Costa Rica 2011 trip reflections

A brighter future for La Fortuna, Costa Rica - 3/14/2011
Friday marked the end of our work week. We spent one final day mixing together 3 wheelbarrows full of rock, 3 wheelbarrows full of sifted sand, 3 buckets full of water, and one bag of cement. Others swung the pick axe, hauled dirt, and dug the trenches for the septic tank. We took photos, consumed just enough water to keep us hydrated, and soaked in our remaining hours with our new Costa Rican (aka Ticos) friends. What trip to Central America would be complete without a piñata and soccer? At the farewell party we watched as the young Costa Ricans scrambled to pick up the candy that spewed from the newly broken piñata and played a friendly game of soccer—the gringos versus the Ticos (as gracious guests, we “let” the Costa Ricans win).

This was my sixth Habitat Global Village Trip. Each one unique and each one special in its own way. As a proud new parent, I found myself viewing this year’s trip through this lens. Each morning we arrived on site with several of the families already hauling dirt (their young kids in strollers under the tent or the older ones armed with a shovel helping their mothers). I sympathized with how challenging parenting can be. I knew that putting food on the table and a roof over their family’s head was important to them (as I am sure is true for every parent). I saw firsthand how hard they were willing to work to provide these basic needs for their families. But for one reason or another, they just couldn’t seem to catch a break. Until they found Habitat.

The beauty of Habitat is that you get to see people at their best—both volunteers and homebuying families. Everything we did this week exemplified people being at their best. I saw our team of volunteers pushing their bodies as far as they would go to lift one more shovelful of dirt, to push one more wheelbarrow full of cement, or to carry one more bucket of water. All with the goal of making the dream of owning one’s own house a reality for one of these young families.

I also witnessed four strong, resilient, and beautiful women doing their best to balance raising their families with helping us build their new home. When they weren’t shoveling, they were changing a diaper. When they weren’t nursing, they were tamping down the dirt inside their future home. When they weren’t struggling to keep their curious and sometimes mischievous kids from hurting themselves on site, they were smiling and forming new relationships with 22 gringos from the United States. All with the goal of one day soon, seeing their young children grow up inside their new home.

As I observed these young parents throughout the week, I couldn’t help but notice how different our lives are. But as I left site today for the final time, I left happy. Happy because I know that these parents are doing exactly what they are hardwired to do—provide a safe environment in which their children can grow. Happy because I know the children of these families are poised to break out of the generational poverty their parents, grandparents, great grandparents, etc. have been stuck in. Happy because these families finally caught the break they needed. And happy to know that our group played a role in making this happen.

-Jeff Smith, Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity

How much things change in such short time - 3/11/2011
As the days go by, I can see the volunteers and the families forming a closer bond. We are more at ease around each other and our greetings have become more personal. The children have fallen into a routine and are more comfortable being around us. What a wonderful experience – to be part of a group of people who come from varied backgrounds and speak different languages but share a common goal.

Today, as every other day, we worked hard. We started digging the holes and the trenches for the septic tank for two of the houses. Following the full day of work, we took a boat ride on Lake Arenal. The clouds lifted and our hard work was rewarded with a fantastic view of the volcano. Life is good and I am sad to see the week coming to an end.
-Judy VanOsdel, Global Village team member

Day four of our work came and went, and the knowledge that we’ll be leaving La Fortuna soon seems to be in the back of everyone’s mind. Maybe being out on a lake enjoying the company and the view is what did it. If the group were a brand new pair of shiny work boots, the kind we were timid to wear at first, then certainly now the laces have been adjusted, the leather has stopped creaking, and any trace of buyer’s remorse has vanished. Talk of post-trip gatherings, and of future Global Village trips, is already commonplace.

Next winter, when we’ll no doubt sift longingly through pictures set against La Fortuna’s backdrop, we won’t just see 8 concrete masons, but instead 8 men who graciously shared their space with a group of people from a different country, and provided us with instruction and inspiration as they worked in the heat. Nor will we simply see dozens of community members and Habitat families and staff, but we’ll see the people who made it clear, often with words and always with smiles, that we were welcome in their lives, that this visit was meaningful, and that more are needed. And we won’t be seeing 22 strangers—1 from Atlanta, 1 from Montana, and 20 from Minnesota—but we will see our friends, and we will miss them.
--Noah Keller, Global Village team leader

What we see from our work in Costa Rica - 3/10/2011
Our group of twenty-two volunteers has been split, somewhat informally, into two groups so that we may work on two sets of three houses simultaneously. While the houses are perhaps five hundred feet apart, we are performing different tasks. One group has been digging holes in the hard clay for post footings; and just up the road, our other group is hauling rock and helping mix concrete for the house floors. This group has the additional task of bringing gravel up that road. Meanwhile, the road is in full daytime use as a conveyance for cars, school children, stray dogs, motorcyclists, and really large trucks. A great deal of the concrete mixing is in the roadway itself, and watching for human and vehicular traffic is a constant, if secondary job.

