We went to Moquegua, Peru, a city that had been hit by a #8 earthquake a month and a half ago. We went with the particular purpose of raising the spirits of the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and also to benefit the local community. We were to accomplish this by helping some people chosen by the Moquegua Stake President to rebuild their destroyed homes. We ended up building 7 houses in 5 days. I witnessed miracles. I saw grown men and women cry and fall to their knees praising God and thanking him for his goodness. I felt the spirit so strong and made an inner commitment to dedicate my life to the service of the Kingdom of God.

These people were so humble. I was one of few people with our humanitarian group that could communicate with the Peruvians, and I was able to hear and understand the words and emotions that these people felt. I was in charge of coordinating the delivery of all the building materials to the project sites so that the contractors (Scott Whipperman, Steve Whipperman, Ed Braithwaite) on the jobs would not have to wait and could work efficiently. We worked 16+ hour days and slept very few hours. After seeing the results, it was well worth it. I worked closely with Alan Layton and had a chance to get to know him better.