Our church’s youth group spends a portion of each July working as part of a large mission effort in Rio Bravo, Mexico. Over 200 volunteers from a number of churches divide into various areas of service: Medical Clinic (includes dentistry, pharmacy, pediatrics, medical, and optometry); Bible Study; Vacation Bible School (for children); Benevolence (food & clothing); and Construction & Repair. Everyone stays at a McAllen, Texas, motel, and the groups travel back and forth across the border each day.
In 2005, our group experienced Hurricane Emily, which forced us to remain in Texas for one day. It was my first and, thankfully so far, only hurricane. I didn’t go last year, but the group was introduced to the U.S. Border Patrol. It’s a long story, but yes, my son was involved. He added the word “contraband” to his vocabulary and learned that no matter how cool butterfly knives appear to the average teenage boy, they are illegal to bring across the border. And, on their return trip, the bus’s a/c went out.
The “jinx” continued this year when 5 inches of rain doused McAllen early this morning. According to some, the deluge fell within a 30-minute time period. As one person put it, “That’s like emptying a boot on a flat rock.” Yeah. The motel lobby took on water, and a tornado touched down within blocks of where our group is staying, destroying some area businesses.
Due to the storm, the church bus was temporarily incapacitated (see pics) but is now up and running. The first reports we heard contained the following phrases:
“The front third of the bus is submerged!”
“We’re standing in knee-deep water!”
“We had to evacuate through the emergency bus exits!”
After those initial adrenaline-laced phone calls, I could hear the Titanic theme song playing in my head and envisioned the kids scrambling for their lives as the rising water filled the bus. But shortly after those panicked conversations, more details were relayed to those of us back home. Okay, it was in reality the front third of the FRONT of the bus (technicality); the knee-deep water was in the parking lot (NOT the bus); and yes, they had to use the emergency exits, but only because the front door wouldn’t open.
The group plans to resume their work with the other team members tomorrow and, Lord willing, will return back to Arkansas the end of the week.
