July 2023
Jesus Said “Go”
Often times we don’t know exactly where we’re going or exactly what we are going to do when we get there. But God knows, and God grows! What started out as Dick helping one Prosthetist 12 years ago has now grown to a team of 12-15 people just to do the work. This does not include all of you who give generously to make it happen.
Upon our return from Guatemala, people often inquire what it is that we do while we are there. We hope this will give you some insight into what a typical trip may look like.
First of all, the work in Guatemala never stops. While national workers keep things going there, we are here preparing for the next trip. So, what does that look like?
Everything used to make prosthetics must be counted, ordered, packed, and labeled. These supplies are then driven to Knoxville Tennessee where they will be loaded onto pallets and shipping containers to be shipped to Guatemala by ship. While most items must be purchased here and abroad, including Canada, China, and Germany, some are very generously donated. Just this year 52 pairs of crutches, 13 walkers, shoes, and much more have been donated. Due to extremely strict shipping requirements, each item must be individually separated and labeled with serial and model numbers, manufacturer’s name, etc. The picture shows our granddaughter helping with one of these projects.
In the meantime, we continue to receive photos and calls for “solicitations”, people asking if we can please help them. We begin the intake process from North Carolina, as well as calls that come in while in Guatemala, coordinating with our team members on the ground. The new patient is then assessed and placed on one of five lists according to the particular need. By the time we arrive back in Guatemala, we can begin collecting the supplies from the port, taking inventory of both supplies and new patients, and prepping for the team to arrive. We average approximately 30-40 new patients every 6 months. In between preparing for the Prosthetics Clinic, we visit patients in rural outreach areas, checking to see if they are well or need further medical treatment. Just as it is with Prosthetics, we are introduced to more people, more need, as the locals who have already been helped ask us to please come with them to “someone they know who desperately needs help”. Even though this can sometimes become overwhelming, it creates a bonded team, brought together through suffering. Some of the current patients even provide transportation for the new ones. Once realized, the joy of giving and helping becomes contagious. Once you’ve participated, it is, for lack of a better term, incurable. The soil in this field is ripe for harvest and we are honored to be the flesh and blood workers.
So, there is a snapshot of what each year looks like. You will not know the full and glorious details of your part until you are with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The best is yet to come!
May 2023
Our Cup Runneth Over
The day after we arrived in Guatemala we received a phone call asking us to please come quickly. The precious Pastor, Isai, whom we have helped for many years, was in extreme distress. We dropped everything, headed out, loaded him up and took him to Hospital Shalom. (As shown in picture). You can clearly tell from his expression the level of his pain. He has muscular dystrophy, only able to move his head, yet never complains. He spends all day, every day, praying for others who come and call.
While his family (mom and wife) were attempting to dress him, his arm had flopped behind his back. They tried to straighten him up resulting in breaking his arm between the shoulder and elbow. With each passing day his medical condition grows worse. Because he has no control, the break required a hard body cast above the waist, pinning his arm in place against his abdomen.
We returned 2 days later to check on him and were asked to please go find the boy with sores all over his body. We found eleven year old Saul lying in a hammock under a makeshift tin roof. Covered in sores and blisters over his arms, face and effecting his eyes we knew this would require a trip back to Shalom. He is still being treated and doctors are trying to get to the bottom of the cause. He has been like this for over 6 YEARS! Unfortunately, all tests may be pointing to an allergy to the sun, a terrible diagnosis for someone living in Guatemala.
Fast forward to the week of our Prosthetic Clinic. During days 3-4, the technicians are busy in the shop making the devices, no patients come on those days. This freed me up, along with the wife and daughter, of our lead Prosthetist, to make a trip out to “check on the guys”. The heat had already reached the mid 90’s and they were miserable. Imagine laying every night in a hard body cast, unable to move, scratch, adjust your position, etc. Or in your hammock scratching blisters until they bleed. They desperately needed to get back for follow up visits but I had no time, patients would begin returning the next day. As I lay in bed that night I began to pray. I was exhausted from the week, the day, the emotions of it all. I remember saying “Please help me God, I can’t help them all, at least not right now”. I apparently fell asleep during my prayer.
The next morning patients were lined up outside. Dick went directly to the shop; I went to my office. I began pulling up the daily schedule, getting patients checked in. As I looked out among the patients, I saw two women dressed in official type shirts with matching logos. I immediately became “a bit irritated”. I knew from past experience they were going to want something from us and I had no time or patience to deal with it. Sure enough, my helper Veronica (a patient from eight years prior who had her arm lopped off with a machete during a midnight home invasion) came into my office and said there were two ladies who would like to meet with me. I made no bones about it was not a good time. “Please Mary Jo, just let me introduce them to you.” I relented and they were ushered into my office.
