GBF Christmas Visit to Hope House

We had two visitors from GBF, the church we helped plant in CA, visit us bringing Christmas gifts to the boys. The fact that GBF has chosen to join us in one of our ministries has been very rewarding for us. The visitors were Bob Douglas and his son Grant. They brought presents for each of the boys, individually boxed with a boy's name on the box. This makes it very special and personal for each of the boys. Clearly the biggest reward was received by Bob and Grant as they saw the reaction of everyone at Hope House.

 This blog will be short since the pictures and video will speak for themselves. The pictures can be found here. The video is just a short clip of the boys giving their appreciation for Bob and Grant and GBF for remembering them this Christmas. The video can be found here. Everything is translated into English for Bob and Grant.

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

Kirsty and her fiance, Brian, moved to Albuquerque, NM to work in the Bassett family business, New Mexico Piñon Coffee. We have to say its the best coffee we have tasted. We were invited by Brian's parents to come meet them during the balloon festival. Walt was at the balloon festival 18 years ago so it was nice to go back and see and for Nancy to see for the first time.

We arrived in Albuquerque at 10 pm and stayed awake chatting until 11:30 but then had to get up at 4:00 to catch a shuttle bus to the festival. The balloons typically are launched early in the morning when the wind is the least. We stayed with Kirsty and Brian and pictures of their house are shown here.

Saturday morning we got to the shuttle bus and met some of Brian's family and then spent the time at the balloon festival and were awestruck by how many and how large the balloons are. We took a lot of pictures but here are some just to give a flavor of the festival. Saturday evening Brian's parents invited us to their house for dinner with the Bassett family.

Sunday evening we went to the Twilight Twinkle Glow where they fire up the burners at dusk and the balloons are glowing. It was a spectacular site to see. Here are some photos of the Twilight Twinkle Glow. 

Monday morning we went to the Piñon coffee plant. We had been to a coffee roasting place on our trip to Guatemala a couple of years ago but it was nice to have a small group and everything explained in detail to us. We learned how sensitive coffee is not only to the country where it is grown but to the plantation and part of the plantation that the coffee is grown. We find the Piñon coffee to be the best flavor we have had.  Trader Joe's does carry it in their stores.  Here are photos of the coffee factory.

Sandia Labs was one of the places where the atomic bombs were developed. So they have a nuclear  history museum that we went and visited. It was interesting to see the history of this period. Here are a few photos of the museum.

Aquaponics Update

We now have had the aquaponics systems operational for a year. The first year we had a tremendous lettuce and tomato harvest. There were some challenges with the tomatoes but we feel that all of this is a learning process. First we have to learn and then understand how an aquaponics system operates. Aquaponics is a blend of hydroponics, the growing of vegetables in water, and aquaculture, the farming of fish. One of the key elements is keeping the system in balance so that the hydraulic system is balanced and works, that is, the bell siphons do their jobs as advertised. We believe we have mastered this. There is also the balance of nutrients from the fish and the cleaning ability of the plants. If the ratio of fish to plants is wrong the result is possibility of too much ammonia, nitrates and nitrites in the water. Too much of any of these is detrimental to the fish. On the other hand, there needs to be sufficient nutrients in the water to feed the plants. So far testing has manifested zero ammonia, nitrates and nitrites and a well balanced pH level. Another challenge we are facing is which plants grow best and when is the best growing season for a particular plant. This last challenge is an ongoing process and something that is learned by each growing season.

Our first lettuce crop was bountiful to the point that the boys were tired of eating lettuce. We in fact were able to sell some to another local orphanage. So it was a win/win situation. Unfortunately our second and third lettuce crops were wiped out thanks to the birds. We were surprised how they managed to clean off large lettuce plants in no time at all. In fact, they wiped out an entire lettuce crop in a matter of three days. So  not only were we faced with balancing the operation of the system but now we had to counter the birds harvesting the crops before we had a chance to. The plan now is to envelope the entire system with shade material. The photo below is the beginning of this construction phase. To save cost, all of the material for the walls are being sewn by Nancy, a formidable job with the largest piece being over 24m (72 ft) long – the long wall shown in the photo. We have also purchased a tool to put in the grommets. Interestingly enough it is difficult to find grommets in the local area – just another challenge in the long process. (Although we can find people who will put in the grommets, they won't sell them to us)

On the positive side we had our first fish feast last week. The boys managed to catch a large number of fish. However, only those greater than 300 grams were kept. We ended up with 20 fish amounting to approximately 7 kg or roughly 15 pounds. The comment back was that the fish were very tasty. However, again there is a challenge here. The fish of choice is tilapia since they grow the fastest and are a favored fish in the area. The challenge is that the water is 22C and should be 27C for maximum growth rate and size. So now an approach to heating the water needs to be developed and implemented. We have a concept in mind and now need the funds to accomplish this task. This photo is of our “fishermen” and their catch. Go here to see them catching the fish.

The biggest challenge we face, and one that tremendously impacts completion of the total system, is sufficient funding. We use volunteer labor whenever we can but materials and various special purpose elements, like the metal structure, require money. We are slowly but surely getting to a complete system that we feel is fully functional and producing the desired results. There is always an opportunity for anyone willing to contribute time or funds or both whenever they can!

