Posts Tagged: International Samaritan

How to do hospitality well…

August 08, 2012

… That’s what our arrival at St. Francis Coll was all about on our first day. As we entered the facility we were given small handmade placards that said “Guatemala” and had a small doll on them. We sat alongside the walls of the inner courtyard and waited, warily, to see what came next.  Andres informed us that an assembly would occur shortly and that we should sit tight. The bell rang. Chaos began as children poured from classrooms and …

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A & B: Arrival & Beginning

August 06, 2012

Customs was the simplest I’ve ever been through: our luggage was safe, we had all our teens, and we walked out into chaos outside the airport. People were standing along the edge of a gate perimeter that was on the street.  We saw a sign “St. Francis of Assisi”! It was Carlos Andres.  He felt familiar and safe—just because I knew he was expecting us. “Please, call me Andres,” he introduced himself.  Andres introduced us to our driver, Juan Carlos, …

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Guatemala: Getting Goin’

August 03, 2012

Before I went to Guatemala , everyone kept asking me “Are you excited?”; my response was always the same– “No, not yet. I have so much to get done. I’ll be grateful and excited once I’m on the plane.” The days leading up to my trip were filled with business, tutoring, purchasing supplies. I left on a Monday, and the Saturday beforehand, I spent doing last minute preparations– trips to the different stores to buy what I needed from my list: …

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