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Last Updated: May 13, 1997
![[Betsy Burgdorff]](../images/betsy.jpg)
SUBJECT: Betsy's Letter #13 - Part 1
AUTHOR: Betsy Burgdorf, her husband Ted, and three girls - Heidi, Kristen, and Kara, work with her sister Becky Gates and family in Guyana.
DATE: April 16, 1997
Dear Family and Friends,
So much has happened since my last letter that I hope I can get it all written before the plane arrives! I didn't write about our trip to Venezuela with Ted's parents because Heidi wrote about it. We returned on Mon., March 24, and 2 days later Aunt Lita, Uncle Eddie and Aunt Ruth arrived to spend a week with us. We enjoyed wonderful gourmet meals prepared by Aunt Lita and Aunt Ruth. They brought us all kinds of goodies from the U.S.A. It was fun getting acquainted with Uncle Eddie and Aunt Ruth, since I had only seen them 2 or 3 times before in my life. And of course it was wonderful having Aunt Lita, my favorite Aunt, here for a visit.
Uncle Eddie and Aunt Ruth lived in Georgetown and started Davis Memorial Hospital, so this was a very special visit for them. They left Guyana 40 years ago! We really enjoyed the stories he told about that experience. He gave the Sermon on Sabbath. Uncle Eddie fell in love with our feisty little kitten, Igor, who loved chewing on his nose and ears.
Unfortunately, the weekend they were here was the weekend that the Paruima Pathfinders and Kaikan Pathfinders walked to Arau about 15 miles (a 7-hour hike, I think) for a pathfinder Camporee. The kids were so torn about what to do, but finally dcided to go to the Pathfinder Camporee. Kristen, Katrina, and Lina left Thursday morning with the Kaikan Trailblazers. I never got an official count of how many went, but probably 40 or 50 from Kaikan. That afternoon the Paruima Pathfinders arrived in Kaikan and were disappointed to find that Kaikan had left without them. There were 17 in their group, which included a 3 year-old boy. They had walked 3 days from Paruima (about 32 miles). They decided to spend the night in Kaikan and leave for Arau Friday morning. We invited them over for worship that night and Uncle Eddie told a story and I taught them a new song. Heidi had planned to go with the Paruima club, so she was packed already. Then Kara and Carlos decided to go also, so we quickly got them packed, too. I was a little worried about Kara, but figured if she made it up Half Dome, she could make it to Arau. One of the kids will have to write about the Camporee since I didn't go, but it sounds like they had a good time. There were also 2 clubs from Venezuela there. Someone from the paruima Club carried our keyboard so they could have music.
The kids arrived home Monday, tired and dirty. Aunt Lita had brought some Easter eggs so they had an Easter egg hunt that afternoon. We had such an enjoyable visit with Uncle Eddie, Aunt Ruth, and Aunt Lita, but the 1 week passed much too quickly. We wished they could have stayed 2 weeks or more. Aunt Lita brought a lot of books, which the kids quickly snatched up. I know that at least Carlos and Heidi took books in their backpacks!
Ted and I decided to hike back to Paruima with the Paruima Pathfinders. We bought 2 warishis, which are their home-made backpacks. I'll let Ted pick up the story. (see Letter #12 Part 2)
Love,
Betsy
You may write to Betsy at: gates@andrews.edu
Last Updated: May 13, 1997