Dream Invest Grow: Purposeful Travel Trip 2026
to Guatemala February 7th-15th, 2026

DIG 2026 Daily Blog

Saturday, February 14th

This is the final blog as this is our final day.  Tomorrow, we leave early to travel all day and arrive home around midnight.

We started the day with worship.  Well most of us started by sleeping in while a few strong brave folks took stoves out of the water (the last stage of stove construction).

Having the worship here was a whimsical idea at first but became important when we heard how excited the Doppenbergs were to have live worship on site for once.  It was helpful because it allowed us to share some of the experiences of the week that were fresh in our mind, and to have Rita share on behalf of our hosts.  The message was shaped by our experience here as well.  It was particularly special to have communion together as a gathered community and so that the family could have live communion.

The afternoon included a pickleball tournament (which Erin wants me to let you know that she and Matteo won). Then many went to town for ice cream and last minute coffee purchases.

Our final meal was tostidas to give us a taste of local food.  The highs included a lot of praise for our hosts and the great food.  The lows were dominated by the fact that we are done here.  It was a great week.

A last day of relaxation was a great way to prepare for our return.  We are aware that such an intense experience may be followed by a period of adjustment.  We look forward to having opportunities to share and spend time in our small groups thinking about what we might say.  Speaking of small groups, this was another level of connection that allowed us to get to know each other better.  Both these formal conversations and many informal talks allowed us to bond as a community along the way.  It is amazing how relationships can be built over a single week.  We will miss being together and are hopeful about the lasting impact on our lives and the ongoing impact of DIG here in Guatemala.

We are thankful to our planning team for making this happen and to the Doppenbergs for making this such an amazing experience.  There are not enough words to express the experience.  We praise God for this opportunity.

Pastor Erick for the Mountainview DIG team of 2026

Friday, February 13th

Today was our last trip up the mountain.  That comes with a fair bit of emotion as we realize this amazing trip is almost over.  

On our way to Salitrillo, we made a short detour to the factory where they produce the smokeless stoves. Their design has changed over the years and has been refined, literally, through fire. All the materials are sourced locally and they are able to employ a few local workers.

We loaded up materials for another dozen stoves and headed to Salitrillo to install them. Compared to the beginning of the week, our installations are becoming more efficient, as we become familiar with our environment and work better as a team.

We had our final VBS.  The highlight for the kids might just be riding with 30 of them plus leaders in the back of the pick up truck.  It is really kids hanging all over the place.  There may be a few less rules here and the kids are truly resilient.

Soccer is also a hit.  The reason for the truck ride is to go down to the field.  Another hit is the skit where this time grown men crawled on the ground as the pigs in the story of the lost (prodigal) son.  And the ultimate draw is the apple and juicebox given at the end; nobody leaves before that point.

Today, the Salitrillo community put on a bbq lunch for us.  We were so blessed to eat the meal they made for us which was served with Coke….which is a big deal and a sign of deep appreciation.  It was also very clear from the prayer of our host (even for those of us not understanding the words) that he was thankful to God for what has been happening in this village.

Our medical team was thrilled to have a portable ultrasound and ECG to help them in their work. They were even able to test blood on the spot.  There is a wonderful system in place to manage patients and keep track of them.  Every day this team would report how great of a day they had which means people were being helped and loved.

Throughout the week we have worked together, struggled together, eaten together, rode in trucks together and served together.  It is beautiful to see relationships grow on the team.  We will miss being together, even as we will be glad to reconnect at home.  

We have another chance tomorrow to deepen our reflection on this journey as we worship and share some testimonies as well as have communion together.  We are glad that the Mountainview community will be able to experience a portion of that on Sunday morning.

Again, we hope these blogs have given you a taste of what we have been experiencing and that you will take an opportunity to connect with one or more of us to learn more.

Pastor Erick for the DIG Team

Thursday, February 12th

Today we returned to Salitrillo and again installed a dozen stoves, offered medical care in people’s homes, and did an afternoon VBS.  It sounds like we have hit a routine, however, it is anything but routine to work with DIG. 

For example, our fantabulous medical team was working in a home today when one of our physicians Dave Fernandes accidentally knocked out the only lightbulb on the premises.  His deeply spiritual response was to sing “This little light of mine, I’m not gonna let it shine”.

