Traveling to their new homes......

The morning began very, very early. Someone??? decided to start the morning with firecrackers that shook everyone out of bed.......and then if that was not enough, we had a earthquake that measured 5.9........good morning!!

We loaded up the trucks and left Clinica Ezell about 0930. It was a beautiful day for the drive. There were very few clouds in the sky and we had a clear view of Lake Atitlan as we headed for Chichicastenango.

This is the group of students that will be living with different families in the highlands. Behind them is Lake Atitlan. This was before they began making Guatemalan friends :)
We all arrived safely in Chichi and had lunch with the other members of the Health Talent team.
As we approached the time to take the students to their homes, I could sense that they were becoming a little nervous. I told them that it was normal but the families were looking forward to their visit. Yes, communication would be a slight barrier but they would find ways to communicate. We took all of the students to see the different houses. After we stopped at Gaspar's house, where Kassi will be living and at the home Brett will be staying at, people began to relax a little and had an idea of what to expect.

Brett's family had difficulty pronouncing his name, so his new name is "Tek." Aaron's new name is "hug me"......and he is already getting hugs! Some of the homes welcomed us with refreshments. We had the opportunity to meet many family members and also some members of the Churches. You can really tell that the families have prepared for the students want to make their visit a good one!

Below, Brett leading the pack as we walked to the home that Melina will be staying at.

As we went from house to house our crowd grew larger. More family members kept hopping in the trucks wanting to go to the next home to see what was going on. Our group of 5 students grew into the group below!
We will all meet at Clinica Caris in the morning and have our first day of clinic together. Please pray that the students will be comfortable and get a good night of sleep. We will keep them busy and safe!