Life in Guatemala

More Is Better

2011-03-21T14:28:00.004-06:00

Last week was the Spring Break Surgical Trip and for many it was the first time with a mission team. The surgical components were Ophthalmology and Orthopedics with veteran surgeons and their families returning. The students were for the most part from Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee and this helped create energy for activities and lower the average age for the rest of us.

"Time out" Has anyone seen the patient!

When it came to patient care and activities surrounding cases their was plenty of assistance and teaching opportunities. The students were enthusiastic to learn and it was exciting to watch as many experience their first time to see a surgical case.

Good week at the Hospital

2011-02-15T17:52:00.001-06:00

We are back in Antigua from being on the coast for a surgical trip with Health Talents. Sheri traveled with children and parents from the highlands who were scheduled for cleft lip or palate repair. If I counted correctly there were 11 children who had this surgery during the week. There were many other types of plastic cases also. We have attached a picture of one of the children who was sponsored by a family in our church in Columbia, Missouri. The child's father accompanied him from the highlands and stayed all week walking him around to comfort him.

This was a special week for us as we were able to be with friends we had know from Jackson, Mississippi.

January Surgery 2011

2011-01-22T19:08:00.010-06:00

This past week we were at Clinic Ezell for the first surgery group of the year. The surgeries were General and Gynecology patient and the team completed 75 cases. Neva knew several of the surgeons and nurses from previous years but this was the first time I had the privilege of working with many of them. Most talked about the snow and cold temperatures they left behind and were all to happy to be in warm and sunny Guatemala

I was able to scrub and assist with most of the GYN cases and a few General cases. I am constantly impressed how the patients show their faith in God and give him the praise for the opportunity to have surgery and then recovery of surgery. When they walk out of the hospital with family they are smiling and giving hugs and kisses to the staff.

Neva had a busy week in the recovery room taking care of many women who had GYN surgery and women, men, and a few children who had hernias, gall bladder surgery, etc. She enjoyed working with old friends like Bonnie Spink and making new acquaintances. She said that everyone worked so well together that it made for a very enjoyable time. Above is a picture of Brittany, their charge nurse for the week.

I captured a visitor to one of the patients on the last day with Neva. She had her hands raised and was praising God for all he had done. We look forward to going back in February for a GYN/Plastics week of surgery.

Third year in Guatemala

2011-01-09T19:45:00.006-06:00

Neva and I returned to Antigua Saturday, January 8, from the cold and snowy Missouri weather. Below is a picture demonstrating my skills in the field of snow people creations. Our children suggest that I should not pursue this as a career choice.

We are looking forward to the opportunity of serving here in Guatemala with the HTI surgical teams and volunteering here in Antigua during 2011.

We encourage you to look at Sheri's blog site that is to the right of our blog. The blog shows the pictures of several children who have a cleft lip and/or cleft palate who are tentatively scheduled for surgery. There are two families in our home congregation who are providing the financial support for their surgery. We are thankful for their support and encouragement....they know who they are!!

Blessings,

Glenn & Neva

Caring for Ninos

2010-07-27T17:23:00.032-05:00

When we are not participating with HTI medical or surgical trips we are volunteering at the Hermano Pedro Hospital here in Antigua. The hospital serves to provide care to the poor people of Guatemala locally and throughout the country. The hospital has many medical clinics, pathology, X-ray department and a 5 bed surgical suite, recovery room and some beds for overnight stays.

Neva & I are volunteering in a part of the hospital that functions as an orphanage. There are approximately 45 children in the dormitory where we volunteer ranging from 2 years of age to 28 years old. The children have a variety of disabilities including cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus, downs, seizure disorders, and autism. Their extreme physical limitations make it necessary for all to be in wheelchairs except one who is autistic. Nearly all require total care.

We arrive in the early am to help feed breakfast and then provide oral care. Afterwards, we take them out on this veranda that is in the picture.... hold, talk and play with the children. It is so amazing to watch them respond to a touch, a smile, a little music or their name. We can't say enough about the Guatemalan staff that care for these sweet ones around the clock....they are truly wonderful!

While there is definitely a serious side to the work, by far, it is one of joy and many laughs. Melvin provided us with one of these moments a few days ago. He was not having a good start to his day. I began to feed him a rather large bowl of frijoles, bread, and egg when all of a sudden, he placed both hands in the bowel and then "threw his hands up with the food". SO Melvin did not want frijoles this morning! So, the staff gave me another bowl, this one, full of a liquid vegetable (high protein) mush to feed him. I placed a spoonful in his mouth, he spit it out with force and accuracy that I can only remember my Grandfather possessing. Dispite this behavior Melvin is a very sweet, joyful child.

In the Gospel of Matthew 18:10 it states"Be careful, do not think these children are not important. I tell you these children have angels in heaven. Those angels are always with my Father in heaven.

