For the sixth year in a row, PSG partner Paul Gidus spent a week’s vacation during the summer of 2003 helping to build a home for a needy family in Tijuana, Mexico. Called Project Mexico and founded by an Orthodox Christian who also developed an orphanage for Mexican boys, the organization uses the labor of willing volunteers to construct a home that provides basic shelter for a needy Mexican family.
Measuring 11’x22′–the size of an average American family room, the uninsulated house consists of two rooms, a concrete floor, a flat roof, two windows and a door. There is no plumbing or electricity. The stud walls in the house are exposed.
The building project took five days to complete by a group of volunteers from Florida and other parts of the country that Paul was part of. The new house was blessed for the family by an Orthodox Christian priest (a common practice with Orthodox Christians) who was part of the volunteer group.
Why has Paul made so many trips back to Mexico? “We are called to do mission work,” Paul explains . “As a builder, constructing a home like this is something I can easily do. Over the years I have developed a relationship with Project Mexico and have worked to get materials donated by our company’s suppliers.”
Paul may break away from tradition and take a year off in order to give his wife Tammy an opportunity to experience a building trip. His intentions, however, are to return again. “The trip is a reality check for me because it helps keep my life in perspective. It’s something we all need to do.”
More information on Project Mexico can be found at www.projectmexico.org.
