From Danelle Besaw (on medical team)

Hello from the medical team. We had a nutzo week on our first try. Starting early in the morning, we’d be the last to finish with the last doctor finishing at 7 at night, but what joys there were hidden inside. We saw everything from little babies to an 80 year old man who complained about sore knees from walking miles a day and climbing trees. We had a few emergencies that came in that thankfully turned out for the better. They are now happily in the Meru hospital, being looked after. We’d see many very disabled individuals who never had wheelchairs and were carried around all day. Thanks to Ed and his skills, many of them walked away with crutches. There was even a four year old who got a tiny wheel chair.

There were many interesting cases. People get malaria like we get colds. Many of the mothers were quite young. For the most part, we didn’t see very undernourished children, except for the third day when a bus came in from a far off community. Nearly every child had arms like twigs. There was Libby and Maribeth hiding in a closet corner secretly handing out food to the children, afraid that a mob of hungry people would swarm them. Unfortunately they weren’t so successful on Thursday when Libby and Jordan handed out milk towards the end of the day, right when the gates were opened to swarms of people. It was bedlam, but we’re happy to report they’re still alive and no bruises. On the first day, Greg McKenna took on quite the role in the clinic. First he switched watches with one of the nurses, but the dainty pink plastic didn’t quite match his outfit. Then he was found a few minutes later, holding a pair of newborn twins: Ivy and Dorothy. (Awww). Another exciting story, one of the babies in the maternity ward where the clinics were being held, was named after our very own Kathy Mutch, because she was seen the day before passing out blankets and hats.

At one point, I asked my translator, ‘oh my gosh, they’re fighting over there’, but she laughingly responded that they were simply having a conversation. ‘That’s just how we talk’, she said. The sheer volume of people we helped was overwhelming. We thought, what difference can we make when we’re only here one week, but with the amazing referral process, allowing people to get help while we’re gone, supported by the MCOH, and the amount of people we saw, it really is effective, long-term impact. Many people would try to find me after being seen. They’d smile and shake my hand, thanking me for help. Well that’s all from Mikinduri. We’re on the move again. Miss you all!