FROM BETTY ON LOCATION IN BOLIVIA…. Written on the fourth day

If I had no more wonderful things happen on this trip, the blessings thus far have been sufficient for the whole ten days. On the flight into La Paz (capital city of Bolivia) there was the most beautiful deep orange sunset "only God could have made."  La Paz has an altitude of around 13,000 feet, steep and narrow streets as well as some streets wide and flat.  High in the Andes Mountains, air is at about 45% humidity and dusty as there is not a lot of green vegetation.

Sunday, July 29 … After overnight at Hotel El Dorado in La Paz, we traveled to the city of Potosi (famous for silver mining, altitude 13,500+, highest city in the world), a drive of 7 hours on the only paved highway available. The VIM vehicle is a Toyota Land Cruiser, much needed for the mountainous terrain where we traveled.  On this trip, "We" included my VIM missionary friend, Mike Keyse (VIM Teams Coordinator for Bolivia), the Southern District Superintendent, Eduardo, Ruben (a chemical engineer with Phd from UTKnoxville, native of LaPaz, working on water accessibility projects for Engineers Without Borders, and son of a former Bishop in Bolivia), and I. My camera gets busy.  We arrived in Potosi about 4:30 p.m. and took DS Eduardo to his house. (He had been in La Paz for his wife’s hysterectomy at the hospital on Friday and she would stay there for one week.  Eduardo has no vehicle and caught a ride home with Mike.  He will return to La Paz in two or three days on the bus and stay until his wife is dismissed. Then they will take the bus back to Potosi – remember it’s a 7-hour drive, much longer on the bus!) Our next stop was to visit the day care at the Methodist church, La Nueva Semilla Minera, which is on the ground floor. Three ladies care for about 34 children each day, feeding them three meals. They were anxious to see Mike to let him know how the building is progressing and tell him the needs of the Day Care program.  The church building is four years old and being built by VIM teams. It is on two levels, built into the side of a hill.  Potosi is very hilly, and has mostly cobblestone streets.  The poorer people live higher up in the mountains of the city, mostly walking on the steep streets of stone or concrete, a few people ride bicycles.  At a distance, it is easy to see the differences between the main part of the city and the homes of the poor higher up on the mountains.

Since people work every day, the Sunday service is held about 5 p.m., that night it started about 6:00, lasting about two hours. The pastor led the service, the DS preached, lots of singing, I did the offertory prayer with Ruben translating. The children swamped us, all wanting to sit by Mike and I. The District Women’s President, Severina, was there and spoke (they did not know she was coming!). Many pictures were made.  There is no heat in the church and we are in our sweaters and jackets as it is the middle of the winter season.  It gets cold quickly when the sun goes down around 6 p.m.!  We stayed at the Hotel Jerusalem in Potosi, no elevators, somewhat rustic but nice and makes you think about the real Jerusalem.  We must turn in our room keys each time we go out, which means we have to ask for the key by number when we return … I was pleased that my Spanish was understandable enough that I never got the wrong key to my room!  The room cost US$17 per night.

Bolivia has 68% of it’s people living in poverty, and most of the people we see are the poor population.  Their small houses are made of mud bricks and stones, with roof of dried grasses that grow everywhere, and occasionally you would see a tin roof.  Since the terrain is so rocky, there is no shortage of stones of every size, which are used for streets, fences, buildings, tombs, marking off areas, even placed in the roads to indicate detours.  It is amazing how many boundary fences we saw built of the stones in the countryside, many have been there for hundreds of years.  A common sight along the roadways was a bent-over man carrying a bundle of brush on his back, which he had picked from trees and bushes.  The brush is used as fuel for cooking and heating what little water they have.

