July 2004 Mission Trip to Honduras

Mission Trip Participants

Steve Birmingham	Ann Mellott
Maddy Campion	Pauline Merrill
Allison Canade	Mark Miller
Ben Canade	Douglas Pond
Ed Coke	Ben Schemper
Katrina Denny	Peter Schemper
Mary Denny	Maryellen Schwartz
Emily Engelland	Katherine Schwartz
Sam Evans	Tim Schwartz
Elaine Filus	Bill Smilie
Courtney Hartford	Chris Valentine
Charlie Jacobus	Christie Valentine
Missy Jacobus	Linda Valentine
Leaders:
Calum MacLeod	Tom Schemper

Please click on the names listed above to view their reflections.


Reflections from Tom Schemper

On Wednesday, June 30, 2004, a group of twenty-nine people from Fourth Presbyterian Church left for Honduras to build three homes with Habitat for Humanity. It was the fifth trip Fourth Church has sponsored to the mountain town of Siguatepeque. This year’s group included two children, seven teenagers, and a variety of adults ranging in age up to sixty years old.

Our group arrived in San Pedro Sula a little after noon on Wednesday and met the drivers who would be with us throughout the trip. After a beautiful two-hour drive over green mountains with roadside banana and pineapple stands, we settled into the relatively comfortable dorms of the government forestry school. Calum MacLeod led us in the first of our worship services, and we went to sleep wondering what the first workday would bring.

On Thursday, we split into three groups and went to our respective work sites. Over the next six days, each group worked on the same site and got to know each other and their mason well. (Each site had a mason and a helper who were responsible for the work of building the house.) Each group also developed relationships with the family whose house they were helping build and with the neighbors—especially the children. Our tasks were to fill the floors with special sand called “selecto” and tamp it firm, sift sand, move blocks, construct reinforced steel supports, move earth around the site, lay blocks, and mix cement. We would take time out from that work at midday, when lunches were brought, and made sure throughout the day to take frequent water breaks. Bit by bit, over the course of that work, we saw the walls of the two-bedroom Habitat houses go up.

On Sunday, July 4, we were invited to go to church with children from an orphanage in a nearby town. The Catholic service was kid-friendly, and many of us had two or three children clinging to us during the service. After church, we went back to the orphanage, and the children held our hands, showed us their rooms, and played with us. It was hard to leave. We then drove several hours to a 90-foot waterfall, and some of us were led behind it by local guides. There was also the opportunity to jump off a cliff into the river. The evening ended with a fish dinner at a beautiful lake. We sang patriotic songs at the end of a dock and returned home for our last two days of work.

We saw much natural beauty on our trip, from the mountains of Siguatepeque, with their interesting mix of pine trees and banana trees, to the Mayan ruins we saw on our last day, when we made a seven-hour drive to Copan to tour the ruins and enjoy a variety of recreational activities. Even each work site had its own kind of beauty.

While we did not stay in Honduras long enough to see the houses completed, but we did have an ending dedication service with the families, workers, and local Habitat for Humanity personnel. Abraham, the director of Habitat in Siguatepeque, thanked us for our work and spoke of the positive and transforming impact that a new house has on the life of a family.

One of the most gratifying experiences for those of us who built houses on the last trip in January of 2003 was to visit the finished homes. We were received with tears and open arms and proudly shown the finished homes on which we had worked. Each home was neat and clean, surrounded by flowers and gardens and an occasional chicken coop.

On the last trip, Calum and Doug Pond helped build a home for an older woman named Angelina, who lived with her granddaughter. Angelina is a woman of God and stated that every week she meets with friends to study the Bible and pray. Every week she prays for us here at Fourth Presbyterian Church and for her “pastor” in Chicago. Returning to these houses, which have become homes, is a powerful testimony to the lasting impact of this mission effort.

— Tom Schemper

Reflections from Trip Participants

I come away from this week humbled by the generosity, the resourcefulness, the spirit of those who have so very little. A few images will stay with me for a long time:

Small gifts offered by the children and adults with whom we worked—fresh fruit in the outstretched hand of an eight-year-old, banana bread freshly made in an outdoor kitchen, a jar of honey

A man who worked for some time to successfully fix a broken shovel, one I would have simply thrown out to buy a new one

The way a very small, very simple house is a source of great pride for a father who has found a way to provide a home for his family.

It was an amazing week for which I am profoundly grateful.

— Elaine Filus

Honduras has taught me many things, including the hardships of Third World countries, where every day is a struggle. When people come to a house to help others improve their situation, it makes a significant difference in their lives.

Companionship on the sites was apparent: special relationships can be made in short periods of time.

Religion is something that people around the world share. Impoverished people pray to the same God. God brings people the same joy and shows the same compassion to everyone.

— Tim Schwartz

As our work week progressed, I felt a true sense of community with our group, pride in the tasks we had completed, and a sense of connection through our worship services. But the true meaning of what we were doing was brought home by Abraham, the head of Habitat for Humanity in Siguatepeque, who so eloquently described the good we had accomplished and asked that we go home and tell everyone how much Honduras needs all our work, prayers, and talents.

— Maryellen Schwartz

The best part of this trip was the first day, when I met a girl who was a daughter of the family we were building the house for. After that we were best friends. We communicated by hand signals, and Peter and I taught them some English while we learned some Spanish.

— Maddy Campion

During the past ten days, I have experienced some of the most memorable, interesting, and intriguing moments of my life. Not only did this trip enhance my spiritual feelings, but I realized a lot about the world around me, made new friends, and basically had an awesome time. It astounded me how naïve I was about poverty, because although I had heard all about it, I was actually working in an impoverished area in Honduras. Although poverty has struck this country, the citizens are all extremely nice, trusting people. We all felt a wonderful sense of accomplishment, and the thankfulness of the families was soempowering. Working next to people on the house they will be able to have for the rest of their lives made me feel so proud and good that I was helping to make somebody’s life better. This trip was an experience that has impacted my life and will never be forgotten.

