Reflections on a Short-Term Mission to Ecuador
By Grace Anne Crosby ’07

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On June 7, 2007, fourteen bright-eyed, ready-to-go members, myself included, of the Christ Church Episcopal School community embarked on a ten-day mission to the city of Quito and the jungle of Capricho. At 10:00 a.m. our group left the parking lot of the Upper School for the Atlanta airport where a six-hour flight to Quito awaited us. Led by CCES Service Director Elizabeth Jarrett, our group consisted of Hallie Bagnal ’09, Blakely Jarrett ’08, Elizabeth Blake ’09, Robert Furman ’09, Alexis Hinton ’10, Elizabeth Holman ’08, Lena Hulse ’07, Sterling Jarrett ’10, Kelly McLane ’08, Holtie Murphy ’07, Graham Proffitt, Bryson Smith ’07, and myself.

While anxiously waiting in the miles-long line, Elizabeth Jarrett, CCES Director of Service Learning, gave each of us a small, neon-colored notebook for remarking on the beautiful scenery or reflecting on the activities of the day and our servitude to God on this short-term mission. Little did we know that for many of us, writing in the journal would be a daily ritual and a wonderful means of communicating the fun — as well as the depressing and heart-wrenching — experiences of the day.

After the long flight, we arrived in Quito and were greeted by the two interns of Quito Quest, Ashley and Angela, and their leader, Cameron. While standing outside the airport as the bus came to pick us up, I vividly remember the crowded buildings, my initial troubled breathing at an altitude of 9,000 feet above sea level, and the frequent horn-blowing; it seemed to me that Quito’s drivers were more willing to run over a pedestrian than to wait for him to cross the street.

Later that night in the hostel where we stayed for most of our time in Ecuador and which was run by missionaries named Daryl and Kelly, we composed our mission statement, which primarily focused on the notion that we had come to serve others, not ourselves, on this mission. Our statement was framed around Matthew 25: 40: “Whatever you do for the least of these, you do for Me.”

The next day we went sightseeing, visiting the magnificent yet unfinished Basilica, the Plaza de Independencia, and the Angel statue, which was given to Ecuador by France following Ecuador’s independence from Spain. Despite the golden grandeur of the cathedrals, poverty prevailed. Many times I was approached by little children and poor adults who begged to offer a service, such as shining shoes, in return for a few dollars. But I was also astonished by the discovery that many who were poverty- stricken wanted to give as well as to receive. Our encounter with these people’s wishes coincided with the lesson Cameron gave us later that day. In order to reach out to others and share Christ’s love, we must participate in a reciprocal relationship with others; that is, we need to be able to receive as well as to give.

On the third day, we traveled to the town of Tena and checked into a different hostel thirty minutes away from our ministry site in the jungle of Capricho. Upon our arrival, we learned that we would travel to Capricho where we were to have a Vacation Bible School with the local children. I am ashamed to admit, I was a little bit overconfident about my ability to communicate with the children in Spanish. As soon as we had begun recruiting the children who lived in the surrounding shacks, I realized that chatting with tiny children was going to be a challenge. It is sometimes hard communicating with children who speak even my own language, for they tend to speak faster and in shortened, occasionally unintelligible phrases. Imagine what it was like trying to please and understand fifty children when I had limited experience with talking in Spanish, for I had never lived or traveled to a Spanish-speaking country.

During VBS, we prepared crafts, such as “God’s Eyes” (spinning colorful yarn around crosses made of popsicle sticks), games, and Bible lessons for the kids. On the first day, which was Sunday, our group split into two; one group helped with the children’s VBS, and the other gave powerful testimonies that were translated into two different languages to the adult congregation of the church. On the second day, the church graciously prepared for us their traditional meal, consisting of yuca and the most delicious tilapia covered in banana leaves.

After helping out with VBS for two days and participating in construction work for the church, we left Capricho and Tena. As I hugged and kissed the preacher Enrique’s wife, I will never forget her words, “Hasta luego, mi hermana” or “Farewell, my sister [in Christ].”