And at our VBS presentation of the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jaco Haas and Justin Moraal, under cover of acting out the role of robbers took the liberty of laying a beating on yours truly.  Jaco’s version of kindness and gentleness (two of the fruit of the spirit we are teaching) was to at least wear boxing gloves as he leaned into a full swing.  Fortunately, the Good Samaritan eventually came in the form of the angelic Coby Hoiting who dressed head wounds with toilet paper and restored life with water and a banana before loading the hapless victim on a cart to take him to the inn.

One thing I haven’t shared is that when we install a stove, we also drop off a solar powered audio Bible.  We brought a couple hundred with us in our suitcases.  We were able to give one to a person with limited eyesight and so they can listen to the whole Bible being read to them.  

Each day, at dinner, sharing highs and lows, there is much laughter and fun and also a few tears as we realize what powerful bonds are forming among us and the realization that this is indeed a short term event that will soon end.  There are many meaningful and connective conversations happening that help us taste what it is like to live in Christian community together.  We are deeply blessed.

Today was also one of our team members’ birthdays. We had fun celebrating Guatemalan style with some chocolate cake, ice-cream, and a pinata.

One more trip up the mountain tomorrow.

Pastor Erick for the DIG team

Wednesday, February 11th

Today was quite a day.  We went to Valencia, which is where the Mountainview DIG team of two years ago went every day.  We went because there is a medical/dental clinic there which is open and staffed by DIG every Wednesday.  We are blessed with a great medical team with our group and so they were able to do their thing today.

The ride up to this town was amazing.  Amazingly scenic as things got much more full of plants and crops and moisture.  Also amazingly steep as we climbed dusty hairpin roads with seemingly impossible slopes.  It is strange to climb that high and hear that there are 50,000 people living up here at 5800 feet.

Those of us who were not with the medical team (who were working in the completed building that our previous group helped build) spent the day installing smokeless stoves.  These amazing things are really simple to install, just very heavy to carry.  We learned, after the fact, that we went down some of the steepest paths yet with our materials.  

So the drive was scary and spectacular and the work was the usual DIG fare.  However, once we get home and swim or shower and do small group conversations, we then get fed yet another outstanding meal and share our highs and lows.  Today the sharing brought us deeper as we heard of a really tough situation in the medical clinic as well as a really meaningful opportunity to pray for someone as a stove was being installed.  You could feel that our team was bonding even more deeply as we heard each other and spent time as a community in prayer.

Again, experience tells me that we can’t bring you into all that we are experiencing here.  But do know that your support and prayers and letters of encouragement are regularly mentioned as part of what is making this a beautiful time.

God is good, all the time and everywhere.

Peace be with you all.

Pastor Erick, for the DIG team

Tuesday, February 10th

Today we went back up the mountain to the same village.  The ride in the trucks was as bouncy and hair-raising as ever and the views were just as beautiful.

Before getting to the highlight of the day, afternoon VBS, we finished painting the school and installed more smokeless stoves and gave medical attention to those who needed it.

We were pleasantly surprised by the 130 kids who showed up and were signed in.  Each received a nametag with one of four colours which thereby put them in four groups.  The groups took turns at the different stations:  craft, snack, games and Bible story.  Interesting stories were shared about each station with language mix-ups where what we tried to say was not at all what was heard.  The games station was down the hill so about 30 kids piled into the back of a pickup to be brought to the field where they played soccer, apparently schooling the leaders in that sport.  The snack was such a hit that some kids took that station and skipped other stations.  And the Bible story was in skit format including some expert baa-ing sheep along with innumerable irrelevant animal impressions done in conjunction with the story of the lost sheep.  

The kids took a while to warm up to us strange strangers which was explained by our hosts this way:  adults playing with kids is not part of the culture here and so having strange, large, white older people acting foolish may have been slightly shocking.  However, as the time went on things picked up and we are anticipating more interaction as the week progresses. 

Every evening after dinner we share highs and lows and it is clear that the group is bonding as it takes longer and longer as we reminisce about our day.

We know you cannot experience what is going on here, but we trust that these words and pictures at least give you a taste.  Thank you again for your interest and support.

Pastor Erick for the DIG team

Monday, February 9th

For our first work day we loaded ourselves into four pick-up trucks at 7:30 AM.  There are about 30 people going along and so this includes two trucks loaded with people standing in the back.

We worked in El Salitrillo, the original village where Geoff and Rita have been engaged since the beginning.  Geoff pointed out that they have not been to this village in some time because things have been successful enough that they are not needed there as much.  

