Today started out with Curtis on the phone to Air Canada trying to find flights for us all. We all got together in the hotel shuttle again and off to the airport in Toronto for 4:45 am.
 
Josh, Emily, Jason and Trinity got a flight to Halifax and arrived safely. The rest of us -- well, it was a big day. A short flight to Montreal and a layover, and another flight to Ottawa and a 6 hour layover to get a flight to Moncton. Then we got diverted to Fredericton where they told us we could fly to Deer Lake and stay in hotel or get off and find a way from there. 
 
Thanks to Sandra's friend, Pete, who picked us up and drove us to the Silver Fox in Salisbury where my brother Christian drove us four home! Vicki, Tobey, and Ang got a taxi from Fredericton to Sussex and then home from there with Alexis' parents. And Alexis' uncle picked her up and took her to Sussex to meet as well. All this to say it’s 3:30am and we are all home safe.
 
Patrick

Hello Church family,
We’re on day 12 of an 11 day missions trip! What a whirlwind. Today was a lot of ups and downs. One minute we thought we could get out to Moncton today and the next minute our flights were canceled again (the third set of cancellations).
I do really appreciate our team and the positive attitudes we’ve had in spite of the trials. For most part we’ve been encouraging and supportive of one another.
Today God allowed 10 of us to do a quick sightseeing tour from the airport to downtown. We saw the CN tower, Rogers Center and Scotiabank Arena. We even ran into Spider-Man and he easily threw me over his shoulder!
We intended to spend the night in the airport tonight when we got a call from a NS local businessman also stuck in Toronto who offered to buy us 6 hotel rooms for the night! What a blessing to have a shower, and a bed for everyone! God has brought multiple people into our path over the course of the trip that blessed us and reminded us that God sees the bigger picture. We’ll tell you about David, Comfort, John and even Spider-Man when we get home.
Tonight we met and reminded each other of the things God has done in our lives on this trip, and thanked Him for His goodness and provision!
Praying that tomorrow we actually get home.
Curtis

Hello church family,

     The morning started out quite early. We got up around 5:30 so we could get ready and catch the shuttle to the airport. We had no problems in the Houston airport and a safe flight to Toronto. Unfortunately our next flight to Halifax got canceled so we have to spend the night in Toronto again. We are feeling a little bit of dejavú. 
        Please pray for safe travels and no complications tomorrow as our group does have to split up again to go to Moncton, and also for safe drives to and from Moncton. 
​
        Thank you for all your prayers 
                      Kaylie 

Hello from Houston Texas my Church family! You don’t realize how good it is to say ‘hello’ until you’ve said ‘goodbye’ to 33 beautiful Honduran children who now hold a piece of your heart in their little hands… I wish you could meet them as we have!

It was an early morning packing and taking final photos at our home base in Honduras, Cerro De Luz. We celebrated Jason’s birthday with song and speech over breakfast - Happy Birthday mi Amigo!

We took our final drive to the airport with Otto, the best Honduran driver I know! I can’t begin to describe the grandeur of the mountains as we descended into Comayagua. Our friend Abigail quoted Isaiah 55:12. What a blessing she has been as the 13th member of our team - all the way from Quebec!

A few more goodbyes as Otto dropped us off at the airport with Abi, Rick and Ena who helped us through check in. I have a whole new respect for the work that Rick and Ena do in caring for Casa Hogar, sponsorships and short term teams.

With some final souvenirs in hand we boarded the plane for an uneventful flight to Houston. Even our checked luggage arrived immediately and without issue - thank you God!

As we eat pizza in a Houston hotel and enjoy devotions as a team for one final night, our thoughts shift toward y’all at home. You didn’t get to experience all that we did these ten days. So, how can we best share the stories of these kids - the love of the Father for them - the work He’s doing in our hearts? 

May I make a special request of you, my Church family? Would you lend some extra time and a listening ear to our team upon our return? Would you ask good questions and consider our answers well? Would you help us as we attempt to process all that we have experienced and seek to reintegrate into our home culture?

We’re so thankful for your prayers as we’ve been away, but we need you to share in our next phase of the journey too!


Lord willing, I’ll see you Sunday!
Joshy

This morning we started our day with another yummy breakfast and devotions! We prayed for God to be with us all as it’s the day to say “see you later” to the children and the tias at Casa Hogar. 

When we got to the home we did group devotions with the all of the children. We also sang songs with them, in English.. and some of us tried Spanish! 

The rest of our morning was pretty low key.  Most of us spent our time doing different activities and crafts that included colouring/ drawing pictures with the children, making bracelets and keychains, as well as some dancing!! 

After lunch, most of us spent our time playing soccer and basketball, and just hanging out with the children. 

