STANDARD SIGNATURE SUSTENANCE- THE COMPLETO
The completo is a very popular food in Chile. As a matter of fact, whole aisles at the grocery store are devoted to different varieties. We are told that a good completo is measured by the quality of mayonnaise on top. We tried one- the completo had the texture of a Vienna sausage.
SERVICE IN THE OFFICE
For the most part, we spent the week in the office, managing projects, arranging entrega ceremonies for 12 school kit projects plus 8 other projects that have been delivered, attempting to have none of the dates conflict with each other; trying to connect with school directors, clinics, stake presidents, hogar directors, and vendors; and making our travel plans for next week. Seriously, we go into the office and for nine to ten hours, both of us work furiously and can barely stay on top of all the moving parts of these projects. We wondered at the beginning of this assignment how we would divide tasks. It has just fallen naturally into place with each of us specializing in a different part of the project process. We think we are a good team.
We were able to host a meeting with the Mayor of La Cisterna (a Santiago suburb) this week to explain the humanitarian project process. We were supposed to meet with the Salvation Army, but their offices were closed this week because of the presidential inauguration. The possibility of protests in their area was too high to safely stay open.
SAN PEDRO
We drove two hours southwest one day for a prospective project with CESFAM San Pedro. They have six rural outpost clinics that need equipment. We were privileged to visit one- Estacion Medico Rural Lo Encanado. This will be a very meaningful project, focusing on one of the main objectives, primary healthcare in rural areas.
On our drive, we saw acres of prickly pear cactus in bloom and have noticed the fruit (tuna) for sale in most markets. It is always a treat to get out into the country and find delicious fruit for sale at roadside stands. We may have come home with several kilos of strawberries and peaches.
SUNNY STREETS OF SANTIAGO
The architecture in Santiago is unique and beautiful.
We check out a car for travel outside the city but prefer to use public transportation to get around Santiago because the traffic is very congested. The population of Metro Santiago is almost seven million people. The upside of that is being able to get something out of your trunk in this “taco” (stand-still traffic).
STREET ENTERTAINMENT
And there is plenty of entertainment while you wait.
GIVING EACH OTHER THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT
This saying is derived from a legal definition: In law, the benefit of the doubt means that a defendant is considered innocent and acquitted by the jury if his or her guilt has not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
(Sister Lamb speaking) I have been harboring bad feelings towards one of our field managers. He insisted that school kits be donated to a school district two hours away when the JAS director wanted them to be donated to rural schools nearby. When it came time to arrange the delivery of the kits this week, he said he could not help us because he was on vacation. Seriously! So that created a week of me going back and forth with the school director who expected us to deliver to each school individually and finally hiring a truck to drive from Santiago to the delivery location (one hour) to pick up the kits and then two more hours to another location to deliver them. Well, this field manager walked into our office yesterday. His ‘vacation’ was having open-heart surgery. If he would have told me that in the first place of course I would have understood. It was a reminder that I need to assume that for the most part people are just doing their best.
With love, Elder y Hermana Lamb, (aka Ed & Debbie, Mom & Dad, Pop-Pop & TuTu)
UPDATE-CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS- CHURCH NEWS- MARCH 6, 2022
Coordinated efforts by area and local leaders and Church members are occurring in all European countries, from Austria to the Czech Republic, from Germany to Poland, and even within Ukraine itself…through member and congregational efforts and partnering with other relief organizations…The examples of aid and assistance are many and varied across Europe:
Germany: Full-time missionaries serving in the Germany Berlin mission offered immediate help at the beginning of the refugee crisis. The missionaries were assigned to train stations throughout Berlin with large signs showing the various languages they speak. They have helped those arriving from the areas of conflict in getting oriented, finding additional transportation, and helping them to understand what kind of assistance is available for refugees. Members have organized 1,200 beds ready for those displaced by the conflict, opening their own homes at no charge for short or long stays.
Within a couple of days after the armed conflict began, two trucks loaded with supplies from Frankfurt, Germany were bound for Hungary and Romania. Supplies included sleeping bags, cots, and tents to be distributed to refugees.
Poland: Members have opened their homes, offering 140 beds to refugees. President David Chandler of the Poland Warsaw Mission said, “Perhaps more than any other nation on earth, the people of Poland understand the tragedy that is taking place. Their unconquerable spirit and unwavering devotion in helping each other during times of conflict and trials have positioned and prepared them to assist their Ukrainian brothers and sisters who have sought refuge in Poland.”
(One of our favorite Facebook posts this week was a picture of strollers that mothers in Poland have left at train stations for refugee mothers arriving with babies.)
Czech Republic: In Prague, the staff and students of Cumorah Academy, a non-profit foundation designated as the Community Outreach Center of the Church, is hosting refugees, and providing a temporary place to live. Most of the academy’s teachers are professionals in their own fields of expertise and are offering time and knowledge to connect refugees with other international organizations that can provide a long-term solution for their needs.
Lambs in Central Europe 