Our hosts, Alex and Dyanni

FOPC team singing in Portuguese!

This is our last posting for the trip as we leave for Sacramento this evening and are scheduled to arrive back in Sacramento on Monday.  So we'll end our stories by showing some of our efforts. You may have been wondering about photos of the children.  Well, we have plenty, but are restricted from posting them as many are in protective custody so posting their pictures could place them in jeopardy.  You'll have to settle for more team photos!

In a nutshell, we've been painting bedrooms, installing curtain rods in living rooms and installing cabinets in kitchens.  But there has also been time for musical ministry and a little English teaching. We also visited a preschool and are including some photos of those little ones as they are from the surrounding community.  Interestingly, the school is funded fully by the City of Campinas, but is run by Hope Unlimited.  It is a public school with a long waiting list of parents who want to send their children there. 

Tape, paint and peel design

We had lunch with the City of Youth children each day through Saturday and spent some time playing with them after lunch before resuming work.  We completed the work projects Friday so after Saturday lunch we visited the "boys home," temporary housing for the graduates.  These boys have jobs and are transitioning to a complete return to Brazilian society. Today we will visit the girls home of graduates which obviously is the gender counterpart. Each FOPC team member will have stories to share about what they experienced, but for now let the photos speak.


 

Mary and prep on the cabinet wall

Artistry with the cross

Joyce on the recorder, she gave 30 to the kids

Doreen and Kevin on paint duty

FOPC at boys home

Suzi and Doreen at boys home

David and Earl on the cabinets

Curtain rod crew

Delany leg, Alice and Sharon

 

Those cute preschoolers!

Kevin sanding

Two chicks!

Pete and Dale blu-ing the walls

Tuesday we returned to the City of Youth in Campinas, toured the facility and learned more about what Hope Unlimited has been doing there.  We listened to stories about some of the children there who have been severely abused.  Their histories are so traumatic that it can make you fill ill inside. We split up into groups of three and had lunch with them for the first time.  These kids are amazingly resilient and happy to have visitors from America at their table.  They range in age from 8 to 18.

Entrance to City of Youth

 

Despite all the progress you see in Brazil, poverty conditions are still seen throughout the places we drove through.  This was taken along the road on the way to the City of Youth.

"Launch" table setting in one of the casas on the campus.

One of Hope's Thrift stores where we purchased a few items to help decorate rooms

Our recreation break before heading to Campinas was spent in Rio de Janeiro.  This is a very beautiful area and home of several notable landmarks including the statue "Cristo de Redemptor" high on a mountain overlooking the area, Sugar Loaf Mountain, where you can ride an aerial tram to the top to have another grand view, Epanima (you remember The Girl from Epanima song), and Copacabana beach.  So we boarded a small tour bus and had a guide called "Gus," short for Agusto, take us around and teach us about the area.  Soccer is very big here in Brazil and there was a "big game" going on while we were here. Of course some fellow from the Vatican was also in town!  The Pope brought in huge numbers of followers.  They estimated over 3 million people appeared on Copacabana Beach, a record breaking event here of wall to wall people.  We saw many young people in attendence from all over the world on what is called World Youth Day.

Our group at first stop on the way to top of Sugar Loaf

 

Night view from Sugar Loaf of Rio

Sunday morning we attended the church where Earl was baptized as a youth, called Itacuruca Baptista Church. We worshiped through the same music we are accustomed to, but you could sense the Lord smiling at us for our attempts to sing to Him in Portuguese!  The congregation was very friendly and several people came by to greet us as we were identified as new visitors.  Our tour bus guide even came in and helped translate the pastor's message, having to do with using our money wisely.  We pray that a seed was planted in him in the process.

Church where Earl was baptized.

We also went on a brief visit to the Botanical gardens here.  It was a nice cooling off time.

Botanical gardens

Garden residents...

We left for Campinas on Monday and arrived safely again.  Tuesday we met our hosts, Alex and Dyanni, and toured the City of Youth (Cidade dos Meninos), the facility here.  We spend lunch with the children and played with them afterward.  The children were very happy to see us, show us their rooms and giggle at our use of their language.  Afterward, we went to two thrift shops owned by Hope Unlimited to buy a few decorations for their rooms. Today we start painting work and any other items that may arise.  Thank you all again for your prayers.  God is keeping us in His capable hands!