“Hello, we just wanted to see what it is you do here and see if we could be of any assistance.” Well, this was certainly new! “Could you tell me exactly what it is you do?” I asked. “Sure. For example, if you have patients who have a doctor or hospital appointment but have no way to get there, we go out, pick them up, wait until they’re finished, then take them back home.” I found it hard to speak. “What if they live way out and need an ambulance to be transported?’ “We have access to an ambulance”. “What if there are two of them?” “We can bring them in together”. Before I could ask another question that could make me believe what was happening, one leaned forward and said, “Mary Jo, when is their appointment?” “How about first thing tomorrow morning?” I responded. “Tell them we will be there at 8:30am”.
I went somewhere to be private and cry.
Next morning, still in complete amazement, I received a text: “We have your guys, on our way!” Veronica walked into my office to see me crying, again. I told her I was in such a state I completely neglected to get their names. “The one on the left is Dulce, the one on the right is Consuelo”. By this time, I’m undone. I knew for sure Dulce means Sweet. I thought I knew what Consuelo meant but I asked Veronica just to be sure. She answered by using her natural arm to gently rub her prosthetic arm while saying “when you’re sad and need comforting...” I yelled “STOP!” I couldn’t take anymore. Consuelo means Comfort. God heard my prayer, at least the part before I fell asleep, and at 8:00am the following morning, He sent Sweet Comfort. I ran out, literally, to find a man who had come to help, a man from India, raised Hindu, searching for truth, found us online. Dick and I sat with him in the hammocks and told him “Let us tell you about our God. He is alive and He loves us beyond what we can imagine”. Our cup runneth over.
June 2022
Two Or More
Sometimes adversity, if allowed, can become a faithful friend. This was made very clear to us during the last two years of the pandemic.
We arrived in Guatemala the first of February 2022. Our trips had been reduced to once per year so we were very excited to be back. We had hoped to be back in the usual saddle but that did not turn out to be the case. Instead of welcoming a team for prosthetics we welcomed only one person, our lead Prosthetist. Deciding to make lemonade out of the lemon, the decision was made to focus on training Dick and one national in producing prosthetics, start to finish. We had hoped for this for many years but the number of patients kept the fire lit under us, not allowing a teaching experience, rather more of a survive the journey experience. Make no mistake, the number of waiting patients had more than doubled due to inability to keep our usual twice-yearly schedule, however patients were now aware of longer wait times due to the pandemic. Brent, the lead Prosthetist, believed that with the knowledge Dick and Marlon had gleaned over the years it would now be a matter of putting all the puzzle pieces together to make a completed device. It was now or never. Brent had one week to teach them what most Prosthetists learned over years and years!
One week later, Dick and Marlon began the process, one patient every 2-3 days. Repair, rebuild, making new prosthesis became their full-time job. Day by day, week by week patients came on crutches and left walking. We still look forward to our normal “all hands-on deck” clinics, but we also know that when that is not possible, where two or more are gathered in My name, there am I in their midst.
God is good, faithful and true. Every patient is loved, prayed for and accepted.
March 2022
“I Recognize Jesus Christ As My Only Savior”-An update on Rosa and her mother, Flora.
By now we are sure you all remember Rosa, the little girl born with three legs. She is doing fantastic and walking like she never had any birth defect at all. However, this month’s story is about her mom, Flora. When we visited Rosa and Flora in 2020, we brought a photograph of Rosa at 6 months old, and at this visit, she was 8 years old. Even though it was a very low-quality photograph, there was no mistaking that the image revealed baby Rosa who had three legs. We were able to tell Flora during our visit that God has always seen her and Rosa and had a plan for them. Even though the plan didn’t manifest until 8 years later, there was no mistaking the unexplainable series of circumstances that had now joined the four of us to this moment in time. The surgery to remove Rosa’s third leg had been performed, and preparations for her prosthesis had begun. As we sat in the dark thatched hut, examining Rosa’s post-surgery wound by flashlight, we pulled out the photograph and handed it to Flora, explaining the God who sees all and knows all. She immediately almost collapsed, sobbing, which the indigenous women don’t do. It was one of the holiest moments we have experienced. Every prayer and blessing we spoke over them and to them ended the same: “In the name of Jesus, Amen.”
Fast forward to this year, Flora and Rosa came to the prosthetic clinic and as is the custom for them, they stayed overnight. As Flora and I talked during dinner she told me she would like to be able to leave as early as possible the next day. She explained that they were having a gathering of all the local churches in her village and she was responsible for the preparations. Flora exudes multiple leadership characteristics and a great work ethic, which is key to the next part of the story. I asked if it was a gathering of Latinos and Indigenous and she answered “no, only indigenous”. My curiosity was peaked because I know that the indigenous culture has a mixture of gods that they believe in. I didn’t ask any further questions, but wondered what type of gathering this might be, and went about my day. About 2 weeks later, I was going through my phone searching for a number in What’s App and came across Flora’s profile. I noticed that she had changed her name. Her new name was “reconozco Cristo Jesus como mi unico salvador”, which translates to “I recognize Jesus Christ as my only savior”. A public proclamation to honor our God who sees all and knows all!