What has impressed me greatly is the sheer amount of traffic on this very modest (read old and narrow) stretch of road. The motorcycle traffic reminds me that helmet, eye protection and maximum passenger limits are not universal. The dogs, of which there are many, remind me that not everyone can afford the luxury of owning a pet, and the canines, like so many of their human counterparts, must fend for themselves. The trucks, bearing rock, concrete, construction materials and produce, remind me that we are in a small nation of a burgeoning economy and great vitality.

And the schoolchildren, in their spotless uniforms and tiny backpacks, remind me that this Costa Rica in which we have been honored guests, is a place of young and energetic people that, with or without the small measure of help we bring, have put their faith in the future by virtue of their optimism and hard work.

--written by Mark Peterson

Kids are the same the world over - 3/10/2011
This is Jane and my second mission type trip (first with H4H) and while we could talk about a million things, the thing that is most striking to us is that people, including the children, are the same the world over. First the kids: Yesterday we gave them a touch of American culture by combining our national sport, baseball, with theirs, soccer and played kickball. Most of the kids were pretty small (age 5-7 or so), but they had a great time kicking the ball and running the bases. The only frustration was trying to interact with them. They talked so fast that my Espanol was of little use. I felt pretty pathetic that I couldn't talk to a 6 year old, but its a good incentive to keep up the studies.

Next the adults. As we found on our first mission trip to Belize, these people are no different from us. They are friendly, want to communicate with us and learn English as much as we want to learn Spanish, and very hospitable. Their work ethic is incredible. We've arrived at the worksite around 8:45 and leave about 3:30 or so. They are there when we arrive, there when we leave, and they don't take breaks or eat all day (as far as I can tell). The only thing that separates them from us is opportunity. If they had the tools we have, they would certainly be as successful. Our job here is to help them close that gap as much as we can.

Are we making a difference? You bet - you can see it in their eyes, their smiles and their "Graciases". That's what makes it worth while.

--written by Dave Moline

Kickball goals in Costa Rica - 3/9/2011
Today, Tuesday, was our second day working on site. Fortunately for our sore muscles, we only worked on site until lunch. A central component of Habitat Global Village Trips is bridging the two worlds being brought together. One way this is accomplished is by participating in a “cultural exchange”. So after lunch we were responsible for bringing a piece of Minnesota life to the Costa Ricans.

We considered numerous ideas for our portion of the cultural exchange--simulated ice fishing using the footing holes we’d dug was considered, but ultimately rejected--and we settled on a friendly game of kickball consisting of players from our group with the Habitat homebuying families and other local school children. This was our way of merging our national pastime (baseball) with Costa Rica’s national pastime (soccer). We had grandiose plans of laying out the rules (it is safe to say that this was the Costa Rican’s first time playing kickball), splitting up in to teams, and playing a few innings of kickball. As anyone who has kids can understand, our plans were quickly thrown out the window as the kids cared less about learning the game and more about kicking the ball and running around the bases. It was hard to tell who had more fun—the adults who were transported back to their own childhood days as they assisted the kids, or the kids whose faces lit up whenever they started running the bases, and especially as they crossed the plate and our animated umpire’s voice filled the neighborhood with “GOOOOOOOOAAAALLLL!!!!”

As the rain moved in, the game came to an abrupt end. We gathered inside the dry community center to laugh and talk about the game. I was struck by two things said to me after the game. The first was by a Costa Rican boy named David. He came up to me and asked me “Who scored more points. Who won?” I laughed—partly because he internalized the game in the same way I did when I was his age, and partly because it reminded me that we probably have more in common than we think.

This thought was soon tempered when another one of the young boys named Joshua approached me with a question. “Tienes agua para tomar?” Translated directly, Joshua was simply asking me if I had any water for him to drink. But to me, I heard him asking for more than just water. As many of the families in the community are faced with what Costa Ricans refer to as “extreme poverty”, I can’t say for sure whether Joshua had the luxury of walking home to get a glass of water (and if he didn’t, I wondered what other sorts of things did he not have). But I know for certain that he didn’t have the luxury of grabbing a new bottle of Dasani water whenever he wanted—a luxury I rarely am without.

I am content knowing that my work here is benefitting several families living in extreme poverty. However, I know that for each family that Habitat serves, there are numerous families Habitat is not able to not serve. I consider myself to be a “glass half full” kind of person. With that in mind, I wanted to conclude my reflection on a positive note. Below is a poem one of our team members wrote yesterday.