Curitiba GMP Trip June 2013

This was Walt's 9th GMP trip and Nancy's 7th. Curitiba is special since this is where, in 2004 on his first Brazil trip, God originally touched Walt's heart about going to a foreign country someday and three years later we ended up where God wants us to be in Mexico and serving Him. This trip was a little different in that rather than performances at churches and masters classes in these churches, we were part of a program called Life and Music Space (LMS). This program began in Primeira Igreja Batista de Curitiba (PIB), the church we were working with. The program is designed to teach music to young people with the thought that focusing on music will help them take their focus off harmful distractions. The program was begun three or four years ago in the church and has since progressed to at least five schools with more to come. An important thing about the schools that are being contacted is that they are in the poorer parts of Curitiba, or the favelas. Currently there are approximately 500 students in the program. The sad part is that there are more students than instruments so the only opportunity they have to play is during lessons with no practice time at home. Our group, especially those from the US, were able to bring a large number of instruments and paraphernalia that was left behind for the program. We performed 13 concerts with six in church and the rest in the schools and locations associated with the program. Additionally about five masters classes were conducted where members of our team would work with instrumentalists in the various schools and at PIB.

There were a total of 21 of us in the group. Two were from Nairobi, Kenya, the two of us from Mexico and the rest from different states in the US. As usual, we all met for the first time when we got to Curitiba, had a two hour rehearsal and then off to the races. Here are some photos of our team.

To get a feel for PIB, the church we joined forces with, here are photos of the church. It is not only the size that impresses us but the fact that the building of the church is not complete, yet they worship and serve faithfully each and every day. They are so busy on a daily basis that there is someone at the front desk all the time and many people are continually coming and going. There seems to be something going on all the time, regardless of day or time of day that we were there.

In working with the people from PIB we made some new friends and renewed previous acquaintances in Brazil. Here are some photos of our Brazilian friends.

In support of the LMS program concerts were given at a number of the schools, some of which were already in the program and others that are interested in being part of it. The schools generally are in the poorer areas in Curitiba. All in all there was a large number of students and teachers, in some cases more than 200. In some of the schools that were in the program, the students gave us a sampling of what they had accomplished, which was very impressive. In each school we were very warmly welcomed. Here are some photos at some of the schools. 

We also gave concerts at PIB and at a Seventh Day Adventist Church. The concerts at PIB can be found here and the Seventh Day Adventist Church, which is a very large, are here. The orchestra at PIB easily consisted of 200 members or more making it a very enjoyable experience.

Again, the major reason we were in Curitiba was to support the LMS program. To give a glimpse of the program here are photos of working at the various schools with students participating in LMS. From these photos it can be seen that the students demonstrated what they have learned, we gave them concerts and worked with them as they gave public concerts. As part of the LMS program our group was involved in providing music instruction for the various instruments the students were working with. Here are photos of the Masters Classes and here is a video showing Masters Classes in session. 

A special treat for part of our group was to work with a local Christian jazz band. This band is the result of GMP Jazz Band trips to Curitiba in the past. So it was a great feeling to see something like this continuing. The band consisted of 13 saxophones, 10 trumpets, 8 trumpets and rhythm. Our brass and saxophone folks loved it because they could play for the whole concert. Since there is only one drummer, bassist and keyboard, the rhythm section had to trade off. Here are photos of the band and here is a video of the band playing. The trombone soloist was part of our GMP group.  Walt is not in the video since he was shooting it, but he did get to play some of the songs. With that many instruments, the sound level was measured at 102 db. However, needless to say it was an unforgettable experience. For musicians, note that the Doxology goes from a brass chorale sound to a pegleg waltz - cool. 

In spite of the busy schedule, we did manage to get around to see some of the sites in Curitiba. For Nancy it was great that she could now also see some of the sites that Walt saw nine years ago on his first GMP trip. Here are some photos of parts of Curitiba. 

Something that has intrigued us every time we have been to Brazil is the graffiti, it really is art rather than the type of graffiti we are accustomed to. Curitiba did not let us down and here are some of the graffiti that we saw. 

And, of course, one of the key things of a GMP trip is experiencing the food in various countries. Brazil is especially noted for this. We ate at several Pizza Rodizio restaurants. This type of service is where they continually bring on slices of various types of pizza until you say "enough". Then they bring on the dessert pizza. Needless to say you are satisfied at that point. The best known Rodizio type of Brazilian restaurant is the Churrascaria, where it is various cuts of meat that are brought to the table. They also have a tremendous salad and dessert bar. Here are some photos of us eating.

Thailand Trip 2013

This photo is the reason we spend the first month of each year in Thailand.  This is our family over there.  From left to right in the back row are Pan, Sarah, Cindy, Josiah and Adam.  In the front, from left to right, are Sam, Lutiya (Sam is on Lutiya's lap), Isaac, Joel, Anica (in Cindy's lap) Nathan and Asia (in Adam's lap).  Pan is a second year college student in education, Lutiya, Sarah, Sam and Joel are in school and the other five are still at home during the day.  It is getting quieter each year.  (A relative term with 10 children) Next year only the two little girls will be at home during the day. With Cindy teaching at the kid's school, and more next year, plus homeschooling and teaching dance classes, and Adam working almost full time writing and working on a computer game with former coworkers from the US, we are so glad that they have a helper every weekday! As for our trip this year we took a large number of photos, since Walt has a new DSLR camera, but only show a subset in the album that can be found here.