One of our jobs was to repaint the school.  This was a DIG build from years ago and was in need of a refresh.  Many hands make light work and we had many hands including those of some of the village kids.

We have three nurses, two doctors, and a pharmacist in our group who with the nurse and nutritionist on site make medical assessments in the homes.  This is done as the legendary smokeless stoves are installed.  In today’s work, the stoves were replacing the original ones which had worn out.   

The work done today was an excellent example of wholistic community development as we leaned into a number of areas at the same time.  We even delivered a load of blocks and mortar for a house being built.

We seem to be pretty efficient as we completed our day in time to come back for a very cool dip in the pool, a rest, a small group meeting and all this before a 5:30 dinner which again included our sharing of many highs and a few lows as we pay attention to how God is at work among us all.

Tomorrow is our first VBS day and so preparations for that continue.  Look forward to hearing about that fun in tomorrow’s edition.

For the DIG Team,

Pastor Erick

Sunday, February 8th

We started our day  with the 9 AM (local time) worship with all of you at Mountainview.  Thanks for the shout out and the prayers!

After some post service orientation we were on free time.  Almost all of us went to town either walking or by tuk-tuk (taxi) or standing in the back of a pick up truck.  We all met for ice cream cones and experienced the town.

Late afternoon we practiced our songs for VBS later this week and then had our first small group gatherings.  By then it was dinner time and we enjoyed a fabulous beef stew.  As is the custom here we shared our high and low of the day.  Many of the things above were in the highs.  

But the most mentioned high was that Coby Hoiting had arrived.  Coby was the team member who had not yet made it on site as was mentioned in the service.  Here is her story shared with permission.

Coby signed up late for the trip and by then our Delta flights has become incredibly expensive so she booked with another airline but at the same time for the first leg of the journey.  While we were waiting for our delayed flight due to frozen water lines, Coby was on her airplane already, but waiting out on the tarmac, only to be dropped off again without flying about an hour and a half later.  She found out that her only option was to fly to Washington and then on to Guatemala City.  In planning this she met another traveller who took her home for the waiting period.  Later in the day they both returned to the airport and she boarded a small plane…so small that she had to check her carry-on as there were no compartments for it.  Then yet again the flight was delayed and she was going to miss her connection so she got off the plane, but they did not return her carry-on, but someone else’s.  Now Coby, who reports that through all this she had the “peace that passes understanding”, boards the exact flights she originally booked but now one day later and arrives with us here before dinner today.

Our and your prayers were answered in Coby having a rather memorable experience and the gift of peace as well as a hero’s welcome by the team here.

Continue to pray for us as we begin our work in earnest tomorrow.  

Peace to all,

Pastor Erick for the DIG team

February 7, 2026

We have arrived at The Centre of Hope.  But what a journey it was.

This year’s Mountainview DIG team met at the church building at 1:45 AM in the frigid cold.  We paused to pack some more solar Bibles and VBS supplies and then loaded into our vehicles for the drive to Buffalo Airport.  It was windy and cold and the roads were somewhat snowy, but at least the border cross was simple and we arrived without incident.

We arrived so on time that the Delta Airlines staff was not even there.   That was the beginning of a few fun twists to our airport experience.  A few of us got turned around a time or two because the the computer didn’t read our boarding passes.  Then, once we were all at the gate, we found out that the airplane water lines had froze and there would be a delay to thaw them.  For a while it seemed we may not make our connecting flight but in the end we arrived in Atlanta  with at least a few minutes to spare for the transfer.

A few of our team started from different locations and met us at various points along the way.  In the end we all arrived except for one person who will now be arriving tomorrow (Sunday).

A highlight of our long tiring journey (16 hours in total) was the ride on the chicken bus which is the name for the unique Guatemalan transportation system.  See the picture.  These are what we would call school buses but it seems there is a competition to see how can deck them out with the most lights and colour.  Our bus was a winner.

Upon arrival, our exhausted group was warmly welcomed by the Doppenberg team.  This was an exciting reunion for some and an anticipated meeting for others.  We ate pizza, did a brief orientation and have been dismissed for what most will use as an early bedtime.

We will be watching the Mountainview service tomorrow.  One more way we experience your support on this journey.  Then we anticipate an amazing week of seeing God at work around us.

