Hi everyone, thanks for stopping in to read. This month, we took a team to Mayreau, the smallest inhabited island in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, more on that later. I spent the first two weeks of February with Mike and Ray. We pulled an old horizontally opposed flathead twin generator from a motorhome that we “disassembled.” After getting it running, Mark Hoffman, a board member who used to be a fabricator, gave me a welding lesson. Sam and I made a close-grip row handle out of scrap metal for the cable machine in the gym, and it works pretty well. I spent the rest of my time with Mike and Ray working on an old tractor. It needed the generator and voltage regulator rebuilt, as well as a bunch of rewiring. 

Mayreau

          Our team was Joel, Nolan, Jennie, Wyatt, Sandra, Caleb, Aidan, Sam, and I. We left for the JFK airport in New York at about 1:30 AM on Wednesday and boarded the plane to St. Vincent at 10 AM. After being in five-degree weather, stepping off the plane into the tropic heat was probably one of the best parts of the trip. We got a ride from the airport to a church that hosted us for a night. It was cool seeing cars that were never brought to America, like 70 series Land Cruisers, Hiluxes, Hiaces, and Dynas. After sleeping at the church, we packed up, rode down to the dock and boarded the ferry. Mayreau was bigger than I thought. I expected gravel roads and everyone living in small houses made of random materials. In reality, the roads are nice, although narrow, and houses are made of block and mortar. The YWAM base consists of the Main Sail, which is the warehouse where they store and distribute materials, eat meals, and debrief, three cabins for staff and groups, two cabins destroyed in the hurricane, which are being rebuilt, and Ben and Jess’ house, which can host people downstairs. The Equip guys spent most of our time rebuilding one of the cabins. None of us had ever laid block before, but Wyatt was a great teacher and showed us everything we needed to know. The first three layers laid by a previous group being a little crooked, in addition to the blocks often not being very rectangular, and the mud drying pretty quickly, because of the heat, resulted in a fairly challenging learning curve. Despite the challenges, we were able to make a lot of progress and learn a new skill in the process. On Monday (I think), we went out into the community to talk to people, pray for them, and ask if they needed any help rebuilding. One guy named Patrick, had just demolished a part of his house damaged from the hurricane, and needed help clearing the rubble. The next morning, we showed up with shovels and buckets and cleared out all the rubble. He told us that what we did in a few hours would have taken him around a week. That was a big encouragement. There’s a hoop in the Main Sail, so we played knockout almost every night with the other groups, which was a great way to get to know each other. The beaches on Mayreau are beautiful. The water is warm and clear, and you can see schools of fish swimming right by your feet. For a couple of nights, we also led the kids group that Ben and Jess started. We did a skit of Job, which showed the kids that just because bad things happen to you, such as a massive hurricane, God still loves you.

          We were supposed to be in Mayreau for four full days, but the ferry we were planning to take back got dry-docked. So we were able to spend an extra four full days working on the cabin, spending time with the youth, and swimming. Unfortunately, since Joel and Jenny still had to get back to their duties, they took a speedboat to a nearby island and then flew on a small plane back to St. Vincent. We left the base Saturday morning, caught the smaller ferry back to St. Vincent, got Subway (which was better than American Subway), and went to the church. The next morning, we packed back up, went to the airport, and headed homebound. Upon landing, I was about to follow the rest of the group through customs when I realized I’m not an American citizen. I had to go through the immigrant line, and once I reached the kiosk, I handed the guy my passport. He asked me “What reason are you here?” I said, “For school.” He replied, “So, do you have an I-20?” I asked, “What’s that?” He kinda laughed and said, “Do you have a visa?” and I said, “No.” to which he asked, “Well, what do you have?” I replied, “Nothing.” Then, he just handed me my passport, and I left. God was definitely helping me because he probably shouldn’t have let me through, and I was asked fewer questions than the rest of the group who are American citizens. I later realized I shouldn’t have said, “For school,” because Equip doesn’t classify as formal education, which would require an official document. Mayreau was my first time at a YWAM base, and it was an experience I’ll never forget.

          “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you; I will uphold you with my righteous hand.” – Isaiah 41:10

Godspeed

– Isaac