Day 1

The MAMA team had a first successful day out in the community! Today we visited Germania II, Siguatepeque, Comayaqua. The medical brigade had 72 people from the community come to receive medical attention. The community leaders explained to us that this was only a fraction of those who live there because many of the families were harvesting coffee beans, one of their primary sources of income, so many were unable to come to the clinic. Most of the community seemed to be adequately nourished and in relatively good health. The villagers were very polite, each waiting patiently in line for their turn at each of the stations. At the hemoglobin monitoring station, one of the workers had a bus to catch to go to work; those who had already been standing in line allowed him to move to the front of the line so he could catch his bus.

The cement crew went through 42 bags of sand, cementing 6 floors. We were blessed with a cool, overcast day so the crew was able to work pretty comfortably. We found that water is transported from the lake at the top of the mountain to each of the homes and therefore each of the families were reluctant to share their water with their neighbors to mix the cement. The dental students worked incredibly hard today, extracting 50 teeth. They were the first to get started and the last to finish because of the volume of patients they saw.

On a very exciting and happy note, Marge's suitcase was successful retrieved from the airport and arrived safely to the MAMA house this evening. A great ending to a great day. Thank you to all for your prayers and support and we look forward to serving another community tomorrow.
Emily for the team