Her first day at Kindergarten

Shelly started her first day with her new Kindergarten class this morning. I dropped her off at school because we only have 1 car right now while my truck gets a new engine put in it. Long story. I felt like a proud father taking their child to their first day of school. Neither one of us cried so that was different than taking a child.

We spent most of the day on Saturday getting her classroom ready. It looks really good and seems to be ready to handle the children. This is a tough transition for them and I ask that you pray for them and Shelly as they get to know each other over the next two weeks before Christmas break.

I am still searching for a job. I have two good leads; one permanent and one interim. I am about to start making some more phone calls in a minute to see what else I can find.

Chad

A good day

Yesterday was a good day in the hunt for a job. I got some positive leads which made the day seem productive.

Shelly went to Kenrose this morning to familiarize herself with the school, her classroom, the staff and the kids in her class. I know she is excited about it. We will go to the Central Office this afternoon to sign all her papers and make her official.

Hopefully we will have some good news about my job in the near future. Stay warm...have a great day!

Chad

We are home

Shelly and I have moved back to the States. Our job in Honduras was complete and it was time to move back to Tennessee to start the next "adventure" in our lives.

We do have new cell phone numbers and email address so please make note of those below in your address books.

Shelly
shellylynn516@yahoo.com
(615) 943-8253 cell phone

Chad
hedge33@yahoo.com
(615) 943-7041 cell phone

We are currently living with Shelly's parents in Brentwood off Concord Road. Shelly will start her Kindergarten teaching position at Kenrose Elementary in Williamson County on December 8th. I am looking around for a job. Once we get settled with those, we will look for a place to live.

We ask for your prayers as we transition. We are in a reverse culture shock right now being in the States. It is taking time to get back in the groove. We will keep up our blog...hopefully better than the last few months. It has been EXTREMELY busy.

Thanks for your support of us. We will talk to you again soon...or see you face to face!

Let Your Light Shine!

Chad

A Day of Service

Something special happens when you put children with our older generation. Last Saturday, the children of Mission Lazarus Refuge participated in Service Day and traveled to San Vicente de Paul Nursing Home in Choluteca. They spent time singing to the residents, playing board games and enjoying cake and juice with the 20 saints from the home. What a special time to see the two generations interact with one another and enjoy the day together.

A Day at the Beach

Every month, we take the children at the Mission Lazarus Refuge on a field trip. Last Saturday, we went to the beach in Cedeño which is 45 minutes outside Choluteca on the Pacific Coast side of Honduras. For 10 of the children, it was their first time to the beach/ocean. As they walked nearer the ocean for the first time, their eyes were as big as quarters and they said, “!Que grandisimo!” (How HUGE!) They were amazed at the size of the ocean and how it seemed to go forever. We enjoyed a few hours swimming, playing in the sand and sharing a picnic lunch.

It was a GREAT day for everyone!

Chad

Well, I am sitting in my parents' office at their house checking my e-mail while I am waiting for some chicken to boil. I am making dinner for my sister and her husband because I have a new nephew!!! He was born Tuesday, August 26, 2008 at 8:35 p.m. I am excited that I am here with my sister and her husband during this special time. Wayne, my brother-in-law, specifically aksed for poppyseed chicken for their first night back home after the baby was born.

I am also getting to know my new neice, Reagan, who was born July 26th. My nephew Nathan is growing up so quickly. I am having so much fun with my family and playing with the kids.

Chad is heading to Roatan tomorrow. I am glad he is getting to go and enjoy some time off. He really deserves it. He has worked so hard this summer with all the groups and I just really hope he enjoys himself and gets some "Chad time".

It was great to be at Berry's Chapel Sunday night for the Honduras trip presentation. Mike Hayes and Mac Hughes did a wonderful job leading the service and sharing about the things they had done on their July trip. Mac, if you are reading this, you did an outstanding job! Thank you for sharing your heart with us and most of all with the children of Honduras! You are so special.

