Update #3: Monday, July 21

Monday, July 21, 2025

We arose at 7am and left for VEA, stopping by the Verbo Directors home and stopping to see folks along the way. This is the second week of the national holiday, and there is no school and many folks are not working. We arrived at VEA just after 8am and the morning class was just starting. Blanca had coffee ready and we jumped right in to class. We passed out our pen pal letters throughout the day and all the kids agreed to have their reply letters returned in class on Monday. It was great to hang out with the kids in a primarily social and fun event yesterday and we could get right to work today. The students were continuing to show progress and they wanted to show how much they have learned. There were also a few new kids that were finding their comfort zone. Regan always likes us to speak to the students; to give confidence to the new ones and encourage the others. There are always some students who are struggling to stay focused as they grow up and their lives become more demanding, and they tend to lose that small child enthusiasm. We try not to let any kids fall away, but there are always a few. What is really interesting is to see some of the kids who did not stick with it years later and find out what they are up to. Without fail, they all say they wish they had stayed with it. They always remember the words we shared. Many of them may not be able to use their English, but many of them are thankful for the godly influence and the experience as kids. During our afternoon break between 11:30 and 1:30 Regan, Katy, Mason, and Dave took Olga to lunch. She is a senior in high school and we have been supporting her in English and in her life since she was born. Her father is a bus driver for our teams. Olga is going to go to Vet School next year and she is working in a clinic now as a Tech. Her father raises cattle as well as transportation. She grew up without a mother in her life, but her father just remarried recently.

After lunch, we taught 3 afternoon classes until 5p. At 5:30p we picked up Pastor Lionel and went to visit two pasters in the community who want to join the group of churches we partner with. They are interested in beginning the CBS bible study in their churches and being a part of the team of pastors working together in the community. We met with each of the two pastors separately and learned more about their churches and we shared about the ministry. They will both be joining our CBS training this upcoming weekend (Friday evening and all day on Saturday). After meeting with the pastors, we took Lionel and his wife to dinner at Foganazo. We spent 2 hours at dinner talking mostly about the state of the US and its role in the world. We dropped Regan and Blanca back at home and were at CasaB about 11pm.