Mexico Mission Trip 2012
Wow! What a difference ONE year makes. Take a look back at the Grand Rapids Press article about the crime in Ciudad Juarez. I recall that when we traveled through the area, there were convoys of Mexican militia riding up and down the roads with weapons prominently on display. Or there was the Mexican border guards, en mass, at even the most remote outpost (Santa Teresa). This year we were lead by our guides from Casas Por Cristo right through the city of Juarez! It was nice to see the city again. It's been about four to five years since we've been IN the city.
People asked me prior to departure what we should expect when it comes to the crime in Mexico. I just told them that, according to my "barometer" (news articles sent to me by friends who mean well), the crime must be gone. In the past year, I have received a sum total of ZERO articles on crime in Juarez. That doesn't mean it's not there, but apparently it's not newsworthy any more. Just like L.A. or New York or Detroit.
I have to admit, though, when we first crossed in to Juarez IN THE CITY, I had mixed feelings on the journey. I wondered if we would be going into the downtown area. Well, at the end of the day, we had to find our way to the International Bridge to get back to the USA and that involved going down some crowded streets, lined with locals shopping or working or whatever. What I did NOT see any of was: “The violence continued Friday in Juarez with at least 18 slayings. ... One man was cut into pieces, another was decapitated, one was hanged, a man in a wheelchair was shot to death and three women were killed.” A grime reminder of a 2009 El Paso Times article. Come to think of it, though, I don't recall seeing any of that even back in 2009! Whatever the case, we're back safely, once again, by the grace of God!
So, what did we do this year?
As usual, we built our staple: "The Double"! The double-duce. Dos dobles... our specialty. We had 35 guys building side-by-side (properties) over the course of two days. Each team making note of the others' progress along the way. "I think they're getting ahead of us" I would hear. "Hey, they're already putting on their roof!" another would say. But in the end, I never heard anyone exclaim: "Finished!". We all just packed up the tools and had our closing ceremony. Kind of bittersweet.
Out of the 36 guys that signed up for this year, nine were first timers; seven more made this their third trip. We had THREE young men join us who were all about 12 years old. Tyler's first year; Kameron's second year and, I'm proud to say, Dimitri's third year. These guys had a lot of fun together. Mostly hanging out with the local kids on Friday. They played together like they all knew each other; mostly soccer in the street. Here's the irony... not a one of them understood each other's language! But it didn't stop them from having fun.
After our ceremony, Friday, we headed back across the border on a fairly tight schedule and all met up again at the "Great American Land & Cattle Co." restaurant (you know; the one on Yarborough that Dave owns). We had about forty people with us tonight and we were served promptly, efficiently and the food was excellent. Not one complaint. Good job, Dave!
Saturday, a group of guys (and Larry's wife, Kim) went back into Juarez to work at the orphanage where we have helped in the past. They did some drywall work and other stuff AND they went back to the site where we worked for the past two days and built some steps for the family so as to safely access their home. While that was happening, a group went to the golf course and another group went on the famous "Saturday City Tour" where we find ourselves inside of the "Sun Bowl" stadium at U.T.E.P. On Saturday evening a few guys headed to U.T.E.P. to see them battle it out with S.M.U. in a great game of basketball (Division I). U.T.E.P. came from 8 points behind in the second half to pull of a 70-64 win in single over time.
And, of course, each night we had devotions at 8:00PM. We studied the book of Nehemiah.
Sunday morning, the last in were the first out of the airport at 6:00AM. This was the quickest we ever got home! I was at my house by 2:00PM... that's only six hours from El Paso. My thanks to Pastor Kurt, as I refer to him: the "Minister of Transportation". Good job.
My thanks go out to everyone that
participated this year!
I would also like to thank the people and organizations who quietly helped out
behind the scenes to support travelers on this trip!
You know who you are. Thank you!
Dan Maly