The day went by so fast but I think it’s safe to say we all enjoyed our last day with the children. They invited us all into their home to share some special memories of the week and to pray for one another as we said our goodbyes. There were many tears, but we were reminded of the love we have for each other, as well as God’s love for us all. He will never leave us or forsake us. 

After many hugs, some notes passed to one another and little gifts to us from Casa Hogar, we said our final goodbyes and made our way back to Cerro de Luz to get ready for supper. 

We ended our night with a team supper at a restaurant called Casa Pinar; Melo, Rick, Ena, Gabi (our translator), and Otto (our driver) also joined us.

We are all very thankful for this opportunity to come to Honduras, for growing closer as a team and closer to God. 

Please continue to pray for us as we say our final goodbyes, and start our journey home. 

​
See you all soon, 
Becky G 💜(aka Vicki😅)

​GOOD MORNING CHURCH FAMILY! 

Today is day 8 of our trip, and it doesn't fall short for excitement today. 
We started the day off with a lovely Honduras breakfast(baleadas) - a traditional Honduran food that is made from flour tortilla and folded in half like a taco with a variety of fillings inside (Oh, so yummy). 😋
After our mouth watering breakfast, we made our way outside to the back deck for some morning devos, where there were, in fact, some more tears shared this morning which we came prepared for this time. 🤭 

As we were on our way to the home, Otto almost hit a dog, and I quote, he said, "I almost killed my first dog!" As he swerved to avoid hitting it, we all laughed. 

As we arrived at the home, we were bombarded with hugs as soon as we set our feet on the ground at Casa Hogar. 

We were able to do devos with the kids this morning, which was REALLY nice since we never usually arrive early enough to do devos with them. So that was really exciting to experience. Even "Queen Pat" might of had a little too much fun, considering one of the kids has made a joke that "Queen Pat" is now their "boyfriend." ;) 
Jokingly of course. Haha 
We all got a good laugh out of that one. (Sorry Pat, I couldn't help but add it. Nothing gets by me. Hehe) 

After devos was when some of the team members were dragged into getting their nails painted and the bracelet-making began. 

For lunch we had Chinese rice and pineapple tea, which was just as deliciously mouth-watering as breakfast! After lunch we headed out to play some games at Gabby's church and as much as the kids looked excited to play them, some of them were just as sad to not be able to make more bracelets. 

As we were leaving, we all tried to pile ourselves into the back of Otto's van, kids on some of our laps, people on the floor, or squashed up front, but to no avail. Some of us ended up going in the back of Ena's truck or in Melo's car. 

On our way to Gabby's church, a massive bull walked right out in front of us without a care in the world. That makes 2 possible accidents involving animals today (never a dull moment around here, that's for sure). 

We made it! Finally we made it to Gabby's church without any more delays. Once everyone started rushing out of the van, we discovered that we still had some time to spare, so we made or way down to a park near by which the kids LOVED. 

After a while we made our way back to the church, and the kids instantly became engrossed in the games being prepared. Soon it was time to leave, and we piled right back up into the van, practically playing tetris with the kids trying to get most of us in again (quite the challenge). 😂 

On our way back to drop the kids off, we stopped to get Pinols (a corn drink) at a cute little restaurant. The drink literally tasted like Cinnamon Toast Crunch. It was utterly divine! I would definitely recommend if you ever pop by Honduras sometime. 

Dropping the kids off was emotional for some of us. Some even shed tears as we packed back into the van and headed back to Cerro De Luz for dinner. 

Once dinner time comes around, the real bonding begins. We feel like a real family. All crowded around the table, talking about anything and everything (most of the time it's just completely random stuff), but we all smile and laugh together, never the less. At the end of the day, this is what I look forward to. It's really a treasure to have everyone on the trip here together. God really did have a plan placing everyone here. At this time. Together. 

Tonight we had salad, chicken, some kind of fancy rice, and tortilla wraps. And let me tell you, the chicken. Is. MOUTH WATERING. Literally, MOUTH WATERING. 🤤

NIGHT TIME DEVOS! 
We always have wonderful devos, but there's something about the evening devos that just makes it so captivatingly inspiring. 
Tonight we shared some of our testimonies, and, of course, there were tears shed,
but beautiful, beautiful tears they were. 

I just want to thank you all for continuing to pray for us and the children as we share the love of God to these beautiful, loving kids! ❤ 

-Trin Trin 

Hello church family! 

Today was our sixth day here in Honduras; a cloudier one which was well-needed for most of the team that experienced some severe burns from yesterday and needed some time to heal. 

