Friday /Saturday

Yesterday, we worked with victims of the recent volcanic eruption. It’s hard to describe the level of devastation the families have suffered.

We are safely back at Guatemala City airport and through immigration. We are waiting for our flight, which is on time. See you all soon!

Thursday

So...travel in Guatemala is always an adventure. We left Zacapa at 1:45 pm and made it to Guatemala City in just 2.5 hours! Then, it took 3 hours to get through the traffic in the city. There were a couple of accidents including one fatality that we passed. It was another late night. But we are safely here at the mission house. Friday, we meet the volcano victims. See you all soon.

Last day of clinic!

We ended on a high note! 192 patients and 206 pairs of glasses

We celebrated a belated birthday for Dr. Mike in true Guatemala fashion, firecrackers and all!

Tomorrow is a travel day. We will go to a location closer to Guatemala City where we will work with victims of the recent volcanic eruption.

Everyone is well. See you in a few days.

Tuesday Clinic

We had a busy day. We saw people from the community as well as many of the schoolchildren: 275 in all. We gave out 156 pairs of glasses. In between, some people from the team played soccer with the elementary kids. We are exhausted but still excited to see what God has planned for us.

Monday Clinic

Wow! Day 3 in clinic was great. We saw a number of the school children today. We saw 165 patients and dispensed 226 pairs of glasses.

One of the tough cases today was a 10 year old girl, blind in one eye from a cataract: we hope the process to start her needed treatment  began today.

On a lighter note, the Guatemalan gentlemen have been giving all the ladies on the team their best smiles! We’ve seen a large number of men and are thankful because they don’t always seek treatment.

We are also thankful for the mid afternoon cookies and coffee. Just what we needed to power through the rest of the day.

Sunday Clinic

I am having trouble uploading pictures but am working on it. Sunday we saw 169 patients and dispensed 226 pairs of glasses. So many things have happened. One man who was not a church member got glasses at the clinic and then came back for church. One of our patients said we were brought here just for him. So sweet. Dr. Mike identified a skin cancer in a gentleman, and we are praying he seeks the recommended treatment.

On a more amusing note,  Joan and Betty are “learning” Mayan words, and Butch is telling our patients, “Jesus is calling you,” One poor woman almost had a heart attack. Lol

Great first day of clinic! I49 patients got 216 pairs of glasses! We attended church tonight and look forward to another busy day tomorrow.