Have a wonderful Labor Day!
Shelly

Don't Worry

We have not blogged lately because we are EXTREMELY busy. With groups in right now, our mornings begin early and our evenings end late. I thought I worked a lot in youth ministry but this puts that to shame.

As I tell my Mom, we are alive and doing well. We are running all over the country of Honduras on a weekly basis but just wanted to let you know that we are still here and that we do not have much time to blog but will catch up once our busy season is over...the end of August.

Have a great 4TH OF JULY!

Chad

I have been planning...

I have been planning this blog for a few weeks now and it just seems to get longer and longer as the days go by. Interesting, huh! New things happen each day and I just add those to the blog list.

Well, going back to the week my parents were here. We had a wonderful time with them and I am so glad that they got to come visit Honduras and see what Chad and I have been talking about for so many years now. We drove up to the coffee plantation, visited all four of the Mission Lazarus early childhood development centers, toured the ranch, and introduced them to many people and friends that Chad and I know.

One day we drove out to the beach to visit a church building where Mission Lazarus has a cafeteria where we feed lunch to about 100 children daily. On the way there, I said to mom and dad, "We should try to get some shrimp while we are here and have that for dinner." Great idea, right? Well, I called a friend that I have out there and asked if he could help us get some shrimp and of course he was willing. I hung up and mom said, "Are these shrimp going to have heads?" I called Roberto back and asked him to have the heads removed before he got them. "O.k.", he said and so I thought nothing else about it. When we met up with him, he gave me the cooler and I took it and off we went toward San Marcos. Mom and I got ready to prepare them, opened the cooler and there were whole fish, eyes and all, crabs, and wouldn't you know, shrimp with the heads still on them. We gave the fish and crabs away to a friend of mine that has a restaurant here in San Marcos. While we were there delivering the fish to her I asked her how to best prepare the shrimp. She told me all we needed to do was break the heads off with our hands and then the shell and legs come off easily. Mom and I got back to the house, began the process like Carmen had explained and we gagged for the next hour trying to get the shrimp cleaned and ready to cook. We finally decided we needed to cut the heads off and boy was that so much better. After we got them peeled, I bet I washed those things 8 times before I felt like I had all the gunk off of them. We skewered the shrimp, rubbed them with garlic and butter and threw them on the grill. They were the best shrimp I think I have ever eaten. And oh so FRESH!!!

Mom and Dad, thank you for your visit. It was great getting to show you what all we do and experiencing Honduras with you. I am so blessed to have parents that love me the way you do and that are interested in what I am doing. Thank you also for spending my birthday with me. It was the best birthday gift I could ever receive. I love you both very much.

Last week the rain began here in Honduras. We were so ready to see it because it has been so dry and dusty for six months. It was a matter of 2 or 3 days that the landscape, the mountains and plants just returned to life. It is so green and picturesque here now. Last Thursday I was driving to the office and I had to stop on the side of the road and take this picture. After I took it I thought oh, I'll add that to the blog that I am planning to write too. It was so beautiful that I couldn't pass it up. All I could think when I looked at it was how truly AWESOME God is and how He provides us with His "artwork" every day for our pleasure.

Our summer interns arrived Monday. Chad, Meredith and I drove to Tegucigalpa early Monday morning to meet them at the airport. There are 8 right now, one more will arrive next week. We have been showing them around all of the Mission Lazarus projects and getting to know them over the past few days. They are a great group and I look forward to working with them this summer.

Today, Meredith, Jarrod and I drove to Nicaragua to a place where about 5 women make pottery. This place is absolutely in the middle of nowhere. Actually when we were driving in, Jarrod said, "I bet you guys are wondering how in the world I ever found this place." Yes, I was wondering because it truly is a hidden town down a dirt road. It was fun just getting spend time with them talking, catching up and crossing the border.

I hope all is well where ever this finds you. Our next group arrives Saturday, so keep us in your prayers as we travel to pick them up and as we continue through the summer. BLESSINGS!!