On Monday, July 30, as many of us as could fit into the Land Cruiser (10 or so) drove for 1 hour on a dusty, rocky road into the country to visit a little Methodist church which is still being constructed in the village of Pampoyo. We were specifically going there so that Ruben could investigate a possible work project that was needed to improve their water supply. Ruben was to meet with the people to explain the process of work by Engineers Without Borders (the reason for him being with us on the trip).  As we arrived in Pampoyo, we were met by a man who asked us to come to his house and see his sick wife. After listening to him, we think she had a stroke while shepherding their sheep and cows couple months earlier. It’s a long distance to a doctor and they have no money.  His wife was sitting outside the door of their house on a pallet of blankets.  He wanted us to pray for her, a moving experience as we each touched her. She cried through the whole prayer.  Severina (the Women’s President), combed and re-braided her hair, a sweet expression of Christian love. The wife cried, as did we. Then, we had a meeting in the women’s building so Ruben could explain his proposal for enhancing their small water supply that comes from a spring high up in the Andes Mountains. Each household only has one outdoor faucet. They also have no restrooms in the community of about 120 people, so that is another of Ruben´s proposals. If the projects are approved, teams of engineering students will do the work, the whole process possibly taking about five years.  The people were excited as they interacted with him. They served us a big lunch, and the ladies had a meeting and more pictures.  I love the pictures of this place, everyone in native dress, their courtyard with cooking and eating and meeting area.  We had planned to be in Pampoyo about two hours, but it stretched to about five hours, and worth every minute.  Later that evening, Ruben returned to La Paz by bus, a trip of several hours. 

Since few people have vehicles, there are many buses, trucks, taxis and vans used for transportation.  Mike said as he travels around, he always lets some people know where he’s going as someone always needs a ride somewhere.  As you might imagine, pollution from exhausts is a problem since they have no environmental laws in Bolivia.  It is a third world country!  You could see the haze hanging over the cities of La Paz and Cochabamba, both having about one million people each.  Central to each city is a beautiful plaza (park) with lots of benches and landscaping.  They are always crowded with people, especially at lunch time, after school and end of the work day.  Most businesses observe siesta time and are open later in the evening.

Eduardo, the District Superintendent, has been in office since January, and serves 15 little churches over a very wide area, from Potosi in the northern part to Villazon near the Argentine border.  Whenever Mike is traveling in the area, Eduardo goes with him so he can visit the churches.  He hopes to visit all the churches of Bolivia before the end of this year. 

On Tuesday, July 31, Mike, Severina and I traveled to Sucre, about 3 hours drive on a nice paved road, two lanes, from Potosi. It is a beautiful drive, to lower elevation of about 9,500 feet, more green valleys with beautiful small farms, and some flowers.  Sucre is the constitutional capital of Bolivia, also called the White City, a beautiful and historical city with many white buildings of limestone, a contrast to the Wild West look of Potosi. We arrived about 11:30 a.m. at the Methodist Dormitory building. There were about 10 children there, and 10 adults. After a welcoming service for the travelers, we each spoke, and then we sang several songs and had lunch. (Meals were usually chicken, or sheep, with potatoes in several forms and rice). 

There are 800 varieties of potatoes grown in Bolivia, bags of them are everywhere, not just at the markets!  The little farms would have 200-lb. blue bags of potatoes stacked by the road for a truck to come by and pick up for the market.  We also saw many fields of lush green onions being grown and harvested for the markets.  The square patches of growing crops were a contrast to the otherwise barren landscape of the higher mountains.

In the afternoon we looked around the building which is our team project for next year, to see the work that is needed, taking lots of pictures. The building is named Methodist Dormitory, it’s original use when built many years ago, and which now needs extensive painting and repairs. The Bishop approved the building as a VIM project in January and Mike felt it was a perfect project for us as the needs were similar to the Hispanic Ministry in Mayfield.  Some space in the building is being rented, and the ground floor houses the little Metodista Evangelica Iglesia (church).  The pastor and his family have rooms on the 3^rd floor where Corina also has a room.  The $800, which had been donated for this trip, was given to the project and will help a lot toward the roof and gutter work, which is needed before we can do interior repairs. Thanks to the Graves Co. Cluster, The Wesley Sunday School Class and the United Methodist Women of First UMC Mayfield who donated these funds. Some wood trim on balcony railings will be replaced by the team next year.  The interior work to be done includes renovating the dormitory style restroom.  The long room has about 6 stalls of showers on one side and 6 commodes on the other side with a narrow walkway in between.  The last two stalls on both sides will be torn out to make a small kitchen, only place there is plumbing available.  Corina was really excited about that as she currently uses a little hot plate in one of the stalls for cooking.  Installing a laundry would be nice too.  Electrical wiring has been added here and there, strung along the walls and needs to be made safer.  We would also like to provide money to buy fabrics (inexpensive to buy there) for the sewing ladies of the church to make curtains for the rooms.  There is quite a bit of space on the property, which is used like a fellowship hall under an awning and a courtyard, where we had our meal and meetings.  A dream of the Bishop and the church is to build a kindergarten building of three stories on the corner where they could also house a day care center.  They think $50,000 would build it, and I am sure it would cost five times that here, if not more!  It’s an ambitious project with lots of potential.  The property site is a short distance from the main plaza, in a prime location on the corner of two main streets, and near the Justice Center.  I am so excited about this project.  God has much for us to do there.  This is typical of other VIM projects in Bolivia in that the people are so willing to help with the needed work but funds simply are not available for the supplies and paying tradesmen for work requiring their skills. 

