So this past Saturday was the big
5K run, and I think it went as smoothly as a first-time
gringo-propelled event in Nicaragua could have possibly gone.

     Over the course of the preceding
week, we visited about 40 businesses to ask for donations and/or
assistance with the race, cut out and glued together 60 paper apple
logos for the staff/volunteers to wear on race day, made signs with
arrows and Bible verses on them, gathered and organized prizes, held
a rally by Central Park for the gym teachers at the local schools
(and anyone else who wanted to poke their heads in), and filled over
900 small bags of water to hand out to the racers. The majority of
our free time was taken over by cutting and gluing and thinking and
going and writing and praying for the race. As a team, we also tried
to preserve the sanity of those who were putting in the most time and
energy into the planning and organization!

     Saturday morning started at 5:30
AM with everyone half-asleep and half ready to go. Some guys from
VidaJoven came to help us load the Kayes' car full with everything
needed for registration and set-up, and once that was unloaded it
came back to El Puente and was filled again, this time with the water
and prizes. By the time everything and everyone got to Central Park,
it was nearly 6:30, with the race scheduled to start at 7:00. There
were over 100 racers of all ages and nationalities, registering and
waiting for the race to begin.

     I was put on the first water
station, with the original plan being that I would hold one of the
signs with a Bible verse on it and hand out bags of water to the
racers as they ran past. I walked with Amy and Caleb A. the 8 or so
blocks in the right direction and managed to find the exact place we
needed to be... after calling Heather and making her come find us, of
course. Once we got there, we quickly realized that even with the
kids from VidaJoven helping, we were going to be short about 6
people! So everyone doubled up jobs and I got shifted to directing
both the runners and traffic. (P.S. If you've never tried directing
traffic, don't bother. Cars don't listen to people!)

     The actual race took about an
hour, then the closing
ceremony/award presentation and clean-up lasted until about 10:45. I
joined many of my teammates in going back to El Puente for some food
and a little more sleep.

     Even
with the bumps that we did have, the event was a big success because
it spread the awareness about VidaJoven here in Granada, and I hope
that this Thursday we'll see many more new kids at club. We raised
$5,400 - Praise God!
Thank you all for your support and prayers, you are such an
encouragement to me. This is my last full week of ministry so keep
remembering me to God... I choose to finish strong.