September 2021
Gretta’s Progress!
Take Up Your Towel and Walk!
Before we ever met, we had fallen in love with her, a little girl 3 years old, named Gretta. Who could not love that name?
In times past people would bring children to our clinics and even though they had all of their limbs they would be unable to walk. Often times they had been taken to a doctor who would tell the distraught parents “Sorry, nothing can be done.” But that is never God’s answer.
Karen with another patient.
At the beginning of 2021 God brought a new family to become part of the Guatemala team. Doug and Karen Fowler, along with their two children, Natalie and Alec. Doug is a skilled carpenter, fixer and creator of “things”, Karen is a personal trainer with physical therapy skills. These skills are the result of adopting a daughter from Korea whom they later discovered suffered from Cerebral Palsy. Like so many others, hope of walking or leading a normal productive life looked slim but Natalie’s parents refused to accept that outcome. Natalie is now 22 years old, has a job, walks, swims and basically does anything she wants to do.
When the mother of another long- time child patient called us, she asked if we could take a look at another little girl named Gretta. We agreed but had little hope of being able to help her. At age three she had only been able to be near family by laying on a towel on the floor. She was loved very much but Guatemala is not a place that offers hope to the disabled.
The day her parents carried her in, long black hair disheveled around her beautiful face, I myself became discouraged as I watched them try to “stand her up”. Then I remembered Karen. “Wait right here, I’ll be right back” I said to them. Karen came to the area where the clinics are held, walked right over to the family, scooped Gretta up, and it was a match made in heaven. Please view the video link that we just received, a mere 7 months later. Excuse the blurry photos, she was going to fast to get a clear one!
So is the miracle Gretta’s progress? Or is it a therapist who just happened to be there during this clinic? Maybe it’s the instant love for other children just as her own used to be? Or maybe it’s two parents who have seen with their own eyes a miracle that was too painful to believe for, after all, it is Guatemala where hope goes to die, BUT GOD…
June 2021
Kayla’s First Dance
While spending a couple of days with dear friends from Knoxville, Dick and I received a 1:00 a.m. call.
If you go back to the December story of Kayla, you can read about this precious family and the struggle they endured raising her. They were her lifeline, literally. She was hand fed, bathed, clothed, loved, snuggled, sang to, and prayed for and the list goes on. However, on this night they had to transfer her to the ultimate caregiver, God. As the song reminds us “We can only imagine”. Is she dancing even though here she never walked? Is she singing even though here she could never talk? Is she tasting and seeing, first hand, that the Lord is indeed good even though here she was only able to eat porridge? We believe she is and to that we say hallelujah. Therefore, it is for her family; mom, dad, two brothers, and one sister we ask for prayer. Kayla was the oldest so the siblings grew up helping tend to her and what a wonderful gift that was to them. We are including some of our favorite pictures. She would have been 18 years old today, but in the blink of an eye, she turned eternal.
April 2021
Manuel – Our Distressing Disguise
It would be considered deceptive practice to month after month share “only” the warm fuzzy stories. Although it would be possible, it does not give an accurate representation of our life in Guatemala.
Before we left for Guatemala in January, God had directed us to study the story of the Good Samaritan. The story includes descriptions of those who did not help and the one who did. There is, however, no detail given about the one left for dead, only “a man”.
While at the same time, I was reading a daily devotional about the life of Mother Teresa. When asked how she could rise every day to extreme poverty and suffering she responded, “I wake up knowing I will get the opportunity to look into the eyes of Jesus, my savior, as I am bathing, dressing wounds, feeding and so on.” She went on to say “I do have to often remind myself that sometimes Jesus comes in a distressing disguise.”
Our distressing visitor came to the gate in a little moto-type taxi. An older man, unkept, only shorts, no shirt nor shoes, one leg with infected wounds and one stump with dirty, oozing bandaging. I learned he was 59, had his leg amputated 6 months prior and went by Manuel. I asked him to remove the bandage and directed him to please go immediately to a local clinic where someone could clean and dress his wounds. (We are a Prosthetic Clinic and do not have the authority to perform medical procedures.)
