It was more of a culture shock for Rotary Club of Chemainus members travelling back from San Antonio Palopo, Guatemala than the other way around.
Tom Andrews, David Sheppard and Jacqueline Mealing-Sheppard returned home on Feb. 17 from the club’s annual humanitarian trip to the Central American country. They were just in time for the big windstorm that hit the Chemainus region on Family Day Feb. 20 followed by the series of snowfalls that have occurred since then.
Danny Dares, who was also on the trip, came back earlier.
“A little chilly here, not expecting this,” conceded Andrews. “It was so nice down there, 23-24 degrees.”
The Rotarians received anything but a chilly reception from San Antonio Palopo residents for their service. That included: building a house, providing stoves, school supplies, donated shoes, nutrition and food.
“The people are very grateful for what we do,” said Andrews. “It sort of changes lives for the people we help and it changes the lives for Rotarians. It’s beneficial in terms of giving and receiving.
“It’s a wonderful experience. Everyone should try it once. You feel very fortunate what we have, compared to what they have, but they’re still very happy. They don’t know what anyone else has. They’re happy with the lifestyle they have.”
The region emerged successfully from COVID that included a two-year school shutdown to avoid the spread. That made the school supplies an even bigger hit with the students than usual.
“They were quite excited to get their school supplies,” Andrews pointed out. “That was probably the best part, the looks on their faces.”
It’s now been 10 years since Chemainus Rotary Club members made their first foray into San Antonio Palopo. There was only one interruption in 2021 due to COVID when assistance had to be provided from afar.
Related story: Chemainus Rotarian service in Guatemala reaches a milestone
This trip began in a somewhat dubious manner for the entourage. They found the gate to their accommodation locked and Andrews’ backpack went missing for a while before being located. By Jan. 15, all was finally in order and the team joined with a local contractor and the soon-to-be new homeowner for a visit to the building site high on the hills of the village.
The work preparing the home site for the foundation began on Jan. 23. Three huge rocks needed to be dug up and broken into pieces first and the largest stone required four people to remove it with a crowbar and pick axes.
The block work then started and brought a stark contrast to our living conditions for the workers. It looked more like one room than a place where an entire family lives.
The Rotarians feel fortunate to build these houses for happy families. Since the first visit by Chemainus Rotary in 2014, they’ve gotten to know the community well and build friendships and trust. It all started with relationships developed before that by Mealing-Sheppard, who’s been to San Antonio Palopo many times.
The house was completed on Jan. 31.
New shoes continued to delight children in the village. Many people in Chemainus made contributions and students at Queen Margaret’s School in Duncan set up donation boxes there that yielded two full suitcases of shoes.
One hundred children in pre-school to Grade 6 from different neighbourhoods were selected to receive the school supplies for the return to class in mid-February.
Four stoves were purchased for families currently cooking on an open fire inside their homes. The stoves were vented to improve the air quality inside the house. Wood stoves were chosen, as they also are a source of heat for the homes.
Rotary purchases included a powdered nutritional supplement known as Incaparina that is important for so many.
A total of 11 50-pound bags of Incaparina were purchased. Each bag contains 50 packages of the supplement for children ages 1-4 to take twice a month for about six months. The local medical clinic administers the program and monitors the progress of each child’s weight and height.
Andrews, who has made the trip more times than any Rotarian other than Mealing-Sheppard, is happy to continue offering his services in the region.
“It’s a great town,” he said. “We’re happy to go down.”
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