Saturday, January 12

Our last full day in Panama. Friday's post was just updated as of 4:20PM. - Coach Haas

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So we are going to do some tourism stuff like see the canal, go shopping, and so on. It'll be a great day. We went to some bazaar type shopping area and got some souvenirs. Then we made our way to the mall and by some act of God's inspiration we made it there after almost going the wrong way and backing up on a main road. We had lunch at Quiznos again and looked around. It was a really cool place with toy trains around the food court and a mall so big it needs parking organized with animals. Now we are looking for a super market for Coach to get coffee and hot sauce and then we are headed for the canal.

We went and saw the canal and a boat was just finishing its trip to the Atlantic Ocean. There was a huge museum and a small exhibit about the marine life. It was very impressive and really an intelligent design even as way back as 1913.

They sure do love that canal. (:

We went to this insanely shady waterfall swimming hole and met this guy that pretty much said, "hey, panama is great, no? There is carnivals and they are great you can drink for four days and four nights and nobody says nothing. Girls are nice too. They have nice hips and are warm". Thanks bud. It was so shady and awkward, but it was a beautiful spot with fish that love to eat spit.

Coach taught Jeremy how to drive stick and he drove back to our home. It was quite impressive, I must say.

We went to Niko's one last time for dinner and had devotions about prayer and then reflected on the whole trip and everyone we talked to.

Luke for the Team

Friday, January 11

After a fun and late evening with Daniel’s basketball team we woke for an 8 AM breakfast of pancakes. Daniel gave us a report on the previous evening’s testimonies and message of salvation. Five of the thirteen boys responded that they accepted Christ as their savior last evening. The previous number was 7; however 2 of them had done so previously. One wrote that he is “certain that it will change his life”. Another wrote that he has not accepted Christ yet but he believes he will soon make that decision. Yet another that had already accepted Christ previously wrote “to follow the path of God forever and to honor God.” One of the young men stated that he wants to see further change in his life because he doesn’t obey his parents and doesn’t behave well.

We then took the ½ mile walk back to the gymnasium for some more b-ball. We split into 6 teams of 3 per tem with each team have a gringo captain. We played one another for about two hours. The boys made significant improvement in their level of lay in just that short amount of time. You could see them trying to emulate our passing and a few learned “give and goes” for easy lay ups. The day before none of them drove to the basket.

Returning to Casa Paraiso we helped prepare lunch while the boys showered. After sandwiches, chips, fruit, and lemon lime tang we said our goodbyes to our new friends. We provided them with a list of our names for Facebook and have already received friend requests.

After their departure we showered and set out for some sightseeing. We visited the Ancon Hill - a steep 654-foot hill which overlooks Panama City and the canal.

It was under U.S. jurisdiction as part of the Panama Canal Zone for much of the 20th century and therefore was never developed like most of the surrounding urbanized parts of the city. As a result, it became a kind of an "island" of jungle in an urban area, where wildlife still survives cut off from other jungle areas. Great views!

We then drove out on the Amador causeway for an awesome seafood dinner. The causeway is a roadway and walking path that stretches from the mainland to four small islands in the Panama Bay (Naos, Culebra, Perico, and Flamenco Islands). It was constructed from rock that was removed from the construction of the Panama Canal. Joey didn’t want any part of the ceviche. Phenomenal batidos (fruit milkshakes).

Coach Haas

Thursday, January 10

Good morning world (: it is another beautiful day in Paraíso and the sun is shining and the birds are chirping and all is good. My body hurts me. And the cuts on my knees look gross. I'm sure everyone else hurts really bad too. This morning we are going to an orphanage for kids 5 and under so I am so excited. BABIES!

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. (2 Corinthians 4:16)

Orphanages are the hardest places to leave. Definitely. Unfortunately they didn't let us bring in cameras or take pictures. Diego, was the favorite because he was so cute and when you said "Y bebe" he would sing and bob his head like little hip hop song. It was adorable. Bernardo was a villain and a toy stealer, I held a child for a solid 25 minutes and he never told me his name, but loved showing me Mickey, Minnie, and Pluto. It was,a lot of fun and very uplifting. I love kids. I pray that they will come to be better off than now and come to know The Lord.

But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, "Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it."
(Mark 10:14, 15 ESV)

We are not alone anymore.

I sweat a lot.

