Padre Pepe

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Lisa writes: About eleven years ago, Tom was studying Portguese and happened to hear a sermon from a visiting priest from Brazil. He went up to talk to him afterwards and ended up getting invited to visit the priest's community. Tom took him up on the offer and stayed for six months. Through that visit, he met Élison and Edson and everybody else he knows in Brazil, and that´s how I ended up being were I am today. (Tonight. It's late.)

Padre Pepe, as everyone calls him, looks like Bob Newhart and acts like the Energizer Bunny. He has big plans. He rounded up funding and donations and built a nine-building community out in the middle of nowhere. Here's the current building under construction. It has living quarters for 40 people downstairs and a chapel upstairs.


Padre Pepe and Tom.

The view. Click to appreciate fully.
They got nailed with hail and gale force winds about a month ago. Took the roof right off the big open air chapel. (Élison's brother-in-law, who was nice enough to chauffer us for the day.)
Another building. The hail ate right through the tile roof.
Tom and Negrinha, who was his "mom" during his stay.
And Jum, resident short-legged doggy.

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