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Billy, Kate & Will in Perú

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Dearborn

Casa Girasoles Ica

Posted on Sunday, July 6, 2008 Leave a Comment

Last week was spent at the Casa Girasoles Ica and working in the local schools.

The Dearborn team was the first work team to stay at the site with the boys for a long period of time. Because of the newness of everything (the Casa Girasoles Ica was inaugurated on January 20th this year) and being the first work team to stay with the boys, it was a new experience for the boys and house parents, Augusto and Nancy.

I spent every moment I had not working or sleeping, playing and talking with the boys or Augusto & Nancy. Since I had been to Ica once before this summer and I was the Scripture Union worker, I didn’t seem to be one of the team, but rather an extension of the house parents. All of the 22 boys knew my name and would call me Señorita Kate. If Augusto or Nancy weren’t around, they turned to me. I helped with homework assignments, led them in prayers and song before meals, and helped Augusto & Nancy take care of 22 boys.

Schools in Peru run a little differently than they do in the US. Instead of going to school all day, there are two shifts of children and teachers. The boys at the Casa Girasoles all go to school in the afternoon, which means they start at 1pm and are in classes until 6pm. On Wednesday evening, I was able to go with Augusto to the school to pick up the boys from classes. It was fun to see where they go to school and to surprise them. On Friday, the entire team showed up to the school with Augusto to visit the classrooms of the boys. They had no clue that we were coming and later that night, they all were talking about their special visitors to school!

Today, July 6th, is Día del Maestro (Day of the Teacher) in Peru. Augusto, who treats each one of the boys as his own sons, invited the teachers at their school to the home on Saturday to thank and show them where the boys live. Since the house is painted white, and Augusto & Nancy wanted to make a good impression on the teachers, they decided on Friday morning to repaint all the walls (both inside and out) of the large house and do a super cleaning of everything. Now, you can imagine what needs to be done to a 4-person house to be cleaned, imagine what has to be done to a house with 22 boys! Needless to say, many of the older boys stayed up quite late into the night cleaning and repainting their home.

At the party for the teachers, we played games with the teachers and boys. A few days earlier we had made the hand print shirts with the Ica boys too, and they all wore them at the teacher party. We were also fortunate to have somebody donate about 60 Beanie Babies that we were able to pass out to the boys. They carried them around all morning and during the games, many gave me their treasured gifts to keep safe while they played in the grass.

Now, I am staying in Lima for a few days before heading to another jungle site Kimo.

Posted in: Peru | Tagged: Dearborn, Girasoles, Ica, Peru, Scripture Union

Dearborn team arrives in Peru

Posted on Thursday, July 3, 2008 Leave a Comment


Painting, originally uploaded by katherinebruder.

Week 5 in Peru was spent with some familiar faces. A team from my home church, First Presbyterian Dearborn, arrived very late last Friday night with a couple surprises. Unbeknownst to me, my mother and brother joined the team and are down here for two weeks working with me. They told me that everybody at our church knew that they would be joining me down here, even before I left for Peru! 



We spent a week at the Kawai campsite, which is about 1 hour south of Lima on the Pacific Ocean. Now, even though the site is on the ocean, it is not beach weather. Since it is winter here in Peru, it is almost always cloudy and frequently it mists. I have rarely seen it rain here, it just feels like somebody is lightly spitting on you.
 
Due to a labor strike in the area, we are not mixing cement and doing heavy construction work like in previous years, but rather, we are striping the paint from one of the main buildings and repainting it with a clean white paint. The building really needed to be repainted and looks much better now.

This is my 8th time spending a week in Kawai. Every year, I return to this location with my team from Dearborn to see the boys that live in the Casa Girasoles Kawai. It is great to see old friends, one year older. A few nights ago, our team presented the boys with a quilt that some of the women in our church made for them, and we also made t-shirts with all of our handprints on them. Now, you would think that a 12 or 16 year-old-boy would not want to make a t-shirt, let alone wear it, but they were all excited to participate in the project. Some even put their shirts on right away, even before the paint was dry.

Now, we are in the desert city of Ica, which is about 4 hours south of Lima. Being in the desert, it is nice and warm and sunny! We are one of the first teams to stay at the Ica site in the Casa Girasoles house. There are 22 boys that live here, many of which moved into the center after the devastating earthquake that hit Peru last August (the epicenter of the earthquake was very close to Ica).


We spend the mornings working at the site, the afternoons visiting local schools and the evenings are spent with the 22 boys, who range between 6 and 15 years old. 
 
On Sunday, we visited a local church, El Shaddai, which we have gone to every year for 7 years. It was great to see Nestor & Carolina, who used to work with Scripture Union. It was also a pleasant surprise to see their newest addition to the family, Nestor Matais, who was only 12 days old! 
 


This Friday, we are going to surprise the boys that live at the Casa Girasoles Ica by visiting them at school. The home father, Augusto, explained to me that all of the boys have told their friends that a group of Americans have come to stay with them at their house and want to show us, their American friends, to their Peruvian friends.



Posted in: Peru | Tagged: Dearborn, Girasoles, Ica, Kawai, Peru, Scripture Union

Dearborn to Lima to Caraz in 36 hours

Posted on Sunday, June 18, 2006 Leave a Comment

Hola desde Caraz!

Boy was I right, yesterday was a long long day of traveling – starting at 3:30am in Detroit all the way until 11 when we finally made it into Lima.

