Day Four of stove delivery went much smoother than Day Three as we returned to the mountain area of Acetenango. We were able to deliver all fifteen of our stoves to a group of homes outside a small city. All the homes were constructed of corrugated metal with dirt floors. Most had a single light socket as their only electrical source.
Josue and Bindy do an awesome job explaining the stove’s use as many of the recipients have never seen one. It is so cool to watch the faces of the recipients go from curiosity, to skepticism, to delight. The old cooking area is usually stacked up cinder blocks or rocks with odd pieces of metal for the cook area. The Ecocina stoves produce less smoke, use less wood, are safe to touch and truly change the work day of the women. One woman told us she got up before daybreak to start a fire to prepare food before her husband headed out to work in the fields.
During our day we found more beautiful children to love on and surprise with stuffed Salvation Dolls, dogs and bracelets. Dave Fechtmeister and Libby Minter found babies to love on.
It began raining (it is rainy season here!) about halfway through the deliveries. We had a laugh as we ran through one woman’s yard gathering clothes off the line when it began. After completing our deliveries we had another roadside lunch of PB&J sandwiches before returning to Casa Angelina. Since we completed our work early, we rode back to Antigua for some brief shopping in the market and visited the jade factory. Last night we joined Josue and Bindy at a beautiful restaurant on a large hill overlooking Antigua before returning to our hotel for a good night’s sleep before beginning our last day of stove deliveries.
From Martha Minter: We were shaken awake this morning by a 6.7 earthquake. We were all fine, but it was exciting for sure. Libby and I headed back out with the Grace For Guatemala stove team today. Our trek took us about a 45 min drive to the village of Acatenago (place of coffee) at the base of a volcano. It was another cold and rainy day full of blessings.