Shelly

Exciting day at the airport

Shelly and I were in the Tegucigalpa airport on Monday to pick up her mom and dad. We can walk through the airport with our eyes closed because we have been in there so much so to see something new and interesting stirred our curiosity.

First, the deportation plane from the States arrived before the normal flights to stop on the runway away from the airport to make the people on board walk off and down the runway to some area away from everyone. I wonder what happens to them once they do arrive on their native soil?

Second, as we were waiting for Hugh and Lynn to get through customs, I noticed a lot of very large guys coming through. I initially thought that they were US military coming in to serve for some time in Honduras. That is pretty common in the airport. I didn't think much about it until we were waiting for luggage to come along on the belt when I looked up and saw the head football coach at the University of Georgia. He had on his Georgia red logo shirt and I made the connection. The very large guys were football players and they must be on a team mission trip. At least I hope that is the case. If it is true, I respect him for doing that. We were out of there pretty fast with Lynn and Hugh's luggage so I did not get a chance to ask the coach any questions.

It was a pretty interesting day in the airport in Tegucigalpa on Monday. It is amazing what you will look for in the most common of places. We are having fun with Shelly's mom and dad. They are seeing the town and taking it all in for the very first time. We grilled hamburgers tonight and ate on the patio outside. The burgers were excellent!

Only 3 days until Shelly's birthday...the big 29. If you want to send her a card, you can email it to shelly@missionlazarus.org. She would love to hear from you.

Chad

Let the Groups Begin

Yesterday officially started our busy season. A group from Lipscomb University is the first group here as of yesterday and we have groups everyday until August 16th. My job is to keep up with them the whole time.

I picked them up at the airport yesterday and we loaded all the cars and I told them to wait for me to pull out of another parking lot to meet them and they follow me to San Marcos. We pulled out of the parking lot to find out that they were no where in sight. Where did they go? Did they decide to follow another white truck to who knows where? My heart sank. Luckily, they were forced out of the parking lot and turned the wrong way but had enough sense to come back to the airport after a few miles. Rule 1 - When lost, always return to your original place of departure. I only had to wait about 5 minutes before they returned. Did I say that they had no way to communicate also? It could have been a very bad situation.

After we reunited, we headed down the road about 10 minutes and one of the SUVs they rented stopped running right in the middle of the street. We pushed it over to the side and called the rental company to rescue us. I thought that we were doomed. How can you start your first group of the summer out like this within 15 minutes of their arrival? We waited about 45 minutes for a replacement vehicle and headed down the road again.

No more mishaps. We made it to the ranch within reasonable time and had supper, orientation, devo and then went to bed. They are working hard today. My goal this summer is to keep you informed of what is happening with all our groups...and their mishaps that only happen in Honduras...on our blog. Enjoy the stories. I just hope not all groups start out like this one.

Adios.
Chad

My aunt and uncle's visit

Here are some pictures of our adventures with my Aunt Sue and Uncle Terry over the weekend. They were in Nicaragua last week working with their church from Greenwood Park in Bowling Green, KY. They decided to fly up to see us for the weekend. We cannot tell you how much fun we had with them. Thank you for visiting!!

Chad

Pictures of what's happening

Top picture: Shows a beautiful sunset on the island of Roatan in the Carribbean off the coast of Honduras during Holy Week (Easter).

Middle picture: Several students from the University of TN came to Honduras for their Spring Break under the leadership of Molly Hayes to work on the homes and do an art project with the kids on the ranch one day after school.

Bottom picture: The Meek family visited us last week for their Spring Break. They did an excellent job painting the Mission Lazarus school in San Marcos. They stayed in our home for the week and we thoroughly enjoyed having them. We had a great week.

Chad

A Tough Week

We have had a tough week here in Honduras. Gloria (the sick mother with 7 children who Mission Lazarus is helping) passed away Tuesday morning. She had been fighting congestive heart failure for a few years. She was bit by a bug called a chinche here in Honduras when she was young and the symptoms didn't show up until about 15-20 years after.