I assured him that, after he was fully healed, he was to return and be put on the list for a prosthesis. He returned 3 days later and Dick was called to the gate. It seemed he was worse so Dick gave him the same advice, emphasizing time was of the essence. Approximately 5 days later, during our prosthetic clinic, I was called to the gate. My heart sank. He looked terrible and was crying. As I neared the moto-taxi where he was sitting, he grabbed me by the shirt, pulled me toward him, then speaking as loudly as his ill health and crying would allow said “PLEASE HELP ME!” I paid the taxi driver to take him to Hospital Shalom then called ahead and made arrangements for him to be received.
His condition was grave and his bill grew and grew. Dick and I kept reminding ourselves of “Jesus in distressing disguise”. He even became combative with the staff. We were regularly receiving photos showing his amazing improvement while also knowing the bill was sure to be amazing as well. Then God would remind us of the words spoken by the good Samaritan “… and when I return, I will pay any amount left on his bill.”
Dick and I decided to meet with the Hospital Shalom social worker to find out if there might be family who would be willing to share the burden of his bill. We were given crushing news. He had 7 adult children and an estranged wife. They were all in agreement. “Let him rot in h…”. Apparently, his life had been lived poorly and selfishly, to say the least.
It became so clear why the story of the good Samaritan never mentions the status, good deeds, any reason for value of the “man left for dead”. Because it doesn’t matter. According to Jesus “In that you have done it for the least of these you have done it unto Me”. It was actually better that we didn’t know this when we “bent down to help”. Would our response have been different? That question haunts us even now. But thanks be to God, He had already prepared us.
Dick and I went to visit him before leaving to come back to the states. As we entered his room he looked up and recognizing us stretched out both arms, crying uncontrollably he exclaimed “My mother, my father!” Dick began to talk to him and explained the grace of the gospel and the healing of forgiveness, both given and received. He cried and clutched Dick’s hand during their talk, then prayed with Dick accepting Jesus into his heart. As he continued to refer to us as “Mother and Father” we told our “man in a distressing disguise” we were his brother and sister in Christ. “Yes, but you have loved me like a mother and father.” We are undone by the faithfulness of God.
March 2021
God Of The Impossible
Today will mark both the end and the beginning in the life of Rosa. We once heard it said, “It takes a while to do the hard things, it takes a little longer to do the impossible.” But we also heard “With God, ALL things are possible”. If you scroll down to our story entitled “Little Star-The Story of Rosa” and then also the February 2020 update above that, it will bring this story full circle beginning with the day she was born with 3 legs. For now, we will pick up where we left off, pre-pandemic.
When last in Guatemala in Feb-Mar of 2020 Rosa had successfully completed the amputation of her left “legs”, leaving a single stump, above the knee, to receive her first ever prosthesis. For 9 years she hopped on her right leg, unable to use her conjoined legs on the left. She was to receive her prosthetic leg in August of 2020 but the pandemic claimed that opportunity. However, in January 2021, Dick and I were able to return to Guatemala along with our 2 Prosthetic Clinicians. The first order of business, Rosa. The pictures tell the story. Because they live so far away, Rosa and her mother came and stayed with us for 2 days. The guys finished her prosthetic leg about 8 pm, intending to be ready to have her start practicing early the next morning. She was having no part of that, “If it’s ready now I want to start now!” was her reply. Thus, the pictures in the shop where all prosthetics are made. To even see her standing, able to wear pants and a pair of shoes, looking like all other children, makes our hearts skip a beat. Even now it’s hard to believe.
There is no way to count the number of people God put together so that one precious lame lamb might be restored, but we can count the time, 10 years. To this end, we say THANK YOU, to the lady who took her picture one day asking if we could help her. To the surgeon from Alabama who happened to be on his way to “help people in Guatemala”. To the indigenous family (who attended our post clinic home visit pictured below) who guided us to her home one day and then stayed alongside to translate for every STEP of this journey. To our faithful team of both nationals and U.S. Clinicians, willing to navigate through pandemic restrictions and get back in the saddle. And to you who are reading this post. If you are reading this, then you gave to this child of our God everything needed to make it happen.
To close I must quote Rosa herself. After telling her she must take off her prosthesis because it was time for bed, I promised her she could start again the next morning as soon as she woke up. As we pulled it off and set it aside, we both just sat on our opposing beds staring at each other. I know we were both thinking the same thing…it was a miracle it had actually happened. But then this 10-year-old, without any prompting from mom, held out her arms towards me and with that great smile said “God bless all of you!”
December 2020
We Are His Workmanship. Kayla’s Story.
When Dick and I first met Kayla, she was a patient at Hospital Shalom. She was 8 years old and weighed approximately 38 pounds. She was malnourished and experiencing failure to thrive. The look of despair on the faces of her parents was heart wrenching. Although her mom was attentive at all times to her needs, her inability to eat caused her to not be able to properly digest, having to be fed a sort of mush by hand.
