The students boarded a Peruvian bus one last time to travel from our home, Casa Goshen, to Lima’s Jorge Chavez Airport. They checked in their luggage, received their boarding passes and posed for one last group photo. They received their last minute instructions — first go through security, then…
The semester ended with a final retreat in Kauai, a conference center located on the Pacific Coast two hours south of Lima. This is winter in the southern hemisphere and the weather is cloudy and cold. No matter — whether hot or cold, sunny or overcast, the view is…
Jessica and Cara’s service assignment is in Oxapampa. This charming town of 10,000 inhabitants is sometimes called “Little Switzerland.” An immigrant population from Austria and Germany settled here in the late 19th century and the food, architecture and certain aspects of the local culture have a distinct European flavor. …
Petey and Clayton are serving in an indigenous community perched on a hillside far above the Perene River valley. San Miguel de Marankiari is home to several dozen native Ashaninka families, most of whom are descended from a common great-great-grandfather. The Ashaninka people are quickly becoming westernized due to…
Philip, Elizabeth and Jenna are serving in the province of Chanchamayo. This is the gateway to the selva central, Peru’s central rain forest. It is the dry season in the jungle, but there is still enough rain to keep the surrounding hillsides lush and green. The city where the…
Megan, Luke and Dan are volunteering in Tarma, the “Pearl of the Andes.” Also known as the City of Flowers, Tarma is situated in a protected valley on the eastern flank of the highest mountains in the western hemisphere. The sunny climate is conducive to agriculture and flowers are…
Emily volunteers at a Christian primary school perched on a hillside far above the city of Huamanga. The neighborhood of Cuchipampa, “Hog Flats” in the local dialect of Quechua, was recently settled by migrants from the countryside of Ayacucho. Most of the streets are still unpaved and the houses…
Kelly, Nikita and Mary are volunteering in the bustling capital of Ayacucho departmento (state). San Juan de la Frontera de Huamanga, or simply Huamanga, is home to 170,000 people. The city lies in a protected valley some 2,746 meters (9,009 feet) above sea level. Known as the “City of…
Stephen, Michael and Anna are teaching in schools in a humble sector of the capital of the Departamento de Ayacucho (Ayacucho state). The district of San Juan Bautista, named after John the Baptist, is situated on the southeast side of the city and is home to over 38,000 people. At…
Hannah and Kendall are serving in the city of Huanta: Population = 84,000, Elevation = 2,624 meters (8,609 feet) above sea level. The valley where Huanta is situated is unusually green, featuring a wide variety of vegetation and earning it the nickname “Emerald of the Andes.” The climate is sunny…
