Campamento Extremo 4

Oh my!  It's been over a year since I wrote my last blog post, so let me catch you up!

Since August of 2014, Walter and I decided to move off of the mission field and come to live permanently in the USA.  There were many factors involved in this decision, but the primary ones were more opportunities for our son as he grows up and the fact that our ministry in Peru was only seasonal and not full-time.  Since we came to the US last November, we were unable to participate physically in the third Campamento Extremo in January; however, I did still write the Bible lessons for the week of the camp.  We spent our time here visiting some churches and raising support that would go 100% toward the needs of the camp and 0% toward our personal needs/income.  Then, we went back to Peru for three weeks in July to work on the fourth Campamento Extremo.  This one also followed the Patriot theme.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with our camps, let me re-cap...

"Campamento Extremo" means "Extreme Camp".  We adopted this name for our camps based on circumstance (namely, we had very limited resources and had no choice but to make our camp extreme).  There are no bunk houses, the kids sleep in tents (even in the torrential jungle rains!).  Often (since we hold camp at a different property each time) there are no formal bathrooms and makeshift outhouses, or "squatties", are employed instead.  Our campers have been known to bathe in the lake due to lack of running water.  But rather than shed a tear over the poor conditions, we decided to embrace them, and, ironically, it is because of the "extreme" conditions of the camp that it has gained so much popularity.  Our first camp in January 2014 only accommodated 32 campers.  But the numbers have gone up each time and the camp we held in July of this year was attended by 84 campers! 

The four camps that we have done so far have had a military theme with the name "Patriota" ("Patriot").  Throughout the four camps we have studied from God's Word that there are two worlds (the World of Light and the World of Darkness) and we must decide to which one we will show our allegiance.  Once you accept the King's invitation to become a citizen of the World of Light, you must assimilate to the culture of your new kingdom, which requires some life style changes.  We also taught that, although being part of the Kingdom of Light will ultimately lead us to live in Paradise in eternal communion with our King, it is currently a nation at war and we are called to be soldiers to fight in the spiritual battle.  We must not only fight against the dark forces at work in the world but we must also study the enemy to prepare for his attacks, and study our war manual (the Bible) to understand how our King (God) has the power to bring us victory. 

We invite you to come alongside us and support this amazing ministry!  Not only is it a blast to work with the Peruvian volunteers who make this camp possible and the youth who joyfully attend, it is so encouraging to see the fruits of our labor!  In the camp that took place in July, 17 of our 84 campers accepted Christ!  The next camp will be held the last week of July 2016. We appreciate all prayers and donations.  If you would like to donate financially, please write a check to Glenrock Baptist Church and put "Peru camp" in the memo.  Send to

Glenrock Baptist Church
P.O. Box 151
Fort Mill, SC 19716

If you are unable to donate money but would like to donate items for a future yard sale fundraiser or specific needed materials for the camp, please contact me (Ashley) at ashleywaldmeyer@gmail.com.  In the meantime, check out the links below for videos and pictures of our camps.  Thanks and have a blessed day!

VIDEO CAMPAMENTO EXTREMO 3 ("AMBUSHED")
VIDEO CAMPAMENTO EXTREMO 4 ("COUNTERSTRIKE")
FACEBOOK PAGE (PICTURES FROM ALL CAMPS)

Campamento Xtremo 2

Well, we finished up a second and even cooler camp two weeks ago.   The camp we did in January went over so well with our 35 campers (6 of whom accepted Christ) that they asked for another one in July/August, so we gave them one.  We continued with the Patriot theme and taught about what it means to be a soldier in God’s army, using examples from David’s Mighty Men (II Samuel 23:8-21) and studying about spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6:10-18).  It turned out to be a real hit with 78 campers attending, nine of whom gave their lives to the Lord.  Amen! 

Months before the camp started, the group of leaders from the Alto Voltaje youth group started meeting three times a week to plan the details.  Several times a week Walter went with a few other teammates to go prepare the land at PETRA Ministries, clearing out underbrush and setting up the obstacle course and game sites.  It was a lot of hard work, but the Lord really blessed us with the hands to get it all done in time.  The Campamento Xtremo camp ministry (which is part of the Alto Voltaje youth ministry, directed by Jimmy Sisley) has made such a name for itself that we are now in high demand to plan other extreme camps!  We will be doing 3-day camp at the end of this month for Colegio Ricardo Palma (the Christian school where I used to teach English).  The same school is also requesting two more camps for October and November for other age groups.  We are very excited about this and looking forward to the challenges and joys of putting it all together.  Below is the promotional video we used to advertise the camp followed by some pictures from when the camp was in session (click on pictures to view larger).