--Jeff Smith

A River

Rain falls, the drops meet to form channels
channels meet to form streams
streams meet to form rivers
rivers meet to form big rivers that bring food from fish and from irrigation
and drink to people through its waters
rivers connect places and people
rivers bring life.
Big rivers flow into oceans as the whole process begins again.
Our river, this river, connects Minnesota
to Costa Rica. Our drops of rain are
shovels of dirt. Our shovels of dirt
connect, to make a foundation, that foundation joins with other building components, these components make a house,
that house finds a family, that family
makes a home, that home joins a community, that community joins a village, that village joins a country, that country joins a world, and then we all start again down that path. Habitat Global Village is the river guide for all of us rafters and the shoreline of Costa Rica as the fellow rafters make it all worthwhile.

Poem written by Kevin Filter

Our first day on site - 3/8/2011
This was our first day on the construction site and, for some reason I kept noticing triangles popping up in different ways. First, there were the imposing tent-shaped heaps of sand, rock, and clay that were all necessary for different building purposes, and which all had to be moved prior to use. One group of workers hauled, spread, and compacted a truly impressive amount of soil in order to raise the grade underneath one of the houses—the preliminary estimate stands at about 1,500 shovelfuls per person!
At around three o’clock, after an equally impressive lunch, the clouds veiling the Arenal volcano which rarely dissipate this time of year did just that. Briefly taking their place was a tree-framed view of the peak, appearing as an isosceles monument that dominates the landscape, and one by one the group members and the masons alike paused, took in the picture and, at least speaking for myself, felt quite a bit shorter.
Another sub-group of our team was mixing and wheeling batch after batch of concrete, and we created a ramp in order to better navigate some uneven ground. After installing it at the angle it was a little wobbly, so we used that simplest of all machines, the wedge, to adjust it to a workable state. During one of my wheelbarrow trips it occurred to me that each Habitat Global Village team that arrives in any of our partner countries provides not only resources and labor, but serves also as a type of cultural wedge: not dividing, but rather augmenting the number of families served, building upon the cultural inroads initially struck by past teams, and exchanging ideas, stories, and laughter along the way.
Towards the end of the day, the clouds regained their hold on the volcano’s peak, shovels had weathered down the mountains of materials, and countless trips across the ramp had driven the shims into the earth. Our team will work for several more days here in La Fortuna, and we know that when we leave, another group will take our place. So many great results grow from what seem to be immeasurable beginnings, and I am happy to be participating with Global Village as its influence increases every day. I hope that our collective efforts lead to substantial positive change in people’s quality of life and cultural appreciation. A common mathematical symbol for change, I might point out, happens to be a Greek letter with a fairly recognizable shape (found in many of the pictures we posted on Flickr).

Noah Keller, Team Member, Twin Cities Habitat Staff

We have arrived! - 3/7/2011
After our final team member arrived this morning (her flight was delayed by snow in Montana), our team of 22 was finally complete. Today was set aside as a “travel day” but it was more than just that. On the way out of San Jose, we drove by an “informal settlement” commonly known as a slum. A woman who described herself as the liaison between Costa Rica Habitat for Humanity and the federal government joined us as we traveled from San Jose to our final destination--La Fortuna. As we drove by the slums, she told us about what the government is doing to address these dire living conditions (we included a picture from the slums and the newly constructed affordable housing).
We learned that there are some 1,000 families (although the number could be much higher than that) living in these slums and the government is partnering with non-governmental organizations—Habitat is one such organization—to move these families into stable housing. From what we learned, the government provides a subsidy for these families to move from the slums and into the newly constructed affordable housing located, literally, directly across the street. It was hard to tell how many families had already transitioned to their new housing, but there still seems to be many families waiting for phase two of this project to be completed. To see the slums on one side of the road juxtaposed with the new affordable housing on the other side of the road was a moving experience. For those on one side of the road, their immediate future seems quite bright. For those on the other side, there is still work to be done.
We don’t have to wait long to begin this work—tomorrow is our first day on the construction site. After two days of traveling to La Fortuna, it will be fun to finally put our stored up energy to good use. If the energy I have witnessed within the group over the past few days is sustained for the whole week, the Habitat families with whom we are working will be in their homes in no time!
Jeff Smith, Team Leader, Twin Cities Habitat Staff