We spent the night in Lima and rose early this morning to have breakfast with the boys in Lima and then make the 9 hour trek through the Andes to our northern site, Kusi. The trip was just beautiful and I am very excited to look as my photos when we return. The little town of Caraz is quaint, and very uneventful, but the weather so far is just beautiful.

Posted in: Peru | Tagged: Andes, Caraz, Dearborn, Lima, Peru, Scripture Union
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katebruder

Happy fourth birthday to our little Will! You have Happy fourth birthday to our little Will! You have made our world a whole lot sweeter and you are our greatest adventure 🤍 We love you forever! #littlewilliamnoah
Last night the Peruvian president announced a two- Last night the Peruvian president announced a two-week lockdown covering 1/3 of the country, including Lima, amid a significant rise in COVID-19 cases here. The new lockdown will run from January 31 through February 14. New restrictions include the closure of all non-essential shops (only pharmacies, grocery stores/bodegas/markets and banks are allowed to be open) and a ban on domestic air and land travel. The ban on flights coming from Europe (and now Brazil) is extended. As of right now, the border remains open to all other international flights. Only 1 person is allowed to go grocery shopping at a time, and we are no longer allowed to use our personal cars. We also are only allowed outside for 1 hour per day for exercise/mental health, and should be at home the remainder of the time. 

We are experiencing a second wave of infections and with the variants, it sounds like there will be more positive cases this time than we had a year ago during our first quarantine. Experts are predicting that we will not hit our peak until April. According to Johns Hopkins University, Peru has reported more than one million cases and about 40,000 deaths related to COVID-19. 

This evening Will and I went for a walk through our neighborhood to squeeze in a little more outside time before Sunday when it will become harder to complete our 1000 hours outside. 

It’s difficult knowing we have to go back into a lockdown, but we are thankful for our health and that we have a safe place to quarantine at home. Join us in praying for the country of Peru and that these measures taken will make a positive impact on the pandemic here. 

#littlewilliamnoah
Working towards spending #1000hoursoutside and put Working towards spending #1000hoursoutside and putting many kilometers on Will’s scooter and bike this year 🚴‍♂️🛴#littlewilliamnoah @1000hoursoutside
To end what has been a long, unexpected year we di To end what has been a long, unexpected year we did a little staycation at a hotel in Lima. We walked around a new neighborhood, had a picnic in the park, watched movies, studied the city from above, spent time swimming in the pool and watched fireworks being set off over the city of Lima as the clock struck midnight and we entered the new year. 

While 2020 may not have been what we envisioned it would be a year ago, I am thankful for my little family, our health and the opportunities we have had this year. 

May 2021 be filled with adventure, laughter and hopefully being able to see family again! ✈️ #littlewilliamnoah
It was a quiet Christmas at home for the 3 of us i It was a quiet Christmas at home for the 3 of us in Lima this year but we enjoyed a slow 2 days, lots of good food (including, per Will’s request, funfetti cupcakes for Baby Jesus’ birthday), Zoom calls with family and time together. 

(Also don’t let the first gift your child opens to be a costume of one of their favorite characters unless you want all of your photos of the child to be in that costume 🤦🏻‍♀️) #littlewilliamnoah
Today was Will’s last day of 3 year old preschoo Today was Will’s last day of 3 year old preschool. It was bittersweet way back in March when we took him to his very first day of school. I wondered how it would go for him not knowing Spanish and his first time being away from family, and if he was really ready to start school (or, more like if I was ready!). Little did I know that Will would only have 1 week of in-person classes before switching to @greenmanbilly or I assisting with Zoom preschool at our kitchen table. While there were challenges with balancing school and work, I am thankful we were able to be a part of the start of Will’s academic career. It was fun to see him learning Spanish, and as the year went on, interacting with the other students and teachers. Will also was fortunate to have wonderful teachers, specifically Miss Dani, his Spanish teacher. She truly made this year a joy and encouraged Will in their daily Zoom calls. I don’t think there has been a day since March that Miss Dani has not come up in conversation. She has set the bar high for future teachers ❤️ So now it’s summer break and next year we will have a pre-kindergartener! #littlewilliamnoah
After many months of staying in our city apartment After many months of staying in our city apartment due to the pandemic (and 2 weeks of very cautious quarantining ahead of time), we rented a house through @airbnb for a few days. It didn’t matter that the property was only 30 minutes south of our apartment and still within the province of Lima - it had a lawn, beautiful outdoor space and a pool! We were able to relax (as much as a 3 year old lets you), read under a tree, fly kites in the field, swing in a hammock and take deep breaths of fresh air with friends. #littlewilliamnoah
The little cookie elf was busy this weekend making The little cookie elf was busy this weekend making (and decorating) sugar cookies and chocolate dipped shortbread 🎄 #littlewilliamnoah
As you may know, tomorrow is #GivingTuesday! As mi As you may know, tomorrow is #GivingTuesday! As missionaries in Peru, @greenmanbilly and I rely on a group of people to financially support us as we work with at-risk teens and young adults through a mentorship program with @pathsofhopeministries. Every month we receive our giving statement from @uwmorg and we are humbled to see the list of people who God used to love on us that month, and people that want to invest in what God is doing here in Lima. It never ceases to amaze us. You know who you are, and we appreciate you.
If you’d like to partner with us here in Lima, it would be an honor. Giving link is in my bio. (📷: Christmas 2019, pre-COVID 😕)
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