Why do we call it "the End of the Pipeline?"

Dear friends of Vine,

If you are with Technical Exchange for Christian Healthcare and were in Tampa FL 3-4 years ago you will remember Woody Woodson pulling that toilet paper tube out of his shirt pocket to demonstrate what Vine International does. He then showed how we pour material aid in the top of the PIPELINE (Knoxville and now other points in the USA) and it comes out in Guatemala. Now that I am here can I tell you that demonstration is a little over simplified. It is a good visual but the reality is so much more.

2 asides -- 1 Woody now uses a paper towel tube and 2 he got charged by the hotel about $7 for wasting that original role of toilet paper. I can hear Jim North laughing all the way from Michigan.

The paper work and bureaucracy are mountainous, but we are getting a handle on it. It will be a bit nerve racking when Dennis and Doris leave and are no longer immediately available to help. The language will be a big issue. We are investigating a language school in Guatemala City as part of a combined Baptist/Mennonite seminary that comes highly recommended. This is close enough we can stay in our home and reduce the costs.

I have had my first exercise on the fork lift. There is no way that Cindy will be able to handle this machine. The only power in the power steering unit is my arms. It is going to take some time to be able to safely move it through tight aisles.

I have had a few laughs at Peggy... you should have seen her face when her Tilapia (fish) came to the table with all its body parts. (chuckling still as I write this) We live in such a sheltered life in the USA.

We have helped a couple of ministries that work in the gang sections of the city with products they use for children's health in the clinics they provide. We have helped another group that works out in the rural highlands in the past week. By email I have been able to bring together people and resources to help a group going to Africa next week.

First container is here but it is a 'pass through' to another ministry. The second container arrived in port a couple of days ago and should be in the warehouse mid week next week. We are excited about that one. It will be our first and it has some of our stuff on it.

Please pray for learning the skills needed for this ministry, acquiring the language at two levels -the immediate technical skills (asking directions, being polite, dealing with agents necessary to import containers etc.) and the second level is to be able to speak at the heart level so we can share Jesus with those God puts before us.

In Christ

Dennis and Cindy McCutcheon

First Days in Guatemala

Cindy, Peggy, and I arrived midday on Monday this week. Dennis Rice handed me the keys to the Vine "van". And so it begins. Driving in Guatemala is a piece of cake for a New York cabby, but for a country boy from Southern Appalachia it is a white knuckle, heart racing experience. The Rice's had threatened us with a full days work since we were arriving at noon, but they were their usual gracious selves and gave us the rest of the day to unpack in "our" new home.

We have much to learn. Importing medical humanitarian aide is a maze of paper work, government and non government offices, shifting of financial resources to the right places to get the system to work.

Then we need to learn how to deal with a personal budget here where there is no trustworthy mail system. Nearly all bills are paid at different banks, standing in line is a sport all its own. Some want American dollars, others want Quetzals (the Guatemala monetary unit). It takes a day or more to pay bills.

Some things like electronics are much more expensive here, food about the same. Fruits and vegetables need washing before storage to reduce the risk of amoeba and parasites.

Vine International Guatemala is blessed with many friends both nationals and expatriots that help us get the work done.

There is much to learn; driving in thick traffic, the technicalities of importing containers, the language, and a hundred other things. While we will always miss our kids and you our friends, we are where God has designed. We are tired but catching up on sleep. We are excited and confident that all our "pot holes" will be filled by the LORD.

I know some of you wanted to send us "CARE PACKAGES." Please work with us on this and for now DON'T DO IT. Give us time to learn if we can and how best to do so. Mail and package delivery are difficult. Customs can often be expensive experience. One small example of a young lady receiving a package from her mother. She took a full day off of work to come to the city paying for bus ride, was not allowed to see what was in the package until she paid the $10 fee only to open it and find a small book from her mother that cost $6.oo originally.

We know you care for us, but a package of homemade cookies has the potential of seriously disrupting our budget.

Immediate prayer concerns are learning the process of dealing with importing containers of medical supplies from the United States and other points, warehousing, and distribution; to not allow the urgency of these things in the physical realm to bring disorder to our walk with Jesus; to learn the language and in time to speak like a native is our hearts desire; to be used of God to be a blessing to Guatemalans in such a way that they have to ask us about Jesus.