New Shoes Make Us Smile

Here's a snapshot of what we've been up to in Guatemala!

Norman's New Shoes

Wow. What a great day. This team is filled with passionate people who care SO much about these kids! Since this team is made up of individuals, we had to learn about each other fast. We have people here from Florida, Alabama, Michigan, Tennessee, Texas and Maryland. One couple adopted their son from Guatemala four years ago. Another woman was an IMB missionary in Guatemala for many years. And others have done medical mission work in countries all over the world. It's so neat to hear everyone's stories and learn more about what brought them on this trip to minister to orphans and share God's love through a new pair of shoes.

A big reason many people are on this trip is because of Christian music artist Geoff Moore. Geoff has been working with Buckner for over a year now, singing at special events and helping us spread the word about the needs of children all over the world. Some people heard him talking about the trip on radio stations or at concerts.

Several people are here because they heard Carmen Brown on the The Joy FM Radio in Tampa, Fla. Carmen initiated her station's shoe drive this year -- and they raised more than 8,600 pairs of shoes!

This morning we visited Elisa Martinez, a boys' orphanage in Guatemala City. There we met a little boy named Norman who has only lived at the home for about 10 days. He used to live on the streets. Since Norman is too young to stay at this older boys' home, they will be moving him to another home for younger boys later this week. At least now when he goes, he'll be sporting some new shoes.

Here's a video of Norman showing off his new kicks. That's Carmen giving him a hug at the end.

Bringing New Shoes to Kids in Guatemala

I’ve been working for Buckner for about three and a half year now, and I’ve been to Guatemala a couple of times. I’ve traveled with a group of mothers and daughters looking to grow closer together through service, and I’ve traveled with a team of Dallas Baptist University students playing the Guatemalan national baseball team.

So now, as I sit at the airport preparing to board the flight for my third trip to Guatemala, I’m facing an entirely different situation. On this trip, I’ll be with a team of individuals – strangers from around the United States – giving up a week of their lives to deliver shoes to orphans.

Shoes. It’s a really simple thing. But it’s the one thing many of these children never have. Maybe they inherited a pair from someone else or maybe they outgrew their own pair two years ago. Either way, they wear what they’ve got. Holey. Smelly. Old. These are the only shoes they have.

Well after this week, there are going to be a lot of happy kids in Guatemala – kids dancing around, laughing and playing in their very own new pair of shoes – simply because a group of people decided to give a week of their time to make them happy. And the greatest part about it? This group might even get a chance to change their lives.

How? Through sharing Christ’s love. You see, these shoes are more than just shoes. These shoes are the physical expression of Christ’s love for each and every orphan. Every single pair we have to give them was collected and donated by someone who wanted a child to know they were loved. And it’s our job to tell them this!

I’ll be blogging about our trip all week right here. I’ll do my best to post some videos and photos so you can be a part of this incredible experience. There are also some really great people on this trip who you’ll surely get to hear more about throughout the week.

So keep reading! More to follow…
-- Jenny Pope