STUPENDOUS SEMANA

We spent two quiet days in the office during the Chilean holidays of Reformation Day (Oct 31) and All Saints Day (Nov 1) and enjoyed the Halloween photos of our children and grandchildren. They always go all out on Halloween.

SOLICITUDE PENDING

On Wednesday we met with the founder of Fundacion Oncologica There are very few resources for cancer patients in Chile. This foundation helps people all over the country from Arica to Puerto Montt. They do lots of work with pediatric cancer patients and assist with palliative care for terminal cancer patients. Their office is located on the grounds of a large public hospital in Santiago. We await their solicitude.

SOUP KITCHEN CEREMONY

That afternoon we drove four hours north to Ovalle to a ceremony at a soup kitchen. In May 2020, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, eight professionals in Ovalle came together to form this organization to focus on helping the vulnerable in their community. Today there are 20 community volunteers that serve 1,000 vulnerable community members in various ways; making food and toiletry care baskets, collecting clothing, and providing breakfast seven days a week. The recipients consist of the homeless, jobless, some seniors who have no family support, and many immigrants.

They currently serve breakfast to over 100 people daily in an old Catholic church that was abandoned after the 2010 earthquake. The plaster and paint are pealing. Their cooktop had only one functioning burner and they were using a toaster oven brought from home by one of the volunteers. The food prep counter was made of chipped laminated wood and the tables and chairs were old, recycled, and broken. They did not have enough mugs or eating utensils for everyone who came for breakfast, and they lacked cooking implements and a large enough refrigerator. This ceremony was full of clapping and cheers for the newly donated items.

BEFORE AFTER

SALAMANCA BOMBEROS

On our way home from Ovalle, we drove through the desert to Salamanca to visit the bomberos to assess their needs in person.

SCOUTING FOR STORAGE SPACE

On Friday we drove for 1 ½ hour to Camp Cumorah Casablanca with our buyer and a physical facilities employee to discuss the possibility of renting containers to store our PFJ supplies for the school kit project that begins in January.

SATURDAY SHENANIGANS & SKIPBO

On Saturday morning our dear friends John and Geanie Roake arrived from Utah. We have known each other for almost 40 years. Ed and John worked together in Orem, Utah at one of their first jobs out of college and we have been fast friends ever since. They have come to Chile for a week to see what senior missionary life is like. We explored Santiago a bit, going to the top of Sky Costanera, the tallest building in South America. At a height of 300 meters, this tower provides a 360-degree view of the city and the surrounding Andes mountains. We played our first Skipbo game in over a year and we weren’t even rusty!