Welcome to Ascension Lutheran Church!

 Natasha Pence presented a program on her mission trip to Guatamela during worship Sunday morning, July 18. On April 10^th, 2010 Natasha Pence along with seven students from The College of Idaho and two adults set off on a once in a lifetime journey to spend their Spring Break in Alotenango, Guatemala. In Guatemala they worked with a NGO located in Alotenango called Bendicion de Dios and the American organization Encountour to build a new home for a local, impoverished family. They worked nine hour days with the aid of a mason, Don Chilo hired by Encountour as well as their Encountour guide Mario. The grandfather of the family as well as the husband also helped the students construct the house after they spent their morning working in the fields. Although public education is free in Guatemala many of the poorest families cannot afford to send their children to school due to the cost of uniforms and supplies. Bendicion de Dios recognized this need in the small villages and set up their own school to sponsor and educate these children. Word of their cause quickly spread and they were able to build a fully functioning elementary school in Alotenango. This school currently houses 183 students and educates the children in matters such as hygiene and skill-based activities such as carpentry. They soon realized that the lack of a stable home caused many problems for their students and with the help of Encountour began to replace the families’ homes of tin-sheet or corn stalk walls and dirt floors with sturdy, cement-block structures. Natasha and the group of students were able to complete their home on Friday, April 16^th and a touching ceremony was put on by Bendicion de Dios, the schoolchildren, and the family to thank them for their hard work. The students then said a heartfelt goodbye to their wonderful host families and the village that showed them so much appreciation and respect. Guatemala is currently suffering from the devastating effects of Tropical Storm Agatha to donate or for more information on Encountor and Bendicion de Dios please visit www.encountour.com orwww.bendiciondedios.org .