Our Team has arrived!

We have made it safely to the guesthouse in Petionville. All is going well thus far. It is exciting to see many more improvements and to greet old friends.

We will not have internet access in the community we will be serving. Cell phone use for texting is unlikely also but we will try.

We met with pastor Jackie from the community and he is very excited about us offering a clinic in his church. He was the first born in the clinic that was built by the church some years ago (I would guess he is in his 30s).

We are going to a very remote community that has very limited access to health care, even in Haitian standards. He says the mission of the church had made him who he is and thus he feels called to serve in his home, in a community in which missionaries ministered to him many years ago. He indicated that we are one of the few missionaries who have offered clinic help.

We will be back at the guest house on Friday the 18th. I am available via wifi tonight if you need to contact us.

Lots of love to all!!

Colleen

Honduras Day 4

Tuesday June 4, 2013
 

 

El Gavilan was founded in 1978 and has approximately 200 people. They have 59 students in the school which is about 12 km away. The roads to get to the village are almost impassible in heavy rain and caused us to leave early again, unfortunately, to ensure a safe arrival home.   

Nury (our Honduran director) gave her cross away today to an elderly woman who approached her and stated "I've always wanted a cross just like that!" This stole Nury's heart and as she placed the cross around the lady's neck, she explained to her that her responsibility is now to serve God and her people since that is the purpose of bearing the cross. There is a midwife in the village, but in order to promote woman getting prenatal care and delivering at a hospital, she does not actively practice.

Medical clinic saw 125 people today. We had mixed assessments of the children, some saw very healthy, well-nourished children, while other stations had multiple congenital heart defects. We saw more GI upset symptoms today, as opposed to respiratory from yesterday.

The eye clinic saw 12 patients, deworming 58, fluoride 15, and dentistry 10 with 10 extractions. Although we had to leave early we felt good to know that many were still seen, many with moderately healthy conditions, as well as such a happy vibe from the village. As a whole, the children were smiling more and were more interactive with the team; seeing the smiles always makes it a good day!

Honduras Day 3

Day 3, June 3  

Today was our first journey to the village - Piedra de Afilar.  The village was founded in 1945 and has 145 families; they are working on getting electricity, but no success yet.  The closest water source is about 14km away, and the closest health center is 8 km away which is equivalent to 1 hour by foot.  60% of the teenagers are pregnant, one family seen today was a 23 year old mom with 5 children ages 1 ½, 3, 5, 7, and 9.  There only source of income is through agriculture-corn, coffee and beans.  To get there by bus from the Barnabas House took about an hour up winding roads.  As you could imagine, getting to the closest city - Las Vegas is quite difficult.  The mountain top where the village is located is simply majestic, above the clouds.  Unfortunately those clouds opened up and a rainstorm poured on us midday which made us close the clinic before every one was seen.  Our Honduran team did a great job keeping their eyes on the weather and holding out as long as possible, ensuring we were able to get home safely. 

Medical clinic saw a total of 178 patients at 4 stations.  Most families had at least 3 children with multiple ailments.  Cough, cold, and ear infections were the chief complaints.  We did refer 4 patients to Dra. Moncada for the extended care program.  Pharmacy did a great job keeping up with the flow and making sure our stations were fully stocked.  Our translator, Kindle, gave her cross to a 9 month old girl who stole her heart and ironically found the cross to be helpful as a teething ring!

The dental clinic saw 18 patients and extracted 33 teeth.  Everyone at the clinic, including the dentist, was out of their element.  Sasha helped administer anesthesia after a quick lessen and proved to be indispensable.  Marisa was cleaning instruments keeping everything going for work to be done.  Her personality and joy helped calm many patients who were afraid.  Nick, the dentist, gave his cross to two young children, both brothers.  Each brother was extraordinarily brave, but very fearful during treatment.  They showed true courage.

The deworming/fluoride station treated combined 130 patients.  Brandy gave her cross away today to an elderly woman-age 82- in the village who brought laughter and joy to our team as well as to the village.  

           

The eye clinic saw 17 patients and gave away 23 glasses (both reading and prescription).  They were recently seen 6 months prior, so not as many were in need today.  The elderly woman that received Brandy's cross was fitted for prescription glasses and no longer needed help to walk around; she refused to take them off!!

Although we left the village early, the village leader was very thankful and said prayers for our safe travel home.  Tomorrow we anticipate a special 'Foundation Breakfast' where we get to share a meal with the staff  of Fundaçion Amigos de Bernabe.  Then we will head off to El Gavilan. More to come!

 

Honudras Day 2

Day 2:

After a good nights sleep, we all woke up Sunday morning to a wonderful breakfast prepared by Sandra and Margarita; pancakes with a homemade pineapple jelly. Delicious!  Soon after breakfast we had devotions and a commissioning ceremony.  This was an incredible start to our mission journey.  We each were given a cross (donated by Patti's father), anointed with oil on our hands, and blessed by prayer.   The cross is meant to be shared  sometime during the week with someone through whom Christ is revealed.

Nury, the Honduran director, took us on a tour of the garden (farm), the Foundation and the Barnabas house extended care program .  We went to bi-lingual church and witnessed the many faces of Christ; one in particular stands out.  A Honduran man, who had been in prison for two years, was released not long ago.  He was invited to church, not sure of what to expect.  With the help of our translator Kindle, he was able to find the courage to pray with the ministers of the church and find his way to Christ.  Sasha, seeing Christ in this man, gave her cross to him in celebration of his awakening. 