 

 

All the campers and leaders

Jimmy Sisley leading the masses

 

Knot-tying workshop

Getting hosed down on a super hot day

 

The camp leaders and people who made the camp possible
(Back: Vann, Solomon, Walter, Alexis, Jean, Cristina, Catya, Guily, Esteban
Front: Jimmy, Ines, Daniel, Peter, Bedman)

Getting decorations ready for the Hawaiian luau Saturday night

First Aid workshop

 

Afternoon relay games

 

Lunch time

Water balloon volleyball

Part of daily obstacle course

Part of daily obstacle course

Campers practicing music to lead worship in nightly chapel sessions

 

Walter showing off one of the camp T-shirts given away as prizes
 

 If you would like to see more pictures of the camps we have done and will be doing, you can “like” our Facebook page, Campamento Xtremo.  If you would like to donate to this ministry, please write checks to “Glenrock Baptist Church” with “Peru camp ministry” in the memo and send to

Glenrock Baptist Church

P.O. Box 151

Fort Mill, SC 29716

Thanks so much for all of your love, prayers and support!  God bless! 
 

Happy San Juan!

Happy San Juan, everyone!  Here in Peru, there is no school or work today because of the Catholic holiday of San Juan, which honors John the Baptist.  Well, I say it honors him, but I’m not so sure how he’d feel about everyone eating “Juanes”, a Peruvian food made of rice, chicken, olives and hard-boiled egg made to look like the head of John the Baptist. 

 

    

 

 

Sorry I’ve been a little MIA for a while.  Turns out that having a baby is hard work!  Yep, that’s right, after a LONG 41 and a half weeks of pregnancy, my firstborn son, Ian, was finally born on June 2.  I actually never went into labor.  Eleven days after my due date, I went to induce labor, but a sonogram showed that the umbilical cord was wrapped around poor little Ian’s neck, so I ended up having to have a C-section instead.  Three weeks later I’m well on the way to being fully healed from my surgery and Ian, who was 8 lbs. 4 oz. when he was born, is perfectly happy and healthy as well. 

 

Now that he’s born and I no longer have an enormous belly getting in my way, it’s crunch time for our next camp session out at PETRA ministries.  It’s scheduled for July 30 through August 2.  Walter will be heading out there regularly with a group of camp staff to clear land, organize games and prepare the bathroom/shower and camp sites.  We still haven’t raised enough money to build bunk houses, but we at least will be able to rent porta-potties this time instead of the “squatty-potties” we dug the last time.  I think the campers are excited about that.  My job, like last time, is to prepare the morning devotional sessions, although, with a baby in tow, I don’t think I’ll be the one to actually teach this time. 

We’re still accepting any donations for the camp that anyone would like to send our way.  If you’re interested, please write a check to Glenrock Baptist Church with “Camp PETRA” in the memo.  Send to Glenrock Baptist Church, P.O. Box 151, Fort Mill, SC 29716.  In the meantime, we’ll also be doing fundraisers here in Pucallpa, such as selling BBQ plates.  Please consider donating and please pray for the fundraising process as well as the success of this camp!  Thanks so much!  God bless!

Soapbox Blog

Happy Semana Santa, everyone! (Semana Santa is “Holy Week”, or, the week before Easter Sunday)

Speaking of Easter, for those of you who are curious, they do not eat ham for their Easter dinner here in Peru.  They eat fish, “the food of our Lord”, since that’s mostly what Jesus ate.  Pretty neat concept.  But my rebellious nature can’t help but crave the huge, tasty, Jewish-law-breaking ham that is traditionally served in the U.S.  But this year Walter and I will be celebrating with a group of missionary friends who are providing a smorgasbord of chicken salads.  I guess it doesn’t matter what you eat as long you understand the reason for the celebration: not only that Jesus Christ died in place of us to pay for our sins, but that he defeated all sin and was resurrected to heaven where he awaits our arrival into the perfect eternity he so graciously offered us through his sacrifice.  John 3:16 (NIRV) says, “God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only son.  Anyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life.”  If you just skipped reading that because you think it’s cliché or lame, I encourage you to go back and actually read it.  Think about it.  If you don’t understand it or never really gave it any thought before, feel free to send me an e-mail at ashleyinperu@gmail.com and we can chat about it or any other verse you might be pondering.  I’m no expert, but I’d be willing to share whatever the Lord has revealed to me about his Word.

