Elohim School Teaches Many Lessons!

Happy Tuesday, Friends!

Yesterday, Monday, was.... LONG!

We began the day by touring the Mission Compound - La Iglesia Primero de Junio - seeing first hand the great work done here.  We were able to meet and play with the daycare kids - always a great gift of any mission experience - and several of our team even enjoyed an impromptu concert by some 4-5 year olds!  We also met some women who create wonderful knitting and weaving items, and several of us helped the local economy through their talents.  The compound also has a water system very similar to the one we will be installing at Elohim School, so took a peek to see just what it looks like in an actual, functioning installation.  This morning, we returned to install new filters and do some water testing, which is still in progress.  For those who would like to see where our Mission House is, please zoom into these coordinates in a map program (-16.325243,-71.538563)


Before lunch, we walked to Fr. Alex's clinic (Maria Madre de las Misiones), which provides health care for those who have very little.  The costs are kept to a minimum, and the caring staff continues to provide services to the community even though working for a government clinic would pay more.  The heart and passion of the doctors and nurses showed in the people patiently waiting their turn to get treatment.

Veronica prepared another wonderful mid-day meal, giving us energy and a great base from which to continue our journey to Mariana Melgar, the community Elohim School calls home, for the afternoon.  The Peruvian back roads offered some significant churning and climbing, but once we arrived we understood much more about the challenges the students and teachers face in their day to day lives.  Susi met us there with Rosa, and from our first step inside the school, were humbled by what they have done - and what they have yet to do.  Much has changed for them in the past 5 years, and more changes are well under way!

Elohim School.  The main top floor is under construction,
and should be ready for students in 4-6 weeks.

The first thing we noticed was that there some extra stories on the building we hadn't noticed before.  Since part of the school is very old and condemned, nothing can be done with the leaky roofs, uneven floors and unventilated classrooms.  The myriad problems the school is facing are truly daunting, but by the sheer willpower and wonderfully holy leadership in Susi and Rosa, slow but visible headway is being made.  A previous group installed new toilets, replacing the two tin outhouses which welcomed children to school outside the front door.  Now, students come in and are welcomed by teachers and other students!  Toilets are great, but they still have a water supply problem which means that they do not always operate - ah, more challenges!  Water tanks in play areas, condemned kitchen areas, damaged water supply plumbing, poor structural strength in the older building sections - this very beginning of a challenge list is already nearly overwhelming!  Our positive hope is in the new construction mentioned before. The school will have two large, new classrooms to replace those which are unsafe, helping the children and their teachers focus on growing and learning!

Our team spent over 2-1/2 hours at the school, exploring and measuring, listening and learning, playing and feeling with the building and people of Elohim.  The new construction is a fresh contrast with the majority of the school, and really helped to energize us with the possibilities we have to offer - with the Living Waters system and countless related (and some barely related) opportunities to help these children.  We listened to heartbreaking stories of the children who come to school for their only meal, who are never held or comforted at home, who face conflict and abuse we would not tolerate and the sanctuary they have here to simply be and grow positive role models and teachers.  Linda even found a friend in Patti, a five year old girl who walks to school and home along the mountain every day.  The purpose of Elohim School is so much more than just literacy and mathematics, it includes having friends in other children, trusting adults, learning that there are possibilities, and that through it all they have a companion in Jesus.

Upon our return from Elohim, we were both emotionally drained and intellectually re-energized!  We had dinner, but couldn't stop talking about what we saw only a few hours ago.
  An Open flow if Ideas!
     Rearranged possibilities with the resources at hand!
        Fact research to find what is available!

We talked late into the night, drinking in the refreshing spirit of hope the people we meet are surviving - and thriving on.

There is a project the children of Elohim are learning with, and in which we have found a great example for what we are experiencing here in Peru.  A few years ago, someone planted a leaf at the school, and by some miracle it sprouted roots and began to grow.  This leaf produced a small tree.  The tree was watched over and cared for until another could be grown from it.  Then another... and another.  Today, most of the plants in the school are the descendants of that first leaf, and the children of elohim learn patients, care, love and growth in nurturing that life.

In this same way, we find living roots taking hold in Elohim!  We are distinctly called to help in caring for what is important at the school, making sure the roots are healthy before we expect shady foliage.  Be sure the foliage is healthy before we find fruit.  Care for the fruits to further this life and spread these seeds to the community of Mariana Melgar.

We thank you for continuing to support us on our journey, and for your patience with our story.  There is SO much to do, and prioritizing our tasks is primary.  The road ahead of is is till churning and uphill, but we are learning how to navigate it.  Please continue to read our story as even we don't know what tomorrow will bring!


What a way to start the day!  An energizing sunrise
from behind the Misson House.

 Humbly bridging you and the people of Arequipa,
The PCB-LWW Team