Gloria was in a lot of pain through her life with her sickness but always had a smile on her face. I will miss seeing her encouraging smile. She has 7 of the most beautiful children I have seen in Honduras who Mission Lazarus will continue to support.

Please pray for the children as they grieve their mother's death.

Chad

Two New Homes

We have failed as bloggers. We have not kept you up to date on what is going on with us and for that we apologize but hopefully you will see what we have been up to since our last blog with this entry.

I can not tell you how overwhelmed I have been over the last two weeks. We have had 2 churches (Berry's Chapel and Maple Hill) here building house #2 and #3 on the ranch. Mission Lazarus Refuge now has 3 homes sitting on the ranch which is hard to actually concieve. Can you beleive it, 3 homes? 84 men from the United States paid to come to Honduras to build something that they may never see what it produces in the future. I take my hat off to the men who came and built. You guys are amazing. I admire you for your skills (and lack thereof) and for your willingness to make a difference one child at a time in Honduras.

To see both homes go up piece by piece was awesome! To see the skill and understanding by a core group of men to make sure the house will stand for years to come was awesome! I am overwhelmed with the fact that 2 more homes sit on the ranch and within a few months, children will fill them and their lives will forever be changed.

I want to thank Mac Hughes, Mike Hayes, Mike Johnson and Justin Latimer for their willingness to put these groups together. Thank you for your hard work before, during and after the trip. I appreciate you so much. Thank you to the other 84 men who came and conquered. Do you know how special you are to our Lord? I was able to see a glimpse of it while you were here. God bless all of you!

Chad

True Orphans

I cannot imagine what it must be like to be a child of 10 years old and have no Mom and Dad. We are working on getting the paperwork for 2 little boys, Oscar-10 years old and Victor-7 years old, to move to Mission Lazarus Refuge very soon. Oscar and Victor are not brothers by blood but have lived together their whole lives. They are actually cousins but Victor was given to Oscar's mom when he was a baby. Oscar's mom and dad (and Victor's) have died. They were living with an aunt who has died also. They are without family.

We went with Oscar yesterday to his old home in hope of finding someone who knew where his papers might be. After an hour driving on a long dirt road with many bumps along the way, we entered his parent's old house to find no papers and not much information. As it was getting dark, we arrived back in Choluteca to drop him off at his foster parent's home.

Oscar is a very smart young man. He has only finished the 1st grade and is 10 years old but he is wise beyond his years. He said two lines yesterday that I will never forget:

"No tengo nadie" meaning "I have no one."
and
"Dios es mi padre" meaning "God is my father."

How powerful! I am looking forward to getting to know Oscar and Victor more and I ask that you pray for their paperwork as it is never an easy job to find all that we need.

Chad

Feliz 2008

Happy New Year! I am going to go on the record right now and say that 2008 will be our best year. I really believe that this year will be our best for Mission Lazarus and the missionaries here. We are on the verge of some great things and 2008 is already getting off to a great start. I hope you are challenged by the new year with new beginnings and will make it your best year also. Let's shoot for the stars!

Shelly and I have just spent some time in the States with our families for Christmas. What a great refresher to be with family and friends! We needed the break and feel energized and ready to start again here in Honduras. Shelly is a bit under the weather right now but will jump back soon. Staying with Honduran tradition, we arrived in our apartment with an inch of dirt/dust on everything and the electricity going out soon after we settled in. We have only been here 24 hours and the electricity has gone out 3 times. The wind is very strong here right now which caused the trees around the lines to interfere with them and cause an outage. Welcome back to Honduras!

Shelly and I have the best families. I want to publically say that we have the best Moms and Dads that anyone can ask for. I am willing to put ours up against yours any day of the week. Thank you to our parents for making our time in the States so special. We love you very much!

Everything is good here. We are ready to hit the trail again on Monday morning bright and early. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, appreciate the electricity that you have (because I am typing in the dark right now) and start the new year off with a BANG.

Let Your Light Shine,
Chad