Okay, so that title sounds a little 'melodramatic' but in all reality. It was the complete truth. Tuesday morning, June 17th, I arrived at MFI (Missionary Flights Int'l) to get on a DC3 airplane from {i think} the 1950's with a room full of strangers, to fly to a country that I was not fully prepared for. In the first picture, that was my view from my seat. We sat in the very front of the plane and it was basically like we were sitting with the pilots, the cabin was not pressurized and we took off with the windows open. Let's just say, it makes you really sleepy. We flew down with a team sponsored by their church in Pennsylvania. They came down for a week to do construction at the new seminary school, one of their leaders, Julie, had been a missionary at the OMS compound for a three year term 6 years prior to this trip.
This second picture was my first view of Haiti; small houses scattered in to communities surrounded by green, surrounded by mountains. I was overwhelmed and excited, and really starting to realize that I was finally there.
As soon as we got to the compound that day, I met my team. And, as you can tell from previous posts...I could not have asked for any better people to share this experience with. Tim gave us our run down of the lab, we learned the mass screening tests we would be doing, and we were thrown right into the midst of it. Bethesda Clinic, located on the OMS compound, is where we were primarily working [along with the other clinics Tim/Mary were intermittently servicing in-between]. Bethesda is a very well known clinic in the northern portion of Haiti, specifically Cap-Haiten, but definitely not limited to. They had reached a point where they were seeing 150-200 patients a day, but with the fickle economy and rising food prices, the first things the Haitian people have to sacrifice is health care. By the time we were down at Bethesda, they were at an all time low of 50-60 patients a day. It was sad to realize that it was not symbolic of a healthier nation but a more desperate one. On a happier note, the staff of this clinic, the people that filled it each day, were filled with such faith and offered such amazing support to all the people they encountered in the day. No matter the situation, they always held on to hope, to faith that ther
e is something better in this world, and to progress towards creating a better future. I was touched by the Bethesda Clinic and the service it provided.
1 comment:
OK, for starters, the trip would have been over for me had I had to ride on that plane....seriously, no pressurization (is that a word?)! How scary is that?! The pictures of the people are seriouly eye opening. So sad to hear that their economy is weakening....those poor people have life so much worse than most of us can ever imagine.
Do they seriously just wait in long lines like that? What are most of their symptoms? What all did you do with them? Did you draw blood...give them medication...do IVs??? So so so sad to just see them sleeping on benches. Just makes me look around my house and think of all of the extras we take for granted....WOW!
Thanks for sharing Jen!
~Kim
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