Thank You tita Oma!!!

This is a special and personalized post just for tita Oma and tito Mon who played host to the 6 of us during our weekend in San Francisco. Tita and Tito, we all had such a great time meeting you, and your generousity made us feel more than at home. Thank you so much for everything you have done to encourage us and bring us into the GK Builders Corps fold. Thanks for all of the rides and the meals, the e-mails, the stories, the jokes, and most of all, your prayers. We know that you have been praying for us, and we will be praying for you! Again, THANK YOU!!! That's from me personally, but I know that it's also from each one of us! Hopefully we'll see you soon!

(That's tito Joe in the back- he's always laughing ;-0 )

Peace!

Playin in the Mud

One of my favorite images in the Bible comes from the book of Genesis... I think we all too often think of God as the Almighty Creator, white flowing gowns, curly beard, and all-knowing intellect. Thus, when it the writer says the God made Adam out of clay, it's like God waves his hand and the dust of the desert takes the shape of human being. Instead try this: the desert dust is blowing around, and God takes some of the water from the oceans and makes mud. Then, into the mud he reaches both of his hands, getting mud all over his fingers, and probably even splashing some on his arms. Imagine that! God, with his hands dirty with the sutff of humanity! Our God plays in the mud! I guess that's how I see much of this adventure. God works with our humanity, in all it's messiness. In accord with all that has been typed recently, this blog will in some ways be a place for us to work in our own mud as we grow together through the "stuff" of our lives. And for myself, I am very excited to tell you that even my own project assignment should hopefully involve a little bit of mud-play. No, it's not as huge as writing funding proposals, establishing a niche in an overseas marketing, or even saving the workd through effective values formation. Though it may seem simple, my project serves to build ownership of each village and community in both the partners and the village residents. I have been asked to focus my efforts for the six months to ensuring that every village has a nice marker (the cool sign that you see at the entrance of each village) and that every GK site has a site plan and map posted in their community gathering space. For those of you that know me well, this means that I will have the chance to travel to a large majority of the villages, and spend time constructing the Markers at those villages that need them. This of course means getting dirty, and that's something I'm good at ;-) So, bring on the mud and sweat! I supposed I will be blessed with the chance to work out some of my frustrations and challenges with a shovel and a hammer...and that's a good thing. For pics of some of the markers that already exist, check out the ANCOPUSA.org link in the link list.

Reflections of Ourselves

Okay...I have another confession...I thought managing a blog was going to be tedious. I thought it would be a little lame, but I was very wrong. These reflections are pieces of our innermost self. These our thoughts that truly reflect what drives our love and passion. Every person faces doubt and fear. I struggle with feelings of inadequacy more often than I let myself admit, but in our weakness we have great power. Reading through these blogs of the people I respect and love so deeply I am empowered. There is so much unknown that lays before us, but God will guide. So really this entry is a thank you to my friends/companions/teachers for their honesty and love. This entry is also an invitation to all of our friends and family that read our reflections and join us on the journey. I hope that you may be encouraged to do as Jonathan has said and ask us questions, seek to understand and to also find what sparks your love and motivates you to live more fully. Recognize God's presence in all that you do. He is full of surprises. ( :

more than a program

People have been asking me what I am up to next year and I keep responding telling them about this program called Gawad Kalinga. Every time I do that, I feel like I am not giving GK the credit it deserves, because GK is more than a program. It is a Mission to Restore Dignity into the Lives of the Poor. It is a holistic approach to serve one another starting with the poorest of the poor, which I believe falls in line with Christ's call to love one another. I find myself extremely excited because it is rare in this day and age to be a part of something that not only claims faith as its core but also lives it in action of love, not spite or anger. I am nervous heading into next year. I am scared of not being able to handle the considerably longer work hours than anything i've experienced here. I am anxious as I head into a job that I am probably not qualified at this time to be handling. I am anxious of growing tired of eating rice all the time (but I do that pretty often now.. thanks AMATE LV! :) ) I am sad about moving away from Lisa, my parents, grandparents, brothers, sister, and niece who I have just realized recently how much I wish I could see them more often. I am sad about moving away from many amazing friends. But more than all of my fears and anxieties, I am incredibly excited and feel incredibly blessed to be a part of a mission that only desires to serve. This is what gives me wisdom when I don't feel qualified, comfort when I feel lonely, strength when I feel weak. GK is Christ's call to love In Action. It is moving beyond fears and relying on faith to lead it through. Though you may not know much about this Mission call GK, I hope for you to learn more about it through these words and those of my friends and maybe, hopefully, you'll develop a grain of interest and check out www.gawadkalinga.org or begin to ask questions. One of those questions may just be, "Jonathan, so what will you be doing next year?"... well..I am glad you asked. Next year, I am going to help develop livelihood programs in the the GK Villages. One of the holistic goals of GK is make the villages self sustainable financially, socially, environmentally. I'll be working with financial sustainability. My position is supposed to help the villages develop more fully their means for making an income. For some it is crafts, others it could be agriculture or maybe a service. Who knows...? Then, I am going to work with those villages to make their 'good' more marketable and then help export them to different markets.. primarily in the United States. My position also works to create a distribution center in the United States. This is all a bit scary for me.. but at the same time I look at it as a godsend. As I graduated college with my focus on International Marketing, I never thought i'd be able to use it because most of the options in this area are for corporations. But now I can use it for God's work and that excites me. So.. quick re quest.. if you have any people that would be good contacts for me, please let me know.. Alright... I'll let you go for now... more will come. I thank you for coming on this journey with me,us, GK. I want to share this with you, so please ask questions, share concerns, and be open to God's call to love one another and especially the poor.

