Bill Stauff

Spring Break Mission Trip to Guatemala Planned

Erskine Vice President for Finance and Operations William Stauff has announced plans to lead a short-term mission trip to Guatemala during spring break 2001.

Stauff, who was formerly employed by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, has led several mission trips. His wife Bert, a registered nurse, has done medical mission work in Albania, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Russia, and will accompany the group.

Stauff said Erskine Vice President for Church and Corporate Relations Dr. Jay West invited him and his wife to schedule the Guatemala trip.

"Bert has been on about a dozen similar trips, where her purpose was to help set up medical mission clinics, meet the immediate needs of the people, and do some teaching on medicine and hygiene," said Stauff.

Preparations are under way for a mission to be centered in Huehuetenango, a city of 20,000 people located 160 miles northwest of Guatemala City. Under the auspices of Guatemala Short-Term Ministries, directed by ministry leader Edwin Martinez, participants will engage in evangelism, medical mission work, and a building project, and experience what full-time missionary work might be like.

"Another registered nurse from Minnesota, who is a coordinator for Edwin Martinez, will also go to Guatemala with our group," Stauff said. "Some of the students would work with her each day, getting hands-on experience. This will be a good opportunity, and I have had several students express an interest in the medical mission aspect of the trip.

"Everyone will be able to participate in a building project, with supervision from Edwin Martinez's people down there," Stauff said. "In addition, there will be some evangelism, learning how to prepare and give a testimony, and learning Spanish songs.

"Some students might want to participate in a basketball ministry. There are various local teams of kids we can play against, and give our testimony to them," he said.

Stauff said the participants will work hard every day, and then the last day in Huehuetenango will be devoted to sightseeing. "We will be taken to two significant tourist locations, where we will have a chance for sightseeing and visiting the markets, where it is really a lot of fun to bargain."

Stauff said a good number for the Guatemala trip would be about a dozen people, including the leaders.

The trip will begin with departure on the evening of March 23, with the group scheduled to return April 1. The entire cost of the trip, including airfare, ground transportation, room and board, and a contribution toward bricks and mortar, is estimated at $1,000, with additional money needed for souvenirs, restaurant meals, and other personal expenses.

According to Guatemala Short-Term Ministries literature, about 90 percent of full-time missionaries have begun by serving as short-term missionaries. Comments from those who have experienced short-term missionary service in Huehuetenango indicate that participants have been deeply affected by the experience. "I now realize how blessed we are in the United States and how our generosity can make a difference in other countries," said one participant.

Huehuetenango, in the heart of an area of Mayan villages situated at the base of the Cuchumantanes mountains, can be reached by a five-hour car trip on the Pan American Highway from Guatemala City. In Guatemala City the air is warm to hot in the day and cool in the evening, with little humidity. At higher elevation locations like Huehuetenango, the days are warm and the nights cool to cold and damp. In the highlands, there is a rainy season from May to October and a dry season from November to April.

The three cultures in the area are the Mayan, the Ladino, and the Garifuna. The Maya culture, which involves about 60 percent of the population, is that of the indigenous peoples of Guatemala who wear traditional clothing and live according to the values and practices their ancestors would have embraced centuries ago. The Ladinos are Guatemalans of Spanish descent or westernized indigenous peoples, and they make up nearly 40 percent of the population. The smallest ethnic group, less than one percent of the population, are Garifunas, who are descended from the Arawaks of St. Vincent Island and African slaves.

Anyone interested in the spring break mission trip to Guatemala may telephone Kathy Banks at 864-379-6683, or e-mail her at the following address: banks@erskine.edu