Keep It In The Family

                                                 Family And Friends

                With Scatter Creek Coffee Roasters we spend all our time striving to serve the best products and services that we can, to insure happy clients. From the best organic coffees to the best practices. We cherish every client and every customer no matter how large a buyer or small.
The same goes with American Water Locators. We travel as far or near as we have to. Our clients whether they need a well for residential property, agriculture, or commercial we are there to find the best source on your property or a future investment.

                 It is our commitment to your family from ours that sets us apart. We do things as a family, in most situations you will find 3 generations on site or at our roaster. At the moment we are knee deep in Mission/Humanitarian work in Guatemala locating water for wells in remote villages. You will still find attention to detail back home as our coffee is still in family hands. Our water locating business is gearing up for our return voyage and our mission will become something of its own. All of this while staying family oriented and in tune to the direction in which we are lead.

                We pride ourselves in our mission and look forward to many more years and generations of service. Feel free to email us and inquire of our products and services.

The Willis Family





scattercreekcoffeeroasters@gmail.com
steve.waterlocate@gmail.com
steve.americanwater@gmail.com

A New Year To Remember!

   

                                       So much to be thankful for, So much more to do!


                                   


     December has been super slow due to many groups being out of the country for Christmas. We are heading to Chisec tomorrow! We are having much anticipated party for some of the kiddos we have been blessed to meet. After this we head straight to Poptun to help locate water for our friends at Water For Life. We will be in that area for just over a week. Mid January we have visitors coming from the States (Yay Family). The end of January we will need to renew our visas which looks like us leaving Central America for 72 hours. We have a lot to do next month and we are trusting that God will provide the necessary funds to accomplish all this.   



     We are still in need of financial supporters at this point. If you would like to help support the mission we will post opportunities that need attention. Some of the opportunities would look like Filtration for communities that despite everyone's best efforts will never have water from a well. These folks will have to fight daily for clean water the rest of their lives. It has become our vision to not only locate water, but to serve those who our service can't serve.(tongue twister). We have had 100% success so far locating water in remote villages. However there is still a problem in some more heavily populated areas where contamination is unavoidable. We would like to provide water filters to these Barrios that are quite poor. If this is something that you would like to help with please contact us or follow the link to our -go fund me page-. Thank you all for your continued support and please continue to pray for us.

https://www.gofundme.com/uzcbk-clean-water-for-guatemala

For a tax deductible year end donation go here and click Missions Willis Guatemala https://mylpclacey.churchcenter.com/giving

Thank You
Steve Willis
Water For Guatemala

What are we doing here update!

This is a short video showing some of the work we have been up to.

What happens next will shock you......

                                                  We made a sugar syrup from sugar cane!

 So we got some sugar cane given to us by some special people that we were allowed to serve. At first we just took to gnawing on it and that was pretty good. Gets a little old picking cane fiber from the front of your face. So I proposed to my family that we ought to make sugar. I don’t really know how they do it but I said to my kids we will just do it.

First we cut it in chunks and debarked em real good.

                                   Then we cut it in smaller chunks and blended to make a pulp.

Next we took the pulp and placed it in a cheese cloth and squeezed it out real good. 

The final steps were to boil it down to the desired consistency and strained it into a jar. 

We never really considered making sugar or refining cane. However since we had the raw product, and since my kids are homeschooled here in Guatemala, I said yeah let’s do that. So if you ever have some sugar cane laying around and you want to make some syrup for coffee or whatever. That’s how we dunnit. Thanks for reading our little post. 

What Goes Around Comes Around.

          We recently had the opportunity to revisit some areas we had located water. What an honor to be a part of something so life giving. We met up with our friends from Water for Life International in Guatemala and were privileged to help install hand pumps in two of the villages that we had previously worked in. We also got a chance to help install a water tank in a third village we had worked in. Thank you friends and family for your part in this amazing adventure. Many lives have been blessed by what is taking place down here.

