Gregory followed up on leads and within a week had secured (a) a "go anywhere" letter from the mayor of Amatitlan, (b) an authorization sticker to allow us to travel anywhere and behind police lines, (c) a "high confidence" letter from the governor of Guatemala which allowed us to get into and establish relationships with all sorts of agencies (d) clearance to obtain donated items from the Red Cross of Guatemala and (e) registration with CONRED which allowed us to obtain donated food, clothing, shoes and other items for distribution to affected areas, (f) registration and permission to obtain medicines directly from the Ministry of Health.

We were 'in business'! We spent November and December delivering food, water, clothing, shoes, tents, and all sorts of supplies to the people who were severely affected by Hurricane Mitch. 

It was such an eye-opener to discover a part of and side to Guatemala that we didn't know existed and to discover that these very poor rural people had no access to medical care. We discovered people in remote areas living in extreme poverty, living hand-to-mouth in terrible, awful, conditions. 

It was sad to find that up to 50% of children die before age 7 and that upwards of 20% die before a few months old. We encountered so many people with serious infections and none had the money to buy medicine. Most were living in dirt floor shacks, hungry, cold and with no food. Because of Hurricane Mitch, 80,000 people were left homeless and 52 bridges had collapsed making travel difficult.

"Tailgate Medicine" - We Start the Medical Clinic
Anita is a Registered Nurse so we got the idea of taking medicines and basic medical care to the poor rural people using our Trooper. We'd pull into a village and open the backdoor and dozens of children with serious cuts, sores, skin infections, worms and so on would come. Then parents would come with babies. We called it "tailgate medicine".  It would hurt your heart to see how these people - so many of them children - suffered so much due to lack of any medical care.  

Because the need was so great, we saw this as way we could really help and make a difference. So, we immediately bought a small school bus and converted it into a medical clinic, a true doctor's office on wheels.

Our home church at the time Ephrata Community Church, and, Dove Christian Fellowship -both of Ephrata, PA -  sent some initial financial donations to buy medicines for the victims of Hurricane Mitch.  The little church in San Lucas and some local San Lucas businessmen also contributed some money to help offset the cost of the medicines we needed at that time. 

Through our friends at Focus on the Family, International Director Reed Olson,  we were able to go to the National Palace and meet the wife of the then-President of Guatemala, First Lady Patricia Arzu.  She encouraged us to continue our fledgling efforts telling us "... our medical system is in shambles and it will take a very long time to fix it. Thank you for helping our people."  She promised to help us in any way possible.

We hired a Guatemalan medical doctor to serve on our team. This was a great help in establishing relationships with the villagers. Anita trained with the doctor to learn about tropical diseases, and other common sicknesses such as parasites, worms, amoebas and skin infections.

Now we've built, and completed, a medical clinic building! We care for over 500 patients monthly (and growing!) - more than 6,000 per year! We are  doing a great deal of healthcare teaching in our clinic building, as well as giving medical aid. Gregory will also look for ways to help them improve their way of life and reduce the factors that cause sickness. The first such project is the San Rafael Water Pump Project, in large part sponsored by Steve and Antonia Siebert from Arlington, VA.

Legal Status
We've organized as an IRS-registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization in the USA. This allows us to issue tax deductible receipts.  In Guatemala, we're fully registered as a non-profit social works foundation, and, as an NGO, non-governmental organization.  More info on donations at our donations page.

Family Update - June 2005
We're excited that the medical center is complete.

The children are doing well, speaking Spanish and making friends. Michael, now age 24 is Microsoft Certified and has started a programming company, Atrevido.  Michael is now married, and his wife Gaby has just had a baby girl!

Rachel (14) is now being home schooled, through a Christian curriculum from the States. She has a horse, which she can now ride.   She also has two cats, two dogs and a parrot.

Alan (19) is a student of New York Institute of Photography. He is also working with us on Project Happiness and various other projects. www.PhotoArtGallery.net    www.World-PhotoTour.com

Daniel (20) is living once again in Guatemala. Reunited once again with his family. He is now married (his wife, Janeen) and has a precious little girl.