight is different. Tonight I am going to be sharing a story of help and hope and transformation. Several weeks ago, I had pleaded for some of you to pray for a rescue I went on. Now, let me be clear, that all the rescues I go on require prayer as the children are often only weeks from death when we bring them back to Hope of Life. However, this rescue was different. This one broke me and in the same time, reignited my passion for what we’re doing here… There are some hard to look at pictures in this post, but stay tuned for the happy ending.
3 hours. The drive to Pacayalitas was 3 hours from Hope of Life, but was still located in the department of Zacapa. Usually, our rescues come from Jocotan, Camotan, or Olopa in Chiquimula… But this one was in the other direction, far up into the mountains past La Union. Once we arrived to the small village, we began the 30 minute walk up the mountain, through the coffee bushes, through the mud, and arrived at the small stick and mud hut they called their home. The water source outside their home smelled foul and was a toxic green color. Birds ran in and out of their home as black smoke billowed out of the door way from their indoor stove. There were three makeshift burial sites behind the back yard, and the dirt above them looked very fresh.
Inside, I saw sweet 9 year old Blanca Luz, holding her sisters– 5 year old Rosita and 2 year old Iris. Although she was only 5, Rosita was small and frail, and was much smaller than her malnourished 2 year old sister. Unable to stand or walk, Rosita sat with a blank, lifeless expression in her eyes as she coughed and struggled to breathe. Blanca Luz appeared terrified as tears welled up in her eyes. She explained to me that both of her parents and an older sister had all recently died. “They became very skinny because they did not have any food and all of them had a cough when they died too,” she explained. Immediately, I became concerned that it could be tuberculosis.
Pressing my stethoscope against Rosita’s chest, I heard a deep, rumbling, rhonchorous breath sounds. When I picked her up, she weighed next to nothing, and her limp, boney body sunk into mine as I could see and feel the muscles between her ribs sucking in and gasping for air. I worried whether or not she would be able to make the long journey back to Hope of Life. We made the journey back to the ambulance with Blanca Luz, Rosita and Iris. Their grandmother joined us on the way.
When we arrived to the ambulance, I noticed the oxygen tank was on empty because it was the end of the month and it was unable to be refilled. I pulled out the pediatric ambubags, praying Rosita would be stable enough to not need them. We got settled in the ambulance with Blanca Luz holding Iris and myself holding Rosita. Less than 5 minutes down the mountain in the bumpy, hot and nauseating ride, Blanca Luz began to cry profusely. She said “Please don’t let my sisters die. They’re all that I have left.” And I promised her I would do everything I could to not let that happen. Through her small, choked up voice, she asked if I could hold her while I held Rosita too. My heart broke and I saw my 9 year old niece Kayleigh in Blanca Luz’s eyes. I thought about how I would do anything in the world for my Kayleigh, and I would do just the same for this sweet girl whose face housed fear and responsibility as she had dealt with more hurt in the past month than some people do in a lifetime.
Blanca Luz handed Iris to her grandmother and shifted herself from the ambulance bench to the stretcher to sit beside me and Rosita, the buttons on her hand sewn blouse popped off and she became embarrassed and began to cry harder. She said “my shirt is unbuttoned but please don’t hurt me. Please don’t hurt me,” she began to scream and cry harder as she buried her face into my chest. Not knowing what all this precious 9 year old girl had went through and only seeing the sheer terror in her face and the trembling in her voice, I wrapped my arms around her firmly and told her I would never hurt her and promised to keep her safe. The ride was very difficult.
We spent over an hour and a half on the bumpy mountainous road. At one point, we hit a bump so big that all of us were flown out of our seats and came crashing into the bars and doors against the back of the ambulance. I hurt my tailbone pretty good in that moment, but Blanca Luz and Rosita remained in my tight grip. After that, we entered onto the main paved road where the driver picked up speed and the entire family became nauseous and started vomiting from the car sickness. Covered in their vomit, the secretions from Rosita’s cough, and watching the lice jump from Blanca Luz’s hair and into my own, she apologized and I told her that everything was okay and she didn’t need to feel bad or worry.
Flash forward 3 hours we finally arrive back to Hope of Life. Dirty, bruised, and sore hands from bagging Rosita for the last 20 minutes or so of the journey, we rush inside to get Rosita stabilized so she can await a transfer to a higher acuity hospital with isolation rooms available for the suspected tuberculosis. The grandmother goes with Rosita, and I am left to help a terrified 9 year old settle into a foreign location to care for her 2 year old sister.
The next several weeks while Rosita was away, I spent hours each day talking with Blanca Luz. I would pick lice out of her hair, paint her nails, color with her.. anything I could do to help distract her from hurt. Each day, she cried for her mommy and for Rosita. As the days passed, she and Iris grew stronger, happier, and healthier. I talked to her about Jesus and how to pray when she was upset or scared. She became so comforted through the power of prayer.
About 2 weeks ago, Rosita was transferred back to our hospital much more stable. She was still weak for her age, but she was smiling and able to breathe on her own. Her lungs sounded clearer and stronger. Just the other day, all three girls were discharged to go home and I am so glad that while this story is far from ‘happy’, that these three girls are survivors and will be returning to live with their grandmother. Three precious girls, fighting malnutrition and respiratory issues and one who was barely surviving have been healed. Not just physically healed, but spiritually healed too as Blanca Luz accepted Jesus into her heart before returning home. Please continue to keep these precious ones in your prayers as the hurt they have experienced will leave wounds to last a lifetime, and the struggle before them is not yet over.
