After a week in Quito, I ventured out to Sumaco with a group of Covenanters from across Canada. Sumaco is a small, peaceful village in the "oriente," the western part of Ecuador, which is mostly jungle. Although the pueblo is small, it has a massive history. The settlement was started in the late 1980's by a group of refugees who lost their homes to an earthquake and the proceeding landslide. Immediately following the disaster, hundreds of displaced families were housed and supported by the Iglesia del Pacto, the Covenant Church of Ecuador. After awhile, the people needed a place of their own and found Sumaco, often referred to as "Pacto Sumaco" after the church. They chose the area because it was similar to the land they had lost. For the past 25 years, the people of Sumaco have been fighting to obtain titles to their land. There was a complicated back and forth between the republic and international agencies trying to protect the land as environmental reserve. From my (limited) understanding it went like this:
Republic of Ecuador, "Yes, you can live there."
International Environment Agency (or something), "Ecuador has to reserve that land to get funding."
Republic of Ecuador, "Then again, you can't live there."
Sumaco, "But, you already told us we could live here. We have nowhere else to go."
Republic of Ecuador, "Ok, well, you can stay; we'll just ignore you."
International Environment Agency (or something), "Ecuador has to reserve that land to get funding."
Republic of Ecuador, "Yeah, actually, you can't live there."
But Sumaco kept on trying. As of January 2012, the people finally have the papers to file for land titles, making them legal owners and permanent residents of the place they've called home for the past two decades.
The village is remote and rustic. Until a few years ago, there was no road at all to get to Sumaco; now there is a narrow dirt road through the lush, green mountain. A bus leaves daily at 5am to go to a bigger town and returns nightly at 7pm. Wooden houses are built on stilts to keep from flooding in the daily deluge. When the sky isn't cloudy, you can see the Sumaco Volcano from "main street." Many people are undereducated and underfed. In order to bring more prosperity to the village, a new agricultural project is underway. Funded by a grant from Covenant World Relief, the town is beginning to cultivate mushrooms to sell for profit. Although the growing is still in the experimental phase, there is great hope in the potential earnings from the Sumaco hongos. The mushrooms are delicious, and coming from someone who doesn't really like mushrooms, that means they must be really amazing.
While in Sumaco, we worked on multiple projects. At the local public school, we helped fix up the bathrooms and drainage system, began the foundation for a new classroom, and gave health and English classes to the students. Others worked on a project for the Covenant Church of Ecuador's social outreach program, FACE ("FAH-say"), which included installing window panes to the FACE agricultural house, where the process of growing mushrooms begins. Every afternoon, we held a VBS type program for the local kids. We played games, sang songs, did crafts, and told and acted out Bible stories.
Although poverty is rampant and resources are limited, the beauty, tranquility, and simplicity of Sumaco are enviable. Up in the cloud forest, the people survive on the little they have and thrive on the community and support for each other. As I have observed elsewhere, the people with the least amount of material possessions have the greatest amount of faith in God; they depend on God in a way that is almost impossible for those of us who depend so much on our own wealth.
Pray for Sumaco. Pray for united leadership for the Covenant Church, Mount Sinai, of Sumaco, as they are currently without a pastor. Pray for wisdom as the community gains titles to their land, and with those titles the ability to sell their land. Pray for physical and spiritual nourishment. Pray for prosperity through the mushroom project. Pray that the Christians of Sumaco will never lose their hope and trust in God.
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