Four Wheeling

2010-07-18T19:03:00.012-05:00

After spending two months in the states we are back in Guatemala and back on track with serving the Guatemala people for the glory of God. The first week we worked with the Preston Crest C of C and the Antigua Church for 2 day during their annual medical mission trip. We enjoyed working with a physician from El Salvador who is an OB-GYN

On Wednesday, we traveled to Chichi to join the medical mobile group who were from Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, and other surrounding states. We were the only RNs on the trip, so we helped the staff with vital signs, lab testing, answering questions and translating as the need presented.

A new adventure for me (Glenn),the second week in ChiChi, was the construction of bathrooms for a newly built church. There was a great group of men who flew to Guatemal for this project to work with members of the church in Mactzul III. I really enjoyed getting to know these men and working beside them in the mud and cement. I learned a lot and now can mix cement and build a wall with concrete blocks ( hope my wall stays upright). We sent the cement mixer (fondly named Fernando by some of the group) to another church that is being built at Mactzul V. It is great to see the church growing in these small villages to the extent that they are ready for their own buildings in which to worship. It was good to be back in the highlands of Guatemala working alongside the HTI team in that area.

Our next trip is the first of August when we travel to the coast (Montellano) for a week of plastics/general/ENT surgery.

Return

2010-04-27T20:54:00.006-05:00

It has been awhile since we posted an update. In April we moved to Antigua and are now volunteering part time with HTI for the surgical team trips. This is where we started many years ago and work we continue to find meaningful and satisfying. We are blessed to be able continue with this mission work. This will allow us to spend more time at home helping Neva's parents and visiting our children, too.
This past week we were with the surgical team at Montellano. One of the Elder's from Fairview Road Church of Christ (and a dear friend), Jerry Templer, came on his first trip to Guatemala. It was an encouragement for us to be with him. As an ENT surgeon, hopefully, he will return to do surgery with HTI in the future. The team was comprised of veterans and individuals new to the HTI ministry. The teamwork was amazing, as usual, and we cared for approximately 73 patients during the week. As we experience on each trip, it was sad to tell everyone goodbye, but we anticipate seeing many of our old and new friends in the future.

God is working

2010-03-01T19:58:00.002-06:00

The other day Neva and I went up town to get out of the house as we were starting to get a little tired of the same old four walls. This means that I can have a cup of coffee and talk to some of our Guatemala friends.

One of our friends after the usual Hola he ask how to translate a short phrase from Spanish to English. The phrase was Soneir por amor Dios te which translates Smile God loves you. We ask him if he understood and he said yes but he wanted to know more. Sounds like a bible story--yes? We talked a little more and reassured him that a member from his community would be in contact to study.

Acts 8:29 – 35
The Spirit told Philip, Go to the chariot and stay near it. Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “ Do you understand what you are reading?" Philip asked.
How can I, he said, “unless someone explains it to me?’’ So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
The eunuch ask Philip, "Tell me, please who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

Please pray that God will continue to work in this young man's heart and HIS word will be heard and understood

Surgery : Anyone can participate

2010-02-25T18:29:00.009-06:00

It has been an eventful week! We woke up on Tuesday morning at 0500 with our house shaking. Yes, there was a tremblor estimated by one of the newspapers as a 5.4 then while at Clinca Caris that same day, we had a repeat performance, but this time 5.7. Most everyone exited the building as it was stronger and seemed to last way too long.

The next event started on Sunday, when Glenn discovered that he had a potential problem that might require surgery. When he woke up yesterday, the pain had increased and we decided to visit the local missionary surgeon in Chichi and get his opinion. That was about 1oa and by 3pm Glenn was in the OR having surgery. (not an emergency....but since Glenn hadn't eaten and the surgeon was available, everyone agreed it needed to be done. ) Gaspar and Manuel, two of our Health Promoters arrived and prayed with Glenn...then, Sheri came and sat with me during the surgery, which I really appreciated. The surgery went really well and he returned to his room smiling and talking to us, which put all of us at ease. It was wonderful to have a Christian surgeon (and first assistant who happens to be another missionary in town that we had previously met). Last evening, Glenn had a steady stream of visitors (Kemmel and Lisa, the family that we live with, and Maure, her mother and others.) The caring and concern that we felt made up for any of the miles between us and home. A huge thanks to everyone!

Glenn getting ready to go home this morning. He is definitely feeling better than 24 hrs earlier.

Arriving home from the hospital in a rather unconventional manner...via tuk-tuk. It works!

We learned again how good our Lord Jesus is and how we can be confident in knowing that we are in His care. No matter the circumstances, he is always faithful!

School Plus More

2010-02-22T18:08:00.012-06:00

This past week we returned to Spanish school in Xela to improve our language skills. We got so much more than just language. We stayed with a lovely older women Elueva and her family and their home. She served us three meals a day and would sit and talk with us while we eat. Elueva and daughter are pictured.

At the school we had two teachers who also taught Quiche in the schools of Xela.

