Hello dear friends & family,

First of all, I apologize for not giving daily updates about my trip to El Salvador. Before going, I was unsure as to what kind of internet connection I was going to have when going abroad. My cellular carrier was not working & I promise that next year when I go on a mission trip I'll be sure to carry a phone that connects to the internet. I have to apologize further for not writing about my trip immediately when I came back. I was absolutely swapped at work & home. There are a lot of things to fit into the school year in the last 8 weeks. I was especially stressed about going into classrooms and presenting to the students of SMG Catholic School. It seemed that no matter how many times I rehearsed my script, there seemed to be a hundred pound anvil on my chest. But my presentations more or less went off without a hitch. Praise God for the Grace he gave me to keep the kids engaged.

The mission trip was one of the greatest blessings in my life. I have never been anywhere where God just seemed to be everywhere. El Salvador is a beautiful country with mountains, valleys, volcanoes, and a pristine Pacific coast. If I ever started to feel lonely or miss SMG Catholic School, I would just look at a nearby mountain and say a prayer (“Be my rock and my refuge, my secure stronghold; for you are my rock and fortress.” – Psalm 71: 3) . I am not the most competitive, athletic, funny, or even the most charitable adult you will ever meet. But all I had to do when I was in El Salvador was look around at the natural beauty and take consolation in the fact that I was God’s beloved daughter.

Our Mission Trip took place 2.5 hours west of the Capital City of San Salvador. We were located in the La Libertad Department in the town of Ateos. We stayed in a retreat house run by the Archdiocese of San Salvador. This particular group that I was travelling with has been coming to the country for a decade now. We were always escorted by the national police & army as a precaution although crime is not nearly a problem as it has been in the recent past.

We began our days with prayer & Mass at 6:30 in the morning. Whatever may be the good works we want to accomplish in life it should always begin and end with prayer. That is the greatest lesson we learn when we look at the lives of Jesus, his Mother, and all the Saints. Establishing a rhythm of prayer keeps us in the constant presence of God regardless if we are in joy or trial. “Whoever abides in me, I will abide in him. I am the vine, you are the branches. Apart from me, you can do nothing.” – John 15:5

There are not many doctors and nurses in El Salvador. It can take a long time to see one, hospitals & clinics are notoriously undersupplied with medicine & equipment, and the infection rate after surgery is very high. We saw many people come to us with stomach problems, vision issues, chronic headaches, etc. We were able to treat most people & the Salvadorans more often than not were smiling when they left the clinic.

For our five clinic days we saw about 300 people each day. About 20 percent were children & another 20 percent were persons over the age of 60. Children in El Salvador are raised very early on to respect their elders & they were often the first to be seen in our makeshift clinic. Family is extremely important to Salvadorans. It is very uncommon that when someone is dying that they would not be surrounded by family or friends. Although the average household only makes $365/month, neighbors will often pool their money together to send their kids to a private school or buy a new car.

One of the main reasons my mission group was in El Salvador was to distribute water filters to households in need. There are many factors that affect the drinking water situation; the major agricultural industries (coffee, corn, & sugarcane) compete with each other for freshwater (only 1.5% of the land area), there is no regular trash or recycling pick-up (much of the trash gets blown into rivers or streams), and deforestation has made the soil extremely prone to erosion. In total, we distributed over 450 filters; this will be the first time that many households will be equipped to have clean water. Praised be Jesus Christ!

One of greatest joys of going on this trip was being able to talk a little bit with the Salvadorans. I always asked them what their name was, how old they were, and whether or not they had a spouse or children. I was always able to put a smile on their faces when I said that I loved El Salvador (Me encanto El Salvador!).

What stands out the most to me about this mission trip (something that I will not ever forget as long as God permits me to live) is how unashamed the Salvadorans were of their material poverty. It has compelled me to unashamed of my own poverty of spirit.

I suffer a lot from the demon of comparison. I am not very tall, athletic, and I was not on the honor roll when I was in school. I don’t plan my days as well as an elementary school teacher and I often have trouble juggling all the duties I have at SMG Catholic School. It can be tempting to run away just to avoid looking weak or my anxiety. Whatever place we find ourselves in life, Jesus has asked us to lay down our lives for our friends. I consider all the teachers and staff at SMG Catholic School to be my friends. Whether its greeting students as they come into school in the morning, watching them have fun at recess, or serving hot lunch I have found my home at SMG Catholic School. Thank you for funding this mission trip for me. May Jesus Christ bless you all abundantly!