           We cherish every opportunity to serve these beautiful people and look forward to many more projects of hope. This is why we are here. Hope in The Kingdom Come.

Who Are We

      The question of who we are is extremely complex. We are not simply the Willis family. Sure that’s who we are. I’m talking about who we are in our being. We are the face of a much larger cooperative. A group of people not together with a common purpose. Our story is unique with many characters. We are -Water for Guatemala-.

    We are ex military and we are active duty. We are ceo’s And students. We are strong and we are struggling to keep our heads up. We are far right and extremely left. We grow more every week. Each person who steps up to meet us in this mission is a hero.

     When you pray you give hope. When you donate you give health. When you message us you give strength. When you tell of our story you share the burden. We are thread in a blanket woven by the hands of many and we cover and comfort many. Thank You to those who have chosen to join us you know who you are. You are the unsung hero’s.

    Please continue to pray, to donate, and share. Share with everyone you meet share our joint story. Encourage others to share and like and follow. The more noise we make, the more we’re heard, the more we’re heard the more we help.

Just Pull Over Already!!!

Get out of my way! 

I have a million things to do, I don't have time for.....

I get it. I do. Just trying to get this thing done so I can move on to the next thing that needs done. There is always gonna be another thing to do. Grinding. Hustling. ETC! I'll tell you this. Most the time the truth is, I need to get out of my own way. 

I allow myself to be bothered with little problems. I get bogged down by the little stuff of life. When I'm focused on the tiny insignificant things it makes it impossible to do the meaningful stuff. The stuff that will bring positive change to myself and those in my life. "life  happens" "something came up". PFFT. yeah my excuses! That's what came up. 

It's actually easier to handle the junk. If I handle the easy junk then I don't have to make real decisions. I don't have to take risks. I don't have to take the next step. I can put off the things that I might fail at. I can stay in my comfort zone and never put myself out there. 

That's not me though. That's not who I am. I am someone different now. I step out there for positive change. I flea my comfort zone like its on fire. I take risks for the greater good. I can learn from any situation, which means I can never fail. Only grow. I am free to be who I am supposed to be. In community. 

We can do great things. We can reach new heights. Experience something different something amazing.  "Only those people"  "I'm not like them". Maybe not. You can be though if you just get out of your own way. 

Never pick up hitchhikers!

I don’t always pick up hitchhikers but when I do....


We are told pretty early on not to give rides to strangers. I feel like that’s pretty sound advice especially with our current situation. We live in rural Guatemala and often find ourselves on backroads in the middle of farmland. 90% of the men sitting on the side of the road have machetes in hand and look rough. This is understandable because they are day laborers, they get paid a low sum of money to clear land with just a machete. That’s just how they do it.

Recently we have experienced an economic downturn in our house. I’m not gonna go into details about why cause that is not the point I wish to convey. It turns out that if your caloric intake is low enough it will cause you to be light headed and lethargic. This coupled with poor water quality and intense heat is a recipe for disaster.

Ergo, we have in the last couple weeks initiated a ride share program. These old boys come out of the field completely exhausted. So on our way home from our daily routines we may pick up between 2 & 4 farmers. They are extremely happy to hop in the bed of the truck and ride in the cool breeze for the 4 miles back home.

We offer these rides free of charge but the pay is true fulfillment.

hard working honest men

You Fight

   It's never been easy. It's never been handed to me. To say its a struggle is an understatement. I wake up with a thousand pounds on my chest everyday. I summon my strength from that still small voice, that voice that tells me it's OK.  

   It's OK just to be me, even when I don't know me! Who am I to think or be. So dark its hard to see whats right in front of me. And yet how can I be who they need me to be, if inside I flight I flee.  

  Then and there I stand and fight! I push and I push because that's who I've become. In my weakness I am given the strength to fight. Failure, doubt, and insecurity cast on me like a net. It covers me! It chokes me! I will never surrender.

