Buenos Días...

Good morning,
I wanted to share another view of Volcán Cayambe I was able to capture this morning just after sunrise. We are busy getting ready to travel and vacate the guest house. When we return to Quito on Monday night, we will stay in another location. Pray for safe travels and happy hearts. Muchos Gracias.

Splendor...

Volcán Cayambe-- the only place in the world where you can find snow on the equator


Volcán Cotopaxi (w/ the black hole)


Volcán Antisana (the shy one, because she can rarely be seen)


Wednesday, July 21, 2010

We have a beautiful view of the landscape from the guest house. Our living area is wall-to-wall windows on one side. This morning, we woke to a rare sight -- three volcanoes showing their faces. Usually they are covered in clouds or fog and you can't see them clearly, if at all.

Today, they were spectacular and we felt the rarity of it. I took these photos from our rooftop terrace.

First thing after breakfast this morning we toured the Hospital Vozandes, which is run by hcjb global, a prominent evangelical mission organization here in Ecuador. I was impressed with how nice it was, if not exactly modern. It is a 76-bed private hospital with an 8-bed ICU. They told us their mission is to share the good news of Christ with everyone who walks through the doors.


Hospital Vozandes, Quito

Later in the afternoon, we traveled by bus to the south side of Quito, the poorest district, to conduct a screening at Iglesia Cristiana Remanso de Amor (Haven of Love Christian Church), a community mission and Christian school.



When we arrived, the people were already waiting. I loved the place immediately. It was not beautiful, but the children were waving to us and interacting with us before we even got off the bus. I loved the people instantly. The mothers were very young, but they managed their children in a quiet way that I rarely see. Even the toddlers were impeccably well behaved. They were loving to each other and to us – hugging and kissing us and taking our hands for a squeeze. When they saw my camera, they all wanted to have their picture taken, and there were so many…

This screening was our favorite. There was just something special about it, and we had the strong impression that the Christian school and ministry has had a huge impact on the community. We were able to see 92 patients and will be making a number of referrals for dental work (I worked the oral health/hygiene station again today). There is a dentist who comes regularly to the school, but the people can only afford to pay to have teeth pulled when the pain becomes unbearable. They just are not believers in good dental hygiene. Nevertheless, I enjoyed myself immensely and am improving in both my clinical skills and my Spanish.


One pregnant lady who came to the screening had her prenatal paperwork with her. Ecuadorians traditionally don't think prenatal care is important, so this is unusual. Anyway, she had an order for a hematocrit (to check her hemoglobin) from a doctor, but she had not yet been able to afford to get it done. We were already set up for hematocrit checks and were happy to provide this for her at no charge. To us, this was a small miracle. And we were so proud of her for taking charge of her healthcare and coming to the screening prepared.

An elderly lady, Luz (Spanish for light), who had hardly any teeth, came to my station and allowed me to check her mouth. Noting the trash can full of used gloves on the floor, Luz asked me in Spanish if she could have a glove to do some washing or something. She indicated the bag full of purple gloves at my side. (I happen to know the verb for 'wash' because it's similar to the French word.) Before this trip I didn't speak a word of Spanish, but anyone who heard her gentle request would have understood her meaning. Of course I pulled out the gloves and asked her in Spanish, "Uno or dos?" "Dos," she replied. Tears came to my eyes as I realized I wanted to give her so much more, but all I had that she needed were 2 disposable gloves. I had been wearing the gloves for about a minute, then tossing them in the trash; but I suspect she'll keep hers a little longer. I'm praying they'll last a long time.


Luz

Please pray for these people. Their pastor, Ramiro Maldonado, has made great progress in helping the community, especially through the Christian school and assistance with health care…

but the real difference in their lives is Jesus.



Tomorrow morning, we leave Quito and travel by bus to Tosagua and Manta, near the coast. We will have only intermittent access to the internet, as these areas are very rural. If we have access to an internet cafe -- I'll post an update.

The least of these...

