La Senda Project
La Senda mission was the primary reason for our journey to Guatemala. Engaging in mission work has always been a priority for us, especially when there’s a personal connection to the mission. Dan Fuller, who happens to be the brother of one of my besties from nursing school, has been deeply involved in mission work in Guatemala since 2020.
Over the past four years, he and his wife, Shalou Mae, have been transforming 125 acres of wild jungle land into a multifaceted facility comprising homes, a clinic, a church, and a farm.
Most of this labor of love has been undertaken single-handedly, with occasional help from volunteers.
If interested in mission work, there is room and work for you here!
Upon reaching out to Dan, we discovered that a primary need was upgrading the solar power system on-site. We purchased several lithium batteries, arranging for them to be shipped in a container alongside other supplies Dan was shipping from Washington. The container was slated for delivery sometime in January, aligning perfectly with our plans to first spend time in Guatemala City.
We spent a week in Fray Bartolome de las Casas close to the mission complex. This town is in the Alta Verapaz department of Guatemala, in the central part of the country. It is a tiny little town with one decent hotel with AC which we were grateful to stay in.
This mission that Dan has started serves the area with medical and dental care. Dan hopes to reach the people of the Q’eqchi community for Christ by attending to their medical needs. He turns no one away. He is hoping to make this a self-sustaining mission. He has started growing coconuts, papayas, bananas, many other fruits and veggies, & growing chickens to assist in this. The excess harvest goes to the market.
They have a brochure which I share here that has their contact info and more details regarding the mission.
They are affiliated with the Daniel Twelve-Three organization.
Rick worked with Dan for the week: As described by Dan: A generator had been donated to the project and had been sitting in a container where the temperature can reach 140+. The humidity is so high that it literally rains from the ceiling inside the container. For many reasons, it was never set up as it was so large, and I wasn’t able to move this by myself. Other things would take priority, like dental and medical patients, construction, farming, and Bible studies. I prayed that God would protect the generator and provide for a way to get it set up and running.
At the recommendation of Gary Bartholomew Rick and I built a skid from jungle lumber to move the 2000+ lbs generator from the container to the power house prepared for it. We were able to pull the generator with my small Kubota tractor, and then spent an hour or two preparing the generator not knowing what to expect. We connected fuel and battery, and checked the fluid levels. We then hit the start button.
I can not put in words the absolute shock and joy we both felt when the generator immediately fired up and ran perfectly. God is so good!
Rick assisted in the guidance in the construction of concrete beams, some of which span 35 feet. They must withstand earthquakes and support a concrete roof. After careful review and some calculations, Rick came up with the correct concrete beam construction needed to handle the structural load. I can’t say how many times I’ve prayed in the night that God would provide me with an answer to this problem.
Recently we had all the solar panels and batteries stolen from one of our buildings. This was a major setback and we had no way of recovering.
For several days Rick and I worked together on fabricating cables and other parts for a new solar system to replace the stolen equipment. We used the two 535-Watt panels donated by William Luke and 4 lithium iron batteries. We got the system up and running. This solar system will provide power for our water pump and other needs of the mission.
I am so grateful to God for His faithfulness. – Dan Fuller
We left there feeling blessed about the way God works. It is a pleasure to serve God with fine Christian folks like Dan and Shalou Mae. Their dedication to this work is a testament to what God can do.
Matthew 9:37-38 ESV
“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
This was very inspiring. We are so accustomed to just flipping a switch and having a light or appliance provide for us light or a functioning appliance. Only when there is a power outage do we recognize how dependent we are on electricity. What a great service, Rick, you provided with he set up of the generator, solar panels and bank of batteries. So nice that you have also been able to use your engineering training and experience to make the needed calculations for the concrete beams that could support the roof, even in an earthquake. Dan is amazing to have the vision for what is needed and to give his life for the needs and benefit of strangers. Thanks for the work you two have done and for sharing the information with us.