Our Ulpan Team

I intended to write this post a long time ago in order to introduce our team to you--Christmas happened; and, it has taken me four months to pin them down long enough to get pictures of all of them.  I live in a house full of energizer bunnies who never stop!!   Let me introduce them to you:

Cesar serves as the Project Manager for the many facets of CAFNIMA’s work in the Ulpan Valley.  He is native to Guatemala and speaks Q’eqchi, but his family lives in a town about 2 hours away, so he commutes up to the valley during the week and shares the house with us.  This picture is of most of his family (minus his 8 year old son who has become a friend to Little Man) when they were with us for Thanksgiving dinner.

Ricardo works as an agricultural specialist in the Valley.  He also is fluent in Q’eqchi and, like Cesar, commutes to the valley during the week since his wife and 3 year old son live in another town about 3 hours away.  “Cardo”, as Little Monkey calls him, is lots of fun and has a great sense of humor.  It has been a joy to share a home with him as well.

Flori is a nurse whose native pueblo is 4 hours from the Ulpan Valley.  She is also fluent in Q’eqchi and has been a wonderful addition to the Valley team as there has been trouble finding medical staff to live here.  She works a lot with malnourished children as well as training health promoters from the 16 villages where CAFNIMA is involved.  She began our time here commuting to her pueblo every weekend, but, since she is single, she has begun to stay with us during the weekend which has allowed us a lot more time to get to know her.   Shirley Temple is a big fan of Flori.

Julio is native to the Ulpan Valley.  He is being trained and groomed to be able to maintain the water systems and basically serve as the water coordinator for the villages who have water systems.  His family lives in a village about 45 minute walk from our house.  We are so very thankful for Julio—he is a man of God who is developing in to a wonderful leader in his community.  Men like him are exactly what the Ulpan Valley needs.

Roberto is also native to the Ulpan Valley.  He is a hard worker who is really great with communicating with his own people.  He has worked a bit with water systems and also as a promoter for the women in the valley—helping with literacy training, libraries, dental training, etc. 

Kris and DeeDee are our American teammates—from Nashville.  We have loved getting to know them and share life with them.   The recent team that was here described them as spark plugs…that is the truth.  They have more energy than anyone I have ever known.  They also have a huge heart for the Ulpan Valley and have poured so much of their lives into this place.

Nina is my right hand and she is who makes life work for us in the valley.  It is a pleasure to have her live and serve with us this year.  We have learned so much from her:  Spanish, how to make tortillas, how to wash clothes by hand, what it is like to grow up in Guatemala, how to live much simpler, and how to be thankful for ALL we are given.  She helps our family so much and is one of the best cooks you will ever meet.  After her year with our family, she really wants to go to culinary school.  You can pray that she will be able to do that.  She is a woman of faith and we are thankful to have her in our lives.

We are so thankful for an incredible team that we have the privilege of working and living alongside in the Ulpan Valley. 

Our last few days in Guatemala we had the amazing privilege of spending a few days with them in Antigua!  CAFNIMA had a staff Christmas party, so after Mark & I brought the Knox ProCorps team down on Thursday, Dec. 13th, Kris & DeeDee brought the Ulpan Team down Saturday morning, Dec. 15^th, for the Christmas party in Guatemala City.  The drive is long, so we decided it would be best if the team spent one night in Antigua before heading back to the Valley. 

The amazing part was that for them (especially Julio and Roberto) to visit Antigua was more culture shock than for us to visit Antigua…and it is their native country.  Watching their faces as they experienced that quaint, beautiful city was delightful.  We also had a wonderful meal with them (all in Spanish J) and had very deep conversation, sharing our hearts about the ways we have grown and been shaped by the experiences of the last year.  Overall, it was a wonderful few days of team building and giving our teammates and opportunity to see a part of their own country they had never seen before.

As we look ahead to returning to work with these friends on Monday (Jan. 14th), we are thankful for the time we have been able to spend here in Knoxville during the holidays.  Though it has been extremely busy, we have been loved on, encouraged, prayed over, fed (a lot), and nourished both in our bodies and spirits.  Thank you!!!