I’m happy that, here in Peru, I get the chance to share the Word with others by being a part of a team of Peruvian average Joes who volunteer their time and talents to organizing bi-weekly youth meetings in town.  This youth group is called Alto Voltaje (“High Voltage”).  We come together once every two weeks for a time of fellowship, fun, worship and a biblical message.  As I’ve mentioned before, Walter is part of the team that organizes games and activities and he also is part of the praise band.  I work with Jimmy Sisley to come up with the biblical message for each week and use the internet to research other tools such as videos and stories that pertain to the lesson. 

Last week we had to cancel the youth group meeting due to violent protests in the city over gas prices.  The protests were going on in another city a two and half hour drive away as well.  During this time no gasoline or food was coming into Pucallpa and most people didn’t risk leaving their homes.  School and work was canceled.  Thankfully it only lasted about 3 or 4 days, but those were some long days of staying locked up inside to avoid getting attacked by angry protesters who would steal your tires and burn them in the street.  Unfortunately, a few people even died during these protests, though I doubt that made headlines in any newspaper.  It may have made the news, but most of us don’t know since the city of Pucallpa turned off power and water for a day or two as a threat to get everyone to settle down.  It worked.  Everything is now back to normal…even the gas prices.  Here are a few pictures that some other friends or missionaries managed to get during the protests.

Burning ties in the street 

Police try to control street fires

The streets were empty and all the stores/business were closed

Those who had no choice but to go out paid off police to escort them for protection

 

I don’t mean to scare any of you by telling stories like this, but this is part of life here in Peru.  It’s not that protests such as this are common, but they’re certainly not abnormal either.  The corruption amongst the government and the people is out of control.  I know that everyone says that the United States is on a rocky path right now, too, but let this story be a warning to the chaos and loss of control that will come if the American people don’t start standing up for themselves and educating themselves on how to take care of our nation. 

I know that the purpose of this blog is not to be a political soapbox, but I believe that the political realm is a missionary field as well.  The Lord sends some to far-away countries, but to others he says, “stay.”  That doesn’t mean that those who stay are not called to be missionaries.  It simply means that they are to be missionaries right in their home country.  Jesus taught us to feed and clothe the poor, but don’t you think that if we cleaned up our nation, took care of the corruption, there might be less poor to feed and clothe?  What if instead of giving a poor man a coat, I dedicated some time to research political candidates and vote for the one who will put more jobs in place, allowing this same man and many others the means to buy their own coats.  Is that not also a way to clothe the poor?

Ok, I see that I’m starting to get preach-y so I’ll end it here.  But please do think about these things.  Please spend some time listening to Lord and asking him how He would have you serve him in the context of your own culture and home-town. 

If you’ve gotten this far and are still reading, thank you.  I hope that the length and intensity doesn’t make you decide to not read my blog in the future.  My next blog will probably include pictures of my newborn son, who is due to grace us with his presence in about 5 weeks, on May 22, 2014!  If you’re less of an analytical thinker and more emotional, you’ll probably appreciate that one, so stay tuned!  Thanks again for reading.  God bless!        

Campamento X-Tremo 2014

For anyone who was wondering, the camp back in January went swimmingly!

We did have one incident where a kid got so many ant bites that he had to go to the hospital to get treated for an unexpected allergic reaction, but as soon as he was treated and his rash and swelling went down in his face and hands and feet, he actually decided to go back to the camp for the remaining 3 days instead of head home to rest.  But wait, the story gets even cooler!  This particular camper is 17 years old, raised along with some younger siblings by his single mother.  I got to talk with his mom for a while before we left for the camp and she said that this was his first camp because she was never able to pay for him to do things like this before.  Even this time, she paid me all in coinage that I'm sure she had been saving specifically for the event.  She said that he was a good kid, but struggling with respect and direction in life.  Well, after 5 days of camp, he ended up giving his life to the Lord.  He even went to Walter in tears to talk about some things going on his life.  A week later, I got to talk to him and he said that he can already feel a difference in his relationship with his mom and he apologized to her about how he had been treating her before. 