On the journey back to Quito, we were rewarded by soaking and playing “Mafia” in gorgeous hot springs that were surrounded by the majestic, misty mountains. Our feelings concerning our return to Daryl and Kelly’s house were very much similar to the happy, warm sentiments one feels upon returning home.

On the seventh day, we helped a part of the Youth World organization, La Red, by making cute gifts for the participants and youth leaders of a future conference. After completing this task, we took a cable car up a mountain and hiked to the top. The hike was extremely rigorous, for breathing at such a high altitude is quite an effort! Yet, despite the difficulty breathing, the awe-inspiring, green mountains enhanced my appreciation of God’s creation.

Later that night, we headed to Cameron and her husband Roberto’s Episcopal Church where we played great football and shared testimonies with their youth congregation. During the prayer while Roberto translated his Spanish prayer into English, I remember having a joyous sensation that everyone through Christ was brother and sister and connected to one another despite the distance, language barrier, and other cultural differences!

The next morning, our group went to Mitad del Mundo (the equator). Naturally, I bought a tee shirt exclaiming, “Yo fui a la media del mundo,” or “I went to the equator” and had my picture taken with one hand in the northern hemisphere and the other in the southern hemisphere.

After this brief yet quite entertaining excursion, we traveled back to the Youth World Center where Cameron gave us an orientation on the dump and our ministry to the children in its daycare center. She raised an important question that really hit home with me and hampered my pride. She posed the question, “Why was I born into my family and comfortable lifestyle and not into a family living in broken-down cars and shacks in the dump?” This inquiry, as well as meeting the dump’s minister and wife, who volunteered to serve, gave me a sense of humility. My experience at the dump’s daycare center was no doubt rewarding, for I was able to see the smiling, laughing faces of children who were delighted to have some company and someone to draw with them and twirl them; they were especially overjoyed with twirling, for many of us had lines forming that day!

For the purpose of contrast and time for reflection, we later visited Quito’s wealthy, upscale mall. At first, I was overflowing with emotions of anger and sadness at the wealthy Ecuadorians’ ignorance of their poor neighbors. However, I soon began to realize that I was ignorant, too. I felt shame as well as a sense of helplessness. I pondered over the notion that perhaps these people felt so much shame that denial of the situation became their means of coping with feelings of remorse. Although this was no excuse for their conduct, they were still no worse than me and my ignorance.

On the next-to-the-last day in Ecuador, we visited Casa Gabriel, which is a part of the Youth World Organization that enables boys living on the street to have a nice, clean, Christian home. The residents were responsible for taking care of the house and cooking the meals. To my surprise, the house was very much like our own homes, especially with its living room’s play station and nice television. The current residents were delightful, welcoming, and friendly. Many excelled in school. On the day we visited, two boys performed an interesting rap song that they had written about Casa Gabriel. One of the highlights of our visit, I have to say, was their performance of High School Musical’s songs. Naturally, several of us chimed in!

After our visit, we traveled to El Refugio, which is a 350-acre retreat center. In the afternoon, we were granted solo time for the purpose of having an opportunity for reflection before we left the next day. I used that time for taking in the warm rays of the sunlight, observing the bustling wildlife, and inhaling the tropical air as I engaged in devotion time with myself and God in my secluded place. During this period, I also recollected the fun moments our group had together, such as our “Mafia” games, the crazy monkeys who tried to steal our water bottles and hats, and our singing together; I will never forget Abe’s “Fernando,” which we sang for our bus driver named Fernando, or Madonna’s “Like a Prayer.” I contemplated about my faith and the immense poverty I had seen. When my plane landed in the U.S.A. the next day, which was Father’s Day, I recommitted myself to my faith and to following Christ’s servitude to others.

I know that my life, as well as the other group members’ lives, was impacted by our short-term mission to Ecuador in June 2007.

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