Kayla was born as a healthy child. However, when she was 6 months old, she developed what seemed to be a bad cold/flu like sickness. Her parents took her to the national hospital where she was prescribed medication. They were asked by the pharmacist what was the age of the “child” receiving this medication. The pharmacist told them it was a dosage strong enough to cure a horse. Believing the doctor knew best, they gave it to Kayla. She was never again the same healthy child. She was their first born. Our first home visit was an opportunity to come up with creative ways to make life a little easier for the entire family.
Dick and Kayla’s dad built concrete sidewalks in order to push her wheelchair from bedroom to kitchen, to outside porch and so on. Two separate beds were built so that her younger brother would have his own bed. He said he was tired of her “whacking him all night”. The list is still going due to the fact that after being told she would not live to be one year old she is now longer than her mother is tall, making transporting very difficult. Her dad is a great father and husband and has worked at the Mayan ruins for over 13 years. They are, in spite of it all, sold out Christians.
Now at 16, she is still unable to sit, walk, talk or eat. She is definitely “there” as she responds to touch and even laughs. At every visit, Dick never just walks into her room. He begins singing “I once knew a girl named Kayla...” while still a few feet from her door. The photo of Kayla laughing is her recognizing just the sound of his voice.
They are now a family of 6, having one more son and one more daughter. We have grown to be a team, Kayla has grown to be a miracle and you have given them the ability to BREATHE.
November 2020
Be Strong and Courageous. Pedro’s Story.
Dick and I were out on home visits, one of our favorite parts of ministry. While visiting a man whom we met in 2005, now bound to a wheelchair due to muscular dystrophy, he and his mom asked if we had heard of a young man who had had a terrible ranching accident. They went on to tell us he had lost both legs, an accident caused by heavy machinery. He was 16 years old. They knew nothing more other than his name was Pedro. No directions, no other information, just “Pedro” and he lives somewhere in the same town where we were.
Hearing a story like this gives you the determination to find this individual. We are told that Jesus will leave the ninety-nine to find the one, one who is in trouble, one who needs rescuing. We left their home and began our search. We’ve done this sort of search and recover before so we were planning our grid. As we came to an intersection, we noticed a young man sitting on a wall, back towards us. I suggested we pull over and I could get out and inquire about this “young man named Pedro”. As we walked up to the wall, the man sitting there had no legs. Stunned, we said “We are looking for a man named Pedro?” “I am Pedro.” he replied. AMAZING!
In the photos, you will see the continuing story of a young man that defies logic. On our first visit, one that we just happened to have a physical therapist with us, we asked Pedro “How is your heart?” With a beautiful smile he replied “Good.” Thinking he didn’t understand the question we asked again only to get the same response. He has since told us that when the accident happened, he was thankful to be alive and nothing about his life and dreams would change, he’d just have to do it without legs. DO IT he has done! You will see his struggle to walk, eventually working his way up to normal height. He would go on to walk across the stage to receive his diploma, graduating from accounting school. He now works in accounting at the same ranch where the accident happened, where his dad is a ranch manager. They are a family of survivors, Dad building parallel bars in their home in order for Pedro to practice walking.
In the last photo you’ll see the celebration breakfast where Pedro received a bilingual bible for his graduation gift from our team. A chapter in the book of Joshua is quoted; “Be strong and courageous” of which Pedro is a shining example to us all.
October 2020
The Love Of God. Pablo’s Story.
This amazing man came into our lives 12 years ago. At the time he was still able to walk but Muscular Dystrophy took its toll and he is now confined to a wheelchair. He is one of 8 sons, only 4 of whom remain alive. His closest brother was buried the day before this photo was taken. We had made a trip out to their home to measure him for a new wheelchair when we discovered that his brother was only days from passing away. The day of the funeral we confirmed whether or not he still wanted us to come the following day to which he replied, “I really want my new chair so I can have services”. To us that may seem unnecessary but this precious man can only move his head slightly and his hands. The new chair, as you can see, has a head rest, tilts back for extra comfort and weight distribution and is more easily pushed due to the three-wheel design. Shout out to Beeline Wheelchairs and Matt Coley for this amazing gift to him!
Prior to this visit Dick and I had visited him and his mom to give a donation which would finish the roof on his new church. Again, why a new church? They had it built in their back yard because it became to much for mom to push him through rocks and mud for three blocks uphill, then back while trying to maintain control of him downhill! But because he refuses to stop telling others of the goodness of God, they decided to tell it from their own back yard. The roof got finished just in time to hold their first service, his brother’s funeral. But as you can see, nothing can or will extinguish the fire in his heart, the smile on his face or the determination to tell others, in his own words, “The Lord is my Savior, I lack nothing.”
September 2020
Rise Up and Walk. Jose’s Story.
At the time of this story, our patient, Jose, was 8 years old.
