Shared experiences
"The level of poverty in this country cannot be fully realized unless you are here to see for yourself. The people are so kind and grateful, it reassures the desire to serve.
It was amazing to connect with this family and share in their lives and in their hearts. I feel very blessed to have been given this opportunity to be part of this."
Brooke from the US
"My husband and I had heard of the illness, “Habititus,” and we came down with this malady, hard. For those not as enlightened, once you participate in a life changing Habit for Humanity trip, you succumb to this life altering disease, its reoccurring and annual onset has resulted in our second HH trip…to Paraguay.
Due to my husband’s career as a cameraman in the movie industry, we have visited unique locations and have had access to places not well traveled. Although we do extend ourselves as ambassadors on the foreign sets, the most effective manner to experience traditions and learn of other cultures is to work side by side with the “locals.” Picking up the mortar trowel or digging a foundation in knee high water certainly breaks the ice! Although communication between two languages is frequently of the hand gestures and the pointing variety, there is no mistaking the love being extended and demonstrated on the work site. An equally important way to demonstrate Paraguayan camaraderie is to communally share terere, a tea. A bit hard to get over the one silver plated cup and one straw phenomenon but apparently the sincere desire to share with your neighbor eliminates the possibility of exchanging germs!
Paraguay is truly a land of “the haves and have not’s,”…not much in between. We have seen beautiful and palatial homes, primarily build from cattle or soy bean money and of course shacks that defy our Americanized standards of acceptability. On site we are building 3 houses, each at varying construction phases. One family of eight is hoping for a brighter future for their children and believes that education is the key for independence from poverty. The mother of this family has communicated her astonishment that our “gringo” women are working so hard; an illustration for her daughters that they can break the cultural norm of marrying young and only raising children. We continue to be astonished that without the aid of power tools or sophisticated building materials, and using the resources immediately available, we and our families are able to build a home with out the aid of Home Depot! With only two build days under our “construction belt” thus far, more life lessons will unfold….for both we, the builders, and the homeowners alike!
It is gratifying to know our house building efforts will last a lifetime. I have a life principal, one of being an “Impact Player.” I believe this to be beautifully exemplified by those that participate with Habitat for Humanity."
With Love, from Marc and Lou Margulies
10-12-11
"It was not just work, it was an opportunity to bond with the people."
Evaluation Team John Kim from Canada
"This was a great trip and our team all were treated like royalty by the Paraguay Habitat staff. One of the best trips ever for me and the team members all had a great time."
Murray Coates from Canada
Murray Coates was leading a trip to Paraguay in March 2011. Read about all of his experiences on his blog: www.travelblog.org
Dan from the Murrays team took a lot of fotos, shown in: Dan´s blog
"The Habitat people in Paraguay are excellent people. They looked out for us and made sure that we were safe and secure."
Evaluation Team Murray Coates
In June Tom Pfalzer and his team built a house for Cristiano and his family. To get a good picture you will find all the fotos here.
“Over the past two years, I’ve had the pleasure of being either a team Member or a team Leader on 7 different Global Village trips, and I can absolutely say that the Habitat staff in Paraguay were the most organized and efficient group with which I’ve worked. They made an already-rewarding experience even better by their consistently upbeat attitudes, and how well they facilitated every aspect of our excursion.
On the work-site, they provided several great local artisans to help us with the brickwork, and they had a wonderful supervisor who taught us some great construction skills. It didn’t matter that he didn’t speak much English - he was always able to communicate with a smile and a helping hand. We also had great representation from the Habitat staff (one who was specifically assigned to us every day, who did a great job with translations; with keeping us “on task;” and with managing meals and the like), but other staff stopped-by often to ensure that all was going well. And of course, the family that we had the opportunity to work with was what made the entire trip worthwhile – they welcomed us into their lives, and were so grateful for the help we could provide. So I highly recommend the Habitat Paraguay program!”
Tom Pfalzer, Habitat Knoxville