A good friend of mine reminded me this morning that our friends and family members are reading this blog, and that they hadn't seen a new post from me or Heather in a while. So, here's what I've been meaning to write for two weeks ;-) - - - - - Heather and I are finishing up our frist stay here in Bicol. On Tuesday evening we will again brave the adventurous overnight bus ride back to Manila to help with the GK 1-World expo, being held in two weeks in the famous Mall of Asia, in downtown Manila (which reminds me, I ned to go buy our bus tickets as soon as I'm done here). --- So despite our adventures with the Feast of Our Lady of Pena Francia, wake-boarding at CWC (home of next summer's ESPN International Wake-Boarding Championship) and spending lazy Sunday's with our host family in heavenly natural spring pools, we have actually been quite busy with our GK villages. Heather and I decided to stay in the villages for most of the nights of these last two weeks (part of the reason we haven't blogged in a while). I have been working at GK Bonot, which is a fairly new site in the municipality of Calabanga. This beautiful 4-Hectare site is less than 1 kilometer from San Miguel Bay. The ocean can be seen from the top of the hill that marks the center of the site. This pic is from the top of the hill: 
Most of the future residents are fishermen by trade. Incredibly, the typical family size here is larger than most that I've encountered. 5 Children per family is the statistical GK average, and most families that we've met have 4 -7 children. At Bonot, however, most of the families that I've been able to talk with have 9-11 children!!! It's pretty awesome when you start to hear their stories. Anyway... Bonot is a problematic site, which is part of the reason I was assigned there. The site officially began building last March, and in 6 months has started 27 houses, but not completed a single one. Most GK villages build at an average rate of 10 homes / month. In the middle of the building, there was a significant change in leadership which ground everything to a halt. I was asked to go there, assess the situation, assist the new Project Director, and to get things rolling again. After only 3 weeks, I hope that we got enough coals glowing the fire will grow, and not again be extinguished. I was able to focus the work force on 10 priority houses, hoping that before i left we would be able to turn them over to the first residents. Unfortunately, not all of the residents were able or ambitious enough to begin working again right away, so the work progressed slowly. I do think that in another 1-2 weeks, the first batch of 10 will be complete and turned over, which will hopefully re-inspire the rest of the future residents to come and help with the build, and to engage the community. Unfortunately, I will not be there to see it. I have been impressed, however, by two young men, maybe in their 30's; Rommel (yellow hat), who is working for his mother, and Abelardo(orange hat), who is working for his own family. 
The 2 men are at the site almost everyday, without pay, and do the most rigorous of all the work to be done. Sometimes that means digging up huge rocks, sometimes hauling 25 80lbs bags of concrete on their head, sometimes mixing concrete. Whatever it is, they will do it so that they can have the pride of moving their families into a new home. These two men also helped to provide the inspiration for some of the other beneficiaries to come back to work, to build and move into their own homes. I guess this is what it takes to build a community from the ground up. GK has built it's success on relationship, just as Jesus built his ministry on relationship. At GK Bonot, new relationships are being forged, and new leaders are emerging. In that fire I pray that a new community will grow in hope for their own future, and love for themselves and one another. At the end of my stay, as one last push to ensure the flame would glow, we organized a half-day build, which will hopefully be repeated every Saturday. These pictures are from that build. If anyone is interested in partnering with a village and really building a relationship that can foster this community, GK Bonot has no other partners. 
The 40 Houses that are being built have been donated by the federal government. The money is for houses only. Outside partners are needed to provide the funding for the pre-school, the medical center, the office, the hill-top chapel, and all the other facilities that will be a part of this beautiful place. In addition to that, the 4 hectares can hold a total of 100-150 families. 40 Homes is only the beginning. Anyway, enjoy the pics, and if you want to build a partnering relationship with these folks, just let me know. As always, thank you for your endless prayers and support of us and our work. Pray that God will use our presence to transform each of us - volunteers, full-time workers, GK residents, everyone - into saints working for his Kingdom. A little sweat can go a long way ;-)
Most of the future residents are fishermen by trade. Incredibly, the typical family size here is larger than most that I've encountered. 5 Children per family is the statistical GK average, and most families that we've met have 4 -7 children. At Bonot, however, most of the families that I've been able to talk with have 9-11 children!!! It's pretty awesome when you start to hear their stories. Anyway... Bonot is a problematic site, which is part of the reason I was assigned there. The site officially began building last March, and in 6 months has started 27 houses, but not completed a single one. Most GK villages build at an average rate of 10 homes / month. In the middle of the building, there was a significant change in leadership which ground everything to a halt. I was asked to go there, assess the situation, assist the new Project Director, and to get things rolling again. After only 3 weeks, I hope that we got enough coals glowing the fire will grow, and not again be extinguished. I was able to focus the work force on 10 priority houses, hoping that before i left we would be able to turn them over to the first residents. Unfortunately, not all of the residents were able or ambitious enough to begin working again right away, so the work progressed slowly. I do think that in another 1-2 weeks, the first batch of 10 will be complete and turned over, which will hopefully re-inspire the rest of the future residents to come and help with the build, and to engage the community. Unfortunately, I will not be there to see it. I have been impressed, however, by two young men, maybe in their 30's; Rommel (yellow hat), who is working for his mother, and Abelardo(orange hat), who is working for his own family. 
The 2 men are at the site almost everyday, without pay, and do the most rigorous of all the work to be done. Sometimes that means digging up huge rocks, sometimes hauling 25 80lbs bags of concrete on their head, sometimes mixing concrete. Whatever it is, they will do it so that they can have the pride of moving their families into a new home. These two men also helped to provide the inspiration for some of the other beneficiaries to come back to work, to build and move into their own homes. I guess this is what it takes to build a community from the ground up. GK has built it's success on relationship, just as Jesus built his ministry on relationship. At GK Bonot, new relationships are being forged, and new leaders are emerging. In that fire I pray that a new community will grow in hope for their own future, and love for themselves and one another. At the end of my stay, as one last push to ensure the flame would glow, we organized a half-day build, which will hopefully be repeated every Saturday. These pictures are from that build. If anyone is interested in partnering with a village and really building a relationship that can foster this community, GK Bonot has no other partners. 
The 40 Houses that are being built have been donated by the federal government. The money is for houses only. Outside partners are needed to provide the funding for the pre-school, the medical center, the office, the hill-top chapel, and all the other facilities that will be a part of this beautiful place. In addition to that, the 4 hectares can hold a total of 100-150 families. 40 Homes is only the beginning. Anyway, enjoy the pics, and if you want to build a partnering relationship with these folks, just let me know. As always, thank you for your endless prayers and support of us and our work. Pray that God will use our presence to transform each of us - volunteers, full-time workers, GK residents, everyone - into saints working for his Kingdom. A little sweat can go a long way ;-)
1 comment:
Thank you for the update Patrick! You remain in my prayers.
Love
Ellen
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