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Rosalie and Milt Honel |
We were accepted to be part of the Construction Crew. My husband, Milt, and I wondered if we would manage to keep up with the other volunteer members of the Construction Corp. Only time would tell!! The other half of the mission, the Medical Team, consisted of a group of doctors and other health professionals. They would focus on treating the ill and doing surgeries in the small Christ of the Americas Hospital in Sucre. |
| Fr. Juaquin, a local Sucre pastor, warmly welcomed us at the Sucre airport. We attended evening Mass in the hospital chapel presided by Archbishop Perez, and then we enjoyed dinner at the El Huerto restaurant, our usual location for dinner during our stay. | |
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Jeanne Shridan and Bernadette Dooley watch as the Flores family relaxes at home.
Members of the Construction Corps play "Ring Around the Roses" with barrio children |
Our first work day (which became the typical schedule for every workday during our two-week stay) began early with an optional Mass at 7:00 a.m. at a chapel near our hotel. Fr. John Enright, a retired bilingual Catholic priest and a member of our Pastoral Team, said Mass. Fr. Enright found just the right words for his homily every morning that related the Bible readings of the day to our presence and work in the barrios among the "poorest of the poor." All of us were struck by his ability to spiritually nurture us. Every morning after Mass Bruce Carlson, the Construction Corps Supervisor, briefed us on the plan for the day. Breakfast followed back at the hotel dining room. After breakfast---and decked out in work clothes, lathered with sunscreen, and carrying dry packs with lunch supplies---we boarded public buses to carry us into the hills. On the first work day our construction team visited two barrios and a day care center to meet several families. Milt and I were in the crew assigned to the Villa Margarita barrio to work with Justino Flores and his family. Our job entailed removing about 18 inches of solid dirt and rocks from the "floor" of a 15 x 22-ft. structure. This was no small task! Using picks, shovels, and wheelbarrows we moved about 500 cu. ft. of dirt and rocks to a small courtyard. After we finished excavating the "floor" we were assigned to another site to dig trenches for a foundation that would provide a family with an enclosed kitchen. They would no longer have to cook outside under a tarp. But then one morning we could not go back to the barrios because of rain and a national strike of transportation workers. So in lieu of working, we visited an orphanage partly supported by the Joliet Mission. We arrived just in time to help feed the young children. We took photos inside of the children being fed and "pottied"---they were so darling. Later we went outside where the older children (ages 3-5) were playing. We held them, played with them, distributed stickers, and continued to take photos. We were a weary, but very satisfied construction team. One of the joys of working in the hills surrounding Sucre, after we straightened up from the task at hand and took a swig of refreshing bottled water, was to gaze over the city (9000 ft. altitude), which was located in the beautiful rolling terrain of the valley below. We gazed at the foothills surrounding Sucre, and at the high mountains in the distance---what a grand view---truly a "buena vista!!" After every workday our group boarded the buses back to the Sucre hotel, peeled off our dusty, dirty clothes, showered, and then enjoyed a relaxing evening. Our evening dinners at the El Huerto restaurant were always interesting sessions as we came together and discussed our experiences from the day. The medical personnel related the "miracles" that were performed on the operating tables. Some of us concluded the restful evening after dinner with a short reflection service led by Sister Elizabeth (Liz) Kreiner, OP. This time together was a refreshing time of sharing, prayer, and conversation. One day, while the rest of the construction team worked with families in the barrios, Fr. Enright, Art Sheridan, Chuck Peterson, and Milt visited the Sucre penitentiary. When they arrived at the prison, Carmen Gonzalez, the director-general of Bolivia's prisons, and several other dignitaries met them. Fr. Enright, Art, Chuck and Milt, along with Senora Gonzalez, toured the male portion of the penitentiary. They observed a line of inmates inside the prison gate waiting to be served their 4:00 p.m. "tea" (soup) of corn kernels in a corn juice broth. They also toured several "pods" and were able to step into several cells. Each inmate had a personal space that contained his bed and about 2 feet of space at the end of his bed frame. The Joliet mission visitors were informed that most of the inmates were incarcerated for embezzlement, drug trafficking, and drug addiction. The 90 inmates were free to wander about their own pods and visit fellow inmates. Some of the inmates were engaged in various activities: playing handball, making gaskets from automobile tires, sailing schooners from Popsicle sticks, making miniature figurines, and weaving