2019 Peru Recap

Delays, delays….

Our 9th trip to Cusco, Peru started off a bit bumpier than we’ve experienced in the past.  Our 5:45pm flight on Friday March 1st was delayed multiple times. Finally, we departed at 9:15pm for Miami.  We were assured that we would have plenty of time to make our connection to our next flight (that departed 45 minutes after our arrival to Miami).  We sent 2 runners ahead to hold the gate, and fortunately, we were all able to board the overnight flight to Lima. The rest of our trip to Cusco was uneventful.  

 

The flight trouble started all over again on our trip home.  We received a message that our original flight departing Cusco was cancelled, but after a long, 2:00am conversation with the airlines, they explained that they simply moved our tickets to a flight departing 30 minutes earlier.  Our group arrived safely in Birmingham late that night on schedule. However, many groups of campaigners had much more difficulty getting home. Close to half of the campaigners experienced some form of delay, and many of them didn’t arrive home for up to 36 hours after their original arrival time.  

 

New faces and old reunions

With this being our 9th trip to Cusco, we have become very close with many of the Peruvians and many of the campaigners over the years.  We often speak of this week in Peru as a “family reunion”, where we have a chance to rekindle the friendships that we’ve formed over the years.  This year, we had many new faces join our team to serve the people of Cusco. It continues to amaze us how well everyone seems to work together to run the clinic.  Even the new people seemed to jump right in and contribute.

 

Many of the original missionaries that started the work in Cusco have returned to the states.  Their plan has always been to bridge their American presence in Peru with a second wave of missionaries that would help further incorporate the Peruvians into leadership roles within the church.  I am proud to report that things are going just as planned. The new mission team is doing a fantastic job, and many of the young Peruvian Christians are growing in the faith.

 

Campaña Medica 2019

For the 3rd consecutive year, we were able to run the campaign from the facility at Parque Cachimayo in the district of San Sebastian of Cusco.  As we have documented in previous recaps, the setup is perfect for our week-long clinic. See the video below for a refresher on our clinic layout.

 

 

We were also able to record a good quality video that documents the difficulty we have translating in Peru.  Most people speak Spanish (which Dr P and Dr W only speak very little). Some people speak the native Incan language called Quechua.  In the video below, you’ll hear the patient’s message translated from Quechua to Spanish to English, then back the other direction to Quechua. It’s a fascinating language to hear, and it’s even more amazing when people can translate from it to another language.  

 

 

Team Members

We literally could not do what we are able to do without the help of such great campaigners and volunteers!  As you can see below, we are thankful to be a small part of such a great work.

Numbers

Each year, the clinic has become more and more efficient to allow us to help more people.  This year was no exception. The clinic as a whole was able to serve 2,076 people. Of that number, Dr P and Dr W saw 1,230.  Both of these are new records for our campaign.

 

Thank you!

We want to thank everyone who helped support our trip again this year.  Thank you for donating glasses. Thank you supporting our efforts financially.  Thank you for your patience with reduced doctor hours at the office while you allow us to serve in this way.  Thank you for your thoughts, comments, and prayers that helped make this year a grand success!