Day 4-Kukra Hill
After a night of heavy downpours we set off for clinic in Kukra Hill, a community of 8,500. The day started out with another the weather delay which thankfully it was short lived and allowed us a few extra minutes to pack and reorganize our medicines. Behind the supply truck, our team followed on foot down from the hotel to the local dock, loaded up on 3 “panga” boats and set off on a 45min ride on the river to our destination. The sun was shining bright and there was a perfect breeze, what a great way to set up one’s spirit for the day! When we arrived we were greeted with pride by our very own Nicaraguan interpreter, Samuel! “Welcome to Kukra Hill, he exclaimed! For this was an extra special day, this is his home town. An ambulance ride or a mile walk uphill was our method of transportation from the dock to the church where 100 or so were already waiting for us to set up clinic. A side note of adventure about the boat ride back - two of our three Pangas ran out of gas before reaching Bluefields. The first to run out was at the mercy of other marine traffic on the river and they were eventually given extra gas from some strangers which apparently is the law on the water. The other Panga ran out closer to the dock and could be towed into port.
Our team treated, prescribed, counseled, fitted clothes, reading glasses & shoes, prayed for, and simply loved on some amazing people today. This clinic looked like “coordinated chaos” from afar but when you got closer to each station there was detailed medical and personal information shared, listened to and evaluated in every corner. We found a match for all the walkers we had brought and allowed the kids to pick a toy each from a suitcase full of tennis balls and other fun stuff.
One elderly woman told us she started her travels to our clinic the afternoon of the day prior, starting out on horseback, then by bus for the rest of her journey to be seen for hypertension medication, acetaminophen, vitamins, and reading glasses. Midday a middle aged man entered the clinic. He had extreme shaking/tremors in both his arms and legs making it difficult for us to even get accurate blood pressure and heart rate readings. After getting part of his medical history he was brought immediately to Ali’s station. He had worked as a fumigator at a Palm Tree Plantation and had fallen into a septic tank at work that had a mixture of chemicals in it. He has been suffering with neurological symptoms for months and is unable to work. He now requires a very expensive medication that would normally be used to treat Parkinson’s. This he can not afford since he no longer brings in a salary. Ali and Brita collaborated, and P4GH will be paying for his medication costs for the next year. After hearing of this story at our team dinner later this evening, we all decided to pitch in and match that for his next 2yrs of medication.
If you want to know what a person really believes, don’t listen to what they say, but watch what they do. This right here is where Ali’s heart and passion for this organization turns into a powerful energy and she leads us all with a purpose. God’s purpose. And it has everything to do with what she does - humble service.
This day was yet another great one being stewards for the underserved. Let this create a ripple effect of kindness. It starts with a single act, but then spreads outward affecting many more.