A Few Summit Favorite Quotes

"GK is Radical Optimism." "Hope Ignites, Hope Attracts, Hope Knows No Boundaries, Knows No Borders." "Good News Sells. We just have to be responsible for creating it." "It is important that our hearts are pure, & it is Love that can make us pure." "Bring the Poor out of Hell in this life, Don't just promise them heaven in the next." "It is Love, not Pity, which will save the Poor." "Plans Change, but Opportunities Abound." I think all of us GK Builders will need to remember this one a lot... ;-) "GK is experiential." "GK is Dignity Restoration first & foremost - community building is only one expression of that." "It is patriotic to help people build their own sustainable communities." No matter from what country that patriatism flows. And always remember - "Do it with Joy!"

Chocolate Sink Hole . . . Sweet!

As Patrick has made quite obvious to us and now made public on the post, the other members of this blog have been noticeably absent. For me it comes down to not knowing what to say – not that there isn’t anything to say -but that there is just so much that it is easy to be blown away by the sheer power of God at work in our lives. There have been so many things that have just made this seem right - like the very fact that all 4 of us from Chicago were able to clear our schedules with 2 weeks notice to take off for San Francisco for 5 days is amazing in itself. Once we got there however, what an even bigger WOW. The amount of information we received was massive, but I’m tremendously grateful for it. I know I still have a lot of processing to do. However, if I tried to process everything we learned, heard, saw and shared – I would never begin writing. Sometimes, while we certainly need to be prepared, we also just need the faith that its time for us to act instead of living inside our head. So here’s what I’ve got so far to share: there are 6 of us going to the Philippines; 4 of us from Chicago and then Diane and Joanne – both of whom have had amazing adventures and experiences which brought them to San Francisco for the conference. I know that I look forward to sharing even more with all members of the GK Builders Corps USA and all those members who are already there. Specifically for me, these past few days with GK and ANCOP (Answering the Cry of the Poor) has truly been an affirmation of the sense of joy and peace I’ve had about this decision. My heart has been ignited with a passion for this program; what it strives to do; and to figure out what God has in mind as my place within it. The best starting point would probably be to use my assigned project as the base: My project uses my background in sociology to study one of the components of the GK process. GK has several different programs that have changed and developed as GK has grown and evolved. The programs work with the basic needs of food and shelter, but then also helps the community grow in education, health, self- government, self-sustainability and productivity all while helping them stay stewards of the environment. It’s pretty amazing when you think about the holistic structure of this program. And yet, individually, these programs would struggle more with maintaining a cohesive self-sustaining community without the aspect that I will be studying. Before and during living in a GK village and especially in dealing with the village governance, there is a Values Formation process. I have been assigned to do a comprehensive study of the Values Formation/Transformation process in 10 villages with different backgrounds to analyze the strength and weaknesses of the program. In addition to this evaluation I will help form a template from my research that can be used as the GK program expands globally. Heather, Patrick and Jonathan have been joking that my assignment is actually to save the world. I would like to think that all of us, each in our way has that very assignment from God already. I’ve heard it before, and I heard it again this week. When we ask God what He is doing about all the poverty, hurt and suffering in the world he reminds us that that is why he created us. Now is the time; Now is the hour to do our best in the service of our Lord – whatever our best may be. Till next time… God Bless. And for those who still remember this post's title - here's where its from: Paraphrased Quote from Saturday of the GK Summit: "Being a GK Advocate is like sinking in a hole; the more you get involved, the more you sink, but you enjoy sinking because its like sinking in a pool of chocolate & who wouldn't want to sink in a pool of chocolate?"

Oh Boy...

