Blog from Costa Rica

June 23, 2008            (The following article is a reprint of an E-mail sent by one of the members of the medical team, Dr. Elizabeth Allen, providing care at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Germania, Costa Rica.) 

Guacimo, Costa Rica - We arrived in Costa Rica without incident yesterday afternoon. It took a couple of hours for us to be able to negotiate with the customs officials so that they allowed us to bring in the three suitcases of medicines that we brought with us. While we were waiting, some strong men loaded all of our suitcases on top of a bus and covered them with a tarp. We must have driven around the airport a dozen times off and on waiting for Mike Bradshaw to get the suitcases through customs. Meanwhile, the rest of the team quickly learned that I really love to take pictures. There were some beautiful flags that I wanted to photograph. Since the bus door would not open and our bus driver was elsewhere, I climbed over the seats and got out the driver' s door to get the picture. Then, later, we kept driving by a large statue of a Costa Rican hero. At just the right moment, it was possible to take a picture of him with lovely mountains in the background. However, it took several efforts for me to coordinate well with our driver so that I could get that picture.

After we finally got the suitcases, we drove through the capital city of San Jose to the diocesan house, where we picked up Penni Bradshaw, who just finished a week of language school. The beautiful part of the drive started as we began to ascend the mountains, through Braullio National Park, where mist and clouds surrounded the mountain peaks, a little like the Blue Ridge Mountains. Our progress was slow while we followed a lumber truck up the road. Things got adventurous when our driver passed him across the double line in the oncoming lane. We breathed a sigh of relief each time we (narrowly missed oncoming cars and) passed the slower vehicles. The sun came out above the mist and clouds for a breathtaking vista as we descended.    

We arrived at EARTH University, where we are staying, and had dinner about 9:30PM your time (7:30PM our time). The time differential is two hours because we are one time zone different (south-southwest), but Costa Rica does not have daylight savings time. Dinner was satisfying, if not creative (red beans, rice, chicken, and a custard pudding with fruit). It was incredibly humid and fairly hot. We were surprised to find that the ceiling fan cooled our room well enough that we could sleep well after having had a shower. We started out on top of the sheets, but ended up under the covers by the end of the night. We awoke early this morning to the peaceful sound of a steady rain, which ended before breakfast.

It was an interesting, but tasty, breakfast of more red beans and rice, hash browns, granola, yogurt with fruit, and cheese. We had carrot juice and delicious mango juice. At breakfast, we met the rest of the medical team: Dr. Egle Frugone (originally from Chile), Sonia (a dentist), Elena (a dental hygienist), and Hugo (a medical assistant who entertains the children in the clinic as a clown).  

Our team took the bus to the town on Germania, where we set up clinic at the tiny church of Santo Lucas (St. Luke's). Our St. Luke's in Salisbury, NC helped to build them a simple, but relatively spacious parish hall a couple of years ago. It is a large multipurpose room with a kitchen, two bathrooms, and another room that we used as a pharmacy. The team rigged up some curtains so that we had three examining rooms and a dental area, all curtained off for some privacy. We were joined by several committed interpreters, who took the bus from the port city of Limon for almost two hours to be with us. Elsa assisted in the pharmacy. Melba welcomed people to the clinic. Hilda and Blanca served as interpreters for Dr. Frugone, Dr. Mike O'Shea, and me.  

Penni Bradshaw, Bill Pendleton, and Denice Golsby helped Mike and I set up the pharmacy. We had thousands of multivitamins, with many boxes of Tylenol, ibuprofen, antibiotics, medication for worms, and many assorted other medications. Mike and I organized the medication and Penni, Bill, and Denice did the time-consuming work of labelling and packaging them. The work was more difficult because it was so hot and humid that we were dripping sweat. I had to get more water to drink within a few minutes, even after drinking three glasses of juice and coffee at breakfast.

Shortly after we arrived, it began to rain very hard - much harder than it usually rains at home. The rain kept most of the patients away for the morning. However, that was a blessing in that it gave us plenty of time to set up the clinic, familiarize ourselves with the medications, and meet the rest of the team.