  These things they plague us all. The discouraging thoughts can paralyze the mightiest of us. The biggest rival you will ever face is the face in the mirror. If you continue to stand in your own way you'll never see where you could've gone. We are not designed to fear this life. No! We are designed to overcome it.

  We must rid ourselves of the negative people in our lives, The ones we give the power to control us, the power to cripple us. Wake up and free yourself of the baggage. Surround yourself with positive people. People who will inspire you to do great things.

  Go! Go and do what you know your supposed to do and do it right. You fight! You fight! You don't back down. Just when you can't take another thing and your ready to fall out, your out of breathe and exhausted. You fight! 

  Nothing is ever going to be handed to you. If you want it you have to fight...

  

https://www.gofundme.com/uzcbk-clean-water-for-guatemala

Clean Water For Guatemala

We shall fight in jungles and on gravel streets!

        The death toll is continually Increasing as we dig in our heals. Attack after attack, wave after wave. Bombs falling all around scattering troops about. This is by far the the worst military upset our battalion has seen in many years. On that day our troops were backed into a corner they stood brave as shots rang out from every direction. No where to hide nothing to block the assault that would become our lowest hour.

        We will return  home lost and afraid. Even ashamed. Many will question the war and its efforts. Many will grow cold as the enemy set its sights on our home front. The air will grow more stagnant with every day that passes.

 
                      However!              We shall stand. We shall fight. We shall never surrender.


         We may become prisoners of war. We may come home critically/spiritually injured. Yes! We will come home knowing that we fought hard and endured till our end. Until that day we ask that our country men, our family, and our friends continue to wave that glorious flag. Continue on towards that glorious kingdom that brings hope to all mankind. Dig in with us and fight for humanity. Stir amongst yourselves a desire to see that kingdom come.

                       Fight with us!!!   Whatever the cost may be. We shall be victorious against those forces that oppose us. We shall rise as if on eagles wings. We will be clothed in righteousness and all glory will be given to him who is seated in the highest place.

     
         

       

Plant Based Local Foods

          Disclaimer: Consuming raw or under cooked meats can cause food born illness!



                      Q: So how do you cook for so many people on such a tight budget?

                                   A: I have no clue....

     We must learn how to cook for 10+ kids and stay below our budget. If we don't then we have to turn them away. The meals these kids get at our home could sadly be the only substantial meal they get all day. So how do we do this? How do we we rise to the challenge? How do we steward what we have to make this sustainable?

                                     Plant based local foods are the only way to stay in budget.

                                      Plantain, Taro Root, Local Tortillas, Potatoes, and Eggs

     Our goal is to stay below Q100 per day. This is what we have for food, cleaning supplies, fuel for our truck, etc. With the current exchange rate that gives us $13.36 U.S. Dollars. We found that if we buy local food from local farmers we can stay under budget. God is good. We have what we need to survive and put food in the bellies of those we are charged to care for. It is not easy and I find myself asking what are we doing here? It is a very real struggle to be content, we often feel stretched. We have been extremely low income before, but there is something very different about the poverty we experience here in Chisec, Guatemala. We have roughly 50% more money than our neighbors and I have no idea how they put it all together everyday. I feel disturbed to my core.

     I am writing this from my laptop, on the best wifi I could afford under my electrically lit light bulb. 90% of our neighbors have no electricity, no indoor plumbing and cook over open flame in their living rooms... And I am struggling with contentment. All I can do is open my door, my pantry, and my heart to these kids as long as I am hear and able.

     There has been times in my life where I have been deaf to God's voice, or maybe he has just been silent. I don't know. I will tell you this though Every day I wake up in this place I am face to face with God's Grace ( yeah that's a capital G). I will never be the same. Never.

     My prayer is that God would raise up missionaries from within the church here. That we would be able to experience a mission centered revival in this city that would rival that of the early church. To bring in the fullness of the harvest. 

   

El Esfuerso Water Locate

Disclaimer: This post is based on a real story viewer discretion is advised.

