Friday...all good things must come to an end...

Hello friends.

Friday was our last full day in Jamaica. :(

Bill spent the day unloading 1258 boxes of food (an entire shipping container) from Feed My Starving Children in MN and delivering them to 7 different churches and schools around the island. Needless to say, it was a LONG day for that crew!

Phyllis, Helen, Lauren and Pastor Stacy spent the day shopping at the local market and grocery store for some 'treats.' The afternoon included a sunset catamaran ride complete with snorkeling, foot rubs and some reggae to dance to.

This morning, we are packing up and preparing to head home...it has been an amazing week, but we are all ready to come home. Please have the sunshine and warm air waiting...we'll do our best to bring some home.

Please pray for safe flights...we'll see you at church tomorrow morning!

Peace-
Your Mission Jamaica Team

PS sorry about the lack of pictures...but the computers have not been cooperating. We are excited to share them all with you when we get back.

Thursday...what a day.

Hello friends.

Sorry we didn't get a chance to add a note last night, but we didn't get back until late from a very special evening...

Bill, Helen and Phyllis spent the day working at Clifton Home for Boys. Bill, once again worked on a roof...dismantling an old one and replacing it with a new sturdy, un-leakable one. Phyllis and Helen were able to spend some time with the residents of Clifton Home playing games, reading, coloring, crafts and other educational activities. They started the day singing songs with Pastor David playing the guitar...never have such beautiful voices been heard! They were able to share the Passion Story with the boys during the day...what an amazing opportunity right before Holy Week.

In the evening we were all treated to one of the most special parts of our week...we were able to spend an evening in the mountains with Pastor Stacy's "2nd"family. The evening began with an authentic Jamaican meal of fried chicken, brown-stew chicken, rice and peas and vegetables. It continued with singing, dancing, laughing and conversations that allowed us to build new, lasting relationships as friends and family. It was quite a treat to be joined by many (MANY) extended family members and hear their stories and share their lives for just one, short evening. There are not enough words to describe our evening, so we'll have to share more when we get home in stories and pictures.

Friday we are off to the local market to track down some Jamaica souvenirs and then to a sunset catamaran ride to close out our week.

Thank you, again, for all of your prayers and notes...we've had an amazing week and cannot wait to share more of it with you when we get home.

Peace-
Your Mission Jamaica Team

Wednesday...saying good-bye to our new friends.

Hello friends.

Parting is such sweet sorrow...

We learned that this statement is most certainly true today. It was our last day at Westhaven Children's Home and also the last day for the medical clinic. Phyllis, Lauren and Pastor Stacy were able to put the finishing touches on the paint and plants in the Westhaven Memorial Garden with the help of a few other friends. The finished project is quite beautiful and will hopefully become a place where the children and all those visiting Westhaven can take a few moments to pause and remember the joy and blessings brought by those children who have passed away. After finishing the garden, they helped wrap up various projects and spent time with the kids...

Helen wrapped up another successful day at the medical clinic. Today, they switched venues and were seeing patients in a make-shift clinic in the spare room of the local Basic School (ages 3-6). They saw 52 more patients today, making their grand total well over 275 in 3 days. What was most striking was that people were walking miles and miles on rocky, mountainous ground to see one of our doctors. What a difference they have made in so many lives. Helen was able to enjoy a few minutes of "lap time" with some of her favorite kids before we had to leave.

Bill continued his concrete work by hammering and chisling away at previous Jamaican engineering efforts. Most of the day was spent building forms and preparing the structure for finishing touches by next week's team. He also got to spend some time doing his favorite thing: mixing concrete by hand with a hose and shovel.

At the close of the day, we were treated to one of the finest banquets we have ever seen. The director of Westhaven, Ms. Grant, and the staff put together a sampling of some of Jamaica's finest treats: cheese sandwiches, bun & cheese (a local favorite) and mango punch...complete with cake and rum-raisin ice cream. It was a treat for us but hard to eat while all the children waited patiently for us to finish...for once we were done, we were all able to take a plate and serve a child for the last time before boarding the bus for home...

Tomorrow, most of the group will be heading to Clifton Boys' Home for a day of projects and relationship-building with the boys that live there. Look for an update on that adventure tomorrow!

Peace-

Your Mission Jamaica Team