Later in the day, we gave the VBS supplies to Corina, a medical student and the lay pastor who works with the children of the little church. She was overwhelmed and so appreciative, telling me I was an angel. Whew, it is almost too much. It seems like so little to me, a suitcase full of craft supplies.  I can see the wheels turning in Corina’s head as we place everything on her bed. I think about how much we have back in Mayfield.  So thanks to all of you who donated things for these precious children.

The women´s meeting was next, with a new group being organized at that church and new officers installed, Corina is the new secretary. I explained to them that I had been involved in UMW for many years but never had I attended three women´s meetings in three days at three different churches in three different places!

Before going to Bolivia, our Hispanic Ministry in Mayfield decided that we would like to have a sister church relationship with the church in Sucre since we are both about the same size and in existence only a short time.  Bro.Carlos wrote a letter to the pastor and enclosed pictures, which I delivered to him.  In turn, the pastor replied with a letter and pictures that I brought back with me.  Maybe we are separated by thousands of miles, but we are of the same mind in worship to our God and caring for each other.  We look forward to exchanging information and pictures with each other.  Bro. Burilio is a lot like Bro. Carlos, with a very outgoing personality and desire to serve the Lord. 

In Sucre, we stayed at the Hotel Espana, a very nice tropical-feeling place with indoor courtyard and near the main plaza, cost US$22 per night.  There is no heat in the hotels, so the beds have extra blankets on them.  I was glad that I took a sweat suit with me, which I used for pajamas instead of the cotton ones I packed!  It was cold at night.  Because the VIM teams stay at these hotels, they all know Mike and give us the “royal treatment.”  The narrow streets and sidewalks are always full of vehicles and people walking everywhere.  We walk to restaurants, stores, the travel agent and the plaza.  There is no parking place for the truck, so after unloading our things, Mike drives back to the church to park it, and then walks the six blocks back to the hotel. 

Today, Wednesday, August 1, we are taking a tour of Sucre so I can tell you more about this beautiful city. You will love it here and be blessed by the sweetness of the people. And the same city tour will be taken by the team next year.  The people of the church and the Bishop of the Methodist Church in Bolivia anticipate our coming and are so grateful for our help. So, you pray about being part of a VIM team next June to come to Sucre to work on the Methodist Dormitory building.

Oh, by the way, 2006 was the 100th anniversary of the Methodist Church in Bolivia, a good reason to celebrate and thank God!  Mike gave me a copy of the DVD they made of all the celebrations.

CONTINUING, NOW THAT I AM HOME ….

Now I can tell you about the rest of the trip.  I was only able to use a computer one time while in Bolivia as we were so busy. The hotel where we stayed in Sucre was nice and had free computer with internet service.  There were many internet cafés in the cities but I didn’t have time when they were open. 

The City Tour of Sucre was wonderful, beautiful old buildings, Colonial architecture, the Casa de la Libertad where the Declaration of Independence of Bolivia was written on August 6, 1825. The Constitution is presently being re-written in Sucre. There are plazas with statues of Samuel Bolivar, for which Bolivia is named, and much more.  We also went to the Textile Museum where the history of cloth and traditional weavings of Bolivia were displayed and demonstrated.  Each area of Bolivia has it’s own unique styles of weaving patterns as well as dress.  The tour lasts about 4 hours, you will enjoy it.  There are many tourist attractions in the Sucre area, so no shortage of places and things to see.  One famous place is the Dinosaur Tracks and pre-historical plant and animal fossils.

