Liberti 4 Peru Team

Two days after we arrived back in Peru after Christmas, we welcomed our first short-term team of volunteers since we've been here. The trip was led by a good friend of Tony's from college, Nathan Cottrell. Nathan had come down to Arequipa in August to help Tony and another friend, Brad, with a documentary video project to help raise awareness about the ministry of New Hope. Nathan went back to Philadelphia and started telling his friends and church body at Liberti Church about his desire to bring a short term team back to volunteer in January 2008.
Just five months later, Nathan had put together a team of 15 people who were willing to invest their time and energy in the kids. They raised extra funds for construction projects, planned crafts for each day of the week, collected donations of clothing, and came to offer every bit of love and energy they had. They served as the hands and feet of Christ, delivering the message of boundless love that God has for each one of them. Their generosity amazed us, and by the end of the week they were bags of their own shoes, clothing, jackets, and many "extras" to the office to leave for the kids.
We thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent with their team. We were encouraged by the selfless way they served not only the kids, but each other as a unified team. It was a wonderful experience to start the week by explaining the work we do and the issues that precipitate a home like ours, to then watch them interact with the kids throughout the 10 days, and then see the shared passion for these kids that had gripped their hearts by the end of their trip. To watch others catch the vision of caring for the orphaned and abandoned children of this world was wonderfully renewing for us.

The Liberti team kept a blog of their experiences on the trip. You can read more about their experiences and reflections at: liberti4peru.blogspot.com.