It’s hard to believe but we’re headed home today! We had a wonderful trip, accomplished a mission and served our Lord together. We have a broader awareness of our brothers and sisters in Christ and will cherish the memories. We thank the Lord for His mercies and grace.
One of our team members sat on the flight out of Guatemala next to a young woman who asked about our visit. She was told the gospel story using a witness bracelet our team member was wearing and then gave her. When they parted she said, “Thank you for caring about the people of my country. What was done was a wonderful thing! God bless you! Dios ben Diego!”
We had a restful night at the hotel in Guatemala City. It’s much cooler at this elevation. Our tour guide met us and directed our bus driver through the busy streets to several interesting sights. We saw the impressive city center with St James Catholic Church, the National Palace and government buildings.
Then to a park with a large relief map showing the topography of the country. What diverse landscape!
We went to Kaminaljuyu (City of the Dead) and the Museo Miraflores to learn about the Mayan Culture and now have a new curiosity to learn more.
We ended the day at a market with traditional crafts and wares. Several purchased coffee and chocolate to bring home. It was a good day!
Our last day of clinic – it’s gone by quickly. We loaded our suitcases into our bus at 6 am and left our hotel. We will miss the sounds of squawking peacocks and parrots (several were in cages in the facility) and the roar of large semi-trucks shifting gears on the road in front. The drive from Santa Cruz to Zacapa has taken 30 to 40 minutes each way but now our routine. We limited our registrations to 50 today with only a half day of clinic with travel back to Guatemala City in the afternoon. We began at 8 with a group prayer and singing “This is the day that the Lord has made” then a group photo.
Our team in the orange t shirts, the church volunteers in the black t shirts at the Lutheran church in Zacapa.
Everything went smoothly with the team and translators working together. It usually takes a person about 30 minutes to get through the process and they all leave with smiling faces and joyful Spanish chattering about how appreciative they are. We heard many had come to the eyeglass clinic here two years ago and hope MOST will continue to send teams. A pair of glasses can cost $250 + and they can get two for free here. Many can’t afford it and they just get used to not seeing well. One of the men told us he is a security guard and carries a gun. He left having lenses with a minus six prescription. Wow!
We ended the work day with thanking the volunteers and staff who had helped us these five days and praising God that we had served 480 in the community. Luis, the President of the congregation, presented us with a very nice certificate to take to the MOST office with their appreciation. We left many witness bracelets and puppets with them so they can continue to tell the Good News about Jesus. We packed up our supplies and loaded the bus to leave at 12:30.
OUR CLINIC TOTALS FOR FIVE DAYS:
482 people served, 482+ sunglasses and 660 glasses dispersed. PRAISE THE LORD!
We stopped for lunch at Pollo Campero for broasted chicken and French fries then another Shell gas station for ice cream and beverages. The road was very busy and it took about five hours to get to our hotel near the airport. We met our Guatemalan Coordinator, Nury deMilan, and got settled into a Best Western hotel. After a few days of no hot water we have a new appreciation of some of the little things we take for granted. We walked to dinner at nearby restaurant and enjoyed a wonderful meal together. Then back to the hotel for team devo’s and an air conditioned room.
A very hot day here! Temperature at noon was 100 degrees Fahrenheit but people still came to sit and wait for two hours to get registered.
We served 100 in the morning and 50 in the afternoon but in between we tested and served 13 children at the school and our three cooks where we have been eating our breakfasts and lunches. A total of 166. After the clinic we took a bus ride into the town and saw the Central Park and Catholic Church.
Then back to the hotel for a spaghetti dinner, team debriefing and an evening devotion together. We appreciate your prayers and have seen many of God’s blessings as just the right pair of glasses have been found for some of our challenging patients.
Here are some comments from our team today as we completed our third day of clinics serving 126 people…
I have much joy and gratitude working in different stations in the eyeglass clinic. Meeting so many pleasant people and hopefully showing them the love we have for them.
Emma Lou testing for vision.
Several people came today because they needed new glasses to help with their vision. They had received glasses previously from MOST’s ministry two years earlier. They were very pleased and smiled widely. (Sandy Hoogerhyde).
Sandy examining for eye diseases. Anyone with an infection is not allowed through the clinic. Only one a day has been declined so far.
I was impressed and humbled by the friendliness and gratitude of the people we served. It is a real blessing to be able to get to know and interact with them. (Chris)
Chris examines most of our patients and speaks Spanish so he doesn’t need a translator.
Changed to dispensing then back to testing this afternoon. Interesting to see other stations to get an idea of the total process. ( Patty)
Pat at the testing station.