The kids are here to play basketball. It's 13 junior high boys. Haha I do love them, but they are certainly a handful. They are not very good at basketball so we had a little fun playing them. I drained a couple of threes and had maybe 5 or 6 steals. It was a lot of fun. We came back and showered which as you can guess is quite the ordeal. They are captivated by Jayson's motorcycle game.

After dinner we went and had a youth group like program. We played pingpong and Señor Presidente (one kid got out because he farted and laughed), Daniel shared, Jeremy, and I shared too. Jeremy suggested I play a song I wrote, so I was voted into it by the flapping of people arms like voting for an infraction.

We shared testimonies, I showed them my novia, and it was a great time of sharing. Two of them also shared a little too about their lives. Jayson spoke out of 1 Juan and shared the gospel. Daniel said that 7 made a declaration of faith. Wow. Awesomeness. Great day. Great night. We are watching Facing the Giants in Spanish. Reminds me of the good ol' days in Sra. Winokur's class.

Luke

Wednesday PM, January 9

We had another fun-filled, action-packed day here in Panama. This morning we had a delicious breakfast on the floor below where we are staying. I had a healthy bowl of honey bunches of oats topped off with a little dab of a lucky charms knock-off. We left around 8:30 because we were headed to a prison. The prison is for juveniles who have broken the law and were penalized with time in a facility but were too young to be placed in a normal prison. The kids’ ages ranged from 15-20 and there were a few exceptions who were older. We were told that about 80% of the kids were convicted of some type of theft. The facility was newly constructed and top-of-the-line.

The kids shared a cell with one other person and there were four cells to a building. Each building had its own futsal and basketball court, which was fenced in by barbed wire. The facility offered work for the kids and could choose from a variety of trades to learn. The facility was training the kids in cooking, sewing, carpentry, and also computer technology. Our team had the great opportunity to play futsal (small court soccer) with some of the kids. I think some of them were incarcerated because they were too good at soccer. It was fun to kick a ball around and sweat in the scorching sun with the kids. Afterwards we shared the gospel message. Luke shared his testimony which then Jayson translated into Spanish. I met a boy named Luis. He only has a few weeks left before he is to be released from juvenile prison. He has a relationship with one of the missionaries (Daniel) that brought us to the prison. Luis told the missionary that as soon as he is out of the prison he will call him. Today, when Luis saw the missionary his first question was, “Do you still have the same telephone number?” It was clear that he professed his faith to Christ when the missionary came to the prison the first time. Luis wants to serve at a church and learn more about God. It is exciting to know that were we able to share the gospel and also hand out the gospel of John. We can praise God for people like Luis who are going through so much and God has hand selected him to further His kingdom. Please keep Luis in prayer as his time is close to ending at the facility.

Also at night we had another scheduled game of futsal to play. It was a continuation from the tournament we were competing in yesterday night. Our team was pretty exhausted and beat up.

I, myself, have a lovely pair of open blisters on the balls of my feet to prove this sport can get intense. As a team we had a wonderful time of devotion before the game and then we were as ready as we were every going to be. At half-time, the score was 5-2 in favor of our team. I had a hat-trick, Jayson and David (a missionary who works with Score, also an amazing soccer player from Uruguay) each had a goal. The second half reflected our “elderly wisdom” as we began to grow tired and failed on defense.

The other team scored 5 consecutive unanswered goals. We just wanted the other team to feel good about themselves so we could present the gospel to them. The final score was 7-6 as we made a last effort to reach a tie. We may have lost the game but God definitely did work through us tonight. We shared the gospel with the opposing team and collected email addresses to stay in close contact with them.

Today was a long day and well spent. We are tired, but we are looking forward to visiting an orphanage first thing in the morning tomorrow and then we begin basketball.
God Bless!
-Jeremy and Gringos

Tuesday PM, January 8

Hola amigos! Sorry for the delay in this blog post. We have been very busy these couple days and also very tired. I think a lot of it has to do with laziness as well though. But anyways, yesterday was a wonderful day in Panama. We got up early, ate breakfast, and headed out to a local village to go and visit.
Heading out to the island near Gamboa.

We were accompanied by David “bueno” and his wife and child. They go out to this village every Wednesday and talk to the local people about God and the bible. The villages we went to are two tribes named the Wounaan and Emberas. There are approximately 10 families in each tribe. It was amazing to see all the local people and the way that they lived.

