Lots of children

What would you say makes a large family? 6 children? Maybe 10 children? Seventy years in the United States it wasn't uncommon for families to have 12 children. Well, see the little lady in red in this picture? These are four of her children. Four of her 25 children! They are all hers, including 4 sets of twins. She has given birth 21 times! Our ladies were all amazed and told her how brave she was and how we thought she was quite a woman, but she didn't seem to think it was any big deal. Can you imagine how hard it must be to feed and clothe 25 children in Latin America?

Today was another long day. It flowed much more smoothly than yesterday, but there were definitely more people. Yesterday we saw 217 people at the clinic. Today, John saw more than 120 by himself. (He speaks to his patients as much as he can in Spanish and doesn't just rely on hi interpreter.....very impressive!) We're guessing we saw 270 or so today. We'll let you know when we get the final count. Today was very busy, but relatively uneventful. There are a few highlights to share.

This morning, a mother and two daughters from Idaho that are staying at our hotel asked if they could come with us and help because they all speak fluent Spanish. They were here at the end of their own mission trip. We were glad to have their help.


There seemed to be much more Bible studying going on today. Members from the Jose Dolores congregation, as well as other area congregations have been studying with the people as they wait for medical attention.

Our construction crew now has all four walls and the roof on the second story of the building. It looks great. Although their local foreman doesn't speak English, they work like they've been together for years. Some of our crew makes us a little nervous when we hear a loud thud on the tin roof and look up to find them climbing rails and balancing on beams. They're holding up well. (Fran, Dale is doing a great job! He did have some tylenol today though.) Their area is actually cooler than the downstairs because they have a breeze.

One of the Chavez's relatives that lives across from the church makes jewelry to sell to pay her rent. It is very inexpensive, and Dulce has been our broker helping us place orders and get prices. The jewelry we are buying will make her rent for a month or two. She pays 500 Cordovas a month (about $25) to rent a small room for her and her child.

Some of you may know Jonas's daughter Shari. She brought her boyfriend by today to meet us. All our ladies were making a fuss over how she was special and she needed to be treated well. He was born here, but moved to Maryland when he was little. He came here to visit and decided to move here. (Our ladies all thought he was very handsome, too!)

Our interpretors have been so amazing. Today we had eight. They work as hard as we do and are also great company. Also, Brenda and the ladies that cook our lunch work from in the morning when we get there cooking outside over hot coals to make us incredible meals. They pull out fabric table cloths and treat us very well. Then it takes them much of the afternoon to clean up. They definitely work as hard as we do!

Hopefully we will have more good news for you after the campaign tonight. Thanks for keeping us in your prayers! We love to get your messages, too!