Continuing Residency Saga

We turned in our permanent two-year residency papers at the beginning of June and were given a 6-month temporary card.  We were told to wait three months and then call to see what progress had been made.  I checked online last week and it still showed that our paperwork was still in the resolution phase.  We weren't concerned as, technically, the 3-month period isn't over yet.

Then, Monday we got a call from the church letting us know that the immigration office called them.  Don't know why they didn't call us, but through the church we found out we had an 8:00 a.m. appointment for our interviews at the immigration office downtown.  We called around to find someone who could go with us as we had never been to this location, not to mention the traffic at that time of the morning and the usual problem with parking.  

David Aguilar (our good friend and campus pastor) offered to go with us so we picked him up at 7:15 and he directed us to the place.  He even parked and waited for us at the truck.  We waited only 5-10 minutes before the interview process started--me first and then Stephen second.  The questions focused on our ministry (what activities do we do) and our money (where does it come from and how much is it.)  She took notes of everything we said.  When she was done, she told us that what remains to be done is a home visit and an interview with the pastor of our church.  Oh, she also gave us a list of additional documentation that we need to provide:

• Three personal reference letters
• Copy of our the rental contract for our apartment
• Copy of a water bill and electricity bill
• List of the Americans in our church  

The interview at our home is scheduled for Friday morning; we don't know what they want to see or what they will ask while they are here.  We do have all of the documentation ready to give her during the visit.  When she finishes with us, she will go to the church to talk to Pastor Julio.  

We aren't sure what happens after this step in the process, but are hoping that final approval of our residency is not far away.  Please pray that everything goes smoothly and that we will soon have our permanent residency cards in hand.

Hayden's Visit--Day 3

The primary reason Hayden came to visit was so he could talk to the administration at Escuela Panamericana about a teaching position for the 2016-17 school year.  He will graduate from the University of Charlotte in May and is considering whether God is calling to teach here in El Salvador.  

Koky is the Chaplain at the school and provides counseling for staff and students.  He talked with the school owners and administrator on Monday morning and they set up an interview at 2:30.  Unfortunately, when Koky called me to tell what time the interview was, I thought he said it was at 12:30 p.m.  So, after printing off the resume and ironing the "interview" clothes, we arrived at the school at 12:20.  I called Koky to let him know we had arrived.  Oops--the interview wasn't until 2:30 p.m.  Luckily, the school is less than 10 minutes from our apartment.

We returned home, had gourmet chili dogs (not) and waited until it was time to leave again.  Hayden met up with Koky who took him inside and introduced him to the principal.  I waited patiently outside in the truck.  At the end of the interview, both Hayden and Koky were pleased.  Hayden said he really liked principal and the school.  The excellent news was that they will have a history opening for the next school year and the school has an apartment on site where he could live.  They can't move forward, however, until after graduation, so his next trip down will probably be in May.

After the interview, we celebrated by walking to Red Mango for frozen yogurt.  Later in the afternoon we went to Gran Via to watch The Martian, which we all enjoyed.  We finished the night off with pizza at Vitto's.