Image from Wikimedia Commons. Click the image for information.
Orosi seen from the south
Orosi’s Location and Economy
Orosi is a village of approximately 4600 (or 8000, depending on the source) people located in Costa Rica’s central valley about an hour’s drive southeast of the nation’s capital, San Jose. Geographically, it’s only about 25 to 30 miles away as the crow flies, but the road is narrow and winding. The village is situated in roughly the middle of the country in the province of Cartago. Orosi sits in the valley at an altitude of 3625 feet, with nearby Tapanti National Park (about six miles away) climbing in altitude to up to 8400 feet.Feel free to play with the following map—zoom in and out and switch between map, satellite, and terrain views—to get a better perspective on where Orosi is located.
From everything I hear and read, the mountainous landscape is absolutely stunning, and nearby rivers support a thriving whitewater adventures industry. Although the area is rural and rather rustic by Charlotte standards, there is running water, indoor plumbing, electricity, and even Internet service. Farming is the village’s main industry, with coffee being the primary crop. In fact, most youngsters begin working in the coffee fields around age 14. Poverty and unemployment are both very common, so anyone making $25 a day is extremely fortunate.
Image from Wikimedia Commons. Click the image for information.
A coffee plantation just south of Orosi
Local Climate
I was quite surprised to learn that we won’t be fighting intense heat while we’re in Orosi. Some friends of mine served on a mission trip to Nicaragua (the country just north of Costa Rica) last year around this time, and they said the heat was almost unbearable. However, as the following graphic from The Weather Channel illustrates, the central valley of Costa Rica is apparently very temperate throughout the year. The temperatures shown here are for San Jose, and Orosi is generally several degrees cooler.
Image and Data from The Weather Channel. Click the image for information.San Jose Monthly Average Temperatures
The Orosi Valley is reputed to be the wettest place in all of Costa Rica, receiving approximately 200 to 300 inches of rain a year! It’ll be the height of the rainy season when we’re there, so rain will be pretty much a daily occurrence. The rain can be very heavy in the afternoons, but rumor has it that the mornings usually have some good weather. Fortunately, we’ll be doing much of our work inside a building and won’t have to fight the rain most of the time to get our work done.
Although this graphic shows the precipitation for San Jose rather than Orosi, it should give you an idea of the monthly rainfall trends. The central valley gets much more rain than San Jose.
Image and Data from The Weather Channel. Click the image for information.San Jose Monthly Average Rainfall
Our Hosts
Our local hosts, Rick and Judith Grossman, are missionaries working with Global Outreach Mission (GOM). Rick is an ordained pastor, and Judith is a clinical psychologist and an author.The husband-and-wife team has been successfully planting churches in the US (California) and Europe (Holland and Belgium) for the past 20 years. They’ve lived in Orosi for two years now working to bring the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ to the town’s residents. You can read the inspiring story of how God called them to Costa Rica on their blog.
Rick and Judith moved to Orosi and began working with Global Outreach Mission shortly after the organization purchased El Jardin Sagrado (The Sacred Garden), a beautiful five-acre retreat and community center near the town. Their mission is to be . . .
". . .the longterm church planters who will follow-up with those who come into the Kingdom through these short-term projects and ongoing ministries to the community. We will build bridges in the community for evangelism, meeting needs by offering counseling for individuals, couples and families, by teaching English, by holding Bible studies, by providing children and youth camps and activities, and other practical outreach events. In short, we will do whatever it takes to earn the right to speak into the lives of the people in this community with the message of grace and hope that only comes from Jesus Christ."
Since arriving in Costa Rica, the Grossmans have worked tirelessly to plant and grow a Bible-based, Christ-centered church focused on the needs of "unchurched people" in Orosi.
As part of their mission, Rick and Judith have taken an active role in the community to fight poverty, improve healthcare, and combat a growing prostitution and child sex industry. For local girls, legalized prostitution provides an unpleasant alternative to working in the coffee fields. Although the practice is illegal until girls reach age 18, some parents actually push their daughters into prostitution as early as 14 to help support the family. And the problem is bigger than prostitution—legalized or otherwise. Sexual exploitation of young children is now taking many forms, and younger children—girls and boys alike—are being propositioned more and more often. Even the Grossmans’ six-year-old grandson has been approached.
Providing education, activities, and spiritual guidance at the community center is just one way Rick and Judith hope to fight all forms of child exploitation. In fact, Judith has been instrumental in founding Proyecto MORFO (Movimiento para Operar el Reforzamiento de las Familias de Orosi or Movement for the Strengthening of Families in Orosi). This is a community program working to develop and execute proactive programs that enhance children's self-esteem and empower them to protect themselves and reach their God-given potential.
Haciendo Corazones Libres Para Volar
(Making Hearts Free to Fly)
The Grossmans’ latest project—the one we’ll be part of—focuses on providing a community center that local Christian groups can use for hosting church services, youth group meetings, Bible study, community-development activities, etc. Since Global Outreach Mission purchased it, El Jardin Sagrado has been an absolute blessing; it has provided a wonderful environment for hosting all of these activities. In fact, the local mission work has been so successful that El Jardin Sagrado can no longer support all of the new community outreach programs and GOM's other "base camp" needs (e.g., hosting group meetings, reunions, and retreats). It's time to branch out to a new facility that can help provide for the community's needs.
Thanks in large part to Threshold’s ongoing financial assistance, the Grossmans already have a one-year lease on an approximately 1000-square-foot building to house the new La Gaviota Blanca (The White Seagull). Based on the pictures we’ve seen, it looks to be in good shape. The walls are made of concrete blocks, and the floors are tile. We’ve been asked to add improvements that will make the space suitable for everything that Rick, Judith, and team have in mind. More on those construction projects in an upcoming post.The Road Ahead
So that’s a brief introduction to Orosi and a high-level overview of why we’re going. Stay tuned for additional posts leading up to the trip. As soon as possible, I’ll try to include a project list of what we’ll be doing at the community center. And I’ll see if I can get Jeff Lewis, our trip leader, to write up a summary of Threshold’s ongoing relationship with—and commitment to—Orosi and the new church there.While we're in Costa Rica—and as we plan and prepare for the trip—please pray for our health and safety, the success of our renovation project, and many opportunities to show and tell others why we believe in Jesus and His promise of everlasting life.
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