In 65 years, only the clothes have changed.
Author Archive: Alpha Tau Omega - Gamma Zeta Chapter
Honduras day 6
by Dr. Seth Berl ’78
Honduras day 6: This was a special day. We went to a new village “up in the mountains.” aren’t they all!! We had never been to this village. It was one of the most beautiful mountain drives you can imagine. Reminded us of the mountains of Colorado. We stopped many times to take pics but you can never capture the beauty in a picture. We had a great clinic. Everyone is so comfortable with there positions and work so well together. Just a few stories. we saw almost 400 patients yesterday and almost 300 today in medical clinic. we actually saw some very unusual cases. the pre-med students from UF, devon, casey and alex, have gotten a great experience. they were fortunate to be sitting with one of the great teachers in DW Adcock. believe me, they will not get this good of instruction in medical school, PA school or residency. they observed many procedures and saw things that are uncommon such as a person with 2 thumbs and a 6 year old with a severe heart problem who would have already had surgery if in the US. Mia Armstrong, a pediatrician from Albany, GA, also patiently explained childhood illnesses. She is great with the students and kids. The dental clinic was rolling today. they pulled 170 teeth today. that is a years worth for some dentists. hannah pulled many teeth this week and is excited about getting to dental school. When i say we allow those helping us to be hands on i mean it. even one of our translators pulled teeth today. the ladies in pharmacy worked hard but got a few breaks to play with the children. One of our highlights was Alex reading bible stories to the kids. even Alex will agree that her spanish needs improvement but you would of never of known it by the way the kids were around her. also kim tomlinson spent a good amount of time with the kids the last 2 days. when kim gets excited her voice tends to go from high pitched to higher and squeaky. kim would count the jump ropes the kids were doing and her voice would go higher and higher until they missed and she would scream “awesome.” by the end, whenever a child would miss the jump rope the honduran children would all yell “awesome.”
the last night is full of fun stories, thank you’s and tears. God is still in the business of changing hearts. there might of been more laughs and more tears this time than ever before. those of you who have been on this this trip understand what i am talking about. just look as the picture of DW Adcock below. we expect this to go viral. there are 2 things about honduras that DW has never been able to understand or accomplish. first he has never made it a week without having to go “fishing” in the toilet. for those of you that do not know, the honduras septic system can not tolerate toilet paper. this means that no matter what, you can not flush your toilet paper down the toilet. if you do, your toilet will back up and overflow. not a pretty sight. that means if you forget and drop the paper in the toilet, you have to “fish” it out. DW has always had to go fishing. this time, so far, he is perfect. Not one fishing trip. which brings us to his other problem. there are roosters everywhere. they start crowing at dark; they really get going at about 1 am; and they go from door to door serenading around 3 am. they drive DW crazy. DW has a little hearing problem and can not hear normal conversation on most days but he is acutely aware of the roosters. I thought he should “join em rather than fight em.” please refer to the pic below to understand the present I gave DW.
well week 1 is over. we did a lot of good but another week to go. I pray God will continue to bless this mission. seth
“For it is in healing… that we are healed”
Sully, Seth, Linda and the Gator girls
by Dr. Tom Sullivan ’78
Well, another year has come to an end for our Honduran mission. Tomorrow some return home, but a few stay for week #2… And more come to help them…People from different parts of the USA join with people from Honduras and form an inseparable bond as we deliver medical and dental care. Each year I am humbled and amazed….. And changed… I see God’s gifts through the actions of each of the people in these photos….
And I am reminded of a simple truth:
For it is in healing… that we are healed.
Dental Team 2015 Week 1
Divine Inspiration
Rhonda Sweeney
by Dr. Tom Sullivan ’78
Meet Rhonda Sweeney, R.N. , our host missionary with her husband T.R. …. What would make a person leave the comfort of a great job, a home in the USA and their family to live in LaEsperanza, Honduras hosting mission groups?…. Well it’s got to be Divine Inspiration…. They have dedicated their life to God and helping these impoverished people for 16 years now !!!!
Walk for miles and wait in line…
Medical missions, Bible Schools, Construction of Homes and Schools… T.R. (Rhonda’s husband)… runs an addiction center for alcoholics and addicts at the top of the mountain in LaEsperanza?.. You name it, they do it….
I am truly in awe of their devotion… And humbled to be a small part of this team…
Today we drove up ( I mean WAY up ) to the village of Chupuchay… The views were both nerve racking (on the bus)and breathtaking…this must be the surgical pedodontic capital of the world !!! Most of our patients were little ones with bombed out primary teeth…. The college Gator Girls got to extract a few teeth and suture a few sockets !! and the doctors saw over 300 people !!
Just another day in paradise…. Just like the last two years, this week has gone by way too fast… Last clinic tomorrow …. Always bittersweet … Sleep well …
Keep showing us the light
Quite the intramural haul!
Throwback Thursday – Don’t know the exact year… I’d guess late 40’s/early 50’s but it sure was a great haul for the Gamma Zeta intramural teams!