Why Costa Rica? - 3/5/2011
Since being founded in 1986, Twin Cities Habitat has always sent 10% of all undesignated funds raised (also known as “tithing”) to support Habitat’s work across the globe. In 2009, Twin Cities Habitat became one of only a handful of Habitat affiliates to have tithed more than $2 million since its inception. This is a remarkable accomplishment and one that demonstrates the commitment and generosity of Twin Cities Habitat supporters.
In 2010, Twin Cities Habitat elected to allocate its annual tithe directly to three Habitat partner countries—Mozambique, Haiti, and Costa Rica. Earlier this year, we sent our first team of volunteers to Costa Rica as part of our new Global Engagement Program (you can read more about that trip through the stories they shared through earlier blog postings on this site).
Since our announcement of our three tithe partner countries, I have been asked a few times by friends and family, “Why did you choose Costa Rica? There are plenty of other countries where the housing need is greater.” First of all, I am glad that these questions have come up. It means that people are now thinking about the need for housing in other parts of the world. Second, we did not choose Costa Rica because the housing need is greatest in this country (certainly there are other countries in Central America even that have a greater need). Among other factors, we chose Costa Rica because it is a place that many people do not associate with poverty or a need for affordable housing. Did you know that an estimated 35% of Costa Ricans live in substandard housing? And if a developed country like Costa Rica struggles to provide affordable housing for its people, then people will begin to realize just how global this issue is.
The reality is that affordable housing is an issue in Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and even the United States. But it is an issue many people are working hard to address—evidenced by the 22 volunteers leaving this week to spend a week in Costa Rica working with the Habitat affiliate in La Fortuna. Over the next week and a half, we will bring you stories and pictures from our trip with the hope of connecting you to our work and informing you about the affordable housing challenges faced by everyday Costa Ricans. Please stop by later this week and follow us on our journey.

Jeff Smith, Team Leader, Twin Cities Habitat Staff Member

Anticipations for the trip ahead - 3/3/2011
The following entries were written by individuals that will be traveling to Costa Rica for the March 2011 Global Village trip:
How I see myself as an ambassador for Habitat for Humanity

By Scott Nelsen
There are a number of ways one can be an ambassador for Habitat for Humanity on this trip. We are giving families hope by serving alongside them to build their homes. We are of course not just helping with the construction of new houses, but we are working in partnership to transform their lives. These people may ask why we travel all this way to work on their houses. I am not sure what to say – maybe it’s not just because we care, but because by serving these gracious people we will transform our own lives.
I am a part of this team that will come from different communities in the United States to work together to build affordable housing with the community of La Fortuna, Costa Rica. I will be a friend helping my new neighbors mix cement and lay bricks to build their homes. While we are working together I will learn new construction techniques and hopefully some new Spanish! During our downtime we will learn even more about ourselves through cultural exchanges. What is their music like? What are their favorite sports and favorite food?
When the building winds down and it’s time to leave, I hope to see that we have built a new community between friends from two different countries. I will reflect on our new friends and accomplishments. I believe we will take another step forward in the elimination of poverty housing.

Continuing our global impact

By Carri Scott & Bryan Trappe

When a Global Mission newsletter came in and asked for help we began to pray. Going on a global trip had been a point of discussion for several years, and we felt this is what God wanted us to do. We saw it also as an opportunity to check off an item on our bucket list. The thought of being in a warm country for a few days instead of freezing for six months also appealed to us!
In 2009 we stopped in Costa Rica for a short time on our cruise through the Panama Canal. We weren’t there nearly long enough, and we wanted to explore inside the country. Building has been Bryan's work for over 55 years, and now, with a change of scenery, we will be helping more than we usually do for friends and church members. We hope this trip will give us an idea of how God has truly blessed us. We can't wait to work with the GREAT bunch of people we’ve met already and worked with in Minneapolis in preparation for our trip. We have many people praying for us, so I'm sure we will have a successful journey.

Moving from Home to Habitat - 3/2/2011
Mark Peterson is one of the volunteers going to La Fortuna, Costa Rica to build homes through Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity's partnership with Habitat for Humanity in Costa Rica. Here is part of his story as he prepares to leave for that trip.

After a few years as an employee of Twin Cities Habitat, I had the chance to join a group of volunteers, both Habitat folks and civilians, who were going to Mobile, Alabama to work on a Blitz Build, one small project of Habitat’s “Operation Home Delivery”. This effort was a part of a nationwide response to the damage caused to the Gulf area by Hurricane Katrina. Our objective was “four houses in four weeks”, and so it came to happen. This was my first experience working on a build outside both my zip code and my comfort zone.

A Global Village trip the following year to El Salvador, where the working conditions were more difficult and hot water was in shorter supply gave me an increased awareness of the breadth of need for housing and help. A common topic of evening conversation among ourselves was: all this work is a stone in the ocean – we won’t even make a dent in the enormous task we thought we might handle. Eventually we concluded that we must do what we could anyway; to witness, if not to heal. Or, as Tolstoy writes, “To lend our light to the sum of light”.

Did I change the site I worked on? Perhaps a little – the graciousness of the host families and their friends would suggest as much. Did the experience change me? Immensely, and for always. I will never think of “substandard housing” as an abstraction again. Nor will I ever think that the people I met, made in my own image, deserve anything less than I do.

Mark Peterson, Twin Cities Habitat Staff Member