MEET THE TEAM
Cory & Vicky Brown
Honduras, specifically La Esperanza, is one of our favorite places to be. It's where some of our dear friends live, home to beautiful scenery and a place we can rest in the fact that we are exactly where we need to be.
We need to be there - perhaps that is a strange thing to say - but we need to see our friends every year (maybe someday more often!). We need to connect with them, we need to see that they are okay, ask them how they are doing, hear them ask us about our lives, too. We love to remind them and to be reminded that God is with us and has not forgotten us.
Honduras is a thin place for us - a place where heaven and earth are not far apart, a place for us to see the face of God and a chance to serve with our whole being. It is emotional, dirty, hard, life-giving, meaningful, deeply spiritual work.
In a place where our efforts seem to range from big to small, we are reminded that everything we do matters and that the people of God are everywhere.
Phoenix Brown
Hey there! My name is Phoenix, and I am so excited to return to Honduras this year. This will be my fourth year as part of the mission team. I am excited to visit old friends and make new ones, and to see how all of the kids have grown up since we last visited. Building this house is important, but the most meaningful parts of this trip happen in the interactions we have with the community. Thank you for all your support!
Kyle Endress
We look forward to this trip every year, and we’re pretty sure we always end up benefiting more than the folks we go to serve. Granted, a family in need has a sturdy, new home to call their own by the end of the week, and that’s a huge deal when stable housing is one of your major daily concerns. But we get the privilege of meeting and working alongside the people of the “Ocho de Octubre” community, and they are some of the most amazing embodiments of perseverance, hope, and the Imago Dei that we’ve encountered. We carry their stories with us throughout our time apart, and getting to reconnect with them during our annual visit is like sunshine on our hearts.
Kelly Cohlman
Tim mclouth
-- "What events have changed your life the most?"
For me, it would be the 3 missions trips that I was priveleged to go on ...
The first one was in 1999 to Queretaro Mexico when I was 43. We ministered in a different city for 7 nights. I gave my testimony at one of the churches. Our team of 19 also washed about 500 or more white plastic chairs for a church and did some construction cleanup. I enjoyed staying in a dormitory setting that housed local students and also 2 from Argentina. The average income in this area was $4 per day. I remember the room I stayed in had 1 single electrical outlet.
Trip no. 2 was to Hattiesburg, Mississippi, after Hurricane Katrina had struck. It was with Rural Home Missions and sponsored by 3 Christian radio stations including WCIC. We travelled there by Peoria Charter Coach who had donated our trip there.
In the 95 degree heat we poured concrete to create a basketball court as well as redoing a baseball diamond in the red clay dirt! We also painted the entire outside of a church and some did repair projects such as rebuilding porches and steps that were damaged by the hurricane. This was in a very poor rural area that often gets overlooked by repair groups.
One highlight was handing out toothbrushes to families that had been sharing one toothbrush for the whole family. We travelled about 25 miles each day to the work area but stayed at night in air conditioned hotel rooms with a pool.
Lastly, the missions trip to Honduras was life changing for me. The beauty of seeing bananas growing along the highway, and the beautiful mountains in the background were very interesting. Very humble people and the children were so appreciative of the kites, coloring books and crayons, soccer balls, etc. that we brought for them. The preschool building we constucted was also so appreciated by all in this very poor village. Cows and chickens roaming free and the pace of life was a lot slower. I was envious of their less stress free lifestyle. They were poor but seemed so happy.
Ainzley brown
Hello! My name is Ainzley Brown, and this will be my fourth time visiting La Esperanza. I am beyond excited to get to reconnect with my friends and see how they are doing whilst aiding in building a home for another family in the community. As others have said, building a house is certainly a vital aspect of this trip, but building lasting relationships with those living in Ocho de Octubre is just as important. Reminding people that they are not forgotten is of utmost importance to me. Thank you for supporting the trip!
camilla pietreniak
I am very excited to be able to return to Honduras for the 2nd time. I enjoy "assisting" with the building & construction, but if I'm completely honest, the relationships that have been fostered & built over the past 15 years between Imago & this community is what makes me most excited. In the world today, I feel that holding loving relationships such as these are more important than ever.
**Online donations are preferred, but if you'd rather write a check — please make it payable to Imago Dei Church, and in the “note section” of the check write the trip member's name, followed by “Trip.” (e.g. John Doe Trip.) Mail the check to: Imago Dei Church, 2221 N. Gale Ave., Peoria, IL. 61604
Any mission contributions made above and beyond the financial need of individual team members will be used for current or future foreign missions of Imago Dei Church.