Quito City Dump (and Extreme Response Daycare)


Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Today, my birthday, we spent all day at the dump!!!

Poor people in Quito are desperate for survival. Some of them are so desperate they sort through trash at the Quito landfill, then sell anything that can be recycled. Even though the city benefits from having less trash to bury, the workers don't get paid anything for their work. They simply work for what they can make selling recyclables. The city limits the number of individuals who can do this and even hires people to supervise them. The work continues 24 hours a day with two 12-hour shifts. Most workers can make between $30-$40 a week -- up to $70-$80 in a good week (if they are young and can get around fast).

In many cases, both husband and wife work together so they can make more money. Extreme Response has built a day care for children of the workers, so there is a place for them to go while their parents work. The daycare building is where we spent our day -- screening folks that can't even think about making health care a priority -- until something hurts so badly they can't stand it.

We screened all the children and the workers who wanted to participate. Extreme Response didn't really expect a good turnout. If the workers chose to come to the health screening, they would have to factor in what my son refers to as "opportunity costs" -- when they're getting screened, they're not making money. But, amazingly, we completed 150 sceenings! I worked at the oral health station doing assessments on dental hygeine/overall oral health and could hardly believe the amount of dental decay I saw in the mouths of these individuals -- even the preschoolers. Nearly every patient will be referred for extensive dental work. In fact, as a result of our screening, Extreme Response is now aware of the need and will get a dentist to come out and take care of these people on a small fee scale basis -- $1.00 per visit. I'd never realized until today how much I take flouridated water, toothbrushes and toothpaste for granted. We live in such a blessed country...

I can't describe the smell of a city dump -- you just have to experience it. At first, I thought I'd not be able to adjust. Then little by little the smell seemed to be turned down in my brain. That is... until the workers walked into the screening room. The stench was beyond description. It was only the grace of God that helped me get through those first few patients. But they were such ordinary people, so much like me. They were so grateful and greeted us so warmly. Who could help but be drawn to them? Still, God had to do a great work in all of us to get through that morning's screening,

and the smell lingered.

We thought the screening would never end. We were so tired and the people kept coming. It wasn't fun. Even the children had terrible dental decay -- many complained of pain.

In late afternoon, we left the dump and went to a Chinese restaurant for an early dinner. Dr. Moss informed us we were going to return to screen the second shift workers. I can't say the mood on the bus was light -- we were just so tired. But the Lord did a mighty thing... As we returned to the dump, we didn't realize the mood of the entire group had lifted. It wasn't until half-way through the evening screening we realized we were having fun. We were actually laughing and enjoying screening the workers! And the smell wsn't so difficult to tolerate as we reached out and cared for them. I saw them through different eyes as I touched their faces, their skin. And the night was just beginning.

Later, we learned the plan was for us to fix 100 sandwiches and feed the workers that night at 9:00 for what Extreme Response refers to as an outreach night. Hosea, the fellow who ministers to the workers thanked us for being willing to open our hearts to the workers, for being willing to touch them and provide health screenings to them. He told us that most of the workers cannot read or write, that they consider their job the least desirable job in the world and that they are shunned by the community, that many times they offer their fist for a handshake, forcing you to take their arm, which is (a little) cleaner than their hamd. With hardly a dry eye in the room, Dr. Moss asked us to form a line and shake the hands of the workers or hug them and greet them lovingly one more time as they came for a brief meal. She said we could opt out if we wanted, but not a single student would make that choice...

At a little after 9:00, the workers began arriving. With eagerness, all of us formed a long line and, though their hands were filthy, we shook them and greeted the folks warmly once again and acknowledged them with dignity and respect. After they were seated, we served the workers ham & cheese sandwiches with a napkin, bananas, and hot chocolate (it was 55 degrees) and Hosea offered a long prayer of thanksgiving. After we handed out the food, we watched them carefully eat their sandwiches and bananas. They used the napkins and banana peel to hold the food while they ate it, never touching the food with their hands.