In the evening, we saw Corina again, she walked to the hotel to meet us for dinner.  In talking with Mike during the day, he told me Corina wanted to take English classes but had no money for them.  Her parents, sisters and brother, live in La Paz and do not have money to help her very much.  She rents a room at the Methodist Dormitory for 100 Bolivianos per month, US$7.80.  At dinner, we talked with Corina about it and she told us it cost US$200 for two semesters of English classes.  I told her I wanted to pay the tuition as it would benefit her as a doctor and in working with our team next year.  She was overcome with joy, telling Mike and I we were really angels and were making her so happy, she didn’t know what else to say.  After dinner, we found an ATM machine for the money; next day before we left, she brought us the receipt for the tuition and was starting class that day.  Wow, how many wonderful things can happen when God is at work!  To whom much is given, much is required. 

On Thursday, August 2, we leave Sucre to travel to Cochabamba, driving distance of about 8 hours.  It is a very eventful and different day.  It is northeast of Sucre, on the “other side” of the Andes Mountains, a picture around every curve it seems!  First we are on paved roads, then cobblestone and dusty, rocky roads, and then back to paved roads as we near Cochabamba.  Landslides are common in Bolivia and sometimes roads are blocked, and there is no warning!   We encountered a road crew of two earth moving machines and three men working on clearing such a landslide and the road was blocked.  We stopped and waited a few minutes, and then here came an old bus behind us, then a truck.  So, Mike and the other drivers went over to talk with the road workers to see how long before they will have the road cleared.  They seem to be in no hurry and it looks to me like we will be there all day. The entire road is covered with the landslide! After giving them 10 Bolivianos to buy some coca leaves (dried leaves which the people chew to help stomach problems), they made a “path” for us and we bounced through a spot I would never have even tried!  We made it … on the other side there were 2-3 trucks and two buses waiting in line, we just told them “good luck on getting through”.  We sometimes saw other road crews using bicycles for transportation, working with picks and shovels. That gives you an idea of how long road maintenance must take in Bolivia.  Not long after this, we are driving higher up into the mountains again and see so many little groups of houses and bare existence farms. In different places we have seen animals such as burros, goats, sheep, llamas, alpaca, a few cows and horses.  Sometimes they and their shepherds block the road while moving to another area to graze, and we wait for them to move to the side of the road or wherever space is available.  There is so little vegetation at the higher altitudes; I cannot see how they get enough to eat.  They move to different places every day, it’s a hard life.  Around a steep curve, an older man runs out toward us and we stop.  He wants a ride to Cochabamba, and Mike helps him into the truck.  On down the road, in a little village where we stop to buy soft drinks and cookies, a group comes up to us and asks if they can ride to another village.  Six more people get in, a family of four and two other men.  In this village I notice a bano (public restroom)!  They are hard to find out in the mountains and in little villages.  Most require that you pay 50 centavos or one Boliviano to use the restroom and you have no choice!  The building had a sign on it indicating it was an UNICEF project, so I took a picture of it. Some boys saw me and posed for the picture.  We saw other water projects with UNICEF signs along the mountain roads, so you know they are doing good work and need our support.   The people in the back of the truck had a good time visiting as we drove along.  The family got out first at a village a few miles down the road, then one of the men at the next village.  The last two men were enjoying themselves riding along with us and let me take their “foto”.  I love the picture.  One man got out soon afterwards and the original rider was with us all the way to Cochabamba.  He was very grateful for the ride.  You never know what form “mission and ministry” will take. 