I am thankful for Hope of Life for springing into action into the mountains of Guatemala where people need help the most. I am thankful for the continued followup we will have on children like Blanca Luz, Iris, and Rosita to make sure they never get to that place of desperation again.
Gripping onto each other on the difficult ride back to Hope of Life.I was so scared we would lose Rosita that I prayed the entire journey back for her to make it.All the children got so sick and there was vomit everywhere. I rubbed hand sanitizer under my nose to mask the smell.Once we reached smoother roads, I laid Blanca Luz down to rest and mended a few buttons on her shirt so she wouldn’t be so scared / embarrassed.Iris, 2 years old at St. Luke’s Hospital, Hope of Life.Rosita, 5 years old at St. Luke’s Hospital, Hope of Life.Blanca Luz, 9 years old, St Luke’s Hospital Hope of Life.After being at the hospital for 1 week, the girls were finally starting to smile a little bit.Each week, I would buy them a few gifts with whatever I could afford that week.Blanca Luz after 4 weeks at Hope of Life, she had just accepted Jesus but was too bashful for a picture.That’s better, pretty girl! <3Iris after 4 weeks. This little cutie would smile and giggle non stop, but of course when I would pull out the camera, she’d run away!And sweet Rosita… while she is still delayed for her age because of the severe sickness her body endured, she is now an acceptable weight for her size and much healthier and stronger!Such a HUGE transformation from where she was just 4 weeks ago!! All glory to God!
Tonight, I want to thank some of our best friends and sponsors– Jordan & Jazmyn Ward. Jazmyn was one of the first people I tearfully told about this rescue. Although most of this year she’s been living in Germany, we have kept in touch through our late night face timing and snapchat sessions. Jordan and Jazmyn just GET us. They know when we need encouragement, and they freely give encouragement. They know when we need a laugh, and they tell funny jokes or reminisce on hilarious old times with us. They are our “iron sharpens iron” friends and our life has been abundantly blessed just having met them. Jortin’ & Jaz, we love you all and our journey here began because when people thought we were crazy to move to Guatemala, you said GO FOR IT. When vehicles broke down and power was out, you were there for us. We love you all so so so much, and we’re so thankful for the years of laughter we have shared and how you all have supported us and encouraged us through it all.
To support us like The Wards, you can go HERE to find out how. You can also sponsor children just like Blanca, Rosita and Iris by visiting Hope of Life’s Sponsorship PAGE. Just $35 a month allows you to connect with a child here in Guatemala by giving them access to food, water, and healthcare. You also get to write to the children and see them if you ever come to visit!
This Thanksgiving season, we’re beyond thankful. Our hearts are overflowing with gratitude and there’s so much more this year has in store for us.
Muchísimas gracias to all who sponsor and pray for us. We could not be the feet on the ground here in Guatemala without your support!
I’m writing this post a little late tonight (its 10:00 here) but in California, it’s only 8:00 which is good because my post is about thanking a friend of mine from California.
I met David Behoteguy back in January of this year. Whitney and I were still new to this whole being missionaries thing and hadn’t moved into our home yet and I hadn’t really settled into my position in the kitchen. Dave loves to build stuff. He’s an engineer, owns his own plastics design & manufacturing company, he’s really smart, and really creative. But Dave also loves coffee. So when he heard that we were building a cafe, he knew he was the man to help. Since I was free, I offered to help him build it. I’ll be honest, I’m not the greatest construction worker. I can lift some heavy(ish) stuff, paint, and drive a nail or two but I don’t trust myself to do a project alone. But David let me help anyways. We worked all week cutting whatever boards we could find at the carpenter shop, then put them up with whatever screws we could find, and just slowly but surely, often with less than typical tools or materials, we got it done.
This is Antonio (Tono) & myself working one evening at the Cafe. What you don’t see is to the right where our espresso machine is which David and I inaugurated back in January after we finished the job!
Fast forward to this past August. David came back with his wonderful wife Anne and he had a couple of free days later in the week. I had mentioned how I would love some input on making shelves for our kitchen at our home and that was enough. David and I came up to the house, took some measurements, planned it out and went looking for the materials. Just like with the cafe, we had to “Guatemala” a few things. To Guatemala something basically means making due with whatever you have available and finding a way to get things done. We went to the carpenter shop, found the boards, made the cuts, & got it done. I had actually thought I could have done it on my own before I actually helped in doing it. There is NO WAY I could have done this without Dave & if I had tried, there’s no way it would have turned out this well. The shelves look fantastic, we have our pots & pans hanging, & we stole an idea that he told us from his house in CA and hung our coffee cups. When you go from having a huge kitchen in VA with tons of cabinet and counter space to a small kitchen with 2 cabinets and 2 counters, you really got to get creative. Dave is that creative. I’m so blessed to have met him and his wife this year and become good friends with them. Thank you Dave Behoteguy, for taking time away from a million other things that you could have been doing around the ministry and back in CA to help a young missionary couple feel a lot more at home in a far different place than they had been used to. Thanks for helping us make a house a home!
Planning & measuring
Before pose
Making cuts on boards that were longer than the saw, but we made it happen.
Working hard all morning and afternoon deserves a little nap after lunch!
To give a tax deductible donation, go directly to our site at missionquest.org/118