Xela is the second largest city in Guatemala and when you first see it looks like a older European city. The buildings are not as tall but, the streets are very narrow and the city has many round-a-bouts. There are many cafes to enjoy a cup of coffee and the residents like to talk about the town.

A New Chapter

2010-02-14T20:32:00.007-06:00

We completed the week by going to a clinic that requires us to pack the supplies and medicines though a pasture past several corn fields and to a home. The clinic is one of Neva's favorite ones as the family hosting us are very friendly and kind. She really enjoys talking with the women and playing with the dogs and a cat. In the photo below the women of the home are helping us carry supplies back to the pickup.

With Neva healthy we started to pack some of our things and made final arrangements to go to Xela to attend Spanish School. Sunday we drove on the intercostal highway and it is a beautiful drive though the mountains to Xela. At the pinnacle of the mountain their is a town called Alaska. Some time soon we will stop on the way and take a picture of the road sign to proof it really exist. Actually it is very chilly even on a sunny day in Alaska, Guatemala.

We arrived in Xela and decided to celebrate dia del Corino, Valentines Day, by going to Pizza Hut and have a pizza with fresh vegatebles and cheese. I believe on showing my sweetheart a good time on this special day. While we were eating, there was a rock band outside playing for the people and many people were gather around to enjoying the music. It was great to see people in customary dress and others very modern clothing. It takes a open mind with acceptance to constant change to go from carring our supplies in the country side though corn fields to a modern city with a rock band. Please pray our speaking Spanish can evolve this rapidly.

God opens doors

2010-02-09T16:21:00.007-06:00

This week we were supposed to be in Spanish school in Xela but, God had something else in mind. Neva had the unfortunate experience of a very acidic "lime" that was orange in color and like a tangerine. Short sorry it was not good for her mouth and the normal flora that lives there. Today she is much better after prayer, telephone consults with Dr. Lisa and PenVK.

Since we did not go to school we stayed home, studied spanish and worked on a few medical assignments to help develop the knowledge base we need. But, more important were the people that GOD put in our paths or opened the door for us to meet during this time. Jesus was leading us like we were his sheep through the door.
First there were 2 young women in our neighborhood who wanted to find out more about us. We all talked about where we lived in the states and who we work with and the mission of providing evangelistic medical care to people. They seemed genuinely interested and thanked us. Second was a meeting with Kathy Hartle, Nurse Practitioner, who works with another local mission providing care and support to the local population, typically women and children. Kathy's home town in the states is Columbia, Mo. There are 5 missionaries from Columbia, Mo in the big town of Chichi. Neva enjoyed talking with Kathy as she told her own stories of leaving home, telling the grandchildren goodbye and "melting down at the airport" after they were gone. We had some good laughs as she told these stories with a lot of gusto and just openly sharing these emotions and experiences.

Today, John Harvey, an evangelist in town (also from Columbia), returned my call and invited me to visit him at his home. He is doing better but it has been a slow recovery after recent surgery. Guess what?? He and his wife were so encouraging to me and we agreed to visit again soon.

God is great and answers our prayers, as we have felt a need to begin developing relationships with the other missionaries in the area, as well as the locals.

We thank God for these past few days to do as he says in Philippians 4:6...."be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God; which surpasses all understanding, wil guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus"
The sky was a beautiful tribute to the creation as we took this photo from the porch outside our room just before dusk.

Very Good Week

2010-02-02T18:57:00.005-06:00

This past week was a very good week and it went past very fast. We stayed busy at the first part of the week with going to clinics and had a educational day to review medical articles. That afternoon we spent the time learning more about doing a physical assessment of the head esp. the eyes and ears.

Wednesday and Thursday we had Dr. Avillar and Nathan who work with patients who have rheumatoid and muscle problems that slow down their daily activities. Wedneday I spent the day working and translating for Nathan and learned how to teach techniques for improving muscle strength and function.

Thursday, I spend the morning with a fellow missionary, John Harvey who was recovering from surgery and needed a occasional helping hand and someone to talk with. Neva was in the clinic with Nathan and the patients. Late afternoon I went to the clinic and upon arriving I took the picture below. Who was the patient and who were the care providers? Juan, a health promoter, was demonstrating how to do some of the exercises and explaining each one in Kiche. We all had great fun laughing about this and the patients really benefited from the therapy.

Friday Neva and I took Dr. Avillar and Nathan to La Antigua prior to them returning to the states. Neva and I were grateful for the time to relax and visit with a few of our friends in Antigua. We have come to appreciate the differences between the Capital, Antigua, Clinic Ezell and Chichi not just the location but the uniqueness of the people

Visiting a New Area

2010-01-23T19:29:00.011-06:00

Sorry we have not blogged prior to this time.
After returning from the holidays, our computer proceeded to stop connecting to the internet and shortly thereafter stop working. We just got a new computer this past weekend.

