After the wonderful success of our first short term mission trip to Guatemala, the RCOA missions team is planning a second, twice as long trip for students from grades 10-12 to obtain credits for graduation. This is the first of two Guatemala Mission Trips scheduled for the 2009/2010 academic year. Here's our principal's report from the first trip:
Dear Parents, Students and Friends of RCOA,
It is my pleasure to report to you that RCOA’s first Short Term Mission Trip was AWESOME! Let me briefly describe our team, some of the activities, and just a little of what our gracious Lord was doing with our group, and perhaps what He would like to do in relationship to RCOA, and, perhaps, your family.
It has always been my opinion that Short Term Missions is one of the most dynamic and powerful tool to change lives-mainly ours! When we go into a third world country to help the church there reach out to the poor, it seems that God is so pleased that he graciously touches our hearts and minds so that the greatest changes happen in us!
In this, our inaugural trip, our team members were Carolyn and me, Wally Schmidt, (the head of Snowfish tours and our overall leader), Nyle Martin (The a-Nyle-ator) Trevor Haug (worship leader and translator), Jocelyn Jaszczyszyn, Janiece Rich, Merv Altona along with two of his children Mike and Megan, Grace Van Shaik, Micah Dreves and, Kris and Brad Duits.
The travelling from Canada to Guatemala City back again went very well. If done thoughtfully and well, Guatemala is a relatively safe and incredibly rich and diverse country to experience the lessons that a Third World Country can teach us. We travelled around in Guatemala in a lovely mini-bus driven by a very knowledgeable Guatemalan (Pedro). Our work projects were varied, as we dug, picked, hacked and shoveled close to 300 feet of ditch to bring in water to the Mission Impact Center in Santa Maria. 
As well, some team members built smokeless ovens, built walls with block and cement, and painted walls. Another part of our team ministered three separate times to an all-girls school (if not for this school the girls would not get an education.) We put on a puppet play & sang Spanish children’s songs to several groups of children, one being the children of the workers at a coffee plantation. There were about 50 children that cautiously accepted our invitation and heard the puppet’s message that Jesus is the rock on which you can build your life.
The other highlights of this trip included living with Guatemalan families that spoke almost no English, and learning about the culture, history and economy by visiting a rubber plantation, a coffee plantation, touring Antigua and Lake Atitlan and many other points of interest. Talk about an incredible education!
However the greatest impact visit according to the students, was our visit to the Guatemalan City Dump, where approximately 11,000 people make their living by picking through the garbage. Our hearts broke at the site of these “scavengers” and watching the 100’s of vultures perched overhead, but were greatly encouraged by a Ministry called Potters House, who call these people “treasures” and who care for them in Jesus Name.
I can only touch on some of the events that happened, because so much happened! I haven’t even talked about the day we spent climbing and walking into the heart of an “active” volcano…touching red hot lava, and living to tell about it!
However there are three things that I can say for sure:
1). The RCOA students that participated are wonderful young people and daily demonstrated their maturing Christian Character. The whole group was instantly unified and worked together wonderfully. Parents, you should be so proud of them, your children!
2.) God took this opportunity to touch us all in a myriad of ways. Many of us were greatly encouraged in our faith, some making re-commitments to walk closer to the Lord, and other expressing a gratefulness born of a practical and first-hand knowledge to how so many others actually live. All the students expressed a deep love for their families and gratefulness for what each one has in Canada. We all will always be touched and changed by what are experienced together on this trip.
3.) RCOA will continue to provide opportunities to learn and serve Third World countries, especially Guatemala. Would you please pray and dream with me as we put together two types of spiritual adventures? These are:
A) Learning Spanish and Leadership/Cross Cultural Missions in Guatemala. Grade 10-12 Students will have the opportunity to earn High School Credits by taking I Spanish 11 (4), Leadership I (2) and Cross Cultural Missions (4) while living in Guatemala for the month of November 2008. What a genuine and creative way to really learn a language and study missions by living in a Spanish Speaking Country and actually doing Missions work!
B) Short Term Mission Adventure -2009. We’ll do a similar trip to this year’s, suitable for families and students, in one year from now, (February 3- 15,2009) for two weeks, again in Guatemala.
In summary, I know I could have written five times this amount, and still just scratched the surface of the blessings and benefits of this trip. Please feel free to talk to any of the students about how they viewed this powerful time in their lives. A few of their comments will be:
-“I became so grateful for what I have, especially for my family.”
_”Guatemala is a land of contrast, with horses working alongside modern vehicles.”
-“God has incredible plans for all of our lives. He is and will be faithful”
Please call me or email me at the office to find out more about RCOA’s future plans for Short Term Missions and the Spanish Immersion/Missions courses in November of this year in Guatemala. God is opening a door…with you go through? Let’s talk!
Vaya con Dios! I Dios les bendiga!
Blessings Mark
