So, i will give a few recap highlights of both programs.
The feeding program has grown and it is such a humbling experience to be a part of seeing this. It's more organized and it is expanding. These little children, without this program, would not have food. Barb Benson, one of the previous team members, has taken her love for these children and helped fundraise thousands of dollars along with her church, Amelia United Methodist Church, to keep the program going.
She even was so touched on her last visit by the need for the kitchen supplies to be updated that we got to go with Bishop to buy supplies in June for the kitchen and when we were there in February, we saw the delivery of a brand new stove that she purchased for the Brisas village to have.
Pastor Javier has helped organize the program a little better, and as the kids line up, I got to take their "attendance". They are all assigned a number (or they can say their name) and they check in and Pastor keeps track of who comes each day. When they don't come for a few days, he goes to visit them and their families. The program has expanded to include some of the handicapped in the village in great need as well as some of the elderly who cannot get out of their homes.
I am humbled each time as I watch these little children come to be fed, to see their joy as they get a meal. They bring a bowl and a spoon and their chatter and banter is a heavenly noise. To think that some days they may not have food without this program is heartbreaking. But, for now, they are fed and growing and full of laughter.
The clinic is close to my heart. I am not a nurse or a doctor, nor is medicine my passion. Maybe due to the years I spent caring for my mom, but I understand the importance of medical care and what goes on. My mom did not have insurance, so I understand the loving hands that touch patients with lack of funding.
The clinic is a free clinic to the patients. They see 700-800 patients a month. The clinic is funded by the church and the government will not help them at all financially. We take in medical supplies each time we go and every time I am humbled by their response in receiving them. Every day items we need they are so grateful to get. Oh, the things we take for granted.
If the clinic did not exist, the patients would have to go to the nearest hospital, a 45 minute drive (if a vehicle can be found) or up to a two or more hour walk. And then, the patients may even be turned away due to lack of money to pay for the care. So the clinic in Brisas del Mar serves as a huge ministry to Brisas and the surrounding villages of Vista Hermosa and Alto de Julio.
The clinic administrator, Yuleida, has become one of my very dear friends in life. She fights to keep the clinic running and open, with no government support, she is always looking for creative ways to sustain it. She has a heart for their ministry and is working so hard to keep it going. She has become my sister. We laugh and we cry and we share.
The doctor I already wrote about, but Yolima is new to the village and the clinic. She is a great addition to the village. Her heart is big and her desire to help is even bigger. She and I became fast friends.
The clinic is working hard on ways to sustain themselves so they can stay open. This is a month by month battle. If you would have an interest in reading more about them, their ministry or how to help, you can find information on the Colombian church website.
These people are changing the future of the villages around them with these programs.
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