Category: Missions

Access-Life Belize 2017, Day Six (Sat.):

On Saturday morning, we drove back to San Ignacio for the Expo. As we drove up, we saw that people had already started to arrive, several hours ahead of the announced start time. As we finished getting everything set up, more people came and by the 10:00 start time, we had a line of people waiting to get in, mostly to see if there was any equipment that we could give to them. We had lots of activities available for the participants, from painting to games and adaptive fitness to crafts and face painting. We also offered a prayer and care booth and a photo booth.

At the art booth, Beth, Carolyn and Sheila were able to help many children and adults to paint, some for the first time in their lives. Especially some of the adults were reluctant to paint, thinking that they were not creative or artistic. After they tried it, they found that it was very relaxing and that it was something that they could do. One man named Antonio came to the art booth in a power chair, unable to use his arms. His caregiver and Beth were able to assist him in writing his name and then painting “God is good” on the paper. He told Beth that this was the first time that he had been able to use his hand in over a year and it had given him hope. Another boy named Edwin, who had a shriveled hand, came to paint and his friend and Sheila were able to help him to paint. Afterward, they helped him to toss the football and when he was able to do it, they all did a “happy dance.”

Sharon, Mike and Jimmy enjoyed their time at the adaptive fitness booth, helping people learn to do ladder drills and use the battle ropes, and teaching them how they could do exercises at home. Jimmy and Mike were able to visit with a man who was a double amputee and a soldier who was wounded in Guyana. Both of the men they met were encouraged to meet some people who lived with disabilites and were able to be active. They also met Jalen and Jaden, twin brothers who were in power chairs. They were students at the college and were both excited that we had come to do the Expo there.

On the medical equipment side of the gym, John, Lisa, Ashley, Cindy, Helen, Janet, Dave, Rick, and Korie were kept busy throughout the Expo with trying to match people with equipment that would best meet their needs. It took a lot of adjustment and fitting to make things work for each person. Some who came were not able to get exactly what they wanted, but everyone got was was best for their situation and need. We also had a lot of equipment that had been donated that was very intensive and user-specific or needed a therapist to assist with it. God sent a man named Juan who is one of only four or five physical therapists in Belize. He is starting some therapy facilities and needed equipment to get it up and running. He plans to treat children free of charge and we were able to give him several pieces of equipment that he can use for therapy, as well as some mats and adaptive fitness equipment.

A large group of disabled people came from Belize City and they had to take taxis and a bus to get to San Ignacio, but God provided for them to get there and we were able to give all of them medical supplies and equipment that they could use. Other families brought children with cognitive disabilities who were able to enjoy the activities and get resources. Over 250 people attended the Expo (including volunteers), making it a larger turn out than the two previous years in Roaring Creek Village. All in all nearly 60 wheelchairs were given away as well as over 100 walkers, crutches, canes and gate trainers and countless bed pad, diapers, bath aides and other medical supplies. WHAT A GOD BLESSED DAY!

As many of the team expressed in our debriefing time, the interactions we had at the Expo and all week long were not always easy and the people we met lived in some difficult conditions and circumstances. Over and over again, we saw that people had a resilient and grateful spirit and were so appreciative that we had come to help them. We may never know the impact that we are having on others, but God is with us and with them and goes before us to prepare the way as we are obedient to Him.

Access-Life Belize 2017, Day One (Tues.):

On our first full day in Belize, the day started out very wet. The team stayed at the Hearts of Christ mission and started organizing supplies and cleaning equipment that had been shipped. Korie and some of the guys went to buy lumber and materials for the first ramp that would be built. After lunch, the rain stopped and we all loaded up and headed to the work site.

Ciara and Wilson:

The ramp was for a family with several children, one of whom has Cerebral Palsy. Ciara is almost 10 years old and has a smile that lights up her face. We met her mom, Kimone, and her cousin Taylor and baby brother Will. Their house was up on stilts, so the ramp needed to be “double decker” with a landing in between. The building team had put together the larger pieces before we went to the site, so when we arrived they got to work building the framework and finishing out the ramp.

While the building team worked, others on the A-L team walked around the village neighborhood to hand out hygiene packs and candy to the children and families who were walking home from school. The activity attracted a lot of attention and one family came by asking for some kind of wheelchair for their son, Wilson, who was born with deformities in all four limbs.