He was born with Spina Bifida and crawled in for his first appointment in 2014, at the age of 4. He did not have enough strength in his back and legs to support his weight and never moved beyond crawling. Energy was never the problem as was evidenced as he entered the soccer game in progress …on his hands and knees!
Little by little, with the help of custom- made braces and crutches, he began to stand. Then one day he took a step, then another, and so on. The progress was slow but steady, he refused to give up.
During one of the clinics in 2018 he was refitted with new braces, but we had no new pediatric size crutches. We told him and his mom we would try to find some and bring them to their home. Throughout the next week or so we were given some crutches that someone had donated and among them, PEDIATRIC crutches WITH arm bands!
The next day we headed out to check on Jose, making sure there were no rub-wounds from the new braces, and to give him the new crutches. Dick worked on sizing the crutches perfectly while he and his friends looked on. Dick then handed them to Jose but immediately got distracted with a question from Jose’s mom. Dick and I stood talking to her, backs turned to Jose. Soon we could hear someone behind us talking softly. We turned to see that Jose, crutches in place, had stood on his own. He was taking labored steps; one, by one, by one. Quietly we could hear him, “In the name of Jesus I command these legs to walk.”
Jose is now 10. At our home visit in March of this year, 2020, Jose insisted we come see their new chicken coop out back. All the kids, (the neighborhood kids all come when they see we are there), took off running but the one in the lead was Jose. He is still using crutches, still wearing his braces, but there is no doubt this is temporary. “And a child shall lead them”. We can assume he will be a great man with a great testimony. He will speak of those, whom he never met, who gave so that he might walk.
March 2020
Joy Cometh In The Morning. Veronica’s Story.
Often, we can become so focused on the missing limb that we fail to recognize the injured soul. Such is the case with Veronica.
Hearing that we could make her a new arm, she first came to us in 2015. In a midnight home intrusion, her father lost his life and she lost her arm and soul. The intruders were armed with machetes.
During her first visit she never looked up, her voice barely audible. Her face and remaining hand bore the evidence of her fight for life. Prior to the attack she had earned her nursing degree but was now considered unemployable. Never had we seen such a hopeless, wounded individual.
Veronica was scheduled to return in 3 days to receive her first prosthetic arm. The moment she was fitted she began to cry. Hugs and tears did what they could but we then asked her if she would be willing to work the remainder of our clinic to be an encouragement to other patients. None of us could have imagined such a rapid transformation. We watched with amazement as she swept, wrote, ushered others to their waiting clinicians, and best of all, SMILED! That was in 2016 and she has worked every clinic alongside us. She even makes arrangements with her boss to take off work in order to be there. Speaking of work, she is now a cashier at the local grocery store and is known by most of the town, always adorned with that beautiful smile, sporting both a functioning or a cosmetic prosthetic arm. She is happy, thankful and grateful to be back among the living.
February 2020-New UPDATE On Little Star-Rosa!
Rosa’s Journey Continues…As we had expected, there will be many trips out to visit our newest patient, Rosa age “9ish”, who we wrote about last month.
Yesterday began at 6:45am, preparing food for our 11-hour journey. It pays to listen to the Holy Spirit when you are directed to “prepare extra”. Our outreach crew which included a total of 3-4, quickly grew to 6 before we got out of town. But God arranged ahead of time that our extras proved to be the husband of our nurse who grew up in the exact village where we were headed, the mother of our nurse who has delivered countless babies, our nurse who is pregnant and due to deliver in 2 weeks, and little sister, age 3. The truck was packed with birthing supplies, (just in case), medical supplies to dress and rebandage our patient, food, crutches, 12 bottles of pure water and other essentials.
Rosa, the girl who was born with 3 legs and 3 feet, received a pre-prosthetics amputation 30 days prior to our post-surgery home visit. The family is indigenous, speaking Kek-Chi, thus our nurse and family who also speak this native language as well as Spanish. They served as moral support and translators for this extremely remote family. What a journey so far and we have only just begun.
While preparing to leave the states I found an old camera with an SD card still inserted. It held more than 800 photos, from 2010-2011. Hurrying through, I found one picture of a baby, approximately 6 months old, with….3 legs and 3 feet! As hard as it may be to believe I never remembered taking the photo, even though it was obviously taken at Hospital Shalom. At that time, Hospital Shalom would have had nothing to offer, barely able to perform minor surgeries. It was without a doubt Baby Rosa. Our God is the God who sees, never forgets and always cares.