During the past two weeks we have had the opportunity to drive to the area that has been chosen for expansion by HTI sometime in the future. Kemmel, Neva and I drove to the towns of Zacualpa and Joyobaj. The areas for medical evangelism are the mountains shadowing these two towns. The area looks somewhat similar to the foot heels of the Rocky Mountains . The surrounding area seems a little more arid than Chichi and the mountains are covered with trees and small fields of corn alone with the homes of the indigenous people.

We return a week later for a medical and dental clinic at Chuchuca a town "high" in the mountains. This was the first time to have the clinic after several month due to the rainy season. We were in pickups using low gear most of the way. On the way up the mountain I mentioned that during the rainy season it would be easier to use 2 mules and a cart similar to the people of the Sudan. After arriving to the clinic I saw they had a trusted horse ready for me in case we needed it for the trip back down.During the clinic we saw approximately 45 patients. almost all were women and children with various health and home problems. The people have very similar problems as what you would find in the U.S.

Sherry and I saw one women that her motivating reason to come to clinic was she was afraid, she did have a minor medical condition but, we spent most of the time attempting to reassure her that God was watching over her and when she felt afraid to pray. We prayed with her prior to her leaving us.

Neva and Josephine evaluated a women who only weighed 56 pounds, having lost nearly 30 pounds since the last visit. The concern was that she has some type of cancer. Again this is a great opportunity for them to talk to the patients about the gift of Jesus Christ in our lives and how we will spend eternity with him in heaven.

We were overwhelmed by the great need in this community for health care services and the response by the people of the Church to the clinic. All of the patients were actually from the church of Christ, as it was only announced there. We can only imagine what the response will be when we are able to go on a more frequent basis and open the clinics to everyone nearby.

Home for Christams

2009-12-18T15:35:00.004-06:00

We are safe back in the states and are enjoying visiting with family and church friends. I have had a little difficulty adjusting to the finer foods of the American cuisine, some medication should help this. Neva is visiting her parents this weekend and I am home with our favorite dog Sandy. I will have time to meet with members of our church family.

It snowed this afternoon for several hours with only a trace of accumulation, wow it was beautiful ( sorry I did not have the camera). I'm sitting in Panera Bread a wifi hot spot and they are playing Christmas caroles

My Christmas list is much shorter this year and is only 2 pages single spaced for those of you who are following our blog and want to buy us a little something. Just kidding, you know after a while when we are slightly older our wants and needs list become very minimal. Frequently the only thing we want and really need is quality time with God, family and friends.

PS. We will not be celebrating with firecrackers or hosting a precession as our Guatemala friends will be this Christmas season.

2009-12-11T16:54:00.014-06:00

Catching up on the week. Glenn helped with the ABC celebration, while I went to clinic to help Lisa and Josephina on Monday. We had 32 patients and everyone worked together so that we could join the group in the afternoon.

Edison and his mother came to clinic as they prepare for a second operation to have his cleft palate repaired. He is a little guy that Sheri has written a lot about on her blog. She continues to work with the mothers of these babies to help them through the pre-operative preparation required before surgery.

At the ABC celebration, a little girl from La Palma came up to me and clearly wanted to be friends. At first she just wanted to sit by me, but within a few minutes she had curled up in my lap. I asked her if she was sleepy and she said, yes. She had probably played hard and had very big day.

Tuesday we all met at Clinica Caris and worked to clean up the clinic, inventory pharmaceuticals and prepare pill packs for upcoming clinics. Kemmel had planned a special lunch of pizza and cheese cake (from the Cheesecake Factory no less!) Needless to say, we all enjoyed ourselves very much.

Today was a day off for Sheri, Glenn, and I as we all still needed to pack for our trips home. Lisa covered clinic. Tomorrow we will reciprocate and go to Chuchipaca.

Marilyn Grows

2009-12-05T19:50:00.003-06:00

Dr. Lisa, Sheri, and I were very happy today to see Marilyn and her mother return to clinic at Mactzul I. Marilyn was initially seen during the November Medical Mobile Trip as a 3 month old premie who weighed 6 lbs. Today, one month later, she weighed in at 9 pounds! Her mother was relieved to know that she is growing. Baby seemed quite content and this picture is worth a thousand words.....their doctor is happy, too! We thank God for answering prayers for this little one.

ABC Clinic in Mactzul V

2009-12-04T18:50:00.009-06:00

Clinic today was for children who are in the ABC Program in the Mactzul V area near Chichi. Glenn was measuring the height of this little sweet girl...she finally smiled for the camera. I think at first she may have been a little sceptical of this tall, gringo guy. The second photo is one of many that we took of the darling children that came to the clinic with their mothers and fathers. All in all, there were a total of 64 children seen today. If you don't know about the ABC program, check out the details on HTI's website. For only $30 a month you can support a child and help a family in one of the churches of Christ in Guatemala.

