Zip-Line Project

This week Oscar and I have been working on a zip-line project. We are building a platform for the kids to stand on as they jump off the zip-line. Our task is to cement 4 poles into the sand, bolt them and make sure its a level platform. Sounds pretty easy right? Yet it has been a difficult week in many ways. The weather has been extremely hot, the wind is absent, I am not use to working in the sand either. We had to mix sand, rocks and cement in the wheel barrel in order to make the concrete and we had to get water from the lake. Needless to say, things are a little slower here and projects like this take time...I had no idea. God is present though, He has giving me a new appreciation for Oscar and all the men and women who work like this everyday! God is good and its all worth it when I get to see children of Nicaragua use this zip-line! Its going to be an awesome day!

Mad Cows!

Mad Cows! We have several cows here at Campo Alegria. Some are used for milk and I am not sure what the other cows do except run free and mooooo. Anyway...they seem to get out of their pen on a regular basis. I saw 10 or more cows just relaxing on the beach yesterday. I am sure they are just getting some water and then return to their pen. However, an hour later I saw one right by my window, and another one started eating my fresh cut grass! Apparently they are not supposed to be this close to camp or the lake because I saw a man rounding them up on his horse. He was not as excited about it as I was. I am going to help him do something about these cows escaping very soon.

Good Morning from Nicaragua.

Adam came up with the great idea of blogging my experience via facebook. So what I have decided to do is a photo journal every couple of days sharing what I am doing. So here goes...
The mornings are so beautiful here. This picture is from the front porch this morning at about 6:30AM. ...It was nice and cool. I also saw something else that was amazing. Kids on bikes riding on the beach on there way to school. Also very cool. Things are different here and that's what makes it so great!

-Zach Sneed

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Lily Plourde | Campo Alegria Volunteer - Jan 2010

It's a loong flight to Managua, Nicaragua (well, that is if your coming from anywhere north of Texas...). But the anticipation alone for what awaited me there was well worth the usual airport frustrations that accompany any long trip. Luckily I love to travel so any setback is just a new adventure. My first adventure started when I stupidly left my purse (with passport, cash, credit cards, cell phone, ipod...)in a Nicaraguan gas station bathroom, only to realize my mistake 20 minutes into our drive towards camp. Peter said a prayer and we returned only to find it was gone and assumed it had been stolen. To everyones amazement, we received a call shortly after, that a woman had all of my belongings and only kept them for fear that they may have been stolen by someone else. She and her sister then travelled about 4 hours to return everything to me. If this story isn't a testament to just how good God is, then it was certainly an eye opening realization that the Nicaraguan people aren't as bad, I admit, as I expected they would be. As the 2nd poorest country on this side of the earth, unfortunately, they get a bad rep. This was just the beginning of my week-long learning experience.

At camp, we had a small group of about 11 girls and 2 boys who all live together in a home (well, girls in one home, boys in another) safely outside of the dump but had been rescued from sexually abusive or potentially sexually abusive homes from within the dump. I swear, if you had taken any of those little girls and plopped them in the middle of the U.S. you would never know how dark and sad their pasts may have been. These kids were the happiest, most playful, FUN, helpful and incredibly lovable group of kids I have ever met. I have to admit, I don't spend very much time around kids and was a little worried at how I may handle so many little girls at once...but I can honestly say that it was love at first sight. When the kids were dropped off at camp, we greeted them in the dining hall and with no hesitation I was greeted with great big hugs from kids who had no clue who I was. I couldn't believe it and I was instantly crazy about them. The rest of the week was filled with swimming, crafts, baseball games, story telling, singing, playing, laughing and just plain fun. On my last day, I cried like a baby when I had to leave them...and I miss them terribly now. I was only there for a week but the impact these kids made on my heart will be endless. Losing my purse at the beginning of my trip was a pretty incredible story to tell, but learning from these kids as they truly enjoy and seem to value all the good they have in their lives was by far the most amazing part of my experience at camp and has made me reevaluate the many of the ways in which I live as a spoiled American.

Zach Sneed

Zach Sneed is the new Camp Coordinator at Campo Alegria. His primary focus will be to facilitate mission teams and manage daily camp activities. Zach graduated from Georgia Southern University in 2005 with a Bachelors of Science in Sport Management with minors in Business and Management. Zach has spent the last 5 years working with 3 different professional sports teams in sales and marketing. He visited Campo Alegria in July of 2009 with his good friend Clark Bridge and says that life has never been the same. Zach plans to find work as a full time camp director somewhere after his 6 months stay here at Campo Alegria. He enjoys fishing, backpacking, photography and sports. You can follow Zach on our facebook page as he will be writing a photo blog.