Bananas or Plantains?

Tuesday AM, January 8

Yesterday we met a Rotarian (Tom McCormack). He runs a clinic providing prostheses. We gave a full set of catcher’s gear to a 16 year old ball player that Tom had met and identified as in need of equipment. He was so excited!

Next we were back to the church to do some work with church members because they were on holiday. We had a great time painting and interacting with the people.

They fed us a nice meal of rice, beans, and some beef. We said our goodbyes to the church and city of David and headed east for the 5-6 hour drive back to Paraisio/Panama City.

BTW, we had no problems with the Martyr’s Day holiday. Our team is working together so well and God is protecting us in our work and travels.

Woke up around 630 here in Paraiso (Paradise); it may be pretty close to paradise. I cleaned up some work and recruiting emails before our 830 breakfast. It’s great having wi-fi available in our residence. The residence here is awesome. We are definitely not roughing it. We have three sets of bedrooms, 4 showers, a kitchenette and a large cathedral ceiling meeting room. We have very nice accommodations. I am getting better at trusting God to lead us and give Him my expectations for the day. Our time in David taught me more about giving the Lord my expectations. I shared this during our devotions when we hiked to the bottom of a canyon and went swimming in the river.

Coach Haas

Monday AM, January 7

After a great dinner in Boquete last evening at Big Daddy’s Grill and then dessert in another restaurant we returned to our little home on the outskirts of Boquete. We played some cards and packed. We awoke early, cleaned up and said goodbye to Boquete. Off to breakfast and wifi connection at McDonalds. We are meeting a Rotarian this morning so we can provide a ball player with a new set of catcher’s gear that was donated. Then we are back to the church to assist them in their work day. We were fortunate to be with the church on this work day scheduled for one of their national holidays. However, we will keep a low profile because it is the celebration of Martyr’s Day.

Martyrs' Day is a Panamanian holiday which commemorates the January 9, 1964 riots over sovereignty of the Panama Canal Zone. The riot started after a Panamanian flag was torn during conflict between Panamanian students and Canal Zone Police officers, over the right of the Panamanian flag to be flown alongside the U.S. flag.
U.S. Army units became involved in suppressing the violence after Canal Zone police were overwhelmed, and after three days of fighting, about 21 Panamanians and four U.S. soldiers were killed. The incident is considered to be a significant factor in the U.S. decision to transfer control of the Canal Zone to Panama through the 1977 Torrijos-Carter Treaties.

Coach Haas

Sunday, January 6

Together forever and ever
This morning we got up and drove for 25 minutes to McDonald's and Jeremy asked for yogurt and the lady said they don't have yogurt until 1130. Jayson asked for yogurt and suddenly it appeared. Perhaps time travel was involved. Then we went to Pastor Byron's church where they had a very good Sunday School program. We went around to all the classes and gave a few testimonies. After Sunday school church started. Luke and Joey gave testimonies. Jayson played fantastically Revelation Song in Spanish. After church, they had spaghetti for us. After spaghetti pastor Byron took us to the church's orphanage where we were able to play with kids. They loved on us. We needed it (: We believe that we were blessed more than they were. We went to go see the construction site of the new orphanage for 100 children. After our work side of the day, we went to the restaurant that we went to with Camillo and instead of delicious piña we climbed down the very steep slope leading to a fresh water stream and waterfall. We went swimming and had great devotions by the stream. We nearly lost our pants, but it was a great time. We left our mark on Panama with a cairn by the stream. For dinner we headed to downtown Boquete. The night before while we mooching the wifi from a local store we saw an interesting restaurant called Big Daddy's Grill so we decided to go there tonight. We met the co owner, Elizabeth. The food was delicious and we had a great time. We are bonding as a team a lot. Looking forward to going to the work day tomorrow at church and then driving 5+ hours back to Panama City.

