We arrived in Quito Sunday evening, very tired from the flights. Bishop Ramos met us at the airport with his driver, Javier. It was cold and rainy. Javier tied our luggage on top of the bishop's truck, and we went to the Diocesan Center. We had a light supper prepared by Cecilia (the housekeeper at Diocesan Center) and made some arrangements for Monday before we went to bed.
On Monday, Bishop and Mrs. Ramos took us out to the mountains that surround Quito. We had lunch in a small restaurant, dining on trout caught in the lake beside the restaurant. We were a little woozy from the altitude, and the bishop recommended a special tea to relieve the altitude sickness. We went to a mercado in Quito, and got the tea (and some warmer clothing as the weather was chillier than we expected). We met Patricio Ruiz, the engineer who has designed the plans for the church building. He gave us a copy of the plans to bring back.
On Tuesday, Javier drove us out over the Andes to Tacusa. We traveled with Patricio Ruiz and with Reverenda Gladys, a priest of the diocese who grew up in Tacusa. The drive was beautiful and a little frightening: the roads in the mountains are very steep, narrow, and often without guard rails. The drive took over 6 hours because we stopped for lunch. When we arrived in Tacusa, we were immediately struck by its isolation and its poverty. The older homes were wooden shacks, well kept but very poor. The newer homes (sponsored by the government) are made of concrete block, and while they are more sturdy, they are still very small. There is no running water in the town, and the people buy water from a truck that drives by every day. They cook with bottled propane or over a fire. There is no school or medical facility. There is a little tiende (small market). They grow their food and fish.
The people came out to meet us - there are about 60 families and very many children (we met at least 60) living in Tacusa. They were happy to talk with us through our interpreters, and Becky and Leslie gave the children presents and played with them. We spent time with the adults, who were eager to show us the location of the new church. It is in the middle of the village, within sight of the Pacific Ocean. The Diocese has just purchased the land, so it will be easier from a legal point of view to construct a diocesan building there now.
The people told us the story of how the church was ruined by a storm, and of the tidal surge that swept over their village, pulling down houses from the hillside. (I think that this happened during heavy rains in spring 2002 - they are not really precise with dates.) The state government bulldozed the church building last year because it was dangerous. Currently, the people worship outdoors if possible, as there is no building large enough to contain them all for a church service. The priest, Rev. Flavio, lives in Esmeraldas (an hour away) and comes when he is able. He has a lay assistant missioner, Lucas. (This is the usual arrangement for rural areas.)
We were served a magnificent feast of fresh shrimp and fried platanos. The generosity of the people was a bit overwhelming, as they really did not have very much and gave us everything they had for that meal.
The people are very excited about having a church, and they are willing to help with construction. They do not have the means to pay for the materials. The President of the village is a woman named Dolores. She is organized and works with the priest and the families of the village. She asked us three times if we would be returning: in the past, church groups have promised them assistance, and they have not returned. She was very excited about the possibility of sharing a Vacation Bible School when our group returns next summer.
We left Tacusa ever more committed to assisting them in whatever way we can. We talked a great deal that evening about different ways of raising monies for the church project. If we follow building plans, and include two bathrooms, a childcare center and classrooms, the cost will be $30,000 USD, The cost will be less if families in Tacusa assist with construction.
Our time on Wednesday was spent traveling back over the mountains in fog and in a rainstorm. There was a landslide on the road that delayed us. We were quite tired when we got back to the Diocesan Center. We met again that evening with Bishop Ramos and talked about the people of Tacusa and our impression of the feasibility of the work there. The group felt that this project is both possible and necessary. We are all remembering the children of the village and their enormous need. We are thinking that after the building of the church, we would like to assist them in developing a source of water for the village. With the bishop and his calendar, the dates for the trip in 2009 were scheduled: July 22-31. We can work out details after Christmas. We are fairly s=certain that it would not be cost effective (and possibly unhealthy, due to heat and sanitary issues) to send US workers to Ecuador.
We traveled back to the USA on Thursday.
The Rev. Amy Welin - report to the Lower Naugatuck Valley Deanery, Nov. 11, 2008
1 comment:
If not US workers, than who will you send? Are local people willing to do all the work with donations? Couldn't US workers put up a tent and live on site while working? Fresh water arrives everyday. Food sounds safe to eat. It's hot? oh give me a break.
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