From February 8-16 it was my privilege to take part in a Shelter Canada project in El Salvador building 12 houses! This was part of a larger 3-week commitment by Wingham-area teams headed by Ed & Brenda Stein and Doug Kuyvenhoven; generous donors gave enough to build over 50 houses! (Materials for each house cost approximately $3800.)
It was the privilege of us who went to witness in person the gratefulness each family, and indeed the entire community, expressed upon construction of their new homes – safe from the elements, and from intruders because they could be securely locked. One farm labourer expressed how difficult it would be to save up enough for just a couple of sheets of steel, let alone an entire house!
We learned to admire the hard-working Salvadorans, many of them neighbouring volunteers, who have to cope with extremely challenging farming conditions on steep hillsides. They pitched in energetically to dig the holes for the foundation, and to assemble the steel structure including the sharp-edged roof. The local Shelter employees (especially translators and foremen) treated us with respect and as friends, eagerly showing us how to carry out necessary tasks.
We appreciated the prayers of those back home for our safety. About half of each day's journeying (an hour in the morning and again at night) consisted of hanging on to the bars in the back of a pickup truck as it bounced slowly along a rocky uneven road along a steep mountainside, around hairpin turns with zero shoulder where one stared down into deep gorges.
We had devotions as a group at the start of each day. One morning I shared from Isaiah 58:11-12, which seemed to be particularly applicable in the sunny hot conditions of El Salvador: "The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame… Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings."
We are thankful for all those who partnered with us, whether by praying or donating, in repairing buildings with broken walls and providing secure dwellings for disadvantaged folks in a sun-scorched land!
An earlier team (February 1-9) included half a dozen teens from Huron Chapel EMC in Auburn. This team managed to engage other El Salvadoran youth in friendly competitive soccer matches some evenings. Since their return, several have remarked how Shelter Canada was a life-changing experience for them. One teenage girl from the Auburn area, Emily Datema, shares these memories…
“One thing that stuck out to me the most was the first family we built a house for… a 40 year old father (his name was José) who had 3 kids: Elias is 10, Sarita (Sarah) is 7 and David is 3. José’s wife left him 8 months before (most of the time it's the father who walks away and leaves the mother with the kids) and he had a job bricklaying, so his parents often took care of the kids. When we got there they met us at the end of their driveway and Sarita the little girl came running with a smile on her face and hugged us; she noticed I had a soccer ball, took it right from my hands and ran away. I wondered if I would ever get it back! I didn't see it for most of the morning while I helped build the house.
“At first the kids stayed back and were all shy, but not Sarah. She came and gave me something to drink like 4 times. One time she brought me a bottle and said a whole lot of Spanish to me while I stood there like, “Gracias, thanks for the water,” and she watched me. The translator walked over and I asked what she was trying to say to me. Turns out the water was not for me, she was asking me to open the lid for her! She just laughed and got another bottle.
“I found the soccer ball hiding under a towel in a corner; I think she thought it was a gift for her. So I grabbed it and tried to ask and signaled with my hands to play soccer with her and her brothers. They agreed right away… When we got too hot to play and we sat down for some water, Sarita came over and said in Spanish, “You know you're not done playing with me” – so we sat in the shade and did a few colouring pages together while she chats away in Spanish.
“When we sat down for lunch she sat beside me and asked if I was gonna play with her again. We played some more soccer after lunch, then we helped build the second house, which was for José’s parents. Before this they had all lived together in a small mud and brick house. Gloria and I were drilling holes in the door stoppers and Sarah was at my side again chatting away, and she wanted to do it herself. And so I held the drill with one hand and she helped me drill the rest. She stayed at my side the whole time. She held screws for me and said lots of Spanish. We got a picture together… This little girl really touched me, and even with all she had gone through as a kid, she was so happy and full of joy and energy. I loved playing with her and I hope I made a lasting memory for her.
“One more thing that stuck out to me was how friendly everyone was and welcoming, and generous when they had almost nothing.”
Thanks Emily for sharing this! In North America we have much we take for granted, which may not be obvious until we visit less-developed areas like parts of El Salvador. Yet there we also discover from those who don’t have much materially, that they can enrich us by their gifts of friendship and partnership in both work and play. Indeed the Lord “will satisfy your needs” in ways that are more than simply material.
