Day 4 of construction was a little different as we had a medical clinic going as well as a few people off sorting ministry supplies at the Pettengills, we left Ross and Phil at the dorm to help with demolition of some concrete forms and the rest of us went to work at the house. The morning was again pretty hot. I thought I had outsmarted it by freezing my water bottle last night, however it melted within an hour of getting to the site. We continued the block work and started adding dirt to the first 2 rows of block to prep for the floor. There was a man digging the septic tank out back (where we got most of the dirt). He was amazing, he worked like a machine and by the time we left he had an 8-10 ft diameter, 4 foot deep hole. It took most of our team just to keep up with the dirt he was shoveling out. Below are some pictures of Crystal, Greg and me mixing some “mescla”, Beth laying down the mortar for the next layer of block and Jon and Greg dumping yet another wheelbarrow full of rocks into the front porch.
After lunch, Scott decided he’d like to go back and help Santos (Armenia Bonito community president and construction manager for the Pettengills) finish up for the day. Phil, Crystal and I decided to tag along and jumped back in for 2 extra hours of blockwork and wheelbarrows. A few of us stopped by a little later to check the finished work for the week. Remember, when we arrived it was flat ground with only the footers, all the blocks you see and all the dirt filling those rooms was done by our team.
We then headed back to join the rest of the group who was hanging out with all the kids on the soccer field. Crystal had brought a parachute that the kids were overjoyed about.
Jon, Greg, Phil and I also got some quality time juggling the soccer ball with 2 drug dealers and 4 more “waiting for their chance” (Mike Pettengill). It’s tragic to see the kids end up in that life, but it is difficult to escape for most. Drugs offer a decent income and often a pseudo-family life that many do not have.
Thursday is usually especially hard as it is the last day we spent out in Armenia. It is always sad to have to say goodbye to all of the sweet little kids who you grow to adore over the course of the week. Please pray for them all, pray that God will touch them and open their eyes to the true happiness and true freedom found in Christ alone.
We left Armenia and headed to dinner. After dinner and a quick stop over at the dorms to change, we headed to the indoor soccer court to play some games. My team included Miguel, Phil, Beth, Mackensie and Joseph. We sat out the first game, then came in and dominated. Three back-to-back-to-back victories! Lots of fun and you sweated a ton.
Headed back to the dorm and played a couple quick rounds of Mafia before heading to bed. Hopefully next time we play Beth won’t knock me off in the first round. She’s way too good at that game.
these are awesome photos!