SUBJECT: Buried Alive

AUTHOR: David Gates, his wife Becky, and two of their five children - Carlos and Kristopher, work in a medical aviation program in the jungles of Guyana, South America.

DATE: September 1999

The following amazing story actually happened a few weeks ago to our Amerindian assistant, Claude Anselmo, who works with us in Kaikan.

Claude in Canoe Headed for Venezuela

During our absence from Kaikan in September, Claude ran short on provisions, and decided to walk across to Venezuela to find some mining work for a few weeks. He advised us by radio of his proposed plans. As expected, he was able to find a rather large mining operation that was willing to hire him to dig back into the river bank to loosen the soil for removal. Claude worked most of the morning, digging back into the exposed soil. Due to the many roots, he was instructed to leave the topsoil untouched, even though it hung dangerously above their heads.

Soon it was time to switch shifts. Claude was called to take a break, while other workers took their places below with the pick. Within minutes of leaving his work, there was a loud sound as the large layers of topsoil collapsed on the workers. Most heard it coming and backed out. However, no one was sure if anyone had actually been buried. Even if they had, they surely would have been killed by now.

Claude was not convinced. He jumped down into the pit and began digging with his bare hands. He shouted at the others to help, and they reluctantly joined in. For nearly ten minutes they dug frantically. Suddenly they uncovered a hand. As they touched the hand, it began to move. Now everyone was convinced. They dug as fast as they could. Soon they had the man uncovered. Evidently, the man was able to cover his face with his hands and preserve a bubble of air which he had used to assist in breathing. The man told how the pressure of the heavy soil on his body had made his head feel like it would burst. How grateful everyone was that Claude had courageously insisted on attempting a rescue. Further digging revealed no additional bodies. The company immediately closed its operations.

Weakly, Claude sat down on the edge of the river. As he sat there, he felt for his pocket Leatherman, a gift from his friend Brooks at Andrews University. The tool was his constant companion. He suddenly realized that it must have fallen in the muddy pit. He jumped down and ran his hands through the mud for nearly an hour. In desperation, he just sat down in the mud and gave up.

"Oh God," he prayed silently, "you know how much that tool means to me. I am so sad to have lost it, but I thank you for helping me save a life today."

As he sat sadly in the mud, he began idly making a small hole in the mud which got deeper and deeper. He pressed his arm down deep into the hole until it reached his shoulder. At the bottom of the hole he felt something hard with his fingers. It felt metallic. With excitement Claude firmly pulled out the deeply buried tool, and discovered it to be the lost Leatherman!

Though Claude returned back from Venezuela with no money. Claude is convicted that God needed him there for a special purpose, and answered his prayer.

"God saw how sad I was and answered my prayer," Claude told me with conviction. No one can convince him otherwise. What do you think?

If this story has touched you, I am sure Claude would like to hear from you. You may email him or send a letter to:

Claude Anselmo - Kaikan
P.O. Box 10191
Georgetown, Guyana
South America

You may email David or Claude at gates@andrews.edu