The Power of a Witness

The Power of a Witness is one of our best blog posts. It is my hope to keep these coming and post more often as I get them. Read below from our recent January 2024 trip to Playa de Oro, Gt.

I have spent the last 5 days trying to think of the words to sum up the week I spent with my family, friends, new friends, and more importantly, our Guatemalan friends. It was soul-renewing, humbling, and inspiring. I worried that it could never be as good as the first time I went 4 years ago. I was wrong and I trust it will only get better every time as I see the progress that the ‘Love is the Mission’ people are making.

Playa de Oro now has clean water available, monthly food supplies to over 100 families, children getting additional education beyond what their families and village can provide and most importantly, hope. The work this mission does is not just feel good work to come home and talk about to make ourselves feel better. Love is the Mission is in this village for the long haul to change the future of these children and it’s working, and it’s amazing.

I am blessed to have been invited to be a part of this and I remain in awe of the generosity, devotion and persistence that my sister-in-law, Rhonda Aikins Kelsey and niece, Taylor Klubben have for this beautiful mission that they along with the Parish of St Michael

have created. Thank you for allowing my friends and I to be a part of it. We can’t wait to go back! Love is the Mission~el amor es la mision.

Kala Shepherd , CNP Sanford, Chamberlain, SD

(Jan 2020 and returning January 2024)

What a blessing and an honor it was to serve on the January 2024 Love is the Mission tour! I went into the trip with the thought of being of service in a nursing role to support the clinic operation, knowing there was more to the trip than medical care. However, I could not have been prepared to witness the incredible things happening in Playa de Oro, directly resulting from the work of Love is the Mission, and the St. Michael’s parish. 

It is evident that the success of the mission is obtained through the constant support provided by the mission and faith of the village that the help will return. Personally seeing the living conditions and the food insecurities made the monthly food distribution day such an emotional experience. Even the kids helped with the unloading of the trucks. Seeing the stacks of food and supplies allotted for the month was truly humbling. Your donations to this program are life changing for these families! And they are so grateful!

I am so excited to begin to participate in the student scholarship program as well! While some of the children go to work after they complete the “elementary school” program, several of the kids are so excited to be able to continue their education. What an amazing opportunity to support the dreams and ambitions of these students!

Heavy on my heart is the prayer for the future of the mission. The dreams that Love is the Mission has for these children is incredibly inspiring. Plans for an after school/health center is so exciting! Our clinic served over 140 individuals for a variety of concerns, including general well checks for children. The clean water project has played such an important part in the overall health of the children and community, and that was apparent during the assessment of the children. 

I pray that I return to Guatemala soon with Love is the Mission. I am truly honored to have been a part of a group doing the work of God. 

Megan Permann, Sanford Nurse, Chamberlain, SD