HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1997-05-07, Page 6c
i -TME MWION EXPOSITOR, May 7, VINO
Feature
Vacation with a purpose in Nicaragua
BY DAVID SCOTT
Expositor Editor
On some trips, getting there
is hdf the fun.
if you could call losing
your luggage, riding in.a bus
with no washroom for 10
hours over a bumpy road and
cramming about a dozen peo-
ple in a small motor boat for
a three-hour ride. having fun.
It was described as "a vaca-
tion with a purpose." TVA,
local couples volunteered a
few weeks of their time in
January and February of this
year to build a roof for a two-
storey school in Bluefields,
Nicaragua. Marlen and Jane
Vincent and Tyler . and
Summer Papple were mem-
bers of three of four work
crews that spent two weeks
each working side by side
with Nicaraguans finishing
the six -room school.
The project was coordinat-
ed by the London Conference
of the •United `Church of
Canada and the Moravian
-Church of: Nicaragua. The
Vineents heard about the pro-
jeet at Northside- United and
the Dapples at Egmondville
United.
The Vinvcnts were on the
first group of the eight-week
project at the beginning of
January. The project co-ordi-
nator was Allan Grose of
Stratford and construction
foreman was Rudy .Rauser of._ These two worked
with each of the (our work
crews throughout the enure
length of the project. •
Tons of Supplies
All the necessary building
. materials had been shipped
ahead of time 75,000
pounds of tools and supplies.
However. unloading. the
barge and moving things to
the work site was'a main-•
moth task in itself.
"The barge 'came in at 4
• p.m. on Monday (with the.
• supplies): The next morning
we went to unload it. We had
no forklift. There was. a
1000 -Ib. transformer. welding
rod. wiring." said Marlen.
"The town had a small truck,
with a 10' by 10' box. There
were trusses that weighed
400. pounds. It took us all of
Tuesday to get the supplies
up to the school."
Because there was no fork-
lift or hoist on the truck. all
of the crates had to be opened
and supplies moved separate-
ly-- by hand.
Luggage Gets Lost
Tyler unfortunately lost his
luggage on the way down.
When he made his connect-
ing flight in Houston to
Managua. his luggage - two
SWUNG FACES - Jane and Marten Vincent of Seatorth
pose for a photo with Bridget and Janette, granddaughters
of the minister of the Moravian Church in Bluetietds.
CROWDED.BOAT - Tyler and Summer Papple, second
row, left, take a boat ride from El Rama to Bluetietds.
hockey •duffel hags full of
antibiotics and other medical
supplies obtained through
Seaforth Community
Hospital worth over $7,000 -
were.sent to some other tropi-
cal location. They eventually
made it to Bluefields.
He previously had to fill
out piles of paperwork sent
by the Nicaraguan Embassy
in. Ottawa to clear the medi-
cine he was bringing with
him.
Tyler was on both the third
and fourth • work crews.
Summer joined him on the
fourth group.
"We took two bags each -
lf(1 lbs. Everybody was over
weight." said Summer.
People carried as much as
they possibly could - most °l-
it- would be left in Nicaragua.
Marten also had a large
Toad of luggage a Bauer's
goalie bag and- a. big Sea -Doo
bag full of school supplies.
Impoverished Country
Bluefields has a population
of about 36,000. Nicaragua is
a -poor -country and most of
its people. are impoverished.
It has a history of political
and social- instability and to
make matters worse. the
country was hit -by a :hurri-
cane in 1988 that `destroyed
many buildings and- boats -
some of which still lay
strewn in -harbours.
The hurricane also damaged
the Bluefields hospital. All of
the air conditioning was
knocked 'out. The only area
that was repaired was in the
surgical unit, said Marlen,
who toured the hospital with
his wife.
The Nicaraguans who
SCHOOL BEFORE ROOF - This is the L-shaped, six -classroom school that work crews
from Canada built a roof for in Bluefields. The two wings are about 130 feet in length.
l�0Iiiherdl
Official Opening
Paul Steckle
Campaign Headquarters.
Thurs., May 1 at 12'30pirr
54 Court House Sg3trace
Goderich . -
524-2655 1-800.259-9250
E -Mail: steckle@huroutel.ott.ca
Seaforth Offer OPEN
92 Main St. S. — 527-0469
Campaign Headquarters 1.800.259-9250
Authorized by Eugene Bender, official agent Pot I rut Steckle
helped the crews work were
members of the local church.
For most it was volunteer
work, a few received money -
like the bricklayers. Jobs are
difficult to find in Nicaragua
with an astronomical 80 per
cent unemployment rate. A
lot of people go w work on
cruise ships.
The civil war basically
wiped out a whole generation
of men. "If they didn't want
to go to war, they went to the
States." said Marten. "-The
kids have come back to live
with grandpa and grandma."
The school the crews
worked on was a two-storey
building. The first floor was
built in 1980 and the second
in 1990 - another project by
the London Conference of
United Church.
Travelling Difficult
Getting from Managua to
Bluefields was another
adventure - 10 hours by bus
and then three hours by.boat.
The roads have deteriorated
in the past years. said Marlen.
The same IO -hour ride used
to only take three hours. The
small. single -rear -axle bus
had no washroom and all lug-
gage was tied to the roof with
a tarp on top. Tyler had trou-
ble just fitting in the bus seat
because of the lack of leg
spade. For Summer's bus ride
overnight. someone left a
window open and it got quite
cold as people were trying to
sleep. "1 know how to say
'open the door' in. Spanish
but not 'close the window,' "
she said.
Alt of -the people and lug-
gage had to then fit on a
small, cramped motor boat.
"We had 22 pieces of luggage
for eight people." said Jane.
House 'Bugged'
The accommodation for the
- work crews was a 'guest
house' owned by the
Moravian Church. No one
•
had lived in it since the last
work project in 1990. '"There
were rats. spiders and cock-
roaches." said Summer. "The
banana spiders were the size
- of your hand." Fortunately.
they aren'.t poisonous.
CONTINUED on page 7
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ANNOUNCEMENT
BRENT ROBINSON, DVM
Robin and Peter Wiley are pleased to announce Brent
Robinson will be joining the staff of Clinton Veterinary
Services. Brent is a graduate of the Ontario Veterinary
College in Guelph. Raised on a farm near Dresden, Ontario,
Brent looks forward to working in a rural mixed veterinary
practice. He and his wife, Maria, will be living in Clinton.
In celebration of .our first anniver4ary at our new
location and to introduce Brent to our clients, Clinton
Veterinary Services will be hosting an Open House May 24
•
from 9 am - 2 pm.
e, VET &IA R
275 Huron St., (Hwy. 8 West)
Clinton 482-3558
Oil}1Ck; HOURS: Six days a week, Monday - Friday 8:30 am - 5:30 pot
Saturdays 8 am - 12 noon