Jayson

Saturday evening, Janaury 5

We continued to go along our way and went to the field to start our clinic and no one came. We went to another field to try to find people and there was a game going on. Then we went to another field and nothing so we went back to the field with the game going on and watched the little leaguers. We spent the day with Jonathan, Pastor Byron's son, or as his friends and his hat call him, Pepe. He is a great kid that loves soccer, Fernando Torres, and Call of Duty. We went to his soccer game after enjoying a couples duros, a delicious frozen treat with your choice of fruit, or something. They were so yummy.
Well since we are on Panama time, Jonathan's game is delayed 2 hours, so we went to go get lunch at Java Juice. I got a cheese burger and a shake with guanabana. Whatever that is. But it looks stinking sweet. Go on Google it. I'll wait.
Well I must say it was pretty good. I like guanabana, but guanabana does not like me. Poor Java Juice bathroom (Jeremy, Joey, Jonathan as well). We went to Juanathan's game and watched Pepe score 2 unofficial goals. It was so much fun. They won 7-0 and his skills made us want to recruit him for our Fut-sol team for next week. We took him back to his house and met his dogs while Jayson used the bathroom.

Después de esto, nosotros jugamos beisbol con muchos niños. Personas en la iglesia llegan tarde, pero llegan. Fue un placer para cuidan y practican con los niños.
(After that, we played baseball with a lot of kids. People from the church came late, but they came. It was a pleasure to take care and practice with the kids).
Also, my brain is stuck on Spanish, lo siento. Me encantan todos los niños. Un muchacho tiene mucho talento. Nosotros están en acuerdo que este muchacho va a jugar en Los Majors. También, Navier or Javier yo pudé oír que dició, pero era muy divertido. Google translate this. I can't do everything for you...
I'm so glad we got to do this with the kids and I hope it made the difference in their lives that it did for me. We gave out all the equipment we brought and it was so much fun seeing their faces. Gloves, bats, helmets, catcher gear was spread around and their faces lit up.
After that we got cold showers and ate delicious Mexican food (Los Casona Mexicana) in Panama.
The end (:

-Luke McAlack

Saturday, 7:15 AM, January 5

When we returned from David to our home in Boquete for the next few days we were amazed at how many stars we could see. Amazing! It was a quiet night with just the gentle breezes coming off the ancient volcano to our North. It still is difficult to realize it is January when you sleep with the e windows open and don’t need any blankets. The roosters in the back yard woke me long before my 7AM alarm.

Our team is doing very well. We are healthy, well fed, enjoying the weather, and remaining open to God’s leading as to what we will be doing from moment to moment. Today should be no different – we plan to run a baseball clinic on a field near the Church (Baptist Bible of David) we attended in 2011. We have no idea how many will attend. After that, we may visit the orphanage the Church is building and may do ……??????. The guys are starting to come down the stairs, better go.

- Coach Haas signing off and sipping a little more of the Panamanian coffee from an old time coffee pot brewed on the stove.

Friday evening, January 4

Hola, Coma Hostess? We are doing wonderful here in the wild Panamanian jungles. Haha, we are currently staking out in a McDonald’s parking lot mooching off of there wi-fi. Today we spent most of the day on the road, weaving in and out of slow semi’s and even slower pedestrians. But don’t worry Jayson is driving so we have no chance of being in danger. We woke up early and traveled West to the Chiriqui province. We met up with a lovely Panamanian man named Camilo. He is like all Panamanians, tall, dark and handsome. He was ecstatic to have us in Panama and to spend our weekend in his home. He gave us a tour of his mother’s home. As we gazed upon the amazingly gorgeous garden filled with wonder and colorful flowers and heavenly aromas, I could only say one thing and I would like to quote my hombre Camillo… “oooooo ohh my Good.” He then showed us more of the city of David and Boquete. There was a small oasis that a man from the Rotary club owned. It overlooked a deep valley and the magnificent volcano of “Baroo.” I hear a lot of Spanish words, but to be honest I don’t know how to spell them. After some more adventures on the road we drove back into David and met with Pastor Byron about tomorrow’s activities. For dinner we stopped at Popeye’s pizzeria. It was a small local pizza shop neighbored by two dance clubs. To say the least, we had some fine dining and great night entertainment. No it wasn’t anything scandalous. So after dinner we searched for free wi-fi internet so we could post this blog. After driving down small streets, into on-coming traffic, we safely arrived at good Ol’ Mickey D’s, which is where we are at the moment. Our team has definitely took this day as an extreme blessing to get to know one another more, witness the beauty of God through His creation, and prepare for the coming days. We are excited to have a baseball clinic tomorrow morning in David!!
Always with laughter,
Jeremy and the rest of the gang