Its been too long but here is a breif update ;)

Dear Friends and Family

It has been a while since my last post and there has been lots that has gone on in the last months so here is a quick update....

First of all our all staff retreat was a great time to get to know the people I work with and learn more about the work of FH here in Peru (both in Lima and Pucallpa). Besides meeting to discuss the most critical issues facing the communities where we serve - health issues, family violence, and youth involved in gangs, we also got to hang out, sing around a fogata (bonfire), and do some team building exercises. We finished the week long retreat with a special evening of dancing....

Here is a link to more pictures from that weekend :)
http://picasaweb.google.com/lhwoodside/2006FHPeruAnnualRetreat

About a week after the retreat I moved into my new home, joining my roommate Claire. It has been a blessing to have such a comfortable place to come home to at the end of a long day, and to have an awesome roommate to debreif the day and pray with.

And lastly about two weeks ago I started my job in the office. Right now I will only be working with the health projects in our communities and then in June/ July we will start working on the disaster response program.

(This a picture of my boss, Nancy - on the right, me and our assistant, Miriam) These women are awesome...and it is a privilege to work at their side.

These last few weeks have been crazy busy, with Christmas and end of the year celebrations in all 18 of our communities. But, while it has been some late nights for me (sometimes not getting home until 11:30pm, it has given me a chance to get to know the health promoters, families, and community leaders I will be serving. Please pray for these relationships, and for the Lord to open up the right doors, and to give me strength to working alongside and invest in these relationships.