Trip news

We’ve heard this week from Roger Marriott, part of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) mission co-worker couple in Coban. Roger confirmed their interest in working with us and our partners for a Coban visit. He mentioned the possibility of us staying at the Nazarene center, and said he would check on its availability. He also mentioned the possibility of going to the waterfall area.

On two issues he was interested in taking us in different directions. Although we thought he would promote working with the Guatemalan evangelical Presbyterian-PC(USA) vehicle PRESGOV for transportation, he said he could arrange for shuttle service from the airport to Coban and back. He said it would take about five hours (and he seemed to think we would do all that traveling in one day). We may need to stay the last night closer to the airport, and that may put us in the vicinity to see other places, like going back to Antigua.

After Sunday’s meeting, we told Roger we were thinking about any one of the final three weeks of July, although in fact we had considered most seriously the fourth or fifth week. Roger and Gloria’s oldest child is getting married in late July now, and Roger asked that we focus on the third week, which is July 11-July 17. It may be pushing for folks are going for all of the PC(USA) General Assembly in Minneapolis to make it to this (and in fact PRESGOV’s 15-person van is already taken for that week). But if our partners OK this week, I think we should go for it. It would be three years and two weeks after our summer 2007 trip to El Estor and Antigua.

Delia Leal, the Nazarene pastor who also lives in Coban, also let us know that she would be interested in connecting with us while we are in her town, and she wanted to work out details later.

I suspect we’ll talk more about the dates, etc. briefly before calling Pastor Gerardo. We may also want to write an e-mail text for our partners not only putting our trip ideas in writing for all of them but also updating them on goings on here (including the English as a foreign language teaching ministry, Spanish class, partnership Sunday school class, etc.). And we may want to turn over logistical details of the trip to a small planning team and work with them to plan a more public congregational event at which we could present ideas for the trip (including for prospects) and develop fund-raising ideas also. Eventually, we’ll want to present plans to Outreach Council and session too, and seek the latter’s OK.

-- Perry