Honduras Mission Trip 2004

Andrew Blasetti	Senior Civil Engineer	I have no idea what time it is, but it's definitely too late to be typing this. I think the malaria pill is affecting my cognition. And everything looks yellow. Fortunately, we are beginning to win the battle against the mosquitos. The bug zapper rarely goes off. I think they're starting to get the message. Tomorrow we'll try to tackle the smell from the fridge, the blaring country music, and the group's bizarre obsession with cheese. Alright, this is starting to sound like a song from Beck. Goodnight!
Carolyn Conlee	Senior Civil Engineer	Woke up at 6:30 a.m. Gave my presentation to Ubil...he really liked the design. it was interesting presenting because everything i said had to be translated back to him. I was the only one to take a nap in the afternoon while everyone indulged in physical labor with shovels and pick axes. When I awoke, I worked as hard as I could to make up for lost time. Several people were pretty impressed with my ability to handle the pick axe. Spent a lot of time with the boys today...they are the most precious people I've ever met. Received about 100 hugs and a million laughs...it was priceless! I also have an admirer...his name is Josue. He says I am muy bonita and calls me "queen." I'm pretty sure tomorrow is going to be similar to today and despite the nightly cold showers, I can't wait. Miss you and love you all. Mom: tell Nancy thanks for the message.
Liza Dhamer	Senior Civil Engineer	Let the work begin! Today was wonderful as always...filled with work. We have the task of building a small courtyard area behind the church, therefore, we were excavating all day - lots of shoveling and "wheelbarrowing." After that, I had the most amazing experience hanging out with the boys at the cross watching the sunset. It was beautiful. Tomorrow we are headed to visit with the girls in La Flecha at the girls orphanage... I look forward to more great experiences. Thank you for following us through this journey. Hope all is well at home - thanks for the messages! Love you -
Sarah Banas	Senior Mechanical Engineer	Today was another very interesting day. I shoveled dirt for a long time! I definitely worked the body--I know I'll be sore in the morning! Katie, Rob (one of the guys on the trip today) busted out the "small hands, smells like cabbage" while working today and I immediately thought of you. Ryan, you'd be proud - I actually came in contact with a soccer ball during the America vs. Honduras game--I not only kicked it, but also hit it with my head! Mom and Pap - I think this is a good jump-start for the diet--the thing I miss most about home is vegetables! Love you, and hope to hear from you soon (Pap, sending a message would be a new way to expand your computer skills :-)
John Boring	Senior Mechanical Engineer	Who loves Mafia??? We do!!! We're currently playing in between everyone's showers. If you smell then we assume you are mafia so you can get your shower. It's a great way to pass the time as 13 of us share one shower. It was a good day today. Moved about 30 tons of dirt. and have about 40 more to go. Just like home right Joe!!! They're keeping me in good shape here. I'll be ready to start building the tree house. I was thinking maybe we'll dig tunnels as well. After dinner we got to run around a bit more playing futbol (soccer) with the boys. It was fun there were just too many people on the field at once. I also got to read a couple letters two of the boys, Marlin and Alfredo, got from their girlfriends. It was really cute. And we saw the sunset from the cross on the hill. I'm sure there are pictures you can see of it. The view Is amazing. Ok that's enough for tonight. Back to Mafia then shower. Love you all.
Jeffrey Cook	Junior Civil Engineer	Hi all. We got down and dirty with the shovels and pick axes. Today we started working on a retaining wall behind the chapel/volunteer center. We spent most of the day digging, about 4 to 6 feet deep. About half of the digging is complete. Tomorrow, or rather today by the time this gets posted, we are going to the girls orphanage down the road a ways. Thanks for the messages. Love, Jeff.
Elizabeth Kenyon	Junior Civil Engineer	Thanks for leaving some love Betty! Today was filled with a whole lot of hard labor. We worked with shovels and pick AXE 's all day long. That was far better then any weight class I could have taken - I'm gonna be hurting tomorrow. It was pretty hard work but you taught me well Dad and the work gloves definitely came in handy. The work boots are a must - thanks Mom. Maggie - I missed you out there on the soccer field!! We played a United States vs. Honduras soccer game .. nice vigorous exercise to end a strenuous day. I was wearing sandals but the boys insisted I try on an extra pair of cleats and sure enough they fit. It was a ton of fun. Over and out. 10-4
Dennis Stefanski	Junior Civil Engineer	Hey everyone, today was uh...a ton of work. We basically shoved for 5 hours and then played with the boys all night. We hung around the cross on the top of the hill for about an hour before dinner, and that was so unreal. Mom, you would be in heaven with the landscape down here. I also got my soccer fix for the day, we played all the boys who are crazy good, but don't worry, we put them in their place. (Actually we lost 5-3 but its all good) Liz, I want to thank you for showin' the love, glad to see you picked up some nice things in Miami haha. You'll definitely have to show everything, but I'm sure Heater will be all excited about it anyhow. Everyone else, I hope all is going well whatever you are. I miss everyone and am excited to see everyone when I get back. Hope everyone is having fun.
James Sutton	Junior Civil Engineer	Hi everyone. Today the seniors presented their designs of the school to Ubil (who is like the head guy here in charge of construction). In addition to that, our project while we are here is gonna be to build a rock wall. So today we basically spent all day moving dirt so that the wall can go in. Then later tonight we had the first official soccer game between the kids and all of us on the big field that they have. We lost 3-5 although we were outnumbered like 3-1. That's it for today, talk to you tomorrow...
James Troise	Junior Civil Engineer	Alright, today was a lot of work but it was also the nicest day yet. Other than an obligatory bum conversation with DD nothing awful happened to myself. I have finally gotten a few mosquito bites but its ok cause I remembered to take my malaria pill tonight. Thanks Mom for the message but two things. One it is alright to refer to Dad as Dad and second don't worry, I will avoid falling as much as possible. Today I think I moved about 300 wheelbarrows full of soil so I am going to bed. Oh and if you are wondering why, it's because we've been assigned the task of building a wall which involves moving a ton of soil at least. Check out the pictures. Good night.
Robert Guinivan	Sophomore Civil Engineer	I'm so tired, so I'm sorry this is gonna be short. We had a long hard day of work digging and pick-axing (lots of fun when your get frustrated). Then we played with the kids alot, which definatly takes it out of you. Played soccer after dinner, we almost won...goodnight all, I'm just about falling asleep writing this....love and miss you all.
David Dinehart	Faculty Advisor	Robert's intro. I'm a little too old for all this hard labor, and I'm way too old for playing soccer after a hard day's labor. Matt and Abby, since Mom says you're being so good, look for something in your closet that is soft and keeps you warm at night. Have fun with them, and give Mommy a hug for me. Miss you and love you Shell. Goodnight ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Shawn Gross	Faculty Advisor	Well...what can I say? Ubil certainly had some digging for us to do. As in moving a mountain of dirt...but the hard labor feels good. Jen: the pick-ax works much better here than in the back yard! See the pictures for proof! Tomorrow we'll visit a few schools and consider any changes to the current plans for the school, but Ubil was very impressed with the three groups' efforts. We did finally play soccer and lost 5-3 even though we were up 3-2 late. Speaking of late. It's about 1:00 AM right now, but the "Lucky Five" has been up working on the group journal and having a blast. Trust me, I can't do it justice by trying to describe it here, but it's been quite a bit of fun. Anyhow, good night (buenas noches) to all. Love you, Jen. Thanks for the messages!