 After lunch, we prepared for the mission by collecting our instruments and sorting our medications.  We ate dinner not at Barnabas house, but a fellow Americans restaurant near the lake.  Nightly devotions were short, but a very sweet ending to this special day.  Tomorrow we travel to Piedra de Afilar where we will set up the first clinic for this week.  Please continue to prayerfully support us on our first day of medical service.  More to come!

 

Honduras Day 1

Day 1

 

Despite the early trip the airport (4:30 AM), we made it safely to Newark for our connection to Honduras. We arrived in Honduras ahead of schedule only to find ourselves missing a teammate-Kindle-and our bus. No worries...both showed up! We arrived at the Casa de Bernabe around 3:30 PM (Honduras time) and soaked up the beautiful scenery. An amazing decorated dinner table was laid out for us. Chicken, rice and vegetables were on the menu for this evening, and didn't last long! We shared in a quick but meaningful devotional and then it was PARTY TIME! A delicious cake was prepared for us by the Honduran staff for Hadley's birthday. Glad to report showers were taken, but no electricity for now. More to come.

Buenos noches from the Farmville Team in Honduras.

Nick Schroeder

Lauren Johnson

Josh Threatt

Jennifer Roller

Patti Wagner

Dave Wagner

Brandi Hogan

Jeff Kinne

Marisa Hume

Hadley Sporbert

Sasha King

Anne Mcmullen

Maureen Neal

Gale Kennon

Kindle Higgins

Jackie Covolo

Final Recap...

Thought I'd forgotten about this didn't ya.

 

Well it's been almost a week since the team has returned. Hopefully most have gotten use to sleeping in their beds again, drinking something other than bottled water or Gatorade, taking showers for as long as they want, not having long forgotten muscles ache and not tasting sheetrock dust in everything.

 

When we arrived home I sent an email out to the team members asking for their thoughts on the mission. I got a couple back. Here they are:

 

"I enjoyed working with and getting to know those on the team. I enjoyed meeting Marvin & Kim, Lynn & Toots, Mildred & her son, Dan & Melinda, Granny & her family, and even Dink. Didn't mind the work, but painting that ceiling one more time (for the fourth time) was tiring! I appreciate all the hard work everyone put in. It was a great team and I enjoyed being on the lake watching everyone having a well deserved good time!! "

 

"This trip, to me, was exceptional in the quality of teamwork and cooperation exhibited throughout the week. There was a spirit of caring and affection that was great. I was impressed with the amount of work we accomplished and the effort and quality of work given by the youth on the job site. It was a fun trip J and a spiritual trip. We were blessed by our homeowners and by each other. All the good qualities seemed to rise to the top!"

 

It was an exceptional mission. The team was a cross generational team with the youngest being 16 and the oldest being, well let's just say that the oldest could easily work the socks off most people half their age! This was the first time in 5 years that an FUMC mission team had youth on it. Once again we were blessed by having Ed, Kevin and Colin May from Elk Grove, IL join us. If there is a family that exemplifies what it means to serve they are it. On this mission in doing the work and in ministering there was no age barrier. Everyone contributed and everyone cared about each other and the people that we served. Once again I received more than I gave. God was truly moving amongst us and with us at all times. 

 

The wonderful people we encountered in Guntersville, the beautiful scenery (some awesome sunsets over the hill across from the church), the welcoming church family and the devotions of the team members are just a few of the memories that I will carry with me from this mission. There were new friends made, old friends reconnected with, bonds strengthened and hopefully faith restored.

 

Once again thank you for all that kept us in your prayers and supported us with donations of snacks, drinks and financially. If you get a chance I hope you will ask a team member about their personal experiences on this mission. And as you look toward Alabama please take a moment to say a prayer for Carol and Matthew and Granny. While we are safe and secure in our homes they are still waiting to get back into theirs.

 

Peace and Grace,

Jeff

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Stick a fork in us...

Greetings All,

 

Coming to you live and tired from the social area of Henryville UMC. What an amazing day with amazing people. This may be a brief email since we are planning on heading out tomorrow at 6:30 AM or before and we still have some packing to do in the morning.

 

Let me say first that all the parents of the youth that came along should be very proud of their youth. They performed above and beyond and exceeded expectations. It was hot, dirt, sometimes nasty work but they didn't back down from anything. When out in public they were polite and well mannered.

 

Secondly we got the Pods (portable storage sheds) cleaned out and the items (including an upright piano which we moved twice) moved into the house. We got almost all of the tasks on our list completed. But most of all we found out that we had restored a lady's faith that there are still people in this world that will take time to help others. She told some of our team members that she didn't think folks like us were still around.

 

After dinner tonight we had a visit from Pastor McCormick and his wife Kim. They stopped by to say thank you for what we had done. The attached picture is the team with them.

 

Our devotions tonight include communion served by Rich and Brittney. It was a very moving time for all.

 

Rich and Parker are heading out early (4:30) in the morning due to a family function for Parker back in Richmond. I imagine when most of you read this they will be close to Virginia. Please keep them in your prayers.

 

The May family will be heading out about the same time we do for Chicago. Please keep them also in your prayers.

 

I hope to write a wrap up of the week soon after I get back. It will be good to be back home tomorrow. Thank you for your prayers. So for now good night and God Bless!

 

In Christ,

Jeff

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