Safe travels! We are now back in Belvidere! After a long traveling day of sitting on buses and airplanes, and going through immigration, we are now home to stay. Although each and every one of the Zion members enjoyed every second spent helping the people of Peru, each person was just as ready to see their families as they were to shower and sleep in the place we have missed called home. As we approached the church we saw people awaiting for our arrival and the local news: channels 13 and 39. It is now our time to recooperate and regain our health and sleep. Now what exactly happened in Pisco, Peru? And how has it affected the way your fellow Zion members look at life now? In 2005 a large earthquake devastated the area of Pisco. What used to be a beautiful and wonderful city was torn apart and is now a city of hope. The people of Pisco have been full of hope and with the help of Pedro Sotelo, their hope was rejuvenated when the Zion congregation stepped up and took on the task of helping and learning about the amazing and wonderful people of Peru. The moment we stepped foot off of the buses and onto the grounds of the poverty stricken town of Pisco, we felt the pure appreciation from everyone around us, young and old. As the days went on, our mission was not to just build a bakery, and a food pantry and to fix up Padre Jose's church and education center, our mission became much more than that. We were there in the name of God, to show the Peruvian people that although a tragic thing had happened to their homes 7 years ago, that there was still hope and love around the world for them. By the Sunday mass, everyone's emotions had been struck when the people of Pisco brought forth a beautiful present for our church to show thanks. As each and every person was given hugs and kisses to offer appreciation, it was shown that God works in many ways. Zion Lutheran Church and Padre Jose's church had been joined and welcomed as one. We all have a new appreciation for everything we used to take for granted, as simple as a working bathroom or stop lights. New outlooks on life have been configured and molded by the works of God and as our faith begins to grow more and more we pray that our missions will grow as well. From the 48 Zion missionaries to everyone that has helped us get to where we are now, thank you! We hope that you enjoy looking through our memories on Zion's Facebook page and that your faith and hope continues to grow as you watch ours unfold with the people of Pisco. Special thanks to the Sotelo family and friends from this area and in Pisco, Mike and Cindy King, Pastor Karl Otto and everyone else that has been supportive to the Zion Youth on a Mission.

More pics today wednesday

They are getting ready to wrap things up in Pisco.   Heading to lima soon.

here is the latest group of pics sent up from several people posted on facebook. 

https://picasaweb.google.com/webmaster.zion.belvidere/June272012MorePicsSentUpWednesday?authuser=0&feat=directlink

Another group of pics from pisco peru

The latest pics taken from facebook, placed here,   there are no subtitles, those can be found on facebook.

We are just presenting the pics here at the moment.   comments to be added later.

this group of pics below are of the church events on sunday and the building of the church bakery,  as well as some play time with the local kids.

https://picasaweb.google.com/webmaster.zion.belvidere/June24252012MorePics?authuser=0&feat=directlink

Latest pictures posted below

The latest pictures (as of 6am monday morning)  are now being displayed at the link below:


https://picasaweb.google.com/webmaster.zion.belvidere/ZionYouthOnAMissionPiscoPeru?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCNSmn8zytcixeA&feat=directlink

Sunday in Pisco
        Today we went to the church of Padre Jose! The church's members welcomed us with open and happy arms and were very appreciative of all the work that our Zion members have put into their home. Right after church, we made our way to a restaurant, where we had a fun time salsa dancing, watching different kinds of cultural dances and listening to the different musicians. Later in the day, we were thanked by the Peruvian people with hugs and kisses and we were presented with a hand carved box with figurines inside from the Andes. This sparked many feelings among everyone in the room, tears of joy and tears of pure appreciation.
        It was a tiring and exciting day and we look forward to the next couple of days when we will be fulfilling the Peruvian people's hopes and wishes.
       They are all so thankful for everyone in the Zion congregation and consider us all one family under God.

Assorted pics that we have received - part 1

This is the first of many parts of pictures that have been sent to us at Zion.

We are posting them here as well as on FACEBOOK.  

Enjoy.  

to see ALL the pictures click on this link below:

https://picasaweb.google.com/webmaster.zion.belvidere/ZionYouthOnAMissionPiscoPeru?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCNSmn8zytcixeA&feat=directlink

 "Hola from Pisco!"
         Today was the second day of work on the work sites!
         The first site is at the church where Pedro Sotelo grew up. Our role there is that we have to knock down concrete, put up new walls, and paint the old ones. It is a lot of work and with the help of the Peruvian people, working is not just a job but a fun and exciting way to pass the time in Pisco.
         The second site is in a neighborhood where we are building a food pantry for the people there. The past two days have been spent mixing and laying concrete by hand. The next couple of days will be used to build the pantry for the happy and proud people of the small Pisco neighborhood.
         The third site is in a neighborhood placed in a very remote area. This site is where the bakery will be set up. Like the second site, the past two days have been spent mixing the "volcanoes" of concrete and laying them in a 30 ft by 18 ft area for the slab. Another project at this site is stripping and repainting the existing kindergarten school. This site is housing about 80 small children, all who play and spend their time in the dirt streets. It is amazing to watch them having the time of their lives with the coloring books, stickers and glow sticks that some of our team brought.
         In general, Pisco is a completely different society from Belvidere, IL. The locals have been assisting and catering to the needs of the Zion fellowship. It is a welcoming community with happy dogs laying along the roads ready to bark hello to all cars that honk their ways through the streets. The weather has been comfortable and amazing! It has been told to us that the Pisco area gets about 1/10 of rain a year--completely different than the U.S.A--and that it is always a comfortable weather throughout the year.
        We will try our best to fit blogging into our busy schedules tomorrow! Adios amigos!
        Check out the Zion Lutheran facebook page to see the photos, for they load MUCH faster there!
CHOW!:)

Mission: Pisco Peru
      Today marked the beginning of hard work, new experiences, exciting moments and most importantly new outlooks on life to 47 of your fellow Zion Lutheran Church members. Our sense of normality and comfort is out of reach for many in Pisco; however, the people are open, happy, proud, and friendly to all of our different and new faces.
       The trip began with a long day of traveling: a 2 and 1/2 hour flight to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. a 5 and 1/2 hour flight across the Gulf of Mexico to Lima, Peru. And a 5 hour drive to the city that was devastated by an earthquake in 2005, Pisco, Peru.
       After a couple hours to nap, we awoke and got ready to tour where our three work sites will be located. Driving through the bumpy dirt roads of the town, we saw the devastation, and the faces of little kids and adults so happy to watch our buses passing them. Every person we met or passed, waved with excitement and were welcoming us with open arms. The people here are a proud group of people, happy and comfortable in every way.
      We have a filling week and a half ahead of us and we look forward to all of the experiences yet to come our way. Keep us in your prayers!

Watch this page !!

Watch this page for updates.  

We plan on posting daily updates on the mission trip here and on FACEBOOK.

Ready to leave

Here is a little update on our progess for our summer mission trip.  It is hard to believe we're only a few days away.  We raised the rest of the money for the trip !    We are all set and ready to go !     Tuesday morning 530am it off to Pisco !ave

The plan is to have updates on this blog and on FACEBOOK as to our day to day progress down in Peru.

So keep coming back to this site and our FACEBOOK page for the latest updates.

Again, THANKS to all those that gave and supported our kids for this trip.