Dash 8-202 Landing Ayacucho, Perú (LC Perú)

The Ancient Salt Pans Of Perú

Meet Brenda Paredes

Brenda Wearing A Peruvian Manta

Although Brenda Paredes has served as our interpreter for many years on Sharon’s mission trips to Perú, she has done much more than that.  For example, she has worked at times as a travel agent, such as when arranging ground transportation and locating quality restaurants.  She has given us directions and dispensed advice on Peruvian customs and etiquette.  On shopping expeditions she has helped us negotiate with merchants so that we could land the best bargains.  At the work sites she has been pulled in many different directions to answer a multitude of questions, many of them coming at her in rapid succession from all quarters.  Throughout it all, she has maintained a consistently positive attitude, a sense of humor and a friendly smile.

Brenda was raised a Catholic, but when she was 12, her father joined a Presbyterian church in Lima.  At age 15, she went to the city of Huanta for a youth conference, where she met the PCUSA missionary at the time, Jacob Goad.  Wanting to improve her English, she applied for a J1 Visa that entitled her to work in the United States for 3 months.  Jacob, who in 2008 had returned to the United States, helped Brenda land a job at Alamance Presbyterian Church in Greensboro to work with the Mothers-Morning-Out program and other church activities.

After returning to Lima in March of 2009, she met Jacob’s replacements, Sara Armstrong and Rusty Edmondson during a worship service at Brenda’s home church in Lima, Amen Presbyterian. Brenda told Sara of her interest in learning English and asked Sara to give her a call if she could ever be of any assistance.  Late one night a couple of months later, Sara surprised Brenda with a call asking her to serve as an interpreter for a group of 17 “Gringos” from a church called Sharon Presbyterian in Charlotte.  Brenda said she hesitated.  “I had told Sara I was learning English. I did not think of myself as an interpreter!”

During that trip she met Connie and Van Dale, who encouraged her to pursue her dream to study in the United States.  With their sponsorship and dedication, she began a program in International Studies at Winthrop and at the same time joined Sharon.  However, her dream suffered an unfortunate setback when in 2013 she contracted TB on a flight from Greensboro to Charlotte.  For two years back in Perú, not only did she have to follow a strict regimen of antibiotics and therapy, she had to struggle with both the U.S. and Peruvian bureaucracies in spite of the fact that her doctors had given her full medical clearance.  When asked if she ever felt discouraged or lost faith, she gave credit to God and to Connie and Van for helping her stay focused.  Connie would remind her, “Don’t lose sight of your dream.”  Connie even made trips to Perú to help Brenda get the medicines and the medical attention she needed.

December 17, 2016, was a big day for Brenda, when she realized a dream: she received an undergraduate degree in the United States.  She had persevered and excelled, graduating Magnum Cum Laude from UNCC and being inducted into the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.  Several members of Sharon attended her graduation, celebrating with her and sharing in her joy.

Brenda embarks now on a new adventure. She has set her sights on a Master’s Degree in Latin-American studies at UNCC, with a focus on women’s issues.  Armed with a new Visa that will allow her to study part-time and to work full time for at least a year, and with the help of some scholarship assistance, she worked hard to obtain, she has begun her course work in the upcoming spring semester.

A long-term goal is to establish a non-profit organization in a Latin American country that will help low-income women feel empowered to make their own choices and to reach their full potential.  She plans to pattern her idea after the “Circle La Luz” here in Charlotte, an organization that provides Hispanic women with scholarship aid and counseling services to help them succeed in school.  Donations to help Brenda with her studies are appreciated.  Brenda's Go Fund Me page.

Brenda, your fellow members at Sharon are grateful for your service.

Tom Skinner

Responding To God's Call In Perú

Randy & Gamaliel

Randy Ross’ first World Mission Trip with Sharon was in 2004 to Perú. “What made you go on your first trip?” he was asked. He answered simply, “I felt God’s call.” And Randy has responded to that call every year since, not just as a participant, but since 2007 as trip leader, a task to which he devotes himself joyfully. “It’s a labor of love,” he says.

His preparations are efficient and thorough. “Randy leaves nothing to chance,” said one participant. “He pays attention to every detail and anticipates every possible problem or challenge. Just look at his handouts of eleven single-spaced pages of information. Everything is well-thought out and planned.

”When asked, for example, why this year’s group flew to Lima via Miami, but on the return flew a longer route, from Lima to Miami, and then to Washington D.C. before taking the final leg back to Charlotte, Randy answered simply, “I went online and found that it saved us hundreds of dollars” to do it that way. Randy is ever resourceful. As one of the group members said, Randy’s leadership style “combines a healthy balance of both patience and persistence.“

And his preparations never take a vacation. Throughout the year he collects enough suitcases so that each participant can carry a second one brimming with up to 50 pounds of clothing, eyeglasses, prayer shawls, crafts, and other gifts.

With his passion for serving the children in Perú and his desire to be “a good steward” with the funds available in the Adult Mission Trip budget,”he trolls Walmart, Michael’s, and Walgreens in an ongoing search for off-season markdowns on items such as school supplies, children’s games, and children’s shoes. As for the eyeglasses and cases, he goes online to find discontinued styles for bargain basement prices from an outfit in Miami.

Randy’s commitment to Missions has become a family affair. Parts of the family house are used to store donations for the next mission trip. Also, daughters Kathryn and Sarah have accompanied him on several trips and have been active contributors as T-shirt makers, children’s activity leaders, and relationship builders. In 2014, Sarah asked Randy if she could use her spring break from Chapel Hill to undertake a private trip to revisit some of the friends they had made in Huanta, Perú. The request turned into a group trip, with Randy, Brenda Paredes, and Rose and Adam Boelke accompanying her.

When asked which of his 13 mission trips has been his favorite, he answers that he has great memories of all of them. “I especially enjoy witnessing first-hand the experiences of other trip participants and hearing what the trips mean to them.” Still, he says that the first trip to Huanta in 2008 holds a special place in his heart. Although our Sharon team and our Peruvian partners prayed that a long-term relationship might develop, one of our Peruvian friends, Gamaliel, admitted that he had not had a favorable impression of Americans and could only imagine what the “Gringos” true reasons and motivation had been in traveling to Huanta. “But as the week progressed he was surprised and overjoyed that that not only did we work together, we played, sang, prayed, laughed, cried, and worshipped together. His observations made me realize that the relationships that are created are the most important element of mission trips. The project work and the gifts that are shared are mere catalysts for establishing and fostering these relationships.

Tom Skinner

2017 Perú Mission

The 2017 Sharon Presbyterian Church (“Sharon Church”) Mission Trip to Ayacucho, Perú promises to be one of witness and service to Jesus Christ. Perhaps you feel God’s call to participate in this year’s trip.

Informational meetings will be held in the Parlor Room, located in the Charles Little Activity Building of the church on Sunday, February 12th and Sunday, February 26th at 11:45 am. Sharon Church is located at 5201 Sharon Road, Charlotte, NC 28210.

The trip is scheduled to take place from Thursday, July 27th through Monday, August 7th, 2017.

Trip information and application forms will be distributed at the meeting. Forms are also available in the Perú Mission Trip mailbox (located on the top row of mailboxes in the hallway outside the church office), or by contacting Randy Ross (704-552-5573 or mrandallross@aol.com).

The trip application, first payment and passport copies are due Sunday, March 12th. Please contact Randy if you are unable to attend one of the meetings but are still interested in participating or learning more about the trip.

Randy Ross