These pictures are from a village we located water for. The name of this village is El Esfuerso and it is located 30 minutes from our home down a typical mud/gravel road. We have some friends over at Compelling Love Ministries who have been working with this village for a while now. One of the projects at hand is drilling a well that produces enough water for the whole community.    

                                          Above: Some of the men from the village helping
                                          set up for our survey.
                                          Below: Collection of raw data

                                              Above: A path up to a church

                                                  Every one is always interested in what is
                                                  going on. It's normal for half the village
                                                  to show up and watch us

                                          These food pictures are from the meal that the
                                          elders of this village provided us after finishing
                                          our day's work. It's always a privilege to share
                                          a meal with these men and women.
                                         

          There is always groups of people in each village who don't really want us there. For the most part once they realize that we're not charging money and we really just want to help they lighten up. not always but most the time. For the record we only go to villages and communities that ask us to come. We do not just randomly show up. That would be potentially dangerous.

          Many of these villages have been taken advantage of by various organizations. Swindled out of their money, money they didn't have to start with. when we go into a community like El Esfuerso it is important to us that we leave them with single truth. That truth is that God cares that they have clean water, and there is many people who have come together to be here for them. The impact of this truth is a hope in the promises of God. This hope is priceless.

          Thank you everyone who has helped make this happen! Many people will be impacted with safe clean drinking water through this project.

So Many Kids

Disclaimer: Posts found from here on out are real events and real thoughts of the author. the author intends to keep everything very real.

So many kids in our yard everyday. We've been here a month now and there is rarely a day with out them. They are like an extension of our family now.

                                 Some of them are here every day some are here once a week.

               We provide them food and art supplies, as well as a yard to play football (soccer) in.

   

        We by no means or stretch of the imagination ever thought we were going to be caring for the children of our city in this capacity. As I said in the previous post we don't make plans really we just say yes. When precious little ones show up at your door you don't simply send them away. We started caring for these kids and sometimes we ask ourselves "what are we doing". We barely have the resources for our own family what makes us think we can take care of 10-15 more mouths. We are viewing this as an opportunity to trust God for provision of basic necessities. We have had a couple individuals help out with specific needs and we are grateful.

         We love these children dearly and will continue to care for them to the best of our ability. We would like to thank everyone who supports this mission we could not do this with out you. Thank you life Pointe Church of Lacey Washington for sending us.

         Many children will know the love of Jesus. They will feel the love of the church and each person who rallies for the cause is significant. Every prayer. Every e-mail. Every person has a place in this mission and we are just extensions of the church's hands for the will of God in Jesus.

         We invite each and every one of you who support us to write in with your questions, Concerns, Prayer request's, Praise reports, or any other communication. If you would like to help out in a specific area of this ministry please E-mail us at steve.waterlocate@gmail.com.

1st Post

        Disclaimer: I do not have a degree in English. My sentence structure is most likely horrible. you may disagree with my views. If you do not like what you see or read I'm sorry. 

                                                                                                                                                                       Why are we here? 

Sometimes we ask ourselves "why are we here" or "what are we doing". The truth is, we don't really know. We don't have the details nailed down. We didn't end up here with some perfectly mapped out plan. We simply said yes! 

How God decides to direct us, where he sends us, and who we serve has always been a mystery to us. It's usually waist deep in whatever he has us doing when we ask, why are we here?. Reminds me of Peter walking out to meet Jesus on the water. We know how that goes. However I would like to say this, its always an adventure. I love to see what God is doing and how he uses his disciples. Why are we here? simply Jesus. 

Every day is a different journey here in Guatemala. We came with a task of locating water in remote villages using equipment we bought in 2016. Our equipment is unique and has a very high success rate for us back home in the U.S. Our GF6 unit from Aqua Locate can see depth, yield, and thickness of an aquifer. This data is very useful when you are having problems procuring water via drilling. We can eliminate the risk of drilling dry or non productive wells. This is extremely essential when funding is at an extreme low as it is in all of Guatemala. That is how we ended up here. Just a typical North American family of 4.