About 1PM, the rest of the St. Paul's group came dripping in. Carrie McKim and Madeline Holley, the two young adolescents on our trip, walked in in wet, muddy T-shirts, so cold that they were almost shivering. Jackson Fleer (Jack Fleer's teenage grandson), Tom McKim, Steve Carroll, and the rest of the construction team had worked alongside the girls sanding down the concrete base of a metal fence that they will be painting later on this week at Holy Cross Church in the nearby town of Guacimo. This year, they used wire brushes. Evidently, they used rocks last year to do the sanding and cleaning. 

Jane McKim, Jack Fleer, Mike Bradshaw, Denice and Penni served us a delicious lunch of sandwiches, chips, bananas, watermelon, and delicious local desserts, including cookies that are like our coconut macaroons. I couldn't believe that I could work up such an appetite after such a big breakfast. My brain must have been using up a lot of calories trying to think in Spanish!

In the afternoon, we were very busy. We say mostly children, who had illnesses such as ear infections, rashes (such as impetigo), diarrhea, etc. Many of them had vague symptoms that are probably due to intestinal worms, so we gave out many packages of mebendazole, the most commonly used treatment for worms. Each time I would go to the pharmacy to get a medication, Penni would remind me to give the child some vitamins. No matter how many times she reminded me, I still needed more reminders. It got to be very comical. "Vitamins?" she would say. I always said "Yes."

One of the funniest situations that I treated this afternoon was a family of four children (three siblings and a cousin) who had rashes and cold symptoms. Their very gracious mother showed up with four papers in her hand, one for each child. By the time we finally worked our way down to the very beautiful, if shy, preschool-aged daughter, the mother and I understood each other very well. It was certainly a frequent-flyer family, because even the mother got some dental work done. Just when I thought I was finished seeing that family, a mother showed up with beautiful one-year-old twin daughters. When I asked about their rashes, it turned out that they had developed rashes after visiting their cousins - none other than the big family whom I had just seen!

It took us several hours to get the hang of labelling the medications. However, now Penni and I have figured out how to write most of the directions in Spanish, with much help from Elsa and Hilda. Mike and I are relieved that most of the patients have ailments that are familiar to us. We are able to look up the treatments in our books without much difficulty. The hard part is figuring out ways to treat illnesses with a limited supply of medications. We were very grateful that Dr. Frugone was able to buy some oral rehydration powder for our patients this morning.

One of my favorite parts of the day was praying with the patients. In the morning, the team all joined hands for a prayer, led by Blanca (who is a deacon in her church) and then by me, with her interpreting. Later on, I was able to offer healing prayer to several of the children, as well as to one elderly gentleman. Blanca herself had been sick yesterday and had made it to the clinic today after praying for her own healing. She and I had a good time of prayer for her health. It is a real blessing to be in a place where it is acceptable to both provide medical treatment and healing prayer in the same place. Thanks be to God!

Mitchell Sterling, one of the youth from St. Paul's, has just come into the computer room, from which I am writing this e-mail. He says that they had a good trip to the beach. They have just returned and I would like to talk with them, so I am going to sign off. I'm really tired. I think I'll take a short nap before our barbecue dinner with Bishop Hector Monterrosa and the youth tonight.

Many thanks for your prayers. They are very deeply appreciated.

With grace and peace,

Elizabeth

June 21, 2008

Guacimo, Costa Rica - The work is over for the youth this trip and they are off to the Carribean for some well deserved play.  But, before they left, their goals were accomplished.  A rocky, uninviting piece of land has become a center of recreation for the village of Guacimo.  A small village that did not have a playground, now has one to bring happiness and fellowship to everyone who uses it! 

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Our last day on the work site found us putting rocks back where we had just dug them up the day before!  Granted, these were much smaller rocks, but they were just as heavy and caused just as many blisters among our crew. 

Spreading the gravel made the site inviting and added just the finishing touch that we hoped would bring in the neighborhood children.  The local kids had been keeping a very close eye on our progress and you could tell they were anxious for the yellow construction tape to come down.  It became a chore to keep them from slipping-in before the cement had a chance to set-up and make the equipment safe and secure.

