Team Blog #2. Sunday, 9/12/21
Let me introduce you to the Faith In Practice – Team 700 you will join this week and follow on our blog. This morning Sunday, we had an early wake up and gathered for morning devotional at 6:45 AM.
Vera Wiatt was our Chaplain, and she with her husband Joe were the founders of Faith In Practice. It was especially meaningful to have them share their ministry and love for the peoples of Guatemala. Vera drew an analogy of how our team was very much like the many- colored yarns the Guatemalan women weave into the beautiful textiles they are known for.
Vera drew a parallel between how the various team members from multiple backgrounds and skill levels, with the help of Christ, would form our own beautiful tapestry and become a gift for our patients and their families.
After a delicious Guatemalan breakfast, we boarded the buses for a three-hour drive West to San Francisco Zapotitlan, Suchitepéquez.
We went first to the school where we will conduct the Clinic this week. We were happy to be greeted by the “Red Hats” who are in-country volunteers and have laid the groundwork for our mission and will work tirelessly with us throughout the week. They wear red ball caps hence the nickname. The classrooms are cleared and set up to receive the clinic supplies. Also, High School students from the area come and help set up and help with patient movement during the week and are excited to practice their English.
We will have an abbreviated clinic with only general medicine, pediatric and wheelchair services due to the Pandemic. Ancillary services include triage, pharmacy, laboratory, and referrals. Also, we have a chaplain, interpreters, and a photojournalist. Our support staff also includes a Cook, bus drivers, and Security Guards.
The arrival of “the truck” was much anticipated and just about everything that is needed for the clinic came compactly packed into one large truck. It was like a “clinic from a box.”
An assembly line of all the team members, Faith In Practice staff, and on site volunteers made quick work of a huge project. Tables, chairs, boxes, and trunks were delivered to the assigned classrooms and each clinic area designed by its users. Safety protocols are paramount.
After completing our tasks, we drove to IRTRA a Guatemalan Hotel that will serve as our home base until Friday.
After dinner we acknowledged and took pictures of the four sets of relatives that are serving on the team. We congratulated a very special provider on our team Shelby Springer. Shelby is the daughter of the late Dr. Roy Springer who served on fifteen teams between 2002 and 2018. Shelby was a Medical Assistant when she came with her Dad on a trip in 2017 and will work this trip in pediatrics as a Licensed Physician Assistant Provider. After our dinner and photos, we rested and finished preparations for our first clinic Day.
