Day Four

Perpetual Adoration Chapel at our home base, Divine Mercy Church. Whole families take an hour together. The stained glass is Christ praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. The plaque has the Scripture passage, “Would you not watch and pray an hour with me?” 

After Holy Mass to celebrate the feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes and breakfast, the teams split up once again. While most went to work on the house and community center, a few went around to deliver donation items. This picture is of the cemetery near the first village we went to. 

This little village has been nicknamed “London Bridge” by its inhabitants. After trying to navigate the ingenious walkways, we all understood why. Built a few feet over a fairly deep wetland, these stray pieces of board feel as though they could give way at any moment. 

More of the London Bridge walkway and a few houses. 

As we follow our guide through the neighborhood, the sun shone down shortly before opening up and drenching us with a refreshing shower. Thankfully, most of the day was dry after this and gave way to some cloud cover for our construction crews. 

This little structure is a makeshift grocery store in the middle of the houses, stocked with fresh fruits and vegetables. 

Behind the small shop, we met this delightful girl. 

She is so incredibly sweet. Unable to move around and non-verbal, she is in need of a decent wheel chair. We were able to bring food, toiletries, new bedding and a new toy for her to look at. The joy this child brought to our missionaries was unparalleled. Smiling and giggling with us, we walked away knowing we’d seen the face of Jesus. 

Our next visit was to another family with a great faith; a single mother and her two adult daughters. One daughter works while Mom stays home to look after the other, who is non-verbal, bedridden and occasionally suffers from seizures. 

We’re told that with the two most recent hurricanes, the community around this home/village prayed hard not to lose their homes. This family wasn’t able to evacuate due to the health issues causing great difficulty. Instead, they had to listen to the hurricanes blowing over them. Praise God that the first hurricane only blew away their walkway, and the second did no harm!  

Our missionaries were able to bring in food, sheets, toiletries and some beautiful art to brighten the room this cheerful woman spends all her time in. We got to hug her and play with her. She loved reaching out her arms to us and placing her leg in our hands to be held and tickled. The smile on her face was enough to bring tears to our eyes. 

These are hard pictures. They were hard to take, and are difficult to look at. To see the poverty all around. To hear of the struggles these wonderful people are facing is something that makes one want to do everything possible to help. It’s tempting to feel pity, but to meet these people and hear their story drives that away. Instead, one sees strength and resilience. 

At first glance of this picture, a pile of garbage is all that is seen. To look closer and dig deeper, the beauty of colorful coleus plants is revealed! Fresh aloe plants are thriving. 

The Belizian people are surviving where they are. 

Our mission is simply to help them thrive…

Team Belama grew a bit today, and much progress was made! 

Angels! 

Siding crew.

Peek-a-boo!

Teamwork!

Touch-up Crew

Touch-up Crew

End of the day result. Team Belama house is nearly finished, with just a few small projects left! 

End of the day result for Team Holy Emmanuel. Most Wales up, as well as rafters. Most of the missionaries will converge on this site tomorrow to put up siding and get the community center as close to finished as possible. 

Prayers for good weather and smooth progress appreciated!

Heading “home” to the hotel. Bed of the pickup style. 

With a new perspective, we head to bed. 

God to grant us a restful and peaceful sleep. 

Watch over us tomorrow and on the rest of our trip. 

Guide us to the people most in need of our help and care. 

Amen.