Cochabamba is very cosmopolitan, has street lights, traffic lights, parking places, high rises. Wow, I thought we were back in the US!  It is reputed to have the best climate in the country, located in a fertile valley with several lakes.  We checked in at the dormitory of the American Institute, one of thirteen Methodist schools in Bolivia, to spend the night.  Constance is the manager of the dorm and is so nice.  While Mike goes to check in with the Superintendent, I visit with Constance and she shows me all around.  There are two shifts of school each day, K-12, a huge campus of what seems like four blocks, with 4,000 students.  It is beautiful!  In the US, we have poinsettia plants in pots, they have poinsettia trees growing on the institute grounds! I watch classes practice a dance in the gym.  I am amazed at the work of the Bolivian Methodist Church.  Constance and her four children attend the Methodist church adjacent to the campus and her children attend the school.  She shows me a flyer of their sewing group, which makes many things to sell, some of which you may have seen when Mike spoke at the Cluster event last fall and had them on display and for sale.  She called some other ladies and they came to open the church that evening so I could see their sewing room.  It was amazing.  I bought some things for gifts. They gave me some things to bring home to sell for them so you’ll be seeing them. Most of the proceeds are used for the children’s programs, 30% at the church, 10% is for their tithing, some to pay for materials and about 30% is income to the sewing ladies. After dinner, Mike and I went to visit some other friends of his, Emilio and Luce and their three children.  They are active in the Methodist church there and Emilio is a lawyer. They have built a nice house on property owned for many years by his wife’s family, who have long been involved in the work of the church.  We have a great visit and I hope to see them again someday.  The view from their balcony at night over the city is awesome!  VIM teams have been working for many years in Cochabamba and have built several churches, including the one built by the first VIM team Mike took to Bolivia in 2001.  The teams always stay at the Institute dormitory; Constance cleans for them and Delia cooks for them.

On Friday morning, August 3, we went up to see the Cristo statue high above the city (Cochabamba seems to be set in a bowl with distant mountains surrounding it).  Many people know about the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  The one here is similar, but it is six inches taller.  As we are standing there looking out over such a large area it nearly makes you dizzy!  Nice pictures there too.  Then we go visit more friends, Delia and her four children who have come home from the Institute and University to share lunch with us.  We have a great time there.  They live in a little house near the first Methodist church built in Cochabamba (1940s) and Delia is the Janitor there.  Her husband is working in Spain to support the family. The children help her maintain the beautiful flowers and grounds around the church.  The people here have known Mike for a few years now and they are really his friends and love him.  They want to know when he will come again!  He doesn’t know.  It takes us a while to leave.

It is getting to be mid-afternoon and time to drive the six hours back to La Paz.  Yes, we spent a lot of time driving that week, a total of 1,000 miles we finally figured up.  In Bolivia, it’s just measured in hours not kilometers.  There are few road signs, but it’s not a problem because the road you are on is the only one going where you are headed, ha!  Mike said he learned the roads by riding with other missionaries before him. Some of the road is cobblestone, some dirt and rocky, and so dusty.  On the way, we pass the highest altitude of our trip, a little over 14,000 feet.  Oh my, that is high in the mountains!  We notice that everywhere people are putting out Bolivian flags, and someone tells us that Monday is their Independence Day.  Mike thinks it’s possible we will get held up by parades, etc. at some point during the weekend.  Then someone said the President is arriving in Sucre at 5 a.m. on Monday to begin a day of celebrations.  No, I didn’t get to meet President Evo Morales, the first indigenous president of Bolivia.  The Bolivian people are proud of him. We arrive in La Paz (8:30 p.m.) and back at the Hotel El Dorado, they have remembered me!