To Lake Atitlan via Xela

2009-12-03T21:10:00.011-06:00

Yesterday, we updated our blog with a picture of beautiful Lake Atitlan. We headed there for the first time a week or so ago driving along the Inter-American highway from Chichi. The scenery is beautiful, so we drove and talked and drove some more and realized we hadn't seen a sign for the lake. Suddenly, we saw the city of Xela (two hours from Chichi......been there and recognized it)! After a turn around and more than an hour later, we arrived in Panajachel. Now Glenn wants a GPS for Christmas or a good back seat driver! Anyway, we enjoyed eating fresh fish at a restaurant overlooking the lake and checking out the town before we returned home.

Spiritual Care for the Community

2009-11-30T19:03:00.008-06:00

Today we had the opportunity to attend an all day church service at Xepocol, a local congregation in the mountains surrounding ChiChi. There were approximately 600 people including those that came from surrounding churches. As you can see it was held under a tent like structure for shade.

Many people came from surrounding villages by bus, trucks, cars and walking. Acapella came to sing from the town of Quiche. They were very good and several of their members are related so they travel as a family plus Dad is a preacher.

Gaspar, the gentleman pictured above who is a leader in the church and is one of HTI health promoters, assisted in the meeting. It was a good time to talk with many of the people in the congregation and for them to start to know us better. On the way home, Kemmel gave a ride to people who needed transportation. I rode in the back of the pickup with several younger women and children, while a few more mature Guatemalans rode in the cab.

Every Job Counts

2009-11-19T21:01:00.005-06:00

Daniel and his sister Mercedes, ABC/Scholarship students, spent the week with us in Montellano. At last count, Daniel and his sister had made 3048+ packages of multivitamins. These will be ready to give out to the many patients in the mobile clinics.

The Eye Clinic finished today with 21 surgical procedures completed and many patients seen on consult and provided with medical treatment. As we talked tonight, even though it was a small group this trip, it was also a blessing to work and praise the Lord each night together. This group enjoyed singing and we spent more time than usual in the evening learning new songs and singing old familiar tunes. As we all leave and travel our separate ways tomorrow, most expressed the hope of returning again to serve these people who have such tremendous faith and trust in God and in those he sends.

Eye Surgery at Clinica Ezell

2009-11-18T18:15:00.010-06:00

We are enjoying a week of eye surgery in Montellano with five team members from the states and a very supportive Guatemalan staff. Dr. Meredith Ezell is our ophthalmologist and here she is removing a patch from Maria, a 47 year old woman that has bilateral cataracts and hasn't had sight in a year. Maria laughed and then she cried. It is always fun to be a part of these early morning events! She hopes to return in March to have surgery on her left eye.

We were preparing Pedro for surgery when his wife arrived. He was so excited to see her. I ask him how long they had been married and he said for 62 years. He was 19 and she was 15. They have 10 children and 15 grandchildren. She walked with him back to the outer doors of the OR and waited patiently in the post-op area for his return. It is now nearly 7pm and she is still at his side.

2009-11-15T18:14:00.005-06:00

The past week was filled with new opportunities to allow God to work in our lives. What impacted me the most was on Thursday, I was working with Josephina, one of HTI's physicians, and only a few patients came to the clinic that day. God places us where we can work for him the most, as there was a 6 year old child that was bought to the clinic by her mother. For the past 2-3 days she had nausea, vomiting and some diarrhea. When we examined the child the abdomen was tight, there were no bowel sounds, and there were several positive physical signs for appendicitis. Josephina instructed the mother to take the child directly to the hospital and we prayed for them before they went their way.
The last patient, was a 50-55 year old women who was extremely thin and her husband stated she had been "ill several years but worse now" She weighed 80 lbs and was skin and bones. On examination her liver was very large and her abdomen was slightly tender at all points. There were no other significant physical signs. Josephina ask him if he would take her for an ultrasound and lab work to determine a possible diagnosis of cancer. He conveyed that we did not want to, that his wife was the shepherd for the family and they would leave it in the hands of God. We gave them some supportive medications and ask them to please come to Clinica Caris for follow up, and again it was time to pray to God for this very sick women and her family.
Neva spent the day Thursday with Dr. Lisa at her referral clinic at Caris. They saw a young man who is in similar shape and his labs and clinical presentation raise concerns about about the possibility of leukemia. He, too, was sent to the hospital for further testing and the hope of treatment. Then, a little guy, four years old and only 20 pounds, was brought to the clinic by his mom in obvious distress related to malnutrition. He was treated for parasites and his mother was given information on nutrition and hopefully he can be referred to a milk program that is available in Chichi. If we had any questions about why we are working in Guatemala, they were all answered in one day!
Saturday, we headed for the coast for a week of eye surgery. More from Montellano in the next few days.

Getting Settled in Chichi

2009-10-28T10:07:00.003-06:00

Since our last blog, we have covered a lot of ground! In September we returned to the states to see our son baptized and married (yes, all in one week, wow, what a time of blessing!) Then we attended the October surgical clinic with a wonderful group of people who obviously love the people of Guatemala.

