Sounds of Andahuaylas

I recently stumbled upon an old sound clip that I took last year in Andahuaylas. I was visiting the church that the children attend and was amazed to hear the type of music that they sing. They worshiped God beautifully with traditional Andean rhythm and melody. Rather than just letting you listen to the music, I whipped up a slide show with all of the kids' faces. I would have loved to have matched the image transitions to the rhythm of the music, but am limited to using programs that work with my hoof-typewriter.



It's been a long time since myself or other Lima-based Kids Alive missionaries have been able to visit our Friends of Peru Home in Andahuaylas, but we're excited about several trips planned there this summer. They're even going to host two of their own service teams. Needless to say, I'll have lots of good updates and images to present to you later in the year.

The Oasis' Anniversary

Last Friday, I stopped by the Oasis to watch the celebration of its 7th anniversary. Boy, do they know how to throw a party. The afternoon included singing, a couple of skits, recognition of the staff, short encouragements to the families from Oasis director, Juan Carlos, and Kids Alive Peru director, Mike Fietje, followed by snacks, drinks, and cake.





Our worship team.



Melina leads some of the 2 and 3 year olds down to the party.



Nothing says "Happy Anniversary" like Vilma, the dancing cake.



Some of the women from Moms Helping Moms provided a skit demonstrating the amazing faith of several Biblical heroes.



This final video is a little hard to describe. The humor in it is not really this llama's cup 'o tea, but this style can be found throughout Latin America. If you've heard of "El Chavo," you know to what I am referring. Nonetheless, it was great to see the Oasis staff showcasing their talent and how much the kids enjoyed it.



Basically, Juan Carlos is "El Malo" (The Bad) and the other four are "Los Fantasticos" (The Fantastics, not to be confused with the Fantastic 4). He leaves a banana peel and a stick of dynamite in their path as well as several other attempts to curb their fantastic-ness.

Secret Identity Revealed

The writer of this blog has been working hard the last six months to bring you hard-hitting stories from the Kids Alive ministry sites in Peru. His work has been selfless, but it is now time to reveal this mastermind to the world. Click Here to discover who it is.

That's right! All Kids Alive Peru news is brought to you by the Llama Reporter. Flying a missionary back and forth to our sites across the country to bring fresh news would have been too costly and time-consuming. Llamas thrive in the highlands and the Llama Reporter loves hiking and visiting our kids in the desert, highlands, and jungle. Today he brings you the newest edition of his quarterly newsletter, The Llama Reporter.

Llama Reporter Spring 2010

*A special thank you to Sean Dawdy for designing the Llama Reporter symbol.

Through the Eyes of a Service Team Member - Day 6

***Special guest bloggers Carolyn and Lynn from the Lawrence Free Methodist Church Service Team***

On Friday we bid farewell to the children at The Juniper Tree. Several members from our group asked to sponsor children at the Home and were able to talk to these children for a bit and get a picture with them. Each child at the Juniper Tree has several sponsors and writes each sponsor four times a year so the relationships between the children and their sponsors will deepen.



Karly and her sponsored child. Karly spent several days working with the kids at The Juniper Tree and was drawn to Julio's* kind heart and his smile. Julio* loves to draw and loves school. His favorite class at school is English and Karly knows a bit of Spanish so they'll have a good time teaching each other a bit of English and Spanish. When Julio* learned that Karly wanted to be his marina, he went to his room and got a little stuffed bear to give to her so she could remember him. He asked that she pray for him and his family.


Kelly with the children her family is going to sponsor.
When Kelly came to Peru, she was hoping to meet a brother and sister her family could sponsor since she has 3 sons and a daughter at home. She was quickly drawn to Mario* and Maria*, the two newest children at The Juniper Tree. They are energetic and loving and are very excited about their new home and new Padrinos (Sponsors). They already know the names of Kelly's children and are looking forward to corresponding with them in the future.


Carolyn with her sponsored child. Karlia* is the middle child of three sisters. She is outgoing, full of energy and comfortable with people. She loves to play and is happy to have another marina.


