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On September 8 Rusty hopped on a plane to Guatemala City in Central America for Thrivent Builds With Habitat for Humanity. He met up with about 33 other Thrivent associates who worked on building homes for four families in Guatemala.Sunday, Sept 9, was a travel day and orientation. There was a 5 hour bus ride to the hotel. It was "Election Day" that day and people could be seen waiting in lines of 200-300 people waiting for their chance to vote. There were also a few traffic delays, and police with machine guns keeping the peace in some towns. The group met the families for whom they were building the homes. They were divided into four teams each responsible for building one home with the help of a local mason, who helped lay the groundwork. |
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Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were work days. Each group had to carry their cinderblocks from the road to their homes, and Rusty's group was the only one fortunate enough to have a wheelbarrow. One of the most surprising things was the local childrens' work ethic. The kids were off school Monday and they helped work just as hard as the visiting crew. |
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On the left is a photo of a home that was previously built. Each home that is approx. 20'x 20' and divided into four rooms. Rusty said these houses wouldn't be considered fit as American garages, yet these families believed they were palaces and they were so grateful. |
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On Thursday evening the Thrivent Habitat group was invited to a "Fiesta"--a celebration party with all four of the families who were receiving homes. There was a blessing of the new homes and each family received a new Bible and a few other items. The Guatemalans made a traditional meal. They dressed the Thrivent ladies in traditional clothing and everyone had a great time. |
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Friday morning they had some free time, so Rusty and a number of other brave souls climbed up a mountain and came down by way of a zip line. Rusty said the walk up was rough, but coming down was awesome!In the afternoon they took the bus back to Guatemala City. Unfortunately, the 4 hour ride took 8 hours because the locals were celebrating their Independence Day. |
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On Saturday Rusty and a few others went touring their hotel which was originally a monestary that was destroyed by a volcano, but rediscovered by archeologists. It was dug up and is now a nice hotel, complete with remnants of a crypt in the basement. Sunday Rusty said goodbye to all his new and dear friends, and flew home to his anxious family. |
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