On Saturday, August 4^th, Mike and his friend Rezsy, who works in a travel agency arranging travel and tours for VIM teams, decide that I need a day of “fun” before returning to the US. We drive to Urmiri, the Hot Springs, which is a surprisingly beautiful tropical place way back in the mountains.  We finally declare that it is amazing that anyone ever found this place.  The most treacherous road we have traveled all week was while traveling to the Hot Springs.  One lane, rocky, edge-of-mountain drop-offs where you don't want to look down!  Surely a bus cannot travel on that road!  We drive about 1½ hours south from La Paz.  In a village on the main highway, we are stopped by a big parade of people and have to drive around them as they are taking the whole road.  They had banners, flags, animals, everything!  Independence Day is yet two days away and the people were celebrating.  On into the mountains we go ….  The pool is fed from hot water springs in the mountain, toned down with some piped-in cool water.  Largest geraniums I ever saw were there, and lots of other beautiful flowers and trees.  Many people were there for the day, and they also have a small hotel, Gloria.  We took a picnic lunch of cheese, crackers and fruit. Just before we were leaving, two young girls and a lady came to where I was sitting.  I moved our things so they could sit there too.  We soon realized we were all Americans so asked where each was from.  The girls were from Ohio, visiting there with their aunt who is a missionary.  I explain what I’ve done for the week traveling with my missionary friend… then the aunt asks if I am with Mike Keyse.  Surprised, yes I am.  She had been trying to locate him to get information for the clinic she is building near La Paz.  Someone had told her about him and his construction experience. She (Judy) is with the Christian Alliance Church.  So you can imagine that we had to wait a while longer while Mike and Judy had their conversation.  We just all stood back and said, would you ever believe this, that we would meet at the Hot Springs!?  We were back in La Paz by 4 p.m. as Mike had to take a missionary to the airport.  I spent some time walking around the Plaza near the hotel and watched some bands practicing for the celebrations to come.  With few traffic lights, lots of buses, taxis and cars whizzing by all the time, it’s run for your life to cross the street!  Later Mike called and said that Corina’s parents wanted us to come to their house for lunch on Sunday.  She had told them all about our visit and had ridden the bus for twelve hours from Sucre to La Paz so we could have lunch together.  My, my, what a special person Corina is becoming to me. 

On Sunday, it’s Market Day in La Paz.  What an experience!  The streets are closed in that part of the city, people are selling everything from toiletries to tomatoes and potatoes, hats, shoes, flags, meats, just name it!  Rezsy, Mike and I went together so they could help me find what I wanted to buy, which was a traditional Bolivian lady’s outfit, postcards, map and Bolivian Flag.  We took a taxi to the market and walked for blocks and blocks, up and down hilly streets crowded with people. I’m doing pretty well with the altitude by now!  Rezsy tried to negotiate a better price for the dress and hat but they didn’t want to give on it. We finally found everything. Then she did her food shopping for the week.  Two chickens, some beef, tomatoes, squash, watermelon, potatoes and fruits.  We ate one fruit which was so wonderful, chimioya.  Looks like a giant mango with bumps on it, the inside was soft, creamy white and very sweet with black seeds a little larger than watermelon seeds.  It was delicious!  Time for the taxi back to the hotel and get ready to go for lunch with Corina’s family. 

Corina went to Mike’s house, they came for me and we drove to her parents’ house high up in the city, meaning they live among the poor people.  But none more gracious did I meet on the whole trip.  We had a tasty lunch of chicken, potatoes and vegetables, followed by broth soup.  I knew it was the best they had, it was their thanks for my helping Corina. I just had to keep swallowing to keep from tearing up every time they said something to me.  Corina is 23, her brother is 25 and studying electronics.  Her older sister is 26 and is in University in La Paz, and there is a sister age 2, who kept looking at me and I figured she had never seen an American with such white skin.  After I thought it was about all the emotional time I could handle, Mike told me the father asked if he and I would be the godparents for their daughter when she is baptized. Oh my! We realized they felt we would be able to care for her if need be since they are older parents.  It was such an honor, and humbling, but we also knew the traditions of godparents in their culture. We could not be there for special days that would be important, so we gracefully declined.  They seemed to understand, and said they wanted to send us an invitation to the baptism anyway.  When we left their house, it was a difficult parting, hoping to see them again, seeing Corina again was so sweet and I can’t wait to see her again next summer.  They kept thanking us for everything, which meant so much to them.  Whew, what an afternoon, what a week it had been for me.  I could never have dreamed so much could happen on this trip and it’ll remain with me always.  Mike had planned most of the week, but there were many surprises, which he had not expected.  God definitely had His hand on us every minute.