Humbling to see the gratitude of the Guatemalans as they receive the gift of better sight. We hope to be more like Jesus as we help these people live better lives.
Betty and Pat at the dispensing station where people select the best pair of glasses to see with.
Sign language speaks louder than words – especially when trying to communicate across the languages. My favorite was “thumbs up” when a recipient indicated their glasses were a good fit. (Will)
Will and Chuck spend their days together in the Fitting Station. They have stories to tell of people selecting their sunglasses,
It’s always fascinating to meet various people who want to come help with the Eyeglass Clinic. I had an opportunity to meet and talk with a young man over the course of a couple of days, maybe 18 years old. He believes in Jesus and wants to serve the special people coming to the clinic. It warms my heart to know there are young people who want to make a difference. (Sandy)
Barbara testing a woman’s vision as she uses her cell phone for her “ reading chart.” Scarlet enjoys interacting with the community. Pastor Ezra and Missionary Ben Tino holding their sons as they work with us at clinic everyday. Their wives, Anna and Scarlet, are also blessings to us!
Happiness was seen on so many faces in the clinic that had their eyesight improved. Working with the MOST team, the church staff and volunteers has been a HUGE blessing.
Barbara and Chuck with a recipient of glasses. Who says you need to speak Spanish to go on a mission trip?Sandy and Barbara with the Congregational President, Luis, and Corey, who work the registration area everyday. We know each other from previous MOST trips.
This is the day many of you are thinking about the solar eclipse but here in Guatemala it’s not such a big deal since it’s usually cloud cover and we’re usually inside a building from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm. The air is heavy with humidity and it got up to 98 degrees Fahrenheit today. It was a good full day for the Eyeglass Clinic with many non-church members attending. One man told us (through one of our 6 interpreters) that he has been a member here for many years and he was so happy to “see” so many people coming into the church today. He had tears and was filled with joy! Another older man said he heard about Jesus today and wants to come to this church next Sunday! We began the clinic at 8, took a lunch break at 12:30, then 2 1/2 hours more in the afternoon. Statistically 102 people went through the clinic and 300 glasses were dispersed.
Will and Chuck worked the Fitting Station together. One fit the frames to the patients face, the other “baptized” them with cleaning and wiping the glasses before handing them over. Many individuals receive one pair for near vision and another pair for distant vision. Then they all pick out a pair of sunglasses, which makes them very happy. The translators are fantastic doing much more than they are asked to do to help the clinic run smoothly.
Our hosts, Ben and Scarlet Tino, showed us their favorite ice cream place and we stopped there on our way out of town. It was a good day. (Submitted mostly by the guys on the team.)
Sandy doing the Evangelism and Education station. Chuck with long tome church member that received glasses today.
Meet our WashingtonState team members, Betty & Pat…They write today: On the bus at 6:30 am. at our hotel in Santa Cruz. Detour drive to Zacapa because of bridge repair. 7:15 breakfast at school. Drive to church nearby. 9:00 attend church. Meet our new church family. Unload bus with 13 suitcases of supplies. Set up eyeglass clinic stations. 12:00 Back to school for lunch. 12:45 Drive back to church and prep for clinic. 1:30 to 4:30 Clinic open to church members. Provided glasses for 38 people. Drove back to hotel on air conditioned bus. 🙂 Very hot and humid! Went swimming in hotel pool. 7:00 Dinner at hotel. Devotions. Finished the day T 8:30 pm. Thank you Lord for your many blessings, especially to worship YOU in this country!
At the Lutheran church in Zacapa with our team, the Pastors, the Tino’s and family’s, and the musicians.
Here we have Aunt Sandy and Emma Lou from northern Michigan and Sandy from southeast MI. Sandy Hardies has been a Team Leader with MOST for many years, many teams coming to Guatemala so it’s familiar territory. Barbara Hoffmeier is our Team Leader with her fifth trip to Guatemala. Here she is at the MOST office in Ann Arbor with the wonderful ladies who prepare the supplies we brought with us.
God has blessed us with safe travels. We arrived on time as we came from Michigan and Washington state. All of our luggage made it through and Customs went smoothly. We met our host, Ben Tino, loaded up a fifteen passenger van, and left Guatemala City. The bus ride to Zacapa took longer than expected due to an overturned semi on the mountain road. We had a nice meal and ended the evening with devotions together. Thanks for your continued prayers. Chris
From Guatemala City we drove 200 miles to Zacapa, leaving the busy city through winding rounds, agricultural scenes and mountain views.
MOST Team 2423 