Screenings Begin...

Saturday, July 17, 2010
We got up this morning to breakfast at 9:00. We're staying in the city in the Extreme Response quest house. It is a quaint, concrete, apartment building with a roof top terrace that is patio-furniture-ready. As security is an issue in urban Quito, there is a gated entrance with a small courtyard. We're on the 3rd floor, 4 to a room and 4-6 people sharing a bathroom. The accommodations are adequate, kitchen and bathrooms are clean (or were when we got here) and we are adjusting to close quarters, on-again off-again showers and not flushing toilet paper. :)

We unpacked thousands of dollars in supplies, generously donated by the Spartanburg community and repackaged them this morning. A local pharmacist donated 30,000 vitamins which needed to be recounted in groups of 30 and placed in ziplock bags! We repackaged floss, toothpaste, toothbrushes, toiletries and personal hygeine items, coloring books and crayons, combs, soap and the list goes on and on... The soccer balls were inflated and then we were ready for our first screening.

We crossed town (Quito is approximately 4 miles wide and 30 miles long) and went to a poor neighborhood, which could describe most of Quito. A local Ecuadorian lady, Sonja, and her husband have started a Kids Club for children in the community. They come to Club once a month to hear about Jesus and to learn about the Word of God. Recently Sonja has broadened the ministry to include mothers. God has multiplied and blessed this ministry that began in the heart of a young mother. 70-80 children have been coming and the club is still growing! She wanted us to conduct health screenings and teach the children about good dental hygeine. We set up stations to check hemoglobin, height & weight, blood pressure, hearing, vision, and to screen for scoliosis and dental carries/gum disease. Sonja began as usual with praise songs and worship.



Then Dr. Moss, our professor and a Family Nurse Practitioner, taught the children in Spanish about proper dental hygeine and nutrition.



The children were so excited -- to them the health screening was an event! They loved everything about it and were so cooperative! We worked for hours and children and mothers kept coming... The final total was 92 screenings! Dr. Moss will make appropriate referrals to be followed up by Extreme Response and local doctors.


Sonja and her husband, Javier, live across from the Kids' Club. They graciously ivited all 20 of us (including Mike Bishop, our host) to their home for dinner after the screening. We had fried chicken drumsticks, flavored rice with bits of ham and a cold salad with corn, apples, peas and carrots. Sonja made an apple cobbler for desert and there were candied peanuts (similar to our honey-roasted ones) available as well. Everything was delicioso! It was quite an opportunity to go into an Ecuadorian home and experience the similarities and differences and enjoy their hospitality.



We came home after dinner, changed clothes as quickly as possible and went for a night on the town to La Rhonda, a nice shopping district here in Quito. It is an upscale area for tourists. The local police have a strong presence and it is generally considered safe at night. La Rhonda is a quaint, lovely, old part of town and, though it was crowded, we enjoyed the people.



Sunday, July 18, 2010

We went to an English-speaking church this morning as a group. The worship was refreshing and the message was challenging. It was comforting to be able to undersand everything that was said. This police officer was standing (working) outside the church. I asked to take his picture and, after politely obliging, he insisting on taking a picture with me.



Following the service, we walked next door and spent a few hours helping to serve the people at Pan de Vida, an Ecuadorian soup kitchen. Members of our group had various jobs, but two important ones were greeting the people and supervising the wash station where people could wash their hands. They had many volunteers today, so we had a lot of free time – perfect for watching the people and taking pictures. The children are so obliging if you ask to take their picture – they know they will get to see the picture on the camera's LCD screen after the shot. I can't remember when I've had so much fun!





We went to a local Ecuadorian restaurant for lunch and enjoyed ava soup as an appetizer. This soup is made with ava beans & potatoes, served with a slice of avocado. Lunch consisted of chicken curry, mashed carrots, and some of the best herbed green beans and carrots I've ever tasted. The lunch was served almuerzo-style, which means the restaurant has one choice on the menu and everyone eats the same thing. Diluted orange juice was the beverage, although our sweet waitress obliged when we requested water (sin gas - uncarbonated). The food was excellent, the waitress was very gracious and we enjoyed ourselves immensely.

After lunch, we headed to TelferiQo to ride cable cars up the side of Mt. Pichincha. We walked a bit, enjoyed the view and took lots of photos. For me, panoramic views are a dime a dozen, but watching the Ecuadorian people – being with them, watching them interact, learning more about them – is priceless.

After we returned to the guesthouse, we were given time to catch up on homework, though most of us will go to bed tonight still behind. For dinner, it was Domino's Pizza, which was probably better than what I've had in Spartanburg -- go figure!

I've taken over 500 pictures with my new camera in 2 days! They say a picture's worth a thousand words.

I'll try to get a flickr account up soon to share. I'm working on an album called Faces of Ecuador...