After breakfast, we began devotions and spent some time in reflection on John 15:4. 
“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. As the branch cannot bare fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine. Neither can you unless you abide in me.” 
We can’t do anything that matters apart from God and this verse was a reminder to continue making Him the centre of this mission. 

Today was our cultural day! First stop was to the market and we bought some souvenirs for friends and family. Next, we went to the leather shop and made a few more purchases. The much awaited trip to “Chocolatepeque” was also today and we got to eat some really good chocolate - and save some for when we get home ;)
We had lunch at La Carpa de Doris and our plates were completely full of chicken and plantains. (Good thing we weren’t full on chocolate haha.) 

Our last stop was the coffee plantation where we were given a tour by the owner, Omar. He was so kind to us, told us many stories, and really exercised his English with our group. We learned that Omar’s family bought the coffee plantation in 1983 and has 30 acres of coffee plants which we walked through as he told us more about the process they go through every year with their plants. 

He then took us to his home where he roasts the coffee beans. Some of us rode in the bed of his truck on the way which was super fun. After he shared more about the process of roasting the coffee beans, he invited us all into his home to try some coffee. It was really nice to make a personal connection with him and his wife and they made us feel so welcomed. 

This was when we called it a day and came back to Cerro de Luz and were joined by Melodie for evening devotions. She shared parts of her life with us and we had some really good conversations about the kids and her love for our church family. 

Today has been a day of recovery and tourism and we look forward to what tomorrow brings. We thank you for your continued prayer and encouragement; it has really been an important pillar for us as we grow closer with the children and as a team.

​
-Emily 

Hello church family. 

We started off the day with a delicious Honduran meal with avocado, tortillas, plantains, chicaron (meat that is like pork), sour cream, and orange juice. There was also Honduran coffee for those who drink it. We had to eat fast and didn't do much of devotions as we had to leave at 8:30 to go pick up the kids.

Today we got to take the children to a labyrinth and for a swim in a pool!! The ride there was beautiful and we got to see the Honduran mountains (which were striking). The drive took about an hour, and the kids were extremely excited to ride with us. The labyrinth was very cool, but the kids definitely enjoyed the pool more. We swam for hours. The water was heated so not many people got cold. Around the pool was a ledge about 4 feet high where you could jump into the water. It was a little sketchy as the water was only 4 feet deep!!! Their excitement for all this was truly uplifting and infectious. We had a nice meal with the kids by the pool and then got back in again for some more swimming/wrestling/jumping in the water. 

On the bus ride back there were some sleepy kids. We were all very tired (and some of us really sunburnt). The kids love for people they barely know is astonishing. They will sit with you, hug you, and lay their head on your shoulder. They are the sweetest kids you will ever meet. We thank you all so much for your prayers for us and the kids. It has worked wonders on this trip!

-Tobey

Day 5 has come! We started the day off with a beautiful traditional Honduras breakfast. Then some well needed devotional time, we were once again able to really reflect on how much God loves us, and because of that we are able to give love to these children. 

We all got dressed in our Sunday best (best that we had in our suitcases) to go to church. This is the local church that all the children go to, so that was very cool to experience and see what they get to attend to on Sunday. 

After church we went to the children’s home and had lots of good quality time. That included various card games, tag, soccer, volleyball, and of course being dragged around by both arms just agreeing to whatever they are saying. Also had a wonderful barbecue, we all got to sit outside and enjoy some burgers and French fries! 

Today was also the backpack day!!!! We told the children that we had something for them and I glanced around to see their hands covering their mouths in excitement, and giving huge smiles to one another. This was such a honor to be able to see again this year. The pure excitement they all had from receiving this special backpack, pyjamas, and letters that was all given to them directly with so much love. They would pull out the things they got and would show each other, compare colours and sizes; they were so grateful. It was truly amazing how happy these children would get over something that would seem so little to us. We thank you all who were able to give these kids an extra smile today, and also for praying for them! 

-Alexis 

Hello church family and those following our journey.
​
Today, day 4 started with a beautiful sunrise with a little fog in the valley. As each of us got up, there was an amazing sense of adventure with the team. We had breakfast followed by a devotional centering on God's love towards us and how that enables us to move forward in His kingdom. A root devotional in the Christian walk that cannot be overstated.

We overviewed what our week may look like, then went to the Casa to spend time with the amazingly wonderful, awesome, inspiring kids! We also had a tour of the home and grounds with explanations of what has happened and what is being planned for the future.

This evening we split into two groups, the girls going to youth group with the teen girls, and the guys going to church with the guys. Then we followed up with our getting back together and eating our evening meal at a taco truck. We once again did evening devotions when we got back. The theme is appearing to be God's love towards us and our understanding of His love. A great day building relationships. A full rich day.

Keep praying and God Bless!
-Jason