Steve, Lynn, Carolyn, Karly and Kelly at the fishing village of Puku Sana, where we took a boat tour to see the cliffs, the ocean and some lazy sea lions.


Lynn, Steve, Karly, Carolyn, and Kelly with our friend and guide, Javier, at the fountain exhibit in downtown Lima.

Through the Eyes of a Service Team Member - Day 5

***Special guest bloggers Carolyn and Lynn from the Lawrence Free Methodist Church Service Team***

We had another great day on our work sites. The highlight for Stephanie and Carolyn was to hear the testimonies of four of the moms in our English lessons. They were fairly similar -- "I went to church a little when I was a child, but for one reason or another it was difficult to go regularly. I wandered away from God when I was an adolescent. I had a child and then, thanks be to God, he brought me here to the Oasis to reconnect with Him. I am now much closer to Him and so happy to be studying His word and growing in my faith." All of our team felt blessed to get to see the work at The Oasis and see how it is having a huge impact on nearly 100 children and their families in Manchay!



A neighborhood we passed on the way to The Oasis. It was built in an old quarry site.


The children at The Oasis celebrate Mother's Day with their mothers. This day is celebrated for several days; the moms are invited to the school for a program one day and a breakfast the next day. Each grade sang a song or quoted a poem for their mothers. Gifts were given and mothers were honored. This is a great way for the Oasis to connect with the mothers of the children that attend their center.


Sydney with one of the moms from the Moms helping Moms program. Our ministry team taught English to 10 different women this week. These women work in the Oasis in the classrooms with the children, in the kitchen and in the sewing area. This is a great way for them to get a great Christian education for the little children (ages 1-5) and great after school help at the homework club for their gradeschoolers. They also are provided with work and are studying the Bible every day. They have been studying the Bible for over a year and have worked through Genesis - Luke. They are currently in the gospel of John.


Our construction and medical teams eating out at a restaurant for lunch, experiencing authentic Peruvian food, including guinea pig.


Our medical team in front of a church in Pachacamac. The church advertised free medical care in the community and spent the entire day providing medicines and performing minor surgeries on people from the community.

Through the Eyes of a Service Team Member - Day 4

***Special guest bloggers Carolyn and Lynn from the Lawrence Free Methodist Church Service Team***

Our men needed to move a cement mixer from The Oasis to The Juniper Tree so they hired a truck to toe the mixer 30 minutes on very rough roads. Since the truck lacked a hitch, the took some wire and wired the mixer to the truck bumper, tied some safety rope around it and off they went. Thirty minutes later, the mixer arrived safely at its destination.

Our medical team went to an open air market, told a few people that a dermatologist was available and giving away free medicine. Within a few minutes, a very long line formed. Three hours later, more than 50 people had been helped. Tasha, one of the assistants, was thrilled to get to be in the center of the village helping Peruvians.


Peruvians line up in the market place for a chance to receive medical care from Dr. Joe.

Our ministry team spent the day with children at The Juniper Tree helping them make a "Cristo me ama" craft with pictures of the children and "estickers." The kids loved being able to keep the craft with their own picture.

In addition to our week, the day was also filled with cross cultural experiences: Peruvian food, ice-cream, a herd of goats, rides in taxis, a walk to the plaza, and devotions at The Juniper Tree.


Our group had to avoid being trampled by this wild herd of sheep and goats!


Kelly and Sydney take a Peruvian taxi to their worksite in the morning.


Karly helps the kids at the Juniper tree show the verse to our group at devotions.

Kelly shared her journey of faith during our time of devotions, telling how she learned to trust in God through her battle with cancer even though she had no idea of what the future held. The director of The Juniper Tree explained to the kids that their journey is the same. They don't always know the future, but they can trust God in the midst of it. He will take care of them.

Carolyn's highlight of the day: listening to the children sing and pray during our time of devotions! These children are excited about God and learning to trust in Him completely.


Moms Helping Moms showing off some of their sewing crafts to Kelly, Karly and Sydney.


Randy, Larry and our friend and Driver, Machi, pose for a photo during lunch break.