Day 4 Honduras
by Dr. Seth Berl ’78
Day 4 Honduras. today is our day off so why is the team so exhausted. let’s say when you combine teenagers with unlimited enthusiasm and energy with a bunch of 50 – 60 year olds, we wear each other out. many of the team members and translators hit the road early and often today shopping for 3 hours before lunch. honestly, how can anyone find shopping fun but they all come back to the hotel with their purchases reliving how e
xciting it all was. then we had a fabulous Honduran lunch at our good friend Xiomara’s. upon our return from lunch the college girls decided they were not done shopping yet….. i know i only had boys and La Esperanza is only about 2 streets long and 4 streets wide and can be walked in about 30 minutes…. but i digressed… anyway many on the team put in another 3 hours shopping. i spent most of the day at a clinic with our good friend Margot Sanchez as she had to have a surgical procedure. despite 8 hours in the clinic, undergoing iv anesthesia, receiving a new feeding tube by the gastroenterologist and receiving medication, her bill was $100 even. sometimes i am amazed how cheap medical care is in third world countries and sometimes you get what you pay for.
had a great dinner tonight at “the hacienda restaurant .” very good authentic Honduran food except for Brianna, one of our university of florida students, who ordered chicken fingers and french fries. you can take a gator out of Gainesville but ……
our medical and dental clinics are running like well oiled machines. Bob wright, oral surgeon, tom sullivan, out of chicago and best man at my wedding too many years ago to mention, general dentist, and mike sardzinski, endodontist out of venice, fl have declared war on dental roots…as sully puts it. no restorative work goes on here. it is numb them up and pull them out. Jasie Howard, a UF pre med student, is the sterilizer and dental assistant for this week. she has done an amazing job. incredible focus and energy. Dr. DW Adcock, orthopedic surgeon, has worked with Gabriela Gaudier, UF student in pre med. Gabriela has worked as DW’s translator. they have made a great team. DW continues to inject joints with immediate pain relief. Gabriela will take over joint injecting tomorrow…. what pre med student gets to do that?? gabriela can not possibly understand the teaching she is getting now is better than any medical student and most first year residents. David adcock, OB-GYN is here for the 4th time and Tim Daniel, invasive vascular radiologist, is here for the second time. Both have learned the fast pace of honduran medicine. Tim’s son Jarrett is here this week after Tim brought his daughter last year. what a great experience for teenagers to see how others have to live day to day. linda berl, rhonda sweeney, honduran missionary and many others from different areas of the team have kept the pharmacy flowing. Brianna Hachey is a pre pharmacy student from UF. Brianna was so nervous the first day but now she owns the pharmacy. she calls out meds and knows where they are and how to fill out the paperwork. brianna also has worked in the dental clinic during down times in the pharmacy and shows a great desire to help others. it is amazing the difference in our pharmacy from 10 years ago to now. Robin wilson, midwife, is working triage this week. she is the first point of contact and despite being taller than every honduran we have seen, makes them feel valued and important. wesena jordan is our eye glass person. you can not imagine the way these hondurans react to a pair of $1.00 reading glasses from dollar general. many have not been able to read for years only to have there world open up again with their sight. tomorrow i am going to have some other team members post about their experiences. if some of this does not make sense, it is 9 pm and well past my bedtime. everyone should experience what goes on when your only goal is to bless others.
The faces of God’s people in this beautiful country
by Dr. Tom Sullivan ’78
The faces of God’s people in this beautiful country will forever be etched in my memory to remind me that we are born to serve Him…. Great day of rest today, back at it tomorrow ….
Today was one of the most difficult and tiring… but most rewarding
by Dr. Tom Sullivan ’78
Day # 2 of Treatment… gotta say today was one of the most difficult and tiring… but at the same time most rewarding days I’ve ever spent here… Long climb into the mountain reveals the most beautiful views of Honduras … To the remote village in Santa Domingo… I’ll try to get some pictures from the others on the team and share them later…
Today’s patients were great !! … But their teeth were stubborn and difficult… My thoughts for today center on the Honduran team members who act as our interpreters and “assistants”, and the college students who spend their spring break here with us instead of on a beach with their friends…
First, meet Samuel and Mario from Honduras… Nice selfies !!! These guys are vitally important to our work… They communicate instructions, treatment and help triage their people with incredible passion and compassion ! And they try to teach me how to speak their language … Good luck with that !!! 
And the “Gator Girls” have been able and willing to jump into becoming awesome assistants….. Whether it’s retracting a cheek, clearing a bleeding socket, cutting a suture, drying a tear or just holding a hand, we are a better team because of their work!
More team members to follow in next posts…!!
Tomorrow we take a break and reorganize for the last two days… Keep us on the prayer list…
Faith and Hope
by Dr. Tom Sullivan ’78
Day One of clinic… Sure didn’t look like Illinois weather here today !! Picture perfect 70’s temp, blue sky and cool wind… We overcame a few obstacles early in the day as we were setting up the clinic… Electricity went out … And the generator had leaked gas… But, a couple of the men in the village went down the mountain and got enough gasoline to finish our day.. ( that was no easy task)..
This was Dr. Mike’s first experience extracting teeth in this type of setting..( by the way, he’s an Endodontist !!)… He was awesome !! Didn’t skip a beat… The Florida Gator girls proved they were up to the task… Sterilization, assisting and language interpretation was seamless !!! I think we may have switched their medical careers to dentistry !!! We’ll see… 
Anyway, the little ones tears turned to smiles ( eventually ).. And we cleaned up a lot of infected mouths… My take on today centers around two virtues: Faith and Hope… Our team has been to this village each of the last three years, and I have witnessed first hand the new construction, and the Faith these people have to build their community… On top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere !!!
What we can give them in the form of medical treatment is Hope… Hope for a better tomorrow without pain, without an itch, without a cough, without lice, whatever… Even if it’s just short lived…Their Faith and their Hope are what drives me
to forget any of my aches or pains and just “man-up”…. Tomorrow we return to a special village in one of the most picturesque places in these mountains… Be well…