entrance door mates. A group of inmates staged a drama for the visitors about the adverse effects of drug addiction. They used inmate-made marionettes and live musicians. A short walk later brought the Joliet Mission team to the women's section of the penitentiary, which only held nine female inmates. The spokeswoman for the women thanked the Joliet Mission for providing the corn "tea" for the poorest inmates who lacked personal resources. Although Saturdays and Sundays were usually reserved for rest and relaxation, we worked one half of a Saturday because we had lost a day due to the rain and the strike. The entire crew took buses to the Calanca barrio. I was assigned to Art Sheridan's team. We helped a family move a pile of rocks from the dirt track along the river and up the hill to where the family compound was located. While this would have been an easy task for Paul Bunyan, it was a REAL challenge for our team! So we formed a "fire brigade" chain and passed the rocks up the hill. After the huge pile of rocks was dispatched up the hill, the mother of the family requested that we move a sand pile up to the courtyard of her compound. The hill was too steep to wheel barrow the sand so we had to fill bags with sand and individually carry them up the hill. Some of the local boys, no more than six or seven years in age, insisted that they could haul the bags up the hill…and they did!! At another site, Milt and his team sifted sand in preparation for making cement. A bag of cement was poured on each pile of sand and the team members mixed the cement into the sand. Once it was thoroughly mixed the father of the family made a large depression in the mixture and added buckets of water to it. After the water slowly "percolated" through the mix, the father and the team members shoveled the mixture until it was ready to be "bucketed" to the men working on the forms. This entire construction process was a sight to behold! None of the local men were trained cement workers; they had learned the construction process by watching their fathers or their neighbors. In the middle of the day, and in between work, we had our usual lunch of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, bottled water, dried fruits, and granola bars. And at the end of the day, we were pleased with our progress. Meanwhile, at every work site we watched the children hovering close by. They were so interested, so curious, and so friendly. It was gratifying to see older siblings or cousins looking after their younger charges. Then on Sunday, after Mass and breakfast, a bus took us to the Tarabuco village open market. The market featured all sorts of produce, kitchen goods, clothing, and jewelry. We slowly strolled around the square assessing the goods and photographing the sites. It was a very interesting "field trip." About half way back to Sucre, the bus driver turned off the paved highway to drive to the site of our afternoon picnic. The road suddenly shifted from a paved to gravel surface and then to a dirt track that was very uneven. We all prayed our stomachs would survive the "roller coaster" experience. The picnic was held on the grounds of a villa belonging to a wealthy doctor friend of Fr. Juaquin. After our sumptuous meal, some of us played soccer or volleyball while others just enjoyed visiting with one another. Toward the end of our mission experience, Angie Clement (who is bilingual) accompanied Justino Flores, Milt and me on the public bus to the school Justino's children attend. Because there are no schools in the barrios, the children have to ride public buses or walk to their schools. Public school attendance is free, but the parents are expected to purchase books and other supplies. At the San Juanillo School (grades 1-8) we were warmly welcomed by the principal, Sister Maria Garcia, who reported that 2000 children were enrolled. Half of the students attend in the morning while the other half attend in the afternoon. There is an average of 42 students per classroom. Milt and I had letters and drawings from our teacher friends, plus a bag of school supplies, to donate to the school children. The parishioners of Mary Queen of Heaven Church, in Elmhusrt, Il., donated the supplies. Our final visit to the barrios was on the morning of May 3. Bruce allowed us to choose the barrio we wanted to visit for the House Blessings. Milt and I went with a group to the Villa Margarita barrio. Deacon Chuck Peterson did the blessing at each house. After his blessing, we also sang a song of blessing, and this visibly touched each family. At a ceremonial farewell dinner at the El Huerto restaurant, Fr. Juaquin addressed the entire Mission Team. During his brief talk he stressed that Bishop Imesch is the "soul of this Mission." Additionally, as a farewell gesture, we were invited to the Grotto to be feted by the families with whom we had worked in the barrios. Were we an onus or a bonus? We hope that we did some positive things there. Yes, it would have to be a bonus. But we know we received the biggest bonus from the people. They were so loving and appreciative. And they want us to come back. by Rosalie Honel, one of 22 Construction Crew members |
| with Bridget Sullivan |