A few days later, we took a shuttle to Chichi to look at where we will live, a nice place, which used to be a bed and breakfast. We will rent the upstairs and will share a kitchen with a lovely woman, her son, and the 97 year old father of the owner of the house. Every morning while we were visiting that week, we woke up to the sounds of older Christian hymns, like the ones we grew up singing and in the evening to the reading of the Bible in Spanish. We also had the opportunity to meet the Guatemalan staff who work in the highlands. What a treat! We have attached a couple of pictures that we took as we sat in a restaurant having coffee and desserts. On Friday and Saturday of that week, we went out to mobile medical clinics and spent this time shadowing Lisa and Sheri as they saw patients. After the weekend, it was time to return to Antigua to finish a few days of Spanish school and as my teacher said, now it is time to practice!

This past Monday, October 26, Lisa and Kemmel arrived at our door with two trucks and we loaded up and headed to Chichi. We are getting settled here and looking ahead to several busy weeks. We are going to attend a youth conference in Santa Cruz this coming weekend. We are told to anticipate somewhere in the neighborhood of 2000 attendees! There is a group coming from Oklahoma, too, so it will be a time of fellowship, meeting many new people from across the country, and worshiping the Lord. We continue to be thankful for the opportunity to serve with Health Talents.

God Bless All of You, we are so thankful for your support.

Love,

The Berkeys

Southern Comfort

2009-08-08T15:32:00.011-05:00

We finished a surgery trip which completed 53 cases. The focus for surgery was for ENT, Plastic and General Surgery. The majority of team members were from the south, Alabama,Georgia,Tennessee and other states. This was the first time for many of the members and once they were assigned, they were busy at making the whole body work to the glory of GOD.

I know you have heard this before but the cases seem more difficult because of the amount of time span people have lived with the illness affecting them. Regardless God used his people to repair/remove thyroids, cleft lips, cleft plates and hernias, lumps and bumps.

It is so great to work with a group of Christ focus people who put others first. The last evening one of the anesthesia team members stated he was so move to see the staff praying with/for patients prior to going to surgery, he was going to offer to pray with patients when he went home.

We have attached some photos and one is of Rosario, one of the nurses scrubbed on a surgery case. This was her first time and she stated she really enjoyed it and I promised she could scrub again with us in October for GYN cases, when her schedule allowed.

In 2 weeks, we pray to test out of the present section of Spanish which has more verbs than Carter had pill for the aches and pains of life. It will be good to move on and expand our understanding of different tenses for speaking.

In Christ love

Glenn & Neva

Home in La Antigua

2009-07-28T11:22:00.002-05:00

We returned from an eye surgical trip at Montellano, were approx 46 patients shad cataracts removed or overgrowths of tissue removed from their eyes. The staff group was a small in number but very efficient and we were able to translate when needed. Neva and I had a chance to go with Dr. Walter to a medical clinic and evaluate some patients.

Next week we return to Montellano for an combo Plastics/Ent/General surgery. One of the nurses, Shery, in ChiChi, her home church is sponsoring a 2 year old for a cleft palate repair. She has as us to assist with the coordination of the visit, paying the bill and transportation. We are really looking forward to the trip, Neva knows a few of the people on the trip. Should be an encouraging trip and a chance to meet more christians from the states.

We are in school for this week and are focusing on reviewing the section so we can test out and move on- please pray for us the God put spanish works in our brain and on our tongues.

Love
Glenn & Neva

From US to Guatemala

2009-07-13T13:25:00.001-05:00

Sorry it has been awhile since we have written. In May we went home to visit parents, and church friends. Megan has visited her academic studies and came home a few weeks prior to her internship starting in DC for 2 months then on to San Francisco for 1 year. Jess was working and busy planning wedding details with Brooke. Neva’s parents are doing well per se, Bob needed a partial knee replacement and is doing well post-op. Marje continues to be feisty as usual.
When we returned to Guatemala, Megan came with us for approximately 10 days and we visited many of the ruins in Antigua. Neva and Megan acquired some ameba but, this was corrected with medication.
This past week was very busy as we had Spanish school in the afternoons and in the mornings I went on a local medical mission trip to 2 villages surrounding Antigua. Preston Crest Church, in Dallas Texas has an annual trip to Antigua the first week on July. Dr. Raul, Physician/Evangelist supported by Preston Crest Church ; Neva and I have grown fond on him and his wife. Dr Raul invited me to attend clinic with him when I was not in school. Four people were baptized and countless of contacts were made. Approximately 1,000 were seen and evaluated for medical, surgical and denital problems. It was very encouraging to see the combination of medicine and evangelism. This is the great example Christ used in the Bible.