It was not all hard work and no play.  Children everywhere can find a moment in an arduous task to find fun and our youth were no exception!  Whether it be drinking coconut juice or playing piggyback there was always some activity going on to take their minds off the heat and humidity - and the looming pile of gravel in the background! 

Once the equipment was in place it was time for our teens to give it a try, after all, we wouldn't want to install defective playground equipment, would we?  The see-saw was a favorite among our quality control experts and the local children,  who at one point numbered eight strong on the see-saw!  The end of construction allowed Father Pedro's wife Norma to add flowers to the border of the playground, which she assured us in the tropics would eventually grow to be a beautiful border of flowering shrubs. 

Friday night we had a very special time.  After our regular Vacation Bible School finished at the main church we all processed across the railroad tracks and through the village of Guacimo to the parish hall and the new playground.  We picked up bystanders the entire way, all curious about what the commotion was all about.  Once we had arrived at the playground it became a major chore to quiet the children down for our service of dedication for the new playground and its equipment.  Eventually Father Pedro managed to gain everyone's attention and he and our own Father Tomas performed a short dedication ceremony.  It was dark by the time the children gained freedom to crawl all over the equipment again.  We left them playing as our youth group joined the parishioners and Father Pedro inside the parish hall for a Service of Lights and Eucharist.  What an end to a grand day! 

After such a long week of hard work, it was time for our youth group to load up on Fernando's tour bus for a trip down to the Caribbean and some well deserved rest and recreation.  Salt water does wonders for blisters and sore muscles.  It was sad to see them leave, but those that were left behind at Earth University awaiting arrival of our adult missioners will likely get to sleep a little earlier tonight!We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our adults who will have three projects during the next week.  First, we will provide medical care for villagers far away from a clinic and second, we will repaint the exterior of Holy Cross Church.  Last, we will provide a Vacation Bible School at a new site this summer.  Father Pedro is vicar at two churches about twenty minutes apart and this summer we will go to St. Luke's in Germainia for our medical clinic and the second round of VBS!

June 19, 2008

Guacimo, Costa Rica - The original intention of this "blog" was to update it daily, but as happens in every mission trip, you have to learn to be flexible!  So today's entry will really be a four-day entry.  With that explanation, let me begin with before and after pictures of the new playground at the parish hall of  Holy Cross Church. 

 It is said that a picture is better than a thousan words but in these cases it's even more.  To go from an overgrown corn field to a functioning playground in four days is miraculous.  Our youth may have thought that they were going on an adventure when they boarded the airplane in Charlotte five days ago, but they soon learned that their mission was to work, and work they did!

The missioners soon learned how to lay-out the new equipment, level the ground and dig up hundreds, no thousands, of rocks!  They have received a lesson in volcanoes and just how many rocks an exploding volcano can eject on one countryside.  It seemed like every time we wanted to dig a hole, that's where the bulk of the volcano's rocks had been thrown!

 Since this is the rainy season in Costa Rica we had to contend with erratic weather, at best.  One day it would be raining when we awoke and the next it would be absolutely gorgeous.  This plays havoc on the best laid plans of our leaders.  Adjusting is the name of the game.  When we purchased the playground equipment in San Jose we also bought short pieces of wood that were to enclose the playground in a border.  But when the euipment was delivered on Tuesday morning, there was no border!  So, after several phone calls .we decided to change our plans and use treated logs as a border.  It was off to the store again and the next morning when we arrived we found a stack of twenty foot treated logs leaning agains a breadfruit tree! 

 Stay tuned for the next blog installment and learn how our youth have been demonstrating Christian values to the children of Guacimo in the evenings at Vacation Bible School.  After long hard days of labor each evening the troop would regroup and reenergize to lead VBS among the children of the parish!

June 15, 2008

San Jose and Guacimo, Costa Rica - The day started out with church service at the oldest Protestant church in Central America, El Buen Pastor (Church of the Good Shepherd).  Since it was Fathe's Day the church held one big service which was bilingual and then held a reception afterwards to celebrate all the father's in the church.

