Beautiful Guatemala - Sept 15, 2022

It is one week since we arrived in Guatemala - for this three month journey.  There are so many things to share, each day is full to overflowing.  But yesterday was unique.  We were in Senahu, working with the characters for for the Book of Mormon pageant.  We had planned to travel on to Coban, but received information that a landslide had closed the road (due to the heavy rains the night before).  We did not want to travel back on the road to Cahabon (3 hours on very difficult roads), but we didn't have a choice.  Our driver, Luis Fernando, was very careful.  We feel very blessed that he could go with us.  (We thanked God for that miracle.)  It was a beautiful day.  The following picture shows the beauty of Guatemala - a picture taken from the road we were traveling on.

Last Saturday we visited three villages that have corn Demonstration Plots.  Bob was anxious to see how they are doing, as some of the plots will be harvested next week.  Interestingly, the farmers seed (compared to Pioneer and other varieties) did well, when it is properly cared for, and fertilized, but it takes about two weeks longer to mature.  Bob is trying to help the farmers get three crops a year, and that is not possible with the farmers seed.  They planted the second crop yesterday, among the corn plants that will be harvested next Saturday.  It's also a way to preserve the nutrients, and provide ground cover to keep the soil from washing away.

One of the villages we visited was Cerro Lindo.  Through donations to Welcome Hand (see www.welcomehand.org), we were able to build a school for the children of this village.  Some of the children have been going to schools in other areas, but most of the children have not had school for over 4 years.  The following picture is some of the children in the village.  The father of the two girls to the left has been taking the girls on a motorcycle 45 minutes away, every day.  (About 20 children travel to another school.) The new school will open on January 1st, and all 75 children will be able to attend.  It is a big blessing to the children who need an education to progress.  The three boys in the picture will now be able to attend school.  We are now working on another school, and would appreciate donations.

Today is Independence Day!  The video below shows some of the activity (if you can get it to work).

If you want to see more of the activities of Welcome Hand, go to www.welcomehand.org.  We would appreciate your support.

@welcomehand, @roylanceguatemala, @guatemalaeducation, @bookofmormon, @qeqchiguatemala, @guatemalascenery