Thank you for your prayers.

Pastor Erick, for the DIG team in Guatemala

Feb 6 - Getting ready to go, and packing up donations and supplies!

Why DIG? / What is DIG?

 Dream Invest Grow

DIG aims to end the cycle of poverty and malnutrition in rural Guatemala through community empowerment. DIG’s humanitarian volunteers work on sustainable projects that build long-term dignity and hope within these communities by offering a hand up instead of a hand out. With a focus on community well-being, DIG provides education opportunities for Mayan youth, medical services for families, and sustainable farming and nutrition systems for entire towns. DIG works alongside Mayan community members at the ground level to determine long-term solutions. Through DIG’s purposeful travel programs, volunteers can create unforgettable personal experiences while making a long-term impact on these communities.

DIG is run by Geoff and Rita Doppenberg, the son and daughter-in-law of Bill and Leny Doppenberg, brother of Judy Van Geest and cousin of Mike Huinink and Dan Huinink. They are on a humanitarian mission to help the Mayan people. (Humans Helping Humans).

DONATE:

We have a team of 25 people joining us for DIG 2026. The funds we are raising are to offset the cost of this trip
and pay for the materials used for the work being done in Guatemala e.g. Smokeless Stoves (see video below).

You can donate to help the group or a specific individual (options 2 or 3).

Donate through the Bridge App (GROUP ONLY).

Look for “DIG - Guatemala Mission” in the list of charities.

DONATE via e-Transfer (Group or Individual)

Step 1: Please send the e-Transfer to: treasurer@mountainviewcrc.org. Please indicate DIG in the text box, if you are donating towards a specific person, please add that person’s name eg. DIG-John Doe

Step 2: Please fill out the “e-transfer donation form’ form or send us an email with your name, and address. This will allow us to make the deposit and provide you with a tax receipt for your donation.

DONATE via Cheque (Group or Individual)

Step 1: Make cheque out to ‘Mountainview CRC’. Please indicate DIG in the comment/memo line, if you are donating towards a specific person, please add that person’s name Eg. ‘DIG - John Doe’

Step 2: mail or drop off cheque to Mountainview Church, 290 Main St. E., Grimsby, ON L3M 1P8

One of the biggest projects DIG is working on is smokeless stoves. Imagine having an open fire in your living room that you need for cooking and for heat. This is what many Mayans rely on, and it has resulted in profound levels of respiratory illness and deforestation.  DIG’s smokeless stove program has resulted in a 95% reduction of respiratory illness, and what used to be a 1 day supply of firewood now lasts 2 weeks!

Every family who receives a smokeless stove also receives a Galcom solar powered audio Bible and radio fixed tuned to our local Christian Radio station (Presencia 101.1)  to help spread the Word of God as many can’t read in Guatemala. 

To learn more about DIG check out their website www.dreaminvestgrow.org

“What can we bring to help?”

Please note that we have a very strict policy of ABSOLUTELY NO HAND-OUTS. We know your heart is in the right place, but we ask that you trust our experience that shows that handing people things for free does not empower them. In fact, it belittles them and fosters a sense of dependency. Books like “When helping hurts” or movies like “Poverty Inc.” explain this at length. Even in cases of extreme emergency we will provide food or medicine to people in need, but we do ask that they “pay it forward” in some way.... If you really want to do something, we highly suggest the following:

1) Collect money from friends and family to help our work. Or collect money and we can go shopping when you are here to buy supplies. School supplies like pencils, notebooks, pens, pencil crayons (coloured pencils for you Americans), erasers, etc are all in huge demand here. Purchasing things here (as opposed to bringing them from home) is cheaper and helps the local economy.

2) If you really want to collect items... collect the above school supplies. Other things we always need are medicines- acetaminophen (Tylenol), gravol (dramamine), children’s tylenol, ibuprofen (advil), Naproxen (Aleve), Benadryl liquid (children), Benadryl tablets (adult), Children’s vitamins (iron free), women’s prenatal vitamins, iron supplements for women, tums or other antacids, antihistamines (Claritin), baby formula powders, baby bottles, etc.

3) Children do love stickers and it’s fun to colour with them so, stickers, colouring books and crayons/coloured pencils/paints are always welcome.

4) The Doppenberg family always appreciates when people bring us treats, we cannot get here.... Chocolate bars (candy bars), candy, brown sugar, spices, gluten free flour.