After church we walked through the historic section of San Jose and came across large fiberglass cows that had been decorated by local artists similar to the fund-raising drive in Winston-Salem where cats are decorated and sold to the highest bidder.  Next it was off to the airport to meet our youth missioners upon their arrival.  We were just in time for the regular afternoon rain shower.  This is the rainy season!  Our youth and two adult chaperones made it through customs and immigration safe and sound although famished so it was off to the local mall for a stop in the food court before venturing over the mountains to Guacimo, our home for the next seven days.  The food court surprises first-timers because it sells everything from McDonald's Kid's Meals to incredible local dishes that make your mouth water when you smell them.  Everyone had their fill and it was time to load-em up for the next leg of the trip - hopefully before the rains washed out the mountain pass and we would have to take a four hour detour like we did last year!

We all ate our fill and it was off to Gaucimo and Earth University.  We had toured Earth University last summer during our first mission trip to Costa Rica and were very impressed with the cleanliness and natural beauty of the over 3,000 acre ecolologically oriented university.  The decision to stay here this year was easy, as they have a large cafeteria, hot water, and no snakes in the showers!  We arrived just at dark after a beautiful trip across the "cloud" mountains, so named because you are so high up that you are literally in the clouds! 

Check out tomorrow's blog entry to see how we did our first day on the project! 

June 14, 2008

San Jose, Costa Rica - Yesterday afternoon we went shopping for playground equipment to be installed by our youth group next week at the parish house of Holy Cross Epsicopal Church in Guacimo.  It was only a short walk from the Diocesan House where we are staying but the trip was exciting due to the five o'clock traffic.  Needless to say, crossing streets can involve taking your life into your hands.  We found a great looking combination piece of equipment that has swings, hanging bars, ladders, slides and other delights.  The best part is that the company that manufactures them is sending two men to help our youth install them properly.  The children of Gaucimo will indeed be happy!   Late last night our three scholars arrived from their weeklong language class which they took on the Pacific coast.  Madeline and Stacy Holley and Eden Lewis endured a seven hour drive across the mountains from the CPI school where they were immersed in the language, living in private homes where only Spanish was spoken and taking four hours of classes every day.This morning, after a delicious breakfast of fruits and tamales we ventured to the local Hiper Mas store (actually owned by Wal-Mart) where we purchased supplies for the next two weeks.  This year we purchased four shopping carts full of craft supplies, snacks, and other necessities.  Shopping at Hiper Mas can best be compared to combat warfare as the aisles are packed with shoppers night and day, all buying in quantity and pushing multiple carts.  We packed Roger's car so full that Madeline had to sit on the hump between the front seats.

We have been invited to dinner tonight at the home of the Bishop of Costa Rica, Hector Monterroso.  The Bishop and his staff have made every effort to show us their appreciation for our efforts and their hospitality could not be rivaled by even the most affluent diocese.  We look forward to many more years of relationship with the Diocese of Costa Rica! 

June 13, 2008

San Jose, Costa Rica - The advance team of Mike Bradshaw and Henry Wilkinson arrived in San Jose yesterday just after the periodic  afternoon downpour.  We were met by our perrenial guide, Roger Pennant, who in his typical fashion ushered us out of the airport well ahead of the throngs.  Roger makes most of the arrangements for our mission trips to Costa Rica and somehow manages to keep things running smoothly.We arrived at the Diocesan House just in time to see the workmen leaving who are beginning an eight month process of renovating the entire Diocesan House.  The rooms we stayed in last summer are now demolished and "open air" so to speak.  The plans for renovation are amazing and the new facility will have much better conditions for volunteers with expanded bathrooms, meeting rooms, and even a small chapel.       

Today we are off on a shopping trip to purchase supplies for the Vacation Bible School programs we sponsor while here and also to try to locate playground equipment which our youth will install when they arrive next week.  Shopping in Costa Rica is always exciting and we are looking forward to it.