There and back!
Will has been to Cuba and is back!
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| Will's first look at Cuba! |
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| WELCOME TO HOLGUIN!! |
It was such an adventure!
There were 14 in their group and they technically "helped the Cuban Union Conference with building projects as well as taught locals in building private garages for local church members." Building churches in Cuba is illegal. When Will left Cuba to return to the U.S. on March 16, he left behind 5 completed buildings. The last one was finished right at the last moment.
He told about a pastor that was working with them who used to be financially stable but the government burned his house down. He became a pastor and he is the one who laid all the foundations for the garages. Will says, "Now he's working with us and you cannot stop him! He's so excited for all of this!"
There was a Cuban working with them who had worked with this program previously in Havana. He wanted to work with this organization again so he left his family and traveled across the country to be help with construction. It was the longest this Cuban man had ever been away from his wife and 2 kids and he had to get permission to travel. He just clearly wanted to be there. Incredible dedication!
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| This is how they pour Cuban concrete! |
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| Look at his smile!! |
He says the government and police were closely watching them. They even called the conference to challenge the work Will's group was doing. The conference lawyer was GREAT ! He pushed back and kept everything moving forward. But Will said they had to be careful to walk the line and not advertise or tell others too much information. They also were mindful of not making it difficult for the locals once the construction team left the country. He told that at one of the sites the local government was never happy about the proposed construction. So they revoked the building permit. The conference lawyer just said, "Ok. You can have the building permit back. The building is already done." Will said they had finished it before the local government even realized they had begun!
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| A completed garage |
He says many local workers clearly wanted to help and were asking to assist in any future trips. Will says, "What we are doing is clearly a big deal to people here. We're also being asked to leave whatever we can leave behind. Even used underwear (!) Prices are high for locals, cheap for us, but there isn't any thing to purchase. Availability is the issue."
During the evenings there were health seminars and an evangelistic series. He says that others in the group facilitated those events so he was not directly involved. But he says there were long lines for the events and tons of excitement.
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| This is a typical Cuban street |
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| The dining room at the conference office |
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| There are many dirt roads as well |
He shared that there were so many miracles he experienced! He told that although all the construction materials were ordered ahead of time and should have been waiting at each site, they were continually told that there wasn't enough block and no more available. There were shortages of metal roofing and the construction had to be completed in stages. But, SOMEHOW, enough block and materials always showed up at each site and all 5 garages were able to be completed.
He told about this personal miracle: "I lost my bible case with bible, book, journal, cash and some paper inside. I set it down walking into dinner. At the end of dinner it wasn't there. So puzzling! I asked everyone. No one knew or saw it. It was really annoying losing my bible with my handwritten notes and my journal. That was Friday night. Monday morning a guy I hardly had seen walked up to me and asked if I lost a bible. I answered, YES! The guy disappeared for 5 minutes then returned with it! Everything was inside - even the cash, It turned out to be a simple mistake. But it really was an answer of prayer to me. I am very thankful I got it back."
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| The conference office |
It wasn't ALL work! He got to see a bit of the area and spent a day at the beach complete with pizza and ice cream! He tried raw sugar can juice. He just squeezed the plant and said it was an "interesting taste..."
He was able to see some of the city and enjoy the sites, although it wasn't a tourism trip. There were some great old cars just like we imagine there are!
He says, "It was hard to leave! I would love to return. Such nice people. I just loved the people who were all helping us. People from the conference president to local church members and ill pastors." He says, "The people's reactions were fun to watch. There were people from the building site neighborhoods who showed up. Just seeing the 'garages' being built really intrigues people living near by. So there appears to be a real difference to some people. It's hard to describe."
He says that one take away has been to enjoy the current day and the blessings in it. He says he's amazed how all his prayers have been answered so far this year in preparation for his mission service. He says, "I'm trying to wrap my head around that. So much has stressed me, yet all is just good. How does that happen? How can I change to truly trust ALL will work out so I can stop worrying about the rest."
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