When Brother David and I visited the 65 villages along the river Ucayali in the jungle of Peru and tried to train men and women to gather the people on a Sunday to have a prayer service, the people expressed a wish to have a gathering place: a church. After hearing them say they had logs but no way to saw them into boards, I felt helpless.

When I came back to the US and told my family, my brother Marvin took me to a factory that manufactured portable sawmills. I said, "I wish I had one down in
the jungle!" Later, I mentioned to Bruce Michalek, OFM, our Director of Development, who had helped me construct or rebuild some chapels, that we could
do more if we had a sawmill. Little did I know that Brother Bruce had already investigated Wood Mizer, a portable sawmill.

With the help of mission friends, we flew a sawmill to the jungle on two pallets. I went down river, put it on a boat and was able to build seven chapels in remote areas along with the people helping to construct them. Brother Bruce and Brother Scott from Franciscan mission friends sent me the money for tin, cement, nails and small salaries for the constructions. This wish came true for the people with the help of many friends and donors making a dream come a reality.