Love Glenn & Neva

Dia de Madre-Mother's Day

2009-05-13T19:20:00.011-05:00

Dia de Madre (Mother's Day) is a grand celebration in Guatemala We were surprised by the special events of the day when we arrived at church. Each women received a rose and the church had been decorated very festively by the children the day before.

Children young and old had a gift for their mothers (and husbands for their wives when children weren't present) as seen in this picture of the preacher giving his mother a gift. All mothers received a Guatemalan bible cover, which fit Neva's bible perfectly. The members laughed and clapped when I spoke a few words to Neva in Spanish after being prompted to do so by one of the members. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the special program of the day.

After the service, it was time for a tipico Guatemala meal of pepian con pollo
(a special sauce, chicken, veggies and rice) plus tortillas. All the women and children were seated and waited on by the men (a practice which I personally can not find in the Bible:) but it was the custom of the day. We had a lot of fun and there were lots of laughs. We went home feeling very much a part of our new church family.

Onto Grado B

2009-05-06T18:31:00.015-05:00

With the tremendous help of GOD, we have passed our test on the first part of our Spanish lessons, Grado A. Neva being more gifted of tongue than me passed her test last week and I passed mine today. The next session is mostly working with verbs (verbos). There are approximately 501 verbos and we hope to learn them all (just kidding).

Enclosed is a picture of our teachers (maestras) who have patiently taught us during these past weeks. Notice they are now smiling as opposed to crying, this is a good thing, muy bien. On the left is Sandra (my teacher) and on the right is Blanca (Neva's teacher). We appreciate both of them so much for putting up with us for four hours each day and for the program at the Christian Spanish Academy, which is an wonderful way to learn a new language.

April Surgical Trip

2009-04-27T20:23:00.011-05:00

The Bible, Guatemalan angels, and Garfield.

Who would believe you can do surgical cases using the same grounding pad all day--it's true. Hopefully AORN will provide a grant to complete further research on this subject. Regardless we completed 85 surgical cases with only minor issues. We had great people working in the surgery area and Rick was in charge of sterilizing the instruments and supplies. One of our surgical teams kept "borrowing" our supplies but at least they were using them.
Above is a picture of one of the "little angels" that had surgery during the week. He was sleeping peacefully after a little Demerol. One image that will remain with us for some time is of his young father kneeling at his bedside praying for him. We had a very committed group of nurses and assistants working in the post-operative area. The 12+ hour days went so fast. There is no way to tell someone of the joy that comes from serving on one of these trips. The June surgical clinic is coming up quickly and there is still an urgent need for nurses. Please consider coming to Guatemala!

God works in ways we can only imagine.

Stop the Clinic: A Midday Baptism

2009-04-14T20:09:00.004-05:00

We had the honor today of attending a baptism with other members of the church of Christ here in Antigua. Dr. Raul, a member of the church, was conducting his weekly clinic at the building when Paola, a 25 year old woman expressed her desire to be baptized. Dr. Raul stopped the clinic, gave several members a call, and we all drove out to a nearby village where there was a pool (from hot springs). It was such a moving experience, as Paola's mother, sister, brother, and her young son were there to watch her baptism. We were told that her mother had prayed for a long time for this to happen. She cried as Paola came out of the water. It was also a time for Dr. Raul and the minister of the church to witness to others who were at the pool. Dr. Raul told us later that the church in Antigua has had from 3-4 baptisms each of the past several months! In like manner with HTI, Dr. Raul and the ministry staff address not only physical needs at the clinic, but also hold a devotional and teach the message of the gospel of Christ to those in attendance! After Paola was baptized, it was nearly 4pm. We returned to Antigua, where Dr. Raul still had 10 patients waiting to be seen.

Holy Week

2009-04-05T19:15:00.008-05:00

Several weeks have passed since we updated our blog. This is partially due to being in school for four hours a day and studying about four hours a day, and the other excuse is that we have been going to many of the celebrations surrounding Semana Santa here in Antigua for the past week or two. School is going well. Our teachers, Blanca and Sandra, are both very patient and intelligent young ladies! After a few short weeks, we are beginning to communicate in Spanish in the market, when ordering meals, and with the couple from whom we rent. On a day when we were a little discouraged about our studies, we received a card from my parents which read, "I believe if Jesus calls me to get out of the boat, He is going to be there to help me walk on the water. If I start to sink, which sometimes I do, He'll reach His hand down and He'll lift me up. God will give you everything you need to do everything He has called you to do. You are in His hands and there is no better place to be." How true this is, and we thank Him for every word he has helped us to remember and speak! We are also very grateful for a family that is supportive.

Please continue to pray for our language studies, as we know this is essential if we are to serve. Please keep Kimmel's da

d in your prayers as he faces a serious surgery on Monday. Also, please keep Dan Shoemaker, the son of Sam and Nancy Shoemaker (missionaries in Rwanda) in your prayers. He is quite sick following a recent surgery.

We would love to hear for you.

