Ah…Mexico.  Beaches, margaritas, tacos, mariachi music.  These stereotypical ideals of what Mexico is about are the norm in many American minds.  I honeymooned there 18 years ago in Cancun.  It was paradise-perfect and was the right trip to “get away from it all”.  Back then, I was aware of the fact that the face of the country presented in these resorts was far from the reality for most residents of the country, but never gave it much thought beyond that.  This short article about my experience will not do it justice, as there is too much to tell.  However, I hope it will offer a glimpse into a world few of us here will ever encounter.
I returned to Mexico this summer: a different destination with a different purpose.  I, along with my daughter Emily (Cherry Hill West class of 2010) traveled with a team of 31 people to Guadalajara, a city of 1.5 million people, in the state of Jalisco.  The area is the birthplace of tequila and mariachi music, neither of which I experienced while there.  Our group was a team of short-term missionaries from Calvary Church in Delran, headed to support a pair of long-term missionaries who live and work in Guadalajara.  Ironically, Chris Abuiso, one of the missionaries we went to support, is a Cherry Hill East Alumnus.
Chris and his wife Julie have lived in Guadalajara for 10 years as missionaries.  Chris facilitates and oversees construction projects for schools and churches and Julie is a children’s missionary who focuses her efforts in an extremely poor and troubled neighborhood called the Colle.
Immediately upon arrival, we headed to the Colle.  The purpose was to publicize the upcoming Vacation Bible School (VBS) that our group would be conducting throughout the coming week.  Our missionary contact, Julie, who has a 10-year relationship with many of the people in this community, led us up and down the streets with a bullhorn, cheerfully announcing in Spanish the program we would offer.
The poverty was indescribably sobering.  Homes were single or double story cinderblock or any conglomeration of mixed materials such as tin, plywood, corrugated plastic and concrete.  Scores of children in the neighborhood peeped from doorways, played in muddy unpaved streets and waved from windows.  Stray dogs prowled about the neighborhood, without apparent owners.  Two young men sat on the roof of a cinderblock home and openly de-seeded their large marijuana stash, presumably to sell, as the neighborhood is riddled with gang violence and drug dealers.
In a local park, we conducted the VBS, which swelled from about 100 children in attendance, to over 300 by the last day.  This is largely due in part to the fact that we distributed sorely needed supplies of food (masa, rice, beans and lentils) at the end of each session.  For some of the families, this was a meal that would have otherwise been missed due to the extreme poverty.  Many siblings arrived together, sometimes 3 or 4 little ones in tow, supervised only  by an 8 or 10 year old sister.  These beautiful children were given a safe place to play and learn about the Christian faith during each 3 hour session.
Other projects we did include helping to build the infrastructure of a new church in another neighborhood by hauling heavy concrete blocks, cutting them to size.  We also conducted street ministry, where we played games and performed songs and skits for children and adults in a number of neighborhoods.  The Mexican people were gracious and kind, and received us warmly, some even staying to ask questions or receive bibles to further learn about what we believe.
A personal favorite of mine was an outing with about 15 abandoned/orphaned boys who are cared for in a boys’ home by a wonderful couple named Fernando and Blanca.  He is a former drug addict/convict and she a former prostitute who unashamedly say their lives were transformed by God and they now partner to give a safe home to boys who would otherwise live in the streets.  It was truly remarkable to hear their testimonies and see the loving environment they have created for the children.
Many profound and beautiful moments were shared with the team and the new people we met in Mexico.  My goal was to go and help exact change in a dark and poor place, which I was able to do in a small way.  However, I was transformed by the connections I made and the exposure to a world so different from my own.  I was deeply moved by the experience and am so pleased to say I learned a few things this summer.  Chiefly, I have come to see that the world is at once big and small and that hands willing to work serving others are the happiest.