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 If I could take liberty with the "Holiday Inn Express" Commercials-I'm not a Dental Assistant but I played one in Honduras! I went on my first medical missions trip to a third world country on January 21st for 8 days. It was eye opening and life changing! I have never seen such devastating poverty or such joyful, thankful people. They were truly grateful. We went to a little village a couple hours west of San Pedro Sula called Macuelizo.Cristo Salva was formed in 1991 by setting up a mission in a couple of small buildings on a farm just outside of the village. A few years ago they were able to build a 3900 sq ft medical clinic in the village to serve more people. They have set up short term missions teams that go down four times a year to provide medical and dental care along with food and clothing distribution to the area villages. They started a vitamin program that now reaches over 55,000. children a year. All of this through a grass roots non-profit.

In September of last year I drove a trailer full of donated dental equipment to Miami along with my best friend Anne (thanks Anne for going along!). We drove 32 hours straight and except for a flat tire on the trailer at 10 PM just outside of Miami all went well. The equipment was shipped over from the port of Miami to Honduras. 

When we arrived in January our team of 16 went about setting up a dental clinic with the equipment that was shipped over.  While we were setting up a little boy came in who had been kicked in the mouth by a horse. He was in serious pain. The medical staff treated him and the day before we left he came in to have his remaining front tooth extracted. I'm happy to report all is well with him and there are many boys in Honduras without front teeth so he won't be alone! I began my training in sterilization and learning the instruments and how to assist. I'm happy to report we were able to see many patients and after five days all patients were seen that had appointments. The patients would give us hugs and say "Muchas Gracias". They were deeply touched by our efforts to help them. Andrea, our dental hygentist was able to train a local young lady who had lived in America and spoke English well to become our local Preventative Dental Education Specialist. She will go with the teams when they are down to teach preventative dental care in the schools. We left her with a set of large model teeth, tooth brush and video in Spanish to help educate the children. It only takes one teacher in every village to make a difference in preventative dental care!

What really struck me about this experience was the joy that these people have inspite of their circumstances. The family unit depends on each other and the communities are closely knit. They are about 100 years behind us I think and in some ways it made me wistful of the way our communities used to be.

 The hardest day of the trip was the day we visited a place called "The Laurels". There are about 7 shacks that are between the major highway and the dump. They are made of old pieces of wood, tin roofs and whatever else they can find from the dump. The stench and squalor were overwhelming. It is hard to describe what I saw there, most too hard to get my mind around. The one glimmer of hope I saw was with the dads. We called all the children to come up to where the vans were parked. They all lined up and received clothing and toys. There were very few smiles but you could tell they were very thankful. The children were dirty-their little ears filled with dirt, their eyelids even had dirt in the creases. It was beyond comprehension how these children could survive in such terrible conditions (they have no running water) but in the midst of such heartbreak I looked over and saw some of the dads  standing to the side watching over their children making sure they were safe. I tried not to cry until we left...I can't image having no way to provide for your family and no services available to help. Work is scarce in Honduras-it is very hard to find a paying job so these people pick the dump for anything of value.  As a real estate broker my mind is continually spinning trying to figure out how to relocate these people to a property where they could be self sufficient. Any ideas? Please send them along!

I have begun efforts to assist Cristo Salva in raising funds to meet the needs there. There are many ways you can get involved if you desire. Please visit www.cristosalva.org  if you would like more information about the ministry. The website will be revamped in the coming weeks with updated information and photos of the clinic as well as links to donate via PayPal if you wish.  Please email me if you would like to hear more about my experience-I love sharing it! I can't wait to return next January-hoping to learn some Spanish by then!

Click on the photo below for a

compelling video

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  The Kline Team believes in giving back by helping those living in extreme poverty. We have just donated the funds to construct a warehouse next to the medical clinic for Cristo Salva in Honduras.

We also support The Root Cellar, an inner city mission located on Munjoy Hill in Portland, Maine (Kennedy Park Project). Carol volunteers there in development and in the dental clinic.  Visit www.therootcellar.org for more information.

Carol also serves on the Board and is Treasurer of Health Equip. A non-profit dedicated to providing medical and dental equipment to missions interested in starting clinics in the United States and around the world. See www.healthequip.org for additional information.

 

October 2008

I just returned from my 2nd trip to Honduras working with the Cristo Salva mission. I'm happy to report that the warehouse is almost done! We were able to visit many families in their homes and provide food and clothing to them. We visited two schools and handed out supplies and toys to them. We also inventoried the medical supplies in the clinic and were able to move them into the warehouse to store them. The clinic is now ready for the dental/medical teams that will come in January and treat around 700-800 patients in a 2 week period! We also saw pregnant ladies, a boy with a machete wound, and other patients.