When Monday, August 6^th came, it was time to fly back home, it had been the fastest ten days of my life, I think.  The plane trip home was eventful enough too. I sat by a man on the plane who went to Sucre after making his fortune in the Silicone Valley of California a few years ago, married a Bolivian woman and had two beautiful young sons.  He was going home to Idaho to visit his family there.  There was the young lady who got on the plane with altitude sickness and had oxygen 3 times before she was o.k., and sat by me some of the time and talked.  She was there with a group of college students from France.  In the airport in Miami, waiting 6-7 hours for the plane to Nashville, I was sitting with a group who I soon found out was from near Nashville and had been on a mission trip to St. Martin’s.  One of their team members, Cathy, was injured on her head when their van crashed with a drunken driver on their way to their mission site the day before.  Their leaders were phoning to make arrangements for her to see the doctor the next day.  She was trying to nap on the floor so I let her use my neck pillow so she could lay her head on it. As we went to board the plane, every one in the group thanked me for letting her use the pillow. A little Hispanic lady, apparently on her first trip to the US, was trying to find her way around the restroom at the airport, and looked lost.  So I helped her there and back to her family in the waiting area.  She hugged me and said “Gracias.”  Where does mission end? It doesn’t, opportunities are always out there for God to use us. 

NOW SOME BACKGROUND ….

Several people have asked me why I wanted to go to Bolivia.  It really all started in May 2005 when I was finally able to go to SIFAT (Servants in Faith and Technology), a missionary training center in Lineville, AL. It was my third attempt to go there for the VIM (Volunteer in Mission) Individual Volunteer training (I had registered two other times but had to cancel).  The VIM is an organization within the United Methodist Church where individuals volunteer to serve on mission teams around the world and at home, or commit to two months as an individual volunteer in the US, or for one or two years as a foreign individual volunteer (IV).  There were about 45 of us that weekend at SIFAT for training as Team Leaders or Individual Volunteers.  When we registered for the training, we were required to tell where we thought we might serve as a volunteer.  Since I am still working as a sign language interpreter at Mayfield High School, my plan was to work during the two summer months that school is out at Reelfoot Rural Ministries, a United Methodist mission project near Tiptonville, in northwest Tennessee.  As you know, that changed when I began working with the Hispanic Ministry in Mayfield in August 2005. My work with the Hispanic people here has better prepared me for leading a team in Bolivia. God knew the plan for my training before I did.

At SIFAT, when you enter the conference building, you are drawn to a huge portrait of a Bolivian girl on the wall at the top of a double staircase.  We learned that SIFAT had been established by Tom and Sarah Corson. They had been missionaries for 25 years in Bolivia and were now retired!  Lineville is in the fairly remote mountains of northeastern Alabama.  They have built mock settings of what it would be like to live and work in various places around the globe.  Many missionaries have training there.  It is truly an amazing place.  In one of our sessions, Tom Corson, Jr. (who now directs SIFAT) introduced our speaker, Ben Ho, who was there visiting from Bolivia.  He had a powerful testimony as a former military man fighting against Christians in Bolivia, who later became a Christian himself.  He sang and played an instrument that resembled a miniature banjo.  We were in awe of his story.  Sarah Corson wrote a book about their experiences in Bolivia, which I read while we were at SIFAT.  I could not get Bolivia out of my mind and began thinking about going there someday.  Mike Keyse was a member of our training class, I became his prayer partner and we have become good friends.  His home is in North Carolina.  At the training he told about having taken 5-6 mission teams to Bolivia already (his occupation is in construction) and was thinking about going to Bolivia long term. He had been asked to work in Bolivia as a volunteer coordinating VIM teams. When he came to SIFAT, he had no prior knowledge of its connection with Bolivia. He has been in Bolivia since January 2006.  Other members of our class had plans to go to Africa, Brazil, Bahamas and other places to be individual volunteers.  It was an unexpected spiritual journey to be with others who had such desire to serve as mission volunteers.  Being a volunteer means you must find your own financial support to pay your expenses, a huge undertaking. In most cases, persons serving as Individual Volunteers are supported by their churches, family and friends. As a teenager I wanted to be a missionary someday, it’s taken a long time!  I have always enjoyed hearing talks given by missionaries and VIM mission teams.  It’s been several years now since my first VIM team trip to Mexico. I would not have gone to Bolivia alone without having someone as a guide.  It was great to have Mike show me all those special places and people, more than I could have ever done on my own in ten days! Only God knows where this journey will take me.  For now, my service is at the Hispanic Ministry, and to take a team to Sucre, Bolivia next year.  In the meantime, I have much more Spanish to learn!