We went to the dump this morning to bless these people and in the end, we were the ones who were blessed. As Hosea said, "After all, God gave us skin that can be washed..."

...a good lesson for novice nurses.




Here are some of the children at the day care...



Here we are with sandwiches waiting for the workers to come...



Bananas and hot chocolate ready to serve...



Here's a photo of me with some of the workers. I'm in the back...

The Healing Power of Touch...

My good friend, Ashley, holding hands with Carla, a resident of Hogar Betania


Monday, July 19, 2010
This morning we headed to Hogar Betania (Bethany Old Folks' Home) here in Quito to provide screenings and, as Dr. Moss would say, "love on the people". Dr. Moss' husband helped build some of the buildings at Hogar Betania when they lived and worked here as missionaries several years ago. We were all prepared for decrepit conditions and for the residents to be pitiful and smelly; but we were pleasantly surprised! The place was beautiful, with well-tended flowers and lawn and carefully laid out paths. It moved our chaperones to tears when they saw how lovely and well-kept the place was.

The residents were clean and well-cared for and the staff was attentive. The fact that the residents were receiving good care was obvious in everything we saw today. They were relatively healthy (for old folks) and Dr. Moss will need to make only 1 referral for follow-up! Praise the Lord for blessing this home so richly with excellent staff and people who care enough to give.

After we completied the screenings, Dr. Moss had a teaching session with the staff to help them understand the importance of hand washing and proper dental hygeine techniques when caring for the clients. Then we had the opportunity to give back rubs, manicures, and hand and foot massages to grateful recipients. The people were so dear -- serving them was a joy for all of us. We left feeling incredibly blessed...

This is me with Maria. I hugged her close, gave her a back rub, held her hand and she laughed with joy...





Later tonight, we headed to an upscale shopping mall for dinner in the food court. We could have chosen KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Sbarro, McDonald's or Burger King, but we wanted something more traditional. On Dr. Moss' reccomendation, many of us chose a popular Spanish dish called Ceviche. It consists of shrimp with onions and cilantro in a soup served with white rice on the side-- mucho delicioso! Popcorn and corn nuts were also on the tray alongside banana chips. They were intended to be put into the soup, but I didn't care for soggy popcorn. The banana chips were good.

There was little time for shopping, but it gave us an opportunity to glimpse the upper class of Ecuador. In this country, there has traditionally been a large gap between the upper and lower classes. A mddle class has recently emerged and is growing.

After returning to the guest house, we counted out the rest of the vitamins and put them in packages of 30. Whew! At about 10:00pm, we got started on our homework...





We have a long day ahead tomorrow -- we're completing a screening at a daycare that a mission has built at the local dump! After the children go home, we are planning to stay until 11:00 pm "doing whatever needs to be done..."

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...

Travel Day -- Posted 1 Day late...

Friday, July 16, 2010
We've arrived safely in Ecuador. It feels good to finally be here after all the anticipation. God blessed our journey in many ways – our baggage arrived in good (albeit wet) condition and we had no difficulty at all getting through customs.

The Quito airport closed down to further air traffic immediately after we landed. We flew through heavy cloud cover (fog) and thunderstorms from Atlanta to Quito, so they were not allowing any later flights to land due to heavy fog, meaning some flights were diverted to other airports. We were grateful to learn we had avoided that situation – it would have complicated things enormously. God is good...

It is quite chilly here in Quito – around 55 degrees or so when we landed (~10:15 pm Ecuador time -- 11:15 Spartanburg time).

Saturday, July 17. 2010
When we got to the guest house last night, we carried our luggage up 3 flights of stairs and had a debriefing meeting. Well after midnight, I was able to get on the internet and, exhausted, reminded myself of the love/hate relationship I have with modern technology. I opened up my blog from my favorites list and found it was all in Spanish. Unable to read a word of it, I closed the computer and went to bed.

Tomorrow, I'll post about our first day in Ecuador. Hint: I loved it and I'm so exhausted I can hardly write another word...