Church team improves homes for Viña staff

After all Isidro and his family have endured this past year with their sick little boy, it was a joy and a privilege to join a church team from St. Louis and make a difference at his home last week.

South County Christian Center in St. Louis sent a team of 12 people, headed by Youth Pastor Ryan Stoops and his wife Katy, here to Sololá to help with several construction projects. The church also sent a team of about 20 to work on a Christian school construction project in Joyabáj, a few hours northeast of here.

Viña Studios’ leaders selected three of our veteran staff members’ homes — Carlos, Pedro and Isidro’s — for repairs and improvements, and we targeted several projects around our offices here as well. In addition, the team lent its voices in the recording studio for an audio history of Viña Studios and a video demo for a U.S. audience, telling children’s Bible stories with Viña’s “Deditos” finger puppets.

At Isidro’s house, I worked with him and several members of the team, including Pete, Katelynn, Katy, Lindsay, Josh and Jamie (sorry guys if I misspelled your names). We removed a crooked wooden wall, which wobbled back and forth if you pushed it. In its place we erected a much sturdier wall, turning a corner with another short wall to create a doorway for the second bedroom.

We also helped Isidro install trim pieces on the ceiling where panels joined, smoothing out wavy areas and making it look a lot better. In a couple places, we added missing ceiling panels. Once the new walls were in place, the team got to work painting them.

Isidro’s wife, mother and other relatives helped prepare meals for us: a delicious beef and vegetable soup the first day, and the traditional local soup, “pulique,” with small tamales another day. On Thursday, when asked about the day’s highlight, Pete said enthusiastically, “I really liked the soup!”

During our first visit at Isidro’s house, we got to witness what the locals here call an “aguacero,” a real Guatemalan downpour. It was fun seeing the team’s reaction to so much water and noise as it hit the home’s tin roof.

The team worked well together, and Isidro’s Kaqchikel family seemed to enjoy having us there. At first, Isidro’s four-year-old daughter, Debora, was shy around the team, but on the third day, she figured out that if she peeked around a corner and said, “Hola!” to the girls they would always answer back, “Hola!” She milked that little game for all it was worth, and they really took to her.

When the team finished painting the wall, Isidro and I stood in what will be Debora’s bedroom and looked over our work. “I really like it,” Isidro said. “It’s so much better. Now, it’s solid.”

That meant a lot to me, knowing what he and his wife have experienced with Juanito, their 18-month-old son who has suffered fevers and convulsions that appear to have caused brain damage.

Unfortunately, Juanito’s bad spells, including this past May, have often come during times when Isidro has been far from home. Isidro is one of Viña’s two main Scripture recording technicians, and he often travels to a distant language area to record the translated Word of God into a Mayan language for the locals to hear because the vast majority cannot read their mother tongue. To God's glory, Isidro stuck with it and the Lord blessed them by profoundly touching one of the Scripture readers during the recording.

The St. Louis team seemed to enjoy their time here, and they did a great job of eating whatever they were served, especially Pete. For the most part, they stayed healthy. Unfortunately, Pete got hit on the second day by a powerful allergic reaction to the dust and whatever else may have been in the environment from the chickens, dogs, puppies, turkeys and corn fields. The team amused local Guatemalans with their enthusiasm for riding in the back of Isidro’s old Toyota pickup to and from his house each day.

The team at Carlos and Pedro’s houses also finished their work, erecting ceilings that should help keep out the chill during the cold, windy nights we sometimes get here in Sololá, which is at 7,000 feet elevation. According to the reports I heard, their little boys really enjoyed having gringos around.

I told the team how much I appreciated all they did, helping to fulfill Galatians 6:10,

“Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.”

Thanks for your help, guys! We really appreciate it, and miss you already.

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Click here to see a photo of the St. Louis team and photos of the Viña workers and their families, showing all three projects, before and after.