A church from Illinois very near and dear to our hearts is Cornerstone. Every team they have brought down in the past has been diverse and unique and in January that was no exception as they came down with their youth group. The group in total had 17 and included youth, the youth leaders, and parents.
They hit the ground running on the first day by splitting up into two groups and walking through the village of Punta de Palma to bless selected families with Eco stoves, water filters, and moringa trees. Each time brought the stoves, set them up in the kitchen of the house, and educated on the importance of using these special stoves that require less wood and emit less smoke into the houses. In addition, these families were also given water filters for clean water and the youth group planted moringa trees in their gardens.
The Cornerstone youth group also had the opportunity to go to Livingston and do a dental clinic and photo booth. While the dentists and their Cornerstone assistants were working on patients inside Miguel and Laura’s house, missionaries to Livingston, another group was outside taking pictures of families and printing them out. Scott Orr, a leader who has brought down past teams, said, “It was truly special to watch the students jump right in and start to work with the people of Livingston. They were more open than most adults I have seen.”
Another day the team made homemade rice krispy treats in order to take them to the garbage dump for the kids and their families. Every Thursday a church in Puerto Barrios makes and donates meals to the families and on this Thruday were able to help by bringing a dessert and also minister to the children through coloring books and games. It was a eye-opening experience for the whole team to witness the families that live in the dump. Katrina Bruder, a youth on the team, commented, “My eyes have been opened to the poverty here and the fact that we don’t see that all that often in the States, or if we do we are too quick to turn a blind eye to it. God has been challenging me to be more aware and compassionate towards those in need and others around me.” We are so thankful for each person that came on this team and know that God continues to use them now back home in Illinois. We look forward to seeing them again in the future!
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