Words from the team member Gary Paukert

Married to Barb 16 years, one child, Katherine, 8 years old.

Members of First Alliance Church in Calgary.

Born and raised in the USA, (Texas, Minnesota, Colorado, Washington).

Enjoy baseball, wilderness backpacking, cross-country skiing.

Senior International Geophysicist, Gulf Canada Resources Ltd.

Graduated B.S. double major Physics & Earth Science, Whitworth College, Spokane, WA (1980). Graduated M.Sc. Geophysics, U. of Calgary, (1983).

Have lived in Calgary since 1989.

Travel extensively in Latin America and speak Spanish fairly well.

Gary Paukert shows his family photo album to interested children in the small community of Francisco Sarabia . December 16th, 2000 - Samaritan's Purse, Operation Christmas Child (OCC) Mission Trip to Tuxtla, Chiapas, Mexico.

About 2 years ago, during a time when I was not using my language ability for work travel, I started to feel quite strongly that God had arranged for me to learn to speak Spanish over the years and that this was an ability that I could and should be using to serve Him.

I therefore approached Sean Campbell, Director of SP, whom I had met years before.

I told him I had a week of vacation I could spare, I could buy a plane ticket and I could speak Spanish - was there anything I could do to help SP?

He suggested I tag along on the first trip to Chiapas, which took place in January of 2000.

On that January trip, and again on the December trip, which was very similar, my greatest joy was being able to serve as translator and help facilitate communications and relationships between the children and the Canadian team members.

I also enjoyed playing baseball with the kids, who probably have never seen a pasty white, out of shape 42-year-old play a kid's game with such enthusiasm.

Other joys have been meeting and getting to know the Mexican people who help us down there - pastors, doctors, dentists, nurses, church lay workers, etc., and encouraging people in Calgary to participate in OCC by putting together shoeboxes or going on a distribution trip themselves.

I don't know what the future holds for me in terms of continuing with what I've started with these two trips.

In some ways I feel like I've 'done the OCC distribution thing' and there isn't much to be accomplished by going again - let someone else have the chance.

It may be that I'll get involved in a work trip, or some entirely unforeseeable effort.

I intend to wait, listen and watch for God to show me an opportunity.

The idea I try to get across to people I talk to at home is this: When God has a specific task for us to do, it's not something we'll hate, it's something we were made for and will love.

My passions for the past decade have been international travel, baseball, camping, and the Spanish language.

So what terrible sacrifice did God ask of me? Travel internationally to Chiapas, play baseball with kids, rough it like camping, and translate Spanish to English.

Sounds like a real horrible time for me, doesn't it!?!