So as Patrick has said...it begins. This crazy adventure we have talked, joked, and prayed about is coming to be. This weekends summit was packed full and at some points was almost overwhelming, but it was so incredibly needed. Prior to this weekend my nerves were starting to get the best of me. What are we doing? Does it make sense? Are we just being crazy idealists? Well the truth is...maybe we are idealists, maybe it doesn't make sense and we are definitely crazy, but we know what we are doing. The summit was an affirmation of God's hand in this discernment process and the qork being done by GK. Gawad Kalinga is an incredible movement powered by hope and love. It is an organization that truly lives faith with a consistent ethic of life. I hope that it will continue to flourish and serve as an example to the world what love, faith, and hope in God and people can accomplish. GK is committed to restoring dignity to the poorest of the poor through ministries of presence followed by assisting villages in the developement of communities they can take pride in. Communities of shelter, productivity, health, and peace. It is an honor to be a part of. The core of GK encompasses all that I believe in and what Christ has called us to. Another exciting element of the weekend was recieving our job assignments. Each project really asks us to use our skills, gifts, and expertise to move GK along and provide the best care to people possible. The projects ask quite a bit more from us than I think we anticipated. I thought that being a part of GKare, the health care portion of the program, would entail visiting villages to give immunizations and do health care teaching and it might, but they have asked more than that. They have asked me to assess the villages and determine 10 villages with the greatest health needs and compile funding proposals to address those needs. I have also been asked to initiate relationship building with the nursing schools in the areas so that someday they may adopt villages to work with as part of their curriculum. It is a pretty incredible assignment...I can't lie...it made me cry a little. It is more than I imagined for myself, but it really excites me and I think that it will really challenge me. This entire experience is going to challenge and push our faith in ways I have never experienced before. We must keep God as our foundation and focus. Be with us Lord.

Another one from me...

While in San Fran this weekend I made Beth and Jonathan and Heather promise to write their own posts. So, for those of you that are their friends and are looking for stories from them and are tired of having only one perspective on this chaos, encourage them to check in and share their stories ;-) We had a great time at the Summit. Here's a few highlights, and I'll update some pictures, and give some more details later. -We met two other Builders Corps Volunteers, Diane and Joanne. Both will soon be posting their own adventures here soon as well. -We got our project assignments (YES!!!). I'll wait and let each person post their own projects and any thoughts. -We got to me the wonderful tita Oma and tito Mon, who were our hosts this weekend, as well as being responsible for accepting our applications on this adventure(We love you tita and tito!). (For those of you who are not Filipino, "tita" means "aunt" and "tito" means uncle. Both titles are used with familiar respect, along with several other titles). -We met several incredible people with whom we will be working directly and indirectly while in the Philippines. -We were simultaneously inspired and overwhelmed by the warm welcome and passionate visions of GK founder, tito Tony Meloto. -We received the warmest welcome and the most generous prayers from the many Filipinos and Filipinas who are ivolved in GK. We know that it is by these prayers and yours that we are able to float on God's grace throughout this mission. Finally - ENJOY THE PHOTOS!!!!

Dreams Materializing

So-- TODAY is the day. Up to this point, much of this inspired mission has been talk and prayer, but this afternoon the four of us will get on a plane and actually begin to walk along this journey. Are we excited, for sure. But to be honest, Beth and Heather and I joked this morning that about the time we are going to fly over Denver we'll have a Freak-Out moment and all four of us will let out a huge scream, and hopefully let out all of our fears and anxieties as well. Oh well- we'll see what God has in store! We'll check back in after the GK Summit in San Fran, and hopefully we'll some more details and info about our departure and specific project assignments, details, etc...

Not in College Anymore...

We'd like to congratulate Heather on her graduation from Loyola- she is now officially a BSN, and no longer a college student!!! We're proud of you, and blessed to be your friends (and more ;-) )!! Good Luck on your Boards, Heather!!! (Just imagine what God might do with all of that compassionate medical know-how!)

Summoned to the Summit

So, this post is a little late, but I have a feeling that's how it will be once we actually get to Manila, or other places where we'll be working- and computers are not around. Last Thursday, the four of us were summoned to San Francisco (which I can't say we lament), to attend the annual GK summit. Following this exciting jam-packed weekend we'll be having our orientation- a couple months early. That is, the summit, is next Friday: mid-May. Some stereotypes are born out of truths, and I'll say this freely because everyone one of my Filipino friends jokes about Filipino time and a general lack of timely coordination: if God was not behind this trip, how did four busy Americans get five days off with two weeks notice to be in San Francisco. I'd like to say that I'm hopeful for a little more lead time on future events, but I've been warned not to hold that expectation. Oh well, following the Spirit takes some flexibility, right?! Well, we leave for San Francisco next Friday- check back later next week for updates on the summit, and probably tons of goofy pics!!! Peace & Prayers! Patrick