1 November 2009

Dear Family and Friends—

We have now been safely back in Hershey, PA for two weeks! It was a great trip and an answer to all of our hopes and prayers regarding our time in Honduras.

In Honduras, we were pleased to find ourselves a part of a fantastic team of three orthopedic surgeons, one anesthesiologist, two pediatricians, two medical students, and our two daughters. We all lived together in quarters above the operating rooms on the hospital compound guarded by two armed guards and a high wall with barbed wire. We were well fed by the hospital cook who made all our meals. After a long clinic on Sunday to evaluate patients with upper extremity problems, some of the children were selected to return later in the week for surgery. Each morning of clinic/surgery began with a time of singing and a short message given by the hospital spiritual director. And, while the team worked, the girls and I enjoyed meeting patients—playing with them, sharing small gifts, and simply making friends. As the week progressed, I saw Abigail not only developing a love for the children in hospital, but also a sense that she was a part of our team whose job it was to serve and care for the kids. She even asked if she could take our laptop down to the inpatient ward so she could share her cartoons with the kids spending the night. We saw absolutely no political unrest, although there was quite a raucous celebration when Honduras qualified for a World Cup berth for the first time in over 20 years during our visit. The eighteen surgeries performed were interesting and successful—so far, there have been no complications reported.

As hoped, we had some great times to spend with Ruth and Danny Castro, the couple that serves as the brain and heart of CURE Honduras in their roles as executive director and spiritual director. Ruth took the girls and me out to visit several schools in the city as a part of our introduction to the country and exploration into the educational options for Abigail and Lillian. Not only are there good choices for bilingual schools that will mainstream children with disabilities, there is also a Down Syndrome Foundation that runs a center providing adjunctive therapies. Driving around the city with Ruth also gave me lots of time to interview her about the ministry and the country.

Although we were efficient and worked hard as a team, we also had a great time in our free moments. As a family, we saw Jay throughout the day and each evening—quite a change from our regular life. Abigail celebrated her sixth birthday with all the patients and families in the waiting room with a piñata and cake. And we went as a team to the beach on Columbus Day when the hospital was closed for the day.

During our trip, Abigail commented several times, “I wish we could live here in Honduras.” And now, armed with lots of positive information, we will need to pray about whether God wants us to live and serve in San Pedro Sula at CURE Honduras. Our rough timeline sets a departure date for sometime in 2011—so we have a little time yet to ponder and pray.

Thank you for your love, support, and interest in our journey. We will continue to keep you updated along the way.

Love,
Pauline for all the Bridgemans