In his love,

Glenn and Neva

Spanish School Begins

2009-03-16T11:39:00.002-06:00

We returned from the Eye/Ortho surgery clinic at Montellano on Friday. What a week! It ended with a gentleman who had suffered electrocution about a month ago and required amputation of his L hand fingers. God works in miraculous ways, as this man presented in a mobile medical clinic where the orthopaedic surgeon had gone to spend the day. Within a couple of hours, surgery was in progress, and the necrotic fingers were removed. He was recovering nicely when we left, thanks be to the surgical team and our Lord and Savior!!
Lisa and Kemmel Dunham, and Sheri came from Chichi yesterday to go to church with us. There were about 50+ people in attendance, including two couples who stayed following the surgical clinic to go to language school this week. We met a physician who holds a clinic each Tuesday at the church. He invited us to visit and volunteer. It sounds like a good way to help here and to practice our Spanish, too.
Spanish school starts this afternoon. We will attend from 2p-6p each day. Glenn and I are anxious to be able to communicate and likewise, understand what others are saying. Please keep us in your prayers as we start this important part of our work.

Another Day in Paradise

2009-03-10T13:52:00.008-06:00

We arrived safely, the flights were good with very short connecting times. Our luggage arrived with us and everything was intact.- thank GOD. Alex and Danny with HTI arrived at the airport iapproximately 30 minutes later and we on our way.

The drive to Antigua was beautiful, warm and relaxing. We learned our first lesson with house numbers. Our apartment house has the same number as one around the corner. Mary Johnson was their to help us adjust. Over the next several days we walked around Antigua and learned our sense of direction, there are 2 volcanoes in close proximity. Neva has been setting up our small apartment very nice, we had a bed, chair, desk and a clothing closet. Small bathroom and cool water showers. Our kitchen area is separate from the apartment and is very nice with a propane stove and refrigerator.

Saturday evening we had dinner with Lisa & Hemmel Dunhum and Julie and it was really great to see and talk about with them. Sunday AM we went to Guatemala City to connect with a surgical team ( ophthalmology and orthopedics ). After waiting for all team members on different flights we were off to Monteanno with approximately 50 members. Many of the membera of the group are Pharmacy and PA students.

The members are working well together and this is a low key trip compared to others and gives us a chance to adjust to being in country and role expectations. This is the first operational trip for ortho and will take a few years (trips) to establish. We were blessed to be able to remove a femoral nail (rod) from a 13 yo girl this morning. The rod had been in place for several years and was starting to migrate out, causing pain.

Many of the students are working the with local school doing physical assessments and the dental team is also doing evaluations for future follow up when the parents are presents and can give permission and participate in their care.

Reasons to rejoice: We are meeting and making new friendships. Carl Agee is well and gone back to work. Carlos and Sylvia with HTI are to be married possibly this summer. The supply container that has been in a Guatemala port since November has been released and should arrive this week. The container has needed equipment and supplies.

God has blessed us to be able to serve these people.

Headed to Guatemala!

2009-03-02T19:44:00.003-06:00

It's after 8pm in Kansas City, and we are at an airport hotel, ready for a few hours of sleep before we get up at 0330 to make our 0600 flight to Guatemala City. (for those of you who were on the first trip with me in 1999.....yes, the alarm clock is on). It is hard to believe that our dream is finally becoming a reality. Yesterday, we said goodbye to friends and family, which was made much easier by the overwhelming support and prayers offered on our behalf. We are looking forward to seeing the many special people we have come to know during our years of short term missions. Yes, there are a few butterflies as we anticipate tomorrow. (Glenn says this is because I am trying to move our entire house to Guatemala and don't know if Continental will help us....)
We just pray that you will keep us in your prayers as we attend a surgical clinic next week in Montellano and the following week begin language school in Antigua.
In Christ's Love,
Neva and Glenn

T- 2 Weeks

2009-02-16T08:59:00.011-06:00

The time is fast approaching for us to travel to Guatemala on March 3. We are busy with completing our needed paper work such as, retirement options, legal paperwork and last but not least our veterinarian certifications. We found a pre-vet student to foster our Australian shepherd (who is a good will ambassador for young and old) until we can bring her with us when we are finished in Antigua.

With much assistance from our friend Mary Johnston, we now have a small apartment in Antigua while we study Spanish. We know it will take approximately 6 months to grasp enough background so we can communicate without sounding like we fell off the back of the turnip truck. Fortunately we will be attending surgical trips at Clinica Ezell and medical trips with the teams to break up the studies.

We are spending lots of time with our family, talking on the phone with our daughter who is in graduate school in New York, eating meals with our son and his fiance who live nearby, and visiting Neva's parents. Tomorrow we will travel to Kansas to celebrate her mother's 80th birthday. Anticipating lots of candles with the fire department standing by to extinguish the flames!

We are definitely getting excited to become a part of the family of HTI workers and being with the people of the country of Guatemala who we love so much.

We pray all is well with you,
Glenn & Neva Berkey