Leanne and John had gone back to the Hearts of Christ mission to get a wheelchair for Ciara and at the last minute decided to put an extra mobility stroller in the van to see if Ciara could use it, too. When they got back to the job site, Wilson and his family were there and it was very evident that God had intended the mobility stroller to go to him. So, Ciara got her weelchair and Wilson got his stroller – double blessings!

Doug’s morning devotion had reminded us that God is with us and goes before us, so this was affirmation that God was at work and had gone before us to help us to be prepared for the families we met that day.

Access-Life Belize 2017, Day Two (Wed.):

The plan for the day was to build two ramps for families who live not too far from Roaring Creek Village. Our team was divided up to send some out to build and to leave others at Hearts of Christ to clean and sort and organize medical equipment and supplies.

Ms. Sonia:

The first ramp of the day was for Ms. Sonia, a woman who had one of her legs amputated below the knee last October. She had been staying with her sister during the recovery and was excited to be able to move back to her own house and to have a ramp built so that she could come and go more easily. She was surprised when we drove up, as she didn’t know what day we were coming. We also were able to give her a motorized wheelchair to help her to get around.

Several of Ms. Sonia’s siblings live nearby, so our team was also able to meet them and see about some of their needs. One brother, Roy, needed colostomy supplies, and one of the sisters, Matilda, has stage four cancer and was blessed to receive a scripture blanket and a wooded cross carved with the words, “Amazing Grace.” Our team was blessed by all of the interactions with Ms. Sonia and her family.

Ms. Laverne:

The second ramp was built for Ms. Laverne, a woman suffering from arthritis in her knees and arms. She needed a ramp to get out of her house and we also were able to give her a motorized wheelchair. Her daughters, Desiree and Haley and son, Leon, were thankful that we could help their mom. The family was also blessed to receive a Bible, scripture blanket and a wooden cross. When Ms Laverne commented she could not read the Bible do to her poor sight, her daughter excitedly offered to read to her capping off the day with a great reminder that God provides in big and small ways.

We are back in the USA and after having some time to review numbers, it looks like we had over 200 folks attend this year’s Expo in Belize and we gave out nearly 50 wheelchairs and lots and lots of crutches, canes, walkers and medical supplies. The attendance may be more based on the plates of food served but it is hard to quantify due to the loose registration system we have to use there.

I’ve also gone thru the awesome photos we have and am putting together some photo collages for everyone to see, use, post and share. In fact, there are so many great pictures and smiles that I’ve had to make multiple photo collages! Below are two with pictures of the activities at the Expo on Saturday so I hope you enjoy the views. :)

We are back in the US from Belize and while we are completely pooped out, we are thankful for such a God blessed trip! It is hard to even know where to begin sharing but overall we were both so impressed by the humility, graciousness and gratefulness of the people of Belize. Despite the poverty we saw in the “developed” area where we held the Expo outreach, most people were so thankful for what they had and even more appreciative of any blessing we could offer through God’s grace and mercy in our lives.

At the Expo outreach, we saw lots of smiles as usual but also many tears of both sadness and joy. I was particularly overwhelmed by the number of mothers who came carrying their children with disabilities because they had no other way to transport them. To be able to provide them with a pediatric wheelchair or stroller was very humbling as you could see from their faces the impact it would have on their lives.

All in all, God brought over 125 folks with disabilities including their family members, our team distributed over 30 mobility items and fitted those who came as best as possible and we had two people who prayed to receive Christ at the Gospel bracelet craft area that day. People came both early and late and as the news spread via a local radio station who came out, we were contacted about needs elsewhere in the country and requests for further help in Belize. Before we flew out, we even had the opportunity to share on a national TV station about my testimony, the Expo outreach and our hopes for more ministry there in the future.

Below is a photo collage of the Expo in Belize. I particularly love the top three photos showing a very young mom carrying her daughter into the outreach on the left and after receiving a pediatric wheelchair to the right. God is so good! It only gives a glimpse of the smiles, tears, fun and need we saw but hopefully, you can glean a bit of the joy we experienced as we were privileged to be the hands and feet of Jesus to such a gracious people. :)