A really neat story happened on Saturday. We were working in the clinic getting 2 rooms ready for the dental teams for January. One room is going to be used as the ER along with dental and we asked 2 of the men to move an examining table into the ER room after lunch. They decided to take the time then to move it then we all left for lunch at the farm (a 10 minute drive). We came across an elderly man who was on the side of the road with his family. He was having a heart attack. We were able to get him back to the clinic and save his life. He sat on the very table that we just moved into the ER room within 15 minutes of putting it in there! If we had waited until after lunch to move the table we would have missed the man on the side of the road.  Below are some photos of the warehouse. The exterior will be painted in January and then the security wall around it and the clinic will be finished as funds come in. Please visit www.cristosalva.org for more info!

 

 January 2009

 

I just returned from my third trip to the Cristo Salva Mission in Honduras. I went with a group of 12 from Maine composed of Medical and Dental volunteers. I assisted Dr. Don Theriault in the dental clinic. Dr. Joe Iriana and his wife Pat were working in the 2nd dental operatory.  We had a great group who had a true willingness to serve. We were able to see 121 dental patients with a total of 61 cleanings, 72 extractions, 55 fillings and 8 sealants.  It was an amazing week!  The Honduran's are so joyful and grateful. They were truly appreciative for the care they recieved. We were able to visit a few homes and pass out food. The warehouse is being painted this week and more shelving is going to be installed. It is a wonderful feeling of accomplishment to know that because of The Kline Team's efforts there is a much needed warehouse!  We wil be working on purchasing additional dental equipment next.  If you would like to contribute to Cristo Salva please call me or visit their website at www.cristosalva.org

     

 

 April 2009

Returning to Honduras in April was wonderful! The temperatures were hovering around 100 degrees and it was very humid! It was my husband Earl's first trip. We were there for 11 days. We were able to provide food and clothing to many local families. We gave out food and clothing in a remote mountain village. The folks were so very grateful. We organized the warehouse-it is so nice to have the space available to store medical items in. We worked on the clinic and at the farm. A group from Sunshine, Maine came with us. It was great to spend time with them!  Below are some photos of the kids-truly one of the best parts of going there!              

  

The July 2009 trip has been canceled due to the Political Situation.

 

October 2009 Trip

We have just returned from a very fruitful trip to Honduras. We handed out over 1200 lbs of food along with boxes and boxes of clothing. We gave out over 250 pairs of new flip flops in one Mountain Village alone! During our 2 1/2 week stay we visited many homes and were able to spend time encouraging and giving provisions to the Honduran people. We visited two mountain villages and San Antonio, which is located in a remote area down a dirt road with beautiful scenery. One man and his young family were busy working on building a mud hut. We asked when he expected to move in he said he was saving to buy windows and doors. We asked how much that would cost. He replied 400 lempera ($20.00 US) We were able to give him the funds needed and told him we would visit him and his family in their new home in January! He did not ask for money rather we offered it. I am always amazed at the Honduran people-when we visit their homes we ask "Is there anything you need or anything we can help with?" Their unfailing answer is just say a prayer for us. How many North American's would give this answer if someone who is wealthy (and we are all wealthy compared to the Hondurans) showed up on their doorstep giving things away. How amazing and how much I learn each trip!

Our cottage industries are going in full force. Jazmin and her mom made 180 cards-they are beautiful! With some of the money they earned they bought a pig who later had 4 piglets. They will be able to help support and feed their family by raising the pigs. The cottage industries are a way to give the Honduran's a hand up so they can support themselves. Jazmin is very proud of earning money to support her family and we are very proud of her!  I'll post Jazmin's cards and other items on the cristosalva.org website shortly. Purchasing our cottage industry items is a great way to show support and encouragement! Pat was able to see over 200 expectant mom's in four days in the clinic along with many very sick people. Many lives have been impacted through the care they recieve through the efforts of the volunteers at Cristo Salva.

 

    

 

I'm sorry that I haven't updated this information in awhile. I've been going to Honduras every three months since 2008. It's been an amazing time of learning what life it like for those living in extreme poverty in a third world country.The resiliency of the Honduran people never ceases to amaze me. To live in poverty beyond what we could ever fathom and yet have such joy in their relationships with their family and friends is overwhelming. The depth of their faith is amazing. I have seen living conditions that assault your senses yet children have to grow and thrive in them.   Many people ask why travel to a foreign country why there is so much poverty here in the US. I do support local charities and give my time there as well. I have to tell you-going to a third world country takes the definition of poverty to a different level of understanding. There are no government programs to feed, clothe or care for anyone-young or old. The level of need is so great there.  The Lord has pulled on my heartstrings for the people of Honduras and I am thankful that my family, Sara and Anne at The Kline Team and Carrie at Premier Properties support my involvement with Cristo Salva so that I can continue going and helping. If you would like to see photos from the 2010 trips please visit www.facebook.com/cristosalvahonduras