Our week in Timor-Leste began with a four-hour car ride to the small mountain town of Ainaro. Despite the streets that mimic a constant roller coaster of bumps, cracks, ups, and downs, the beauty of the country stole the show. Sky-piercing mountains and breathtaking nature surrounded us the whole week. Our first full day in Ainaro began with a traditional ceremony, performed by the kids of Venancio Ferraz Middle School. From there we got to work on the court, and that night the kids ran us around town on a scavenger hunt. The next two days were full of construction, which was all worth it when we finished the court in just two and a half days! We got to have a lot of fun during our last full days in Ainaro. We visited a beautiful waterfall and saw several historical sites in the area. We got to learn how Tais are weaved, how coffee is made, and heard the stories of a man who lived through the Indonesian occupation. The school held a beautiful court inauguration ceremony to begin our last day in Ainaro. Great food, gifts, and games filled up our entire day with laughter and fun. At last, we said goodbye to the wonderful community we had spent all week getting to know.

Trying to describe the people of Ainaro has been the most difficult part of writing this blog. They carry so much pride in the Timorese name. Through all the wars, battles, years hiding in the jungle, all they ever wanted was to see their people free and happy. Putting others before yourself is a value above all else to this small community. The success of your family, neighbors, and friends take precedence over many of the things we value in American culture. When visiting a local waterfall with our team, a sign at the top of the trail that led down to it read “Live every day with a grateful heart”. A subtle yet powerful reminder to appreciate the little things. A roof over your head that doesn’t leak when it rains, running water, clean clothes, food on the table, I could go on and on. So many things we don’t think twice about that many people would be incredibly grateful to have. This really hit us when leaving Venancio Ferraz Middle School for the last time. After a long, fun day of games, dancing, singing, and fantastic food, we began to say our goodbyes to the kids we had spent so much time getting to know. Many of them started crying, which made just as many of us shed a tear. In only 5 days we made connections and impacted the community to a level I never thought was possible in such a short amount of time. These kids were truly grateful for our presence there. Whether it was because of the new court, the friendships we had formed, or simply the sadness of saying goodbye, they were grateful from the bottom of their hearts for our team and the impact we made in their community. And we were just as grateful for them. The joy, the pride, the excitement, the community they brought to us every day is something we could only dream of replicating back home. In many ways, they’re a richer society than money could ever buy.

Bravery and strength run deep through the families of Timor. From the people who helped free the country from Indonesian control over the last 50 years. The strength to never give up, despite being outnumbered, outmanned, and outfunded, they knew who they were and never backed down. They did whatever it took to get what they wanted, what was best for their people. Even after the war, everyone works so hard to put grudges and disagreements aside for the greater good of the country. To the mothers and fathers who work tirelessly to give their kids a better life than what they grew up in. Putting food on the table, shoes on their feet, and schools to become educated, the parents here are soldiers in their own right. And the kids who would arrive at school to see us working and immediately hop in line to start working on the court they would soon be able to call their own. There’s a famous proverb that wouldn’t leave my head during this trip, from the mind of Mori Motonari, “One arrow is easily broken, but many arrows are indestructible.” A perfect way to see why the Timorese people are who they are today.

The joyous nature of these people is noticeable in everything they do. As the kids worked with us, smiles never left their faces, regardless of how grueling the work may have been for some of them. While a few members of our team decided to get impromptu haircuts, kids cycled through the barbershop. Dances, jokes, and playful arguments went on for hours, but it felt like just minutes had passed. It was a good reminder to our team that anything can be fun if you make it so. If you put down your phone and shove your fear of embarrassment aside for just a moment, you can create memories that last a lifetime.

~ Christian Herndon, Volunteer

Volunteer Quotes:

“The physical distance from home to this community may be very far, but the things that provide us true joy are very much the same all over the world. Singing, dancing, playing, working side by side for each other. These things know no boundaries.”
~ Jon, adult volunteer

“The most difficult part of going home is watching the children and seeing the emotional impact of leaving their community after being immersed with them working side by side to build the court for days. I cried with them and it was extremely difficult to leave them.” ~ Krista, adult volunteer

“I loved being able to create a shared experience with the community members by building the court. It created a bond like no other, they weren’t just my friends, they were my teammates. At the end of the week building the court I truly felt like these kids were family.” ~ Charlee, student volunteer

“My favorite part of the trip was after the opening ceremony and there was a huge group of kids of all different ages and grades dancing in a circle busting out ‘Baby’ by Justin Bieber despite the language barrier. Then in the next moment learning their traditional dances and songs. It was cool to see how connected we were and how easy it was to switch back and forth and blend these two cultures together.” ~ Josie, student volunteer

“I learned that I can work even harder than I thought and put myself into uncomfy situations and I thrive and grow from doing that. I talked to more people and opened convos that I normally would not say and I want to continue the hard work and discomfort in my day to day life outside of CFK.” ~ Maggie, student volunteer

“My highlight was the opening day on the court. The moment when I stood in the middle of the action and saw how much joy the kids had in every corner- the different sports being played on the court, the dancing, the music and the s’mores.”
~ Amanda, adult volunteer

“The last day of work, I took a quick break to get water. I spent a minute looking out over the entire court area and seeing all the people- the CFK volunteers, the kids, the adults, all working together on a common goal. All of this under a backdrop of mountains and rolling clouds. It was a really impressive sight. A few days later I was standing in the same spot, watching all these same people and more, all playing games together. Everyone was having a great time together and it was an amazing sight.”
~ Jay, adult volunteer

“It always takes a concerted effort to make connections. These trips always remind me the heart is a muscle like any other and like others requires regular exercise and practice to remain open and willing to risk reaching out to new folks, both within the group and in the local community.” ~ Kelly, adult volunteer

“I learned both past and present history/culture/politics that I couldn’t find on the internet without having boots on the ground. CFK did an ELITE job of providing educational sessions while we were in Timor Leste to connect us with community members in unique ways. It never felt fabricated or forced and the whole group benefitted.” ~ Tommy, adult volunteer

“Coming to understand a little about Timor Leste’s 25 year battle for independence reminded me of how cruel humanity can be, but how resilient humankind can be. Every day I scanned the horizon, looking to the mountains, cliffs and valleys wondering how it must have been to be displaced, hunted, tortured and murdered. How strong these people are to experience such horror, rebuild, reconcile and forgive.” ~ Blair, adult volunteer

Community Quotes:

“Our community really liked this project because it supported both the development of our school’s infrastructure as well as the physical development of our students.” ~ Januario Gomes de Jesus, Teacher

“Our community liked this project because we now have a court for our children to play.” ~ Carlos da Silva, Teacher

“We most liked working together. We always like working together with people but this was special because we were working with Americans and we made new friends.” ~ Trimaia and Dalia, Students

“This project will fó forsa (give strength) to the community. We can practice sports, do competitions, and have other activities on the court.” ~ Martinho, Student

Family volunteers from multiple states are warmly welcomed by the community of Ainaro, Timor Leste