guatemala (engineering) spring break 2023 - graham davis day six update
april 21, 2023
the guatemala (eng) team members work with locals to pour concrete
considering how exhausted the team and community was from a long concrete pour yesterday, today was different from our normal routine. we had a full day of travel through the region, being blown away by the outstanding natural beauty and wonders of winding country roads. we traveled just like the locals by fully filling the cab and beds of two small four door pickups, which added to the adventure.
our first stop was in the village of las flores, where we met up with some old friends from home and got to experience the medical side of missions. while we were there we got to see the newest completed water system, which contained a tank almost identical to the pour we did yesterday. it was very encouraging to see a completed project, and how well the system works and is used by the community. after this we headed out for our next stop, which was mercedes. the long 2 hour drive full of rolling mountains and colorful villages was beautiful, along with being the first white people some of the locals had ever seen. when we arrived in mercedes we hiked to the source, then went to the community center to be welcomed by excited locals with printed out american flags.
one of the most impactful moments of the day was when a mother spoke up at this community meeting and expressed how the women are the most affected by the lack of water, given they clean and cook for their families. she compared water to life, and how she has to walk and hour to and from the current water source multiple times a day. it was very encouraging to see a woman speak up in front of her entire community, which i had not seen before here. another woman gifted kevin a beautiful satchel that she had handmade, showing the true gratitude these communities have for clean water and the work we do. overall it was an incredibly memorable day!
graham davis
not a trip
category: student life