That's just one story, though.  By the end of the week, 6 of our 36 campers decided to follow Jesus (4 boys and 2 girls).  Praise the Lord!  It actually ended up going so well, that we are planning to do another camp in July (but the kids all said they want it to be a full 7 days this time!), and word about how great Walter is at being a camp administrator has gotten out on the street and he's already led another 2 day/1 night camp since January and has been asked by another group to coordinate a 3 or 4 day camp for September!  I'm so proud of my hubby who finds time for his passions and ministry even with his family and job obligations.

Since the camp, Walter and I have been working in a team led by Jimmy Sisley to lead a down town youth group meeting twice a month called Alto Voltaje ("High Voltage").  Each time we meet we have games, music and a biblical message.  Walter's roles include coordinating games and activities and playing in the praise band, while I partner with Jimmy to come up with lesson topics and aids (like skits and video clips).  We have another girl in charge of communicating with the kids through technology such as Facebook and WhatsApp, a guy in charge of all the sound and tech equipment (who also helps with games), and a few more people who play/sing in the praise band.  We never know what to expect each week, as some weeks we've had as many as 40 teens and early 20-somethings show up, and other weeks we've only had about 20.  If you think of it, please be praying for this group as we will be kicking off the new school-year with our next youth group meeting on Saturday, March 15. 

Not much else has been going on.  My belly just keeps on getting bigger and bigger as I am now  in my third trimester of pregnancy.  As far as Baby Tello is concerned, he and I are both growing well and staying healthy.  He's an active little guy, and I'm sure he will he either be a kick-boxer or soccer player based on how he's been treating me lately, haha. 

Well, I pray you all have a blessed week.  As always, thank you for your prayers and support.  Enjoy the pictures below from "Campamento X-tremo 2014".

Playing "hockey"

Which team can eat a watermelon half fastest?

Jimmy Sisley led all of the night Bible sessions

Night Volleyball

There were lots of water games...this was just one of them.

Vann Brock set up tether ball and it didn't take long before break times were converted into tether ball tournaments.  All the older guys challenged Vann, but could never beat him.

I taught the morning Bible sessions

Part of the obstacle course each team had to complete daily

 

Obstacle course

Obstacle course

Obstacle course

Obstacle course

Which team can sling a water balloon the farthest?!

The man who made it all happen

2 Days and Counting...

Happy New Year Everyone!

Last time I updated was before Thanksgiving.  It’s been super-busy since then.  Once December hit, it was crunch time for planning our camp.   Walter and a small group of guys have been out at the camp almost every day for the last month working on clearing land, building bathrooms and a cook’s quarter’s and preparing the site for games and campers.  I’ve been busy as well, working with Jimmy Sisley in planning the devotion and lesson topics (there will be small group devotions in the mornings and a small sermon/message in the evenings) .  We’ll be going through the whole book of Colossians in the five days of camp (which begin in only 2 days!).  One aspect of our camp that hasn’t really been done by other camps in the Pucallpa area is a workshop session each day.  Several of the camp leaders will use these hour-long morning workshop sessions to pass along some specific skills or knowledge they have, such as handling horses, self defense, first aid, carpentry, knot-tying, etc.  I’ll be teaching the first aid workshop and possibly a workshop on the basics of how to read music, so I’ve been preparing for those as well. 

 There’s still a lot of work to be done in the 2 days before campers gather to take the 40 minute bus ride to their 5-day extreme outdoor experience (they will be sleeping in tents, not bunk houses and will be required to participate rain or shine!)  But I have faith that, with your prayers and support, it will all come together.  We ask that you be in prayer this week for the following:

1)      That none of the leaders/workers who have committed to help will back out (we've already lost 2 this week!).

2)      For general safety before and during the whole camp session (Jan. 22-26)

3)      That the leaders will be diligent in preparing their hearts and minds for whatever we may encounter.

4)      That at least one camper will be moved by the Holy Spirit to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior.

There’s not much else to share for now since lately our lives have been consumed with camp preparations.  But below I have included some pictures of what other things have been going on in our lives in the last two months.  I hope you enjoy!  Thanks so much and God bless!

 

 

We hosted an American Thanksgiving for friends and family...

 



 I put up the Christmas tree...

 

 

My dance class performed in the school Christmas program (sorry the picture's blurry...I'm working on tracking down some clearer ones to share)...