— Christie Valentine

Once again we journeyed to the mountain town of Siguatepeque in Honduras and were reminded that the communion of the Holy Spirit knows no sovereign or cultural boundaries. We saw God’s love in the smiles of impoverished Honduran children. We felt his presence in our labors, and his love was affirmed in our fellowship. Through our global mission programs at Fourth Church, we are a light in the world, reaching out to all of God’s children, caring for the poor and marginalized, living the ministry which our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, calls us to.

— Douglas Pond, aka Diego Ponduras

Assisting our mason with cutting wood, drilling holes, and laying blocks helped me develop a bond with him. Although he spoke no English, he made an effort to come up to me individually after receiving his Cubs hat to say, “Thank you. I am happy.” He asked me for a copy of our group photo. I knew it was important to him when he came to the dedication ceremony, greeting me in his nice dress clothes. However small it was, we had developed a relationship together.

— Steve Birmingham

At the orphanage, the touch of an orphan’s hand, the hug, and the unquestioning acceptance of affection were my most poignant memories. On the work site, knowing that Marvin, Paula, and their parents will have a happy, healthy home to grow up in will be my lasting memory and prayer pledge.

— Ed Coke

When I attended the dedication ceremony, it really hit home to me—what Habitat for Humanity means to Honduras. By building three houses, we made a greater impact on the community and the nation of Honduras. All of the hard work was worth it to see the impact we made.

— Emily Engelland

One of the more memorable experiences of this trip was seeing the family and the house we built in January 2003. The emotion of seeing a happy family together in their own home was overwhelming. This experience reaffirmed that a small group of people can have a tremendous, positive impact on a family. The positive impact is a two-way street: the family from last year walked to the family’s house where we were currently working to serve us coffee. Their generous act was overwhelming and priceless.

— Ann Mellott

This trip went by so fast. I couldn’t believe it was day 10 when I was doing my final packing. I had an amazing work site team. We all worked very hard, and the progress we accomplished was awesome. I really enjoyed a horseback ride six of us went on to view an ancient Mayan hospital.

We rode along a river in Copan and up a winding road up to the mountain where the ruin was located. The ruin was sweet. It still had carvings intact! Overall, the trip was an exciting experience that everyone should go on.

— Katrina Denny

This trip was a very good way to travel and meet and make new friends. You get to have many exotic experiences that you otherwise would not do. This year we traveled to a waterfall. We jumped off a cliff into the river and were taken under the waterfall. I also met some very interesting people on this trip and made some new, good friends. You also get to help out a needy family. This is the best charitable work I have ever done. You do it for a family that truly needs it, and you can see that they need it. You also get to know the family and make a connection. It gets to be emotional at the ceremonies where you dedicate the houses. This was a very good experience and I would go again any time.

— Ben Schemper

What I thought was the best part of the trip was seeing the faces on the people you help and going under the waterfall and jumping off. The trip was important because we helped people in need.

— Peter Schemper

The opportunity to personally help others less fortunate is always very rewarding. In this case, it was through physical labor, which I enjoy. It was also wonderful being part of this awesome group of twenty-nine people representing Fourth Church. It was great to get to know them: working, relaxing, and the long bus rides with them.

This trip also gave me the opportunity to visit and briefly live in another foreign country. I find this gives me an intense perspective on the life and benefits I have been able to enjoy, versus those less fortunate. In the case of Honduras, it was families praying for the opportunity to live in their own home. Their prayers were addressed by Habitat for Humanity in the form of a 500-square foot, three-room house. One can’t help but compare this to the homes up to twenty times this size that Americans are building for typically much smaller families.

The morning and evening worship services conducted by Calum helped us to fully appreciate the experience. Steve’s guitar added much to these worship services.

Finally, I will never forget the visit to the orphanage and how much the children opened their little hearts to all of us.

— Bill Smilie

What a glorious ten days we had in Honduras with memories of—

Exhausting, yet energizing days of labor and the joy of seeing the results of the work

Joyous singing and celebrating as the families were presented their houses, knowing that for each family it meant hope and a new chapter in their lives

Working side by side with the families and the masons: though we didn’t speak the same language, we communicated with smiles and shared tasks

Worshiping among a sea of children singing joyous songs to God and eagerly “passing the peace” to everyone they could find

Singing and worshiping as a family in Christ each morning and night—and having such a great group, including families and younger adults on the trip

Sharing laughs, stories, joys, and even some dancing around the cement mixing mound or as we cleared “mountains” of dirt

Feeling God’s presence in the work and community around the building projects

Seeing the spacious lush green mountains of Honduras—and being grounded in the deep need of the people in the country

— Marc Miller

I feel truly blessed to have spent the last ten days in Honduras with such an amazing group of people. My life is forever changed by the friendships we formed with the people of that country, the work we did with Habitat for Humanity, and the spiritual growth achieved through our morning devotions and evening worship services. While there is still much to be done in Siguatepeque, I am confident that the relationships we forged will provide the foundation for a brighter and more stable future for the beneficiaries and community at large.

As we taxi down the runway, our incredible journey is about to conclude. However, it has just begun for the three families about to move into their new homes, thanks to Habitat for Humanity.

— Courtney Hartford

If you would like to consider going on a future Habitat for Humanity trip to Siguatepeque or other Fourth Church mission trips, please contact Vicki Reynolds, Director of Mission, at vreynolds@fourthchurch.org (312.981.3384). The next trip to Honduras will likely be planned for June–July of 2005.

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