In August 2018 we received a photo of the then 8-year-old Rosa. Again, we tucked it away. What could we possibly do for this precious little girl? But then, God spoke. In August of 2019, He clearly spoke to us “Go and find the little girl in the photo, I have plans for her and her family”. His directive was crystal clear. We arrived in Guatemala on a Wednesday and by Friday we were on the trail, determined to find her. After 5 hours of driving on some of the worst “roads” we’ve known, rocks, ruts, rivers, gullies and so forth we pull up to a humble abode and there she is, hopping across the road.
What we didn’t know at the time is that the same night we had arrived, an Orthopedic Surgeon, sponsored by Samaritans Purse, head of his department in Alabama, also arrived at Hospital Shalom hoping to help someone in need. You just can’t make this stuff up.
During this post-operation home visit, we presented her with a story board of her journey. You can not imagine the look on the faces of her and her mother when the first photo was Rosa at age 6 months. Mom instantly began to cry, looking shocked. This was the perfect segue into the fact that indeed God sees, God knows and God cares. He will go to great lengths, regardless of time and circumstance, to give us the most precious gift of all, His undeniable presence. The air was consumed with it as we finished our medical procedure by flashlight then closing with prayers of thanksgiving.
We left with less food, less water, baby still in the womb and a gift of gratitude from Mom; a LIVE TURKEY tied to the spare tire in the truck-bed, the tire that had to be repaired before we could leave town.…
To be continued…
Little Star-The Story of Rosa
After 4 hours of driving which included crossing a river by ferry, then through fields and woods down a dirt path, we finally find her, Rosa, the little girl seated on bottom left. She is 9 years old, they think, born in September, they think. But one think is for sure, she is beautiful and has stolen our hearts!
They live in an area where it is not normal to have strange visitors, so friends and family came to see who was coming to meet Rosa and why. Little did they know that God had told us to go find her, that He had plans for her and her family. We told them about His message to them during this, our first visit of many to come. Dad has left the family but she has 5 brothers and sisters and a fantastic mom who sees to it that Rosa is not made to feel ashamed. She indeed is a “shining star”.
Rosa was born with 3 legs and 3 feet, two of which are joined together. At a very young age she learned to hop on her normal leg and has been hopping for 8 years. She has crutches but rarely uses them.
Pictured below, she begins the process of many people preparing to help her receive a prosthesis, which will allow her to walk normally like all of her friends. Once she has her first surgery, she will need to wait for 6 months until she is completely healed. Then she will receive her first prosthetic leg and for the first time in her life, WALK! No more hopping, unless she’s jumping rope.
Little Bit
When “Little Bit” came through the door for her first visit, a dishtowel was draped over her shoulder, hiding the little bit of arm she had. Not surprisingly it was the attempt to hide her birth defect. Head down, shy and withdrawn, she slowly came in, being nudged along by her parents. A very different twist brought her to us. The U.S. military had been on a mission in Guatemala and spotted her in one of the communities where they were working. We were asked if it would be possible to help her and that they would be willing to do whatever was needed to assist. Unfortunately, (or maybe fortunately, only God knows), they left Guatemala before our next scheduled Jornada, the word for “free”, literally meaning “for nothing”. When they realized they would not be in country at the appointed time they arranged for the Guatemalan military to oversee her! What an amazing opportunity for relation building. God is so creative! Now to Little Bit. As it just so happened, our team had brought 7 of their own children to help with the Jornada. One of these little helpers went directly over to Little Bit and offered a hand of friendship which to our surprise was accepted. In a short amount of time we noticed the towel had dropped off but Little Bit didn’t. She was completely sidetracked with the beautiful bracelet our helper was making with her. When it came time for her to be fitted with her new custom-made arm, Brent Wright of Lifenabled slipped it on. A picture truly is worth MORE than any words could ever describe. When it was time to leave, both girls held nothing back, embracing in a good bye hug, or maybe just, “See you later”, after all, only God knows. Thank you to both the U.S. and Guatemalan military for giving Little Bit the opportunity to show off her new bracelet which to our amazement she did not put on her natural arm but rather on her prosthetic arm!
David vs. Goliath
The first time David came to us he was barely a toddler. However, the effects of a birth defect would not permit him to “toddle”. But because he was so young, he adjusted to his new prosthesis very rapidly. For him, walking with a prosthesis was his norm. He soon became one of our star patients, at times helping other new pediatric patients. He’s been with us now for 6 years. Now we face a different challenge. The bone in his affected leg has continued to grow, almost popping through the skin, making walking with a prosthesis very painful and even dangerous. For us, this was merely a matter of reconstructive surgery, a surgery that was very doable at Hospital Shalom. For David, it meant the end of walking on two legs. Little did we know that when he was born, David’s birth defect almost cost him his life. This birth defect, which we see quite frequently, also fuses all four fingers together. When he turned 2 years old the decision was made to have surgery on one hand then two months later surgery would be done on the other. We do not know where the surgery was to be done as that was 7 years ago and not yet our patient. The first surgery resulted in David not waking up from anesthesia for over two days. David’s mom and dad cancelled the second surgery, it wasn’t worth risking the life of their son. Upon returning home David’s dad looked at the hand now having separated fingers and decided it shouldn’t be that hard to do. The details will be spared, but Dad separated the fingers on the other hand and as unbelievable as it may seem it apparently was successful, David having full use of both hands! However, we are now faced with a “no more surgery” compliance, adopted by his parents.
