Hello Gamma Zeta,
On Friday, we spent our last day assisting Seth’s team in the village of Santa Cruz. When we arrived there was only one person in line, but soon enough a long line formed. As always, I began by helping the dental clinic set up. The process begins with sanitizing all the tables and then placing clean sheets over them. Following this, I wash the dental chairs before placing four garbage bags around the room, two for each dentist. Once the dentists finish setting up their utensils, I call in patients one by one by saying proximo, which means next. I take the patient, point to the middle of the chair, and say siente sei aqui, which means sit right here. If they do not sit in the middle of the chair, the chair flips over. Once the patient is seated, I take their info sheet and place a drape and bib on them. When the patient is done, I clean the drape and call the next patient. This is how most of my days looked like. After being able to assist the team this past week, I cannot be more thankful to Seth and his whole team for allowing Joe and I to come. I am also very thankful to Dane for organizing the whole trip and for donating along with Stu Meacham, Ted Ahlem, John Aymond, Dr. Doug McGregor, Jeff Piper, Dr. Neil Schlupp, Dr. Ken Venos, Dr. Dave Teuscher, Dr. Don Reubenstein, and Dr. John Geiser. Being able to assist Dr. Seth Berl, Dr. David Adcock, Dr. Michael Dent, Dr. Bob Wright, Linda, Elaine, Jennie, Rhonda, Amy, and Devon was an extraordinary experience that I will remember for the rest of my life. Although, I wish I could have contributed more, I am very thankful for having the opportunity to assist the team. If anyone has ever an opportunity to be a part of a medical mission team, I highly recommend it. You learn a lot about people’s reality in third world countries and how spoiled we actually are. I hope to assist Seth’s team again the future.
L&R,
Paul
Walking through the market on our last day.
Our view outside of the clinic in Santa Cruz.
Honduras after lift off.