 



 

 Walter and his friends Caleb and Salomon dressed up in costumes and danced around for a Christmas outreach to disabled children and youth...

My belly started to grow...

I sang in the church choir for our Christmas service (I'm front row, third from the left)...

We celebrated Christmas with 15 other members of the family (I hosted again)...

(That's my father-in-law below, demonstrating his vocal talents via Karaoke on Christmas Eve)...

 

Walter and I helped put together a youth outreach led by Jimmy Sisley on Dec. 28.  About 40 teens and 20-somethings came out for a few hours of music, games and a Truth-filled message... 

I helped with decoration and registration...

Aside from helping to plan games and toting all the supplies to the downtown location, Walter also played drums in the praise band...

Walter and the guys finally got all the eels out of the pond at the campsite and caught some fish along the way so they decided to make a snack out of them.  Not a bad meal to celebrate success!

PETRA Progress

Good news!  The pond that Walter and Caleb have been draining is now filled with 7 eels less than before.   The bad news is, we don't know how many more are still in there.  The boys have been working hard the last month or so draining out a pond at the PETRA camp grounds to prepare for a youth camp session in January (our summer time).  The only reason they had to drain it in the first place was because the Brocks' son was bitten/stung by an eel while swimming one day and we decided it would not be a good idea to have a bunch of teenagers play in eel-infested waters.  Here are some pictures of the pond and the work the boys have done so far.

The pond where we intend to end an obstacle course with water games at our camp in January

In order to empty it out of eels, it has to be drained completely.  This is the water pump system they are using.

Now that we're in rainy season, the pond quickly refills, so they also had to dig a ditch so that it would constantly drain on its own when they were not pumping water.

There has been other progress at the PETRA grounds as well.  The Big House has come a long way, thanks to Vann's hard work and the hard work and motivation of a couple from GA who came to help out with construction for a month.  All the first floor walls are up and half of the tresses to support the second floor.  Another team from the same church will be coming for two weeks over the Christmas holiday to continue with the construction.  Even though the picture below (which is a month out of date) shows a good amount of progress since the summer teams were here, it really is nothing compared to the current progress.  The second floor is already being worked on and the day after Thanksgiving, many missionaries will come out for a picnic and "barn raising" to put up some second story walls that Vann has been preparing.

The "Big House"

I, of course, haven't been able to help much with the outdoor and heavy lifting jobs.  I'm now three months along in my pregnancy, but still trying to stay as active as I can.  I continue teaching dance classes, which are going well, but a little stressful as we only have 2 practices left until the Christmas program.  The girls are hard workers and love to learn, which motivates me even more to do my best to teach them what I can.  Our devotion this week was about how, even though our earthly bodies are limited in what they can do, our heavenly bodies will have no boundaries.  Knowing this should help us to not get discouraged when we find certain dance moves difficult, but give us hope and joy in knowing what the Lord has in store for our eternity.  And knowing about this eternity should make us thankful and motivate us to do our best to worship him with the abilities He has given us, even if our "best" is simple compared to what we will do in heaven.  If you're interested in more dance-related devotions, check out my sister Alyssa Campbell's book Time to Dance.  Below are some action shots of me teaching the older girls' class and Olivia teaching the little kids (they're so stinkin' cute!)

Well, that's all the news here.  I forgot to post a picture in my last blog of Walter's 26th birthday party.  He finally caught up to my age on October 12.  Here's a picture of the whole group that celebrated with him and one of him after the Peruvian tradition of shoving the "victim's" face into the cake. 

Melanie Sisley, Raquel Sisley, Luz, Dick, Gloria (Walter's mom), Walter, me, Cristina, Jean Franco, Jimmy Sisley, Guillermo Sisley, Eduardo (Walter's dad), Salomon

In Peruvian tradition (or at least in Pucallpa), after singing three versions of the birthday song in Spanish and in English and the candle has melted down to nothing but a puddle, the person who is celebrating their birthday has to watch out for any nearby friend because it is likely that that person will shove their face into the cake.  Among our group of friends, that person is always Salomon...at least he has the decency to bring a separate cake for the occasion, since no one can eat it after the birthday celebrator's nose and mouth have been all over it.

 

I hope you all have a happy Thanksgiving!  Eat some turkey and give thanks to the Lord for his many blessings.  We are thankful for all of your prayers and support and hopeful that they will continue.  God bless you!