Not really in jail, even though it almost looks that way. This youngster has a fenced back yard and can safely play without constant supervision. The camera and the caucasion holding it seem to be intriguing.

During the June trip to La Palma, part of our group traveled to El Tule one afternoon to visit the congregation there. Travis preached to a full house.

El Tule is located at the headwaters of Lake Cerron, 40 kilometers south of La Palma.

It is interesting to compare their nice building with the fancy ones we have to worship in.

We ask for your prayers and ideas. This is Andrea. She will celebrate her 5th birthday in August and is not likely to see her 6th. She has a non-repairable heart defect. While we are there in September, we would like to spend a day with her doing something neat and fun to show her our love for her.

Of course, we will ask her what she would like to do, but if anyone has ideas that you have seen done before, we are open to them. Please let me know.

God bless you, Ralph

Young (and old) missionaries work to improve the steps to Claudia's house. There was a lot of digging, forming, mixing, and finishing to get these steps somewhat safe to use.

No one complained about the work. They were happy to be helping someone in need.

Yuvonia spends some time with her sponsored child, Sara, and her brother. It is often a very emotional time to be with the child you sponsor. The educational gifts she presented to them appear to be appropriate.

There are now 83 sponsored children in the La Palma program. They get food, medical help, school and clothing supplies as needed. They and their parents participate in Bible study.

This building under construction makes it an easy place for Melinda to 'hang out' with the children.

Two young men allow their photo to be taken along one of La Palma's narrow streets.

Marcy reports that a second medical opinion verifies that little Andrea is not a candidate for heart surgery except for a complete transplant. The transplant is not an option for other reasons. We will be doing a junior 'make a wish' activity for her in September--giving her a trip to somewhere she would like to spend a day of enjoyment. Her 5th birthday is in August, and she has little likelihood of reaching #6. We will show her our love and God's love while we are there in whatever ways we can.

Tammy and her buddy pose for a photo. He seems to enjoy the 'shades' and the possible publicity!

It did not take very long for this little guy to develop a strong liking for Tammy. She taught him from a book and he became a devout admirer. You can look at his face and see that he is listening to every word.

With the sidewalk pour finished, the crew poses for a photo. They still have work to do on the steps up to the house.
Anyone thinking of going on the September trip needs to contact Donnie so he can buy the tickets. We need enough people to allow us to do clothing distributions and teaching.
Remember to begin using http://lapalmamission.blogspot.com/ for the La Palma mission. The yahoo site will soon disappear. Change your 'favorites' now.
God bless you, Ralph

When there is no ready-mix truck available, you mix it by hand. The local people usually use the "volcano" method, which means they put the gravel and cement in a pile like a volcano and mix the water into it via a hole in the top of the pile. When there is a wheelbarrow available, that is even better.

Two boys pose for a photo. They seem quite happy for the attention they are getting.

God bless you, Ralph

A few weeks ago we showed the work done at Claudia's house to help her get around better in her wheelchair. In the next few days we will show the work involved and the people doing the work. Here is a concrete mixing crew doing what we usually have a ready-mix truck do for us. Young, old, male, female - they all worked hard.

Jorge prepares to baptize a man. The recent heavy rains caused rapid flow and required extra caution.

A crowd has gathered at the river in Ocotepeque as Jorge speaks to them about baptism.

A girl smiles as she holds her little brother. Siblings automatically, by culture and of necessity, assume the duties of a surrogate mother very early in life. They assume those duties quite seriously, and the little ones respect the relationship. Mothers are almost always working, and rearing the children becomes a responsibility of the older ones.

Note the sidewalk she is sitting on. 99% of the people here walk, yet the sidewalks are in shambles. In the US, our sidewalks are usually in great shape and largely unused.

God bless you,
Ralph

This shows a small part of the work that went into sorting and packing clothing prior to the container shipment. Each items was inspected, categoprized, packed, and inventoried.

This load of hospital beds, along with mattresses, blankets, diapers, and other supplies, went to a drug rehabilitation facility in Chalatenango. The director of the facility has been a friend since my second trip to La Palma.

Today is the day Stephen returns to West Palm Beach. He stayed in El Salvador in June to visit with Carolina and her family.

This is a note from Marcy regarding little Andrea, who needs heart surgery:
Just wanted to let you know that the charity organization that wanted to sponsor Andrea is sending her test results to a couple of docs here in the U.S. for further review. They think a second opinion is in order and are willing to bring her to the U.S. if necessary. Although Todd has told me that her case is not very hopeful, I ask that you keep praying for her and ask God that she be helped in some way. Marcy

God bless you, Ralph

More of the stuff from the container waiting to be distributed. We had several barrels of shoes that did not get distributed and are waiting to be given away on our next trip.
God bless you, Ralph

Two trucks worked all day Friday to haul and distribute the medical equipment to the various clinics and storage areas. Two more came to haul the clothing and shoes to storage. Lots of people came asking for crutches or walkers or wheel chairs for their friends or relatives. We were able to honor each request. We had 20 infant carriers and ran out of those.

Traffic continued to move during the unloading, but there were delays as police controlled the one narrow lane left open.

Very soon there was a 'box brigade' shuttling boxes to the wall of the storage area. Unloading went very fast.

Unloading went rapidly. Some items required more care than others. Boxes and barrels are easy to handle. Gurneys and wheelchairs take more time and effort.

We had a lot of help to unload the container. Here is the first box coming off.

The container driver maneuvers into the best place for unloading as well as letting traffic continue. We were very thankful for police help. At the left you can see where one lane traffic splits into two lanes.

The seal on the load was intact. This container is insulated and refrigerated for hauling bananas to the US. From Nicaragua or El Salvador, the loaded container goes to Port Barrios in northern Guatemala and is loaded on a boat. The boat takes it to Gulfport or Biloxi, MS. It goes by truck to any of dozens of receiving facilities where the bananas finish ripening and are further distributed to stores. Unless the shipper finds a backhaul like this load, the container makes the reverse trip empty.

Tomorrow you can see what it looked like when the doors were opened.

God bless you, Ralph

This is the percussion section of the La Palma Christian School band. The parents donated enough to buy these instruments and we hope to collect some more and take them down with us on a future trip.

Jose and I visited on Skype Thursday. I had told him that with the camera and microphone and hi-speed internet we left in June, he and I could talk over the internet and see each other while we talked. I know now that he could not comprehend that. He had help getting on line Thursday, but when he actually saw me and said "hello", the expression on his face was priceless. Initially it was disbelief, then it changed to reality and he became very excited. We now plan to visit via Skype each week.

Remember that the next trip will be September 6 - 16 with an option to return home on the 13th. We need commitments from those planning to go so tickets can be ordered.

God bless you, Ralph

La Palma Mission

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