Making a future possible

PazSalud met Sandra in 2012 when she came to our General Medical Mission in San Jose Villanueva.  She was born with arthrogryposis; a congenital disease characterized by joint contractures and muscle weakness.  When we met Sandra she was eleven years old, and very limited in activities: she had never been in school.  Sandra had been abandoned by her mother at birth and was living with her grandmother, who took her to physical therapy when she could afford the bus fare, but didn't try to enroll her in school because of Sandra's physical limitations.  Sandra's family has very limited resources - there is no electricity in the home, but plenty of loving and supportive family members.

Happily Rosy Melara, a Salvadoran nurse who has been a long-term volunteer with PazSalud mentioned to  PazSalud’s then in-country coordinator, Sr. Susan Dewitt, that she had a degree in special education, and soon Rosy had volunteered to teach Sandra the basics - learning her letters and how to write.   Rosy found that Sandra was bright and eager to learn, but also that her physical limitations tired her out very quickly.  We decided that Sandra needed a tutor who would assist her in the classroom with writing, studying and achieving.  Happily, the local school's director was enthusiastic about having Sandra enter first grade, and even helped us find a tutor with an education degree.  For the first time in her life, Sandra had a chance.  Here she is with (left to right) Rosy Melara, Sandra's tutor Sonia, and Kathy Garcia and with some of her classmates.  

This chance was made possible by a generous donation from PeaceHealth's Rosanne Ponzetti and her family who committed to sponsoring a child.  They provide the funds needed to pay for Sandra's transportation to physical therapy and her individual tutor. Sandra's class work was helped greatly by a desk that can be adjusted to different levels so she can work either sitting or standing.  Sandra's personal school desk was hand-made for her by In-Country Coordinator Darren Streff.  Sandra has now graduated from first grade with high marks, and is moving along in school.

Simple, affordable donations like these can make a huge impact on someone's life in El Salvador and PazSalud is proud to facilitate this type of empowering opportunity.  If you'd like to work with Sandra or any of our other deserving Salvadoran children, please contact Kathy Garcia in Eugene.

A sustaining gift

Darren writes:

Single mother Sonia and her 3 children are among the people PazSalud works with to ensure that they are able to meet the many challenges of life in El Salvador.  With a generous gift from PeaceHealth's Chris Keough, Sonia purchased a sewing machine that she uses to make and sell children's clothing to earn a modest living to support her family.  

Simple, affordable donations like these can make a huge impact on someone's life in El Salvador and PazSalud is proud to facilitate this type of empowering, dignifying, sustainable development.

If you'd like to work with Sonia or any of our other deserving families, please reach out to us.

Dr. Dale's Reflections

Dr. Dale Heisinger recently sent us some reflections on his experience in eight of our PeaceHealth Missions.  Dale is both a great pediatrician and a kid magnet - it helps to look a bit like Santa Claus, no doubt.  Here's what he has to say:

I must admit that I was at first somewhat apprehensive about going to a 3rd world country, but those fears were laid to rest very soon after meeting Kathy and Sister Eleanor.  Their organizational skills and the thoroughness of their preparation laid to rest any fears that I harbored.  The change in leadership from Sister Eleanor to Sister Susan, and now to Darren Streff did not in any way deter from the integrity of the Mission.  

Each trip generated wonderful memories of encounters that forever left their mark on me. The cultural differences between El Salvador and the United States are stark, but the contacts with the people showed me how closely as human beings we are all connected. Salvadorans are a warm, compassionate people who were so appreciative of our being there; many shared gifts that were modest, but given with such sincerity that they remain some of my most treasured possessions.  

I saw many disorders that were rare in the US and many that were medically challenging. For instance, parasitic disease is rampant in the children since the water is untreated, and exposure to cooking smoke generates prevalent reactive airway disease.   I frequently saw GI illness due to poor sanitation and many skin conditions (mostly infection) because of lack of hygiene.  And there were those cases of rare diseases that were quite challenging; i.e., congenital hypothyroidism (cretin), undiagnosed encephalocoele, retrolental fibroplasia, SLE, arthrogryposis multiplex congenita, and the list goes on.

All of us who participated came away from the mission better global citizens, perhaps more compassionate about the international human condition, and appreciative of the strength and courage of people who endure in conditions that most of us have not seen nor experienced.  In addition we developed an appreciation for cultural diversity and learned to practice medicine with limited resources and lack of support diagnostic services (imagine, no access to MRI, etc.!)  For many, it was a spiritual experience. I feel strongly that all of us who practice medicine from every discipline should participate in international medicine….all will be better human beings for doing so.  

And for those skeptics who feel that we really can't do much with such compromised infrastructure, and lack of services I would counter with a statement from Sister Margaret Jane Kling whom I met in El Salvador:  I had told her that I wasn't sure that I did very much to improve the health of the people, to which she replied:  "it isn't what you do, it's who you are."