Friday, September 7
We visited Los Hules today, our final clinic of the week. Like La Venada on Tuesday, this community is graduating from the Friends of Barnabas program. The people here have very worked hard to improve their overall health, and it was a happy group who welcomed us into their midst.
Final numbers for the week break down like this:
General Clinic patients – 890
Vitamins – 716
Deworming – 217
Fluoride Treatments – 179
Pediatric Eye Screenings – 148
Adult Eye Screenings – 115
Dental Clinic patients – 162
Dental Extractions – 210
Referrals – 60
Extended Care Program Referrals – 8
In addition to the medical and dental care we provided this week, every family received a basic personal care kit. Each kit contained towels, washcloths, toothbrushes, toothpaste , soap, a comb, fingernail clippers and a file, band-aids, and a feminine hygiene kit.
After finishing our work, the team enjoyed a visit to a cacao farm to learn all about how chocolate is grown and produced. We also did some local shopping for small treasures that will allow us to take a piece of this beautiful place home with us.
The final team cross necklaces were given away today. Louisa gave her cross to Raul, our beloved bus driver. He has taken amazing care of us this week and obviously finds so much joy in his job. It was extremely hard to say goodbye to him this evening.
Suzanne’s cross was a gift to one of the last dental patients of the day. The woman had walked an hour and a half down the mountain to the clinic and was facing an hour and half back up the mountain to return home, in oppressive heat, after having a tooth extracted.
Both Emma and Lloyd gave their crosses to children who especially touched their hearts today. And Frances gave hers to fellow team member Chuck, who was a true instrument of God’s provision to her this week. With the internet down at Alfredo’s House, it was Chuck’s mobile hot spot that allowed the daily journal and pictures to get posted.
Patti and Gerardo presented their crosses to two members of the same family who were examined in the medical clinic today. Patti gave hers to a 28-year-old mother of three children who is encountering some real challenges in her life right now. And Gerard was led to give his to the woman’s baby, as an extra measure of encouragement and protection in the young child’s life.
It is with thankful hearts that our team finishes our work in Honduras this week. We are so blessed by this opportunity to come and serve in impoverished but beautiful communities filled with amazing people who have welcomed us into their lives and trusted us with their health care needs. And we have spent a week learning about, laughing with, and loving each other. We are looking forward to returning to our homes and families tomorrow, but we will all leave a piece of our heart in this place. But it is not “Goodbye;” rather, it is “Till we meet again.”
~Frances Rogers
