Today is my last day in Ica for the next 7 weeks since I’ll be up in the Amazon jungle in Iquitos and Puerto Alegria working with teams.
This morning we were greeted by the boys with a “Happy 4th of July” – many of which learned this greeting in English. They had hung the American and Michigan flag we brought last year on the doors of the dining room and were very happy to be able to share the day with us as we celebrated our patriotism.
Today the team from Dearborn passed out Beanie Babies and delicious chocolate chip/M&M cookies that were both donated by women from our church. This is the second year we have brought Beanie Babies for the boys and it amazes me each time we pass them out. You would not think that a boy who is 16 would enjoy receiving a stuffed animal, but they loved it. The boys that were at the home last year all had taken pretty good care of their animals from 2008, and quickly ran to go get them to show us that they really loved them.
Later this afternoon we’ll leave Ica and make the 4.5 hour journey on PerúBus, north on the Panamerican Highway to Lima and head to the airport for the group to return to the States.
Happy 4th of July to those in the States.