Operacion Hope in Hogar, 2006 

On Saturday, October 14, 2006, five members of Hope United Methodist Church in Lone Jack, Missouri set out for Juarez, Mexico to build a home for a family in need.  I was leading the trip.  It was the first trip I led, and to be honest, I was dreading it, because with only five members I was terribly afraid we would be letting the family down.  I shouldn’t have worried.  We had another member guiding from above.  It’s important to remember who this is all about.

I knew that we were supposed to go.  Everything about the trip had turned golden.  I watched in awe as the fireworks tent we held as a fundraiser for the trip brought in more money than I had ever imagined.  Things just fell into place – even though I didn’t do everything I was supposed to in a timely manner, the trip just basically fell together.

So, we were off.  We met the family, and what a blessing!  Amelia and Manny had three children, Lucita, 18, has a nine-month old daughter, Linda.  Luis is 11, the same age as Riley; and Lupita is three.  We were able to purchase a stove, small refrigerator and a heater for the family, as well as some small gifts.  We worked with them, side by side, and the house was finished ahead of schedule.

On Thursday, we discovered that it was Lupita’s third birthday.  We dedicated the house to her family that day.  I had brought a suit case full of my son Riley’s old clothes, and they all fit Luis.  In addition, the few things I threw together to bring fit perfectly.  I had thrown in two stuffed animals at the last minute – one for Linda and one for Lupita.  I didn’t know when I packed who we would be building a house for.  But God did.

 I feel extremely humbled and privileged to have met this wonderful family and to have been allowed to work with them and be a part of their lives.  The love they have for each other and their children will forever remain in my heart.

We also learned that the family had started attending church recently, because of the work the church has been doing – what a blessing to all involved!

--Lisa Conrad 

forever changed
(pre-conceived notions of tarpaper shacks)

i saw a special on tv
said to myself that should be me
i need to go, i need to be
the hands and feet of Christ.

i joined a cause, i took the hint,
so we all packed up and off we went.
but could we really make a dent
as the hands and feet of Christ?

 oh! what a dirty, dismal place -
destitution- so hard to face!
would we help or just disgrace
the hands and feet of Christ?

a child who's old beyond her years.
can't quite forget that baby's tears.
the mother who can't calm the fears
clutching at their very lives.

a few days in, realities stack.
we forget about each other's lack
and pre-conceived notions of tar paper shacks
don't matter anymore.

we went to help some folks in need
instead our hearts and lives were freed
in the name of some forgotten deed
as the hands and feet of Christ.

 --Lisa Conrad