The below picture shows Frank Hodges, assisted by his daughter McKenzie, custom making a prosthesis to transfer David’s weight to his thigh, as well as other areas, in order to redistribute weight and keep pressure off the ever-growing bone. David’s mom and dad decided that David can make his own decision about surgery when he turns 18. He’s now 9 years old, so we only have 9 more years to pray that God will continue to give wisdom or heal miraculously. Either way, The Way of Hope partnering with Lifenabled working through Hospital Shalom will keep David “in the game”!
"Little Joe"
From their first visit you could clearly see desperation. Their precious son, who had just learned to walk one month before the accident, was now an amputee. Little Joe, our now youngest patient, was only 18 months old. It was a common occurrence, a family trip on a motorcycle ending in disaster. Laws of the road in Guatemala are non existent. Because of widespread poverty, a family who owns a motorcycle has “arrived”, no pun intended. Unfortunately some never arrive, others arrive severely injured.
For Little Joe, this accident would effect two aspects of his young life. In only two weeks he was to go to Guatemala City for his first appointment toward corrective eye surgery. That never happened. Instead he was having surgery to amputate his leg which was too badly mangled to save.
Upon his first visit to us the decision was made by Lifenabled, the prosthetic team from Raleigh, NC to waste no time and get him back up and walking as soon as possible. What a great decision that turned out to be. Not only did he receive a new leg, but one WITH a knee, not the norm for a new amputee. The thought was that since he had just learned to walk prior to the accident, that he would hopefully pick right up where he left off. The fact that he not only walked out, unassisted by crutches, but with his little hand in his pocket, clearly said, “ No problem, I got this!” We later found out it was just in time. Now Little Joe can walk on his own and not have to be carried which is a good thing because Mama will be carrying the newest little addition! Little Joe and his family have joined our ever increasing list of childhood amputees who come every six months to be refitted, hugged, play soccer as their physical therapy and reconnect with the other families. They are their own support group! Little Joe and his parents thank you and so do we!
"Carlos Rises From The Dirt"
At age 16, Carlos sits in the dirt where he has spent his entire life. Born with a birth defect rendering him unable to walk, he sits against the side of his stick hut and watches the other children play. This is where we found him the day we had the privilege of bringing him out of the dirt.
We were told of a young man who lived in a village “ just a short distance down a dirt path”. His father had heard of people who had wheelchairs to give away and asked if they could bring one for his son. The trip began with a 2 hour drive on a fairly reasonable highway. We then turned onto an only somewhat reasonable dirt road for another hour. We were then told “We're here, just pull over and we will walk the rest of the way”. Keep in mind we are carrying a wheelchair, parts, toolbox, and most importantly water. Dad had walked out to meet us at the path's entrance and to our great surprise strapped the wheelchair to his back with a “tump-line”, a band across his forhead then down across his back where the wheelchair rested. “Vamos ( let's go)” was the last we heard as he basically trotted off down the path, leaving us trailing behind. Nothing could have prepared us for what we were about to encounter: up, down, rocks, roots, streams, stumps and the list goes on. Thank the Lord we had a local, the woman whom the dad had spoken to about getting a wheelchair, to guide us. After an hour of trekking, we asked her how much further. “ No mucho, ( not much)” she would reply. Another hour went by and still the answer was the same, no mucho. Finally we could see a clearing ahead signaling we had reached our destination. We were met by a man with a machete who was not happy about our appearance into his very remote village. But again our guide served us well and stated the reason for our visit. The dad had arrived much earlier and was seated with a drink in a coconut shell. Soon we were welcomed and served the same. As we adjusted the wheelchair to fit Carlos the entire village began to gather. We then helped him into it and for the first time ever Carlos looked eye to eye with those around him. In a moment in time he became a star. Who was he, the village invalid, that strangers would find him and give such a valuable gift. What a perfect segue into the story of Christ Jesus!
After telling them all of God's love for them, we had one last surprise. Carrying a Polaroid camera with us, we were able to take his picture, equal in height to his peers, and leave it with him as a parting gift. The sight as we headed for the path, looking back at him surrounded by everyone laughing, jumping, and amazed by what had just happened is one we will never forget. One 11 hour day to reach out and love just one person. It is the day that was named appropriately by a friend, “Glorious Inefficiency.”