LoL

As in Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Chesterfield, MO, the home congregation of Marty and Deac. Sarah, two FORO partners that tacked on a few extra days to see the Santiago side of church planting in the DR, not "laugh out loud" (although I did plenty of that with them!). 

We made 3 stops on the ~2.5 hour drive from Santo Domingo on Monday:

1. Cortes chocolate factory - having seen the "Visitors' Center' sign from the highway multiple times but never popped in, I took advantage of a leisurely day and willing guinea pigs to scout out a potential new activity for short-term teams and other visitors. Alas, it was closed, but I came away with a contact phone number for next time. 

2. Km. 28 for a tour of the government run psychosocial rehabilitation hospital with director Dr. Marisol Martínez. 

3. Lunch with a view at Asadero Doña Pula (pictured are Marty and Sarah with the Doña herself). Marty had chivo (goat), and Sarah, mofongo (a typical dish of mashed fried plantains). 

I hadn't been to Lunes de Jazz, a weekly live jazz concert, since before the pandemic. Going to something that started at "9 pm" (aka we left at 9 and didn't miss anything) might not have been the wisest choice given my tiredness level, but it was a lovely night out with great music and great people including Marty, Sarah, and two other FORO partners who also made the trek to Santiago. 

We spent Tuesday bouncing from institution to institution in Palmar Arriba. Sarah and Mercedes, the director of Concordia Lutheran School, share the sentiment on Sarah's shirt: "Jesus in my heart; Teaching in my veins."

Touring Concordia the Reformer seminary, including a stop in an office recently re-assigned to be the home base of the DRLM deaconesses. 

Marty helped build the rock foundation underneath the ramp of the Good Shepherd Lutheran Homes group home as part of a short-term team several years ago, and the LoL preschool, for which Sarah serves as director, supported it with their chapel offerings. 

I'm not sure who had more fun watching YouTube for a couple hours after lunch: Francis, one of the youth in the group home, or Sarah.

Wednesday morning was a first for me as well as my guests: chapel with the kids at the government-run school that operates out of the former preschool facility attached to Cordero de Dios Lutheran Church in Licey. It was bazaar seeing the place overrun by 12, 13, and 14 year olds! 

After a pabellón (Venezuela's national dish) lunch at the Krey house, I twisted their arms and made Marty and Sarah visit a fair trade, women-run chocolate factory. I may have brought a few groups there before; one of the employees recognized me!

I'm truly grateful for these partners who have become my friends and their willingness to not only come and see but stay and see. I was previously connected with them by way of having presented at LoL on home service, but I'm confident that they came away with a fuller understanding of both what I do and what the DRLM is all about. Lord-willing, I’ll be hosting an LoL short-term team this fall. I realized on the drive to the airport Thursday that we didn't have a picture together, just the 3 of us!

It's been a week of highs, but I took naps yesterday and today, which tells you something about my level of exhaustion. Yesterday, I set an alarm so I could go for an afternoon walk at the garden and thought it was 5 am instead of 5 pm when I woke up, never mind what day of the week it was!

Until next time (likely after hosting a short-term team from Calvary Lutheran Church in Wray, CO, that arrives tomorrow...), blessings in Christ!