I arrived in Brazil on Wednesday after an excellent flight (read: after eating dinner, I slept the whole way!).  And it’s a good thing that I caught up on sleep because as expected, I hit the ground running upon arrival!

First, there were errands to take care of in São Paulo  – picking up JB (dance instructor, ACU professor, and CURA’s Optometry specialist), and purchasing our very own gynecology exam table – thanks to the incredible donations you provided last week!

We finally arrived in Itu mid-afternoon, and settled in for some amazing Italian food with some of my favorite people: JB, Roberto and Walkiria (extraordinary supporters of CURA and very special friends), and Phyllis and Antenor Goncalves – the two people whom, 11 years ago, convinced me that this was an effort worth pursuing.

I had a wonderful night’s sleep, and woke up ready for Thursday’s very full schedule!  We moved all CURA’s campaign supplies out of storage and into to the school where we will hold the campaign next week. We set up transportation for volunteers, exchanged money for the week ahead, and purchased food in preparation for the gang’s arrival tomorrow.

Amidst the long list of tasks, one of my favorite things to do is head over to Horta – the gardening operation that has started as part of the overall mission here in Itu. I was excited to see the progress since my last trip, and oh, how it has grown! As most of you know, organic gardening and food preparation is something I hold very near and dear to my heart, and it is exciting to see how this project continues to grow. Horta is maintained by the labor of recovering addicts in Crescimento Limpo. Not only is the aquaculture and initial garden flourishing, but they are also building a large kitchen and cafe on the property. They’re working together with a local landowner and are expanding to 2 additional sites. So cool!!!!

Last but not least, thanks to a very generous donor in the States, today we were able to provide Bruno with the money to purchase supplies and materials for our neighborhood repair projects slated for this week. (Bruno Ishikawa, is our man on the ground in Brazil all year round.)

We have truly begun
to see our dreams come true
as we witness the ever-expanding impact
and ongoing outreach within the
communities that we serve.

Families in Vila Progresso will soon be receiving plumbing repairs and installations, roofing repairs, electrical repairs, and re-painting – all done as part of CURA’s outreach program, CURA Comunidade. It is more exciting than I can explain to see the local involvement, and the growth of this effort, expanding and bearing so much fruit. There’s so much more to come, but for now, I’m signing off. We’re headed to São Paulo this morning to pick up the next arrivals for this week…stay tuned!

Deus te abençoe,