Hope Mountain continued...

Please forgive the long delay since posting our last photos.  Internet access has been difficult.  This last Tuesday we landscaped all day.  By landscaping we mean mowing super-sized lawn, hedge trimming, hauling old cut vegetation, weed whacking and planter preparation.

Our women at Hope Mtn entrance

That evening we spent some time with the boys at a hot dog roast. After finding the perfect hot dog cooking stick, we proceeded to blacken the oblong meat over the wood coals of a barbeque.  Potato chips and fresh cut papaya completed the meal.  We also played a dice game called Tenzi.  It is similar to Yahtzee except every player keeps playing until all ten dice show the same number.  The boys really enjoyed that game as excited shouts echoed off the corridor walls..

We started Wednesday off at Hope Mountain with worship services in the auditorium.  We did our best to sing two songs in Portuguese with Earl, Joyce and Dianna at the french horn, flute and piano, respectively.  Delany and a teen boy read scripture alternating between English and Portuguese and Suzi gave her testimony as Earl translated along the way.

A church group from Mississippi and Tennessee also appeared for the morning service and performed several step dancing routines. Afterward there was a time of voluntary step dance instruction for anyone in the audience.

Phil Smith, the son of the founder of Hope Unlimited was there on Wednesday and our landscaping work changed to visiting a nearby father and his teen sons who have endured tremendous family pain.  All of the team visited the family at one time or another and several of us helped by cleaning up the property and starting a room addition that would allow them to eat indoors. 

We also took on washing walls and painting two large rooms at the Hope center as well as revitalizing three planter areas and reupholstering several sofas.

Thursday we continued the painting, patched broken floor tiles, washed floors, replanted planters, continued reupholstering work and visited the nearby family to start the groundwork for the room addition with the help of Hope Mountain staff.

By mid-afternoon Friday, the painting and planters were finished, some sofas were completed along with patterns to finish the work, and the foundation and roof of the room addition were in place.  The Hope Mountain staff celebrated by honoring our work through a photo presentation set to music.  They also prepared a special cake and we spent some time relaxing.  That night we met the boys one more time at a shopping mall  for dinner before we went our separate ways, the FOPC team back to the hotel and the boys to a rare opportunity to watch a movie.

It's time for a few days off now before heading to Campinas on Monday for a week.  Stay tuned for photo updates!

Working hard

These words were taken from an email team leader Earl mailed out.

We are having a great time assisting the ministry work of Hope Unlimited here in Vitoria.  In addition to interacting with the boys who live here, we have been painting, fixing furniture, and building more living space to enlarge a house for a very poor family that lives in the neighborhood.  They had no dining room, just ate meals outside under the trees.

We arrived at Hope Mountain, about 45 minutes from Vitoria, Monday morning and met a welcoming and gracious staff.

Paul Husby then took us on a tour of the facility. We learned of the history of Hope Unlimited's work there which at one point cared for over 100 boys. Currently 17 boys live there as financial issues have hindered their ability to care for more.  Paul is tirelessly working with the city to convince authorities to increase their financial support for the area's orphaned, abandoned, or abused children. The city contributes just 20 percent of the monthly expense needed with the balance from donations. During the tour we met some of the boys in the graphic arts room, the highlight of the tour of course.  These are very friendly and grateful children and we look forward to getting to know them better.

After lunch we set to work on landscaping projects.  Before long the staff tracked each of us down for a short break!  (a papaya-based drink and banana cake)  During the break one of us (Kevin) challenged one of the boys to a soccer match, but was defeated 4 to 3.

Today we return to Hope Mountain for more landscaping work and time with the boys.  Thank you Lord for this place and thank you church for supporting us!

Arrived safely

The Brazil team arrived safe in Vitoria, just a little tired from the all-night (9-hour) plane ride from Houston.  We have connected with our host, Paul Husby and his wife Nancy, and have our plans laid out for the week.  Today we are going to spend time with the boys who are in the Hope Unlimited program, then visit a convent.  We will start our work projects tomorrow.  A big thank you to all the people who supported us to make this trip possible, and who are continuing to pray for our safety and effectiveness in doing  ministry on behalf of God's Kingdom here in Brazil

Picture taken at the Sacramento airport before departure.