Dear fellow Wesley Foundationers,
Earlier this May, a group of us from Wesley embarked on a mission trip to San Juan de Pastocalle, Ecuador. When I first heard of this opportunity last year, I was eager to sign up and participate. Ecuador is a special place to me since I had previously been on a mission trip to Quito in 2018. Carrying out mission work in a new place is interesting, but returning to a semi-familiar location made it even more exciting. Upon arrival in Quito, the capital city, we took a day to get familiar with the country and culture. Our leaders for the trip were Sara and Dakin, locals of the area and long-time missionaries. They introduced us to several landmarks – a few to mention are the equator, Quito market, El Crater, and the Cotopaxi volcano. These were awesome! Once we were done touring Quito, we made our way to San Juan Pastocalle – the rural town where we would spend the remainder of our time serving a local church and school. Over multiple days, we visited the church and spent time with the schoolchildren there, hosting a VBS-style day camp for them. These events were filled with songs, Bible stories in the form of a play, crafts, and lots of football. The children loved having us, as did all the staff. Additionally, we spent time painting the buildings and creating murals on the walls. It was very difficult to leave all that behind once our time was up. Our week was filled with great sights, meals, mission work, and the best people. You can see many of these experiences for yourself on the Wesley Photocircle! This trip not only allowed us to serve in a new place, but also created precious memories that will last with Wesley forever. I highly recommend doing something like this yourself when the opportunity arises.
Grace and Peace,
Jacob Hohn