Since being stationed in the town of Mindo for my service portion of SST, I’ve noticed a big cultural difference between U.S. Mennonites and Ecuadorian “Mindo-nites” – pun intended 🙂 approaches to life. There’s a palpable sense of serenity and…
News
Baños and Amazonia
Jun 10 2025
There are always two sides to every story. On one hand, we enjoyed the beautiful views of the Amazon and the enormous Napo River, and got completely soaked by waterfalls! On the other hand, we visited an exotic animal refuge and learned about exotic animal trafficking, rescue and rehabilitation. During class time we listened to a veterinarian guest speaker who talked about the serious ramifications of puppy mills and the increasing number of street dogs in Quito.
This was the last group trip and now students are preparing for their move to service assignments.
What Mindo Taught Me to See
A Day in the Life: Working on a Flower Farm
For my service, I work in Cayambe with an organization called FACE. Under FACE there are other organizations; Casa Hogar, Sumak, Centro Medico Emmanuel, and Forever Flowers. They work together to help break the cycle of abuse and neglect in…