La Despedida

Hello family and friends,

After a lot of laughter followed by happy tears, our group left our village, Fatima, yesterday morning. Our last week in Fatima flew by. The group finished up several projects, including painting the wall, replacing a garden, and hosting a soccer tournament. Boy, did our students work hard! And it payed off, too. The town looks great. And we had our share of fun, too!

On Thursday night, the community center was transformed into a roller skating rink with lights and music. We were able to hang out with a lot of Tico (Costa Rican) friends. Then the fun continued Friday night at our going away (despedida) party. We invited everyone we had interacted with throughout the trip for dinner and a dance. The night was amazing! So may community members came and spoke about how much they appreciated our time with them and how impressed they were with the great attitudes and hard work of our students. There wasn´t a dry eye in the house! We had thank you cards and gifts ready and were touched when they presented us with individual cards and gifts and a beautiful framed picture of the region for the Putney office. We all danced and hugged and cried together.

The morning crept up too soon and we boarded the bus bound for San Jose. Now we are anticipating a great last day together on a rafting trip. Then on Sunday we will say our goodbyes and find our separate ways home. Fatima, we will miss you dearly!

Saludos,
Zac and Natalie