Stephanie is encircled by a group of girls from the Juniper Tree

Through the Eyes of a Service Team Member - Day 3

***Special guest bloggers Carolyn and Lynn from the Lawrence Free Methodist Church Service Team***

"We have the joy, joy, joy, joy down in our hearts"

What a great day we had on our 2nd day of work!

Our medical team got out of the comfort zone of the clinic and went out into the streets to serve those in need. Many came to get medicine for skin diseases and the team was able to perform some minor surgeries.

Our construction team got to work in both The Juniper Tree and The Oasis today, working on some finishing projects to make the places better for the children. They appreciate the opportunity to serve.

Our girls loved the language exchange today with the women of The Oasis. They learned the parts of the body, how to count to ten and basic greetings in Spanish and taught the Peruvian moms those words in English. They ended their lessons singing in English and Spanish "I have the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart." In Spanish, this song ends with "…because Christ saved me."

We are grateful to Christ for His salvation and are filled with joy.


Stephanie and Lynn in front of a local house they helped fix up for one of the moms from Moms Helping Moms.


Willy and Randy working to fix a broken dresser.


Joe and Kelly performing a minor surgery on a patient.


Our missionary team leader, Jon Chadwick, leading us in prayer before another delicious, Peruvian meal!


Tasha providing illustrations for the Peruvian mothers learning English.


Sydney and Karly working with the 2&3 year-old class on their creation pictures.

Through the Eyes of a Service Team Member - Day 2

***Special guest bloggers Carolyn and Lynn from the Lawrence Free Methodist Church Service Team***

Today we group from Kansans had our first day of work. We split into groups to tackle several different projects simultaneously -- a medical project, some construction work, a painting project, English lessons for moms, a Bible lesson with two groups of children, lots of soccer and volleyball and even some homework.

In the evening, the families from The Juniper Tree welcomed us into their homes and gave us an excellent Peruvian meal. Everyone on the team had a wonderful time meeting many hospitable Peruvians, working hard and seeing the faith of the children at the Oasis. The highlights of those working directly with children and moms was doing a language exchange with both children and mothers -- learning Hebrews 11:1 in Spanish and English and learning numbers and body parts in both languages. We are excited about tomorrow and what God has for us.


Dr. Joe Gadzia removing a mole from a walk-in patient.


Kelly taking the heart rate of one of the boys at the Oasis childcare center.


Larry and Willy laying brick for the sidewalk at the Oasis childcare center.


Steve repainting a set of lockers for the team at the Oasis childcare center.


Carolyn leading a lesson on faith.


Karly working with one of the kids on memorizing a Hebrews 11:1 - Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.


Carolyn teaching the moms English through "Simon Says."


Karly with two of the kids from The Juniper Tree children's home.

Through the Eyes of a Service Team Member - Day 1

***Special guest bloggers Carolyn and Lynn from the Lawrence Free Methodist Church Service Team***

Hooray! We made it safe and sound! After a long day of travel, including an almost-missed connecting flight and a 2-hour delay at the baggage claim upon arrival in Peru, we arrived to our apartment around 12:45 am. Our missionary hosts are full of knowledge and hospitality, the people are beautiful, friendly and full of love to share.

Today we had the opportunity to worship at the Vida Nueva (New Life) church in Manchay. Afterward, we ate a delicious meal at a local favorite restaurant. Then we went to The Juniper Tree Children's Home in Pachacamac to meet the kids and their house-parents and visited The Oasis Care Center in Manchay. Tomorrow we get up bright and early to start our work week of construction, medical help, Bible lessons for kids and English lessons for moms.


Thank God! All of our luggage was present and accounted for!
(pictured from left: Karly, Tasha, Lynn, Sydney, Joe, Jove, Darren, Larry, Steve, Stephanie.)


(pictured from left: Willy; Sydney) The view from the balcony of our apartment.


Neighborhood in Manchay.


Some of the beautiful Peruvian landscape.


At The Manchay Oasis Care Center; a group shot from a mini-Noah's ark
(pictured from left: back: Stephanie, Steve, Willy, Randy, Joe, Darren, Jove. front: Tasha, Karly, Lynn, Carolyn, Larry, Sydney, Kelly, Nigel.