Our health mission is still going strong. Our first trip down was January 18-22 consisted of 25 volunteers. We were able to have a dental group that provided extractions, fillings, flouride treatments and sealants (for the children). Having a group this large we were able to go to 2 barrios, 1 batey (Haitian Migrant Camp) and the local prison. We also were fortunate enough to have a construction group that built a beautiful playground at Sr. Catherine’s’ Nutrition Center. With grant money we received we were able to purchase outside play equipment as well as educational toys for the Center. We funded a trained pre-school teacher from the capital for 1 year. She will be able to teach the regular staff how to stimulate the busy young children there. While in country we purchased a large diesel generator, which we will take out into the field for our med/dent clinics. With this new generator we are able keep up with our sterilizers, drills, compressors and headlamps much better than before. We also funded a program to educate street children in the Bani area.
Drs. Kevin and Beth D’Angelo went down in March with 20 people. Some of these were from the Buffalo area and there was a dentist from Michigan along with some dental students from Michigan State University. They also worked in local barrios and bateys. They had a very successful busy trip.
In July we finally saw our airlift take off. With the help of Cook’s Moving we were able to get all the gear out of Asbury Shalom Zone building from the west side of Buffalo to Niagara Falls Air Force Base at no cost. They were just terrific! The supplies that were collected over the past several years ended up filling three large cargo planes. The much needed hospital, dental, optometry equipment and supplies along with educational materials were distributed throughout the country by Srs. Catherine, Peggy and Roberta. They were fortunate enough to also get some great volunteers to help.
We are now gearing up for our trip January 17-22. The trip will have 18 volunteers mostly from the Buffalo area. We look forward to sharing our experiences with you upon our return. As always we appreciate your prayers and support through out the year.
Respectfully submitted,
Bill and Dawn Maher
