“Little children, let us not love in word or speech but in deed and truth.” (I John 3:18)
A mission trip is an expression of Christian love. On August 20, a group made up of St. Mark's parishioners, the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and St. Joseph's Hospital will set out to do medical mission work in a rural community outside Santa Barbara, Honduras. We have a comprehensive team - medical, lay, and clerical - and we have gathered as much medical supplies as we can. While we have been given some insights as to what medical problems we may face, we have tried to prepare as comprehensively as possible.
In Honduras, according to the UN, 23.8% of the population lives on less than $1 a day. Another 44.4% lives on less than $2 a day - this is extreme poverty. 30.1% of the population receives no regular health care; 83% are un-insured (World Health Organization). The poplation of Honduras accounts for 60% of those in Central America who are living or dying with HIV/AIDS or tuberclulosis (W.H.O.)
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Well, we finally made it. It took a few extra days, an extra stop along the way, and even involved splitting up our group temporarily….but we made it home, safe and sound. It’s wonderful to be back!
A trip like this takes a long time to fully process, and as we begin that process we look forward to sharing our insights with you. There will be a presentation at the church in the next few weeks…stay tuned for details. Also, members of the group may wish to write further reflections on this space in the coming days.
Many thanks to everyone who supported us – through gifts, prayer, reading this blog, and countless other ways. We could not have done it without you!
On the Road Again...
We will all be out of Honduras by noon (Honduran time) bound for Houston. As of now, there are no options for the group to fly directly to Philly or New York. We are all booked for Pittsburg as previously laid out on the blog. Attempts will be made once on American soil to manipulate these plans.
And Now We Are Eleven
The four of our team who had previously decided to extend their mission trip into a mini-vacation are safely on the island of Roatan, enjoying some of the finest scuba diving and snorkeling in the world. As you can tell from the picture, things there are quite lovely. We hope they enjoy their trip!
And the rest of us…we are stuck in San Pedro Sula. Our friends at Continental Airlines are trying their best to return us home safely and quickly, but the wrath of Irene has caused mayhem in airports around the globe. As of this moment, our plans have not changed from what was posted earlier – we will be speaking with our agents tomorrow late morning, and if anything changes we will be sure to let you know.
For now we sit and wait, and try to relax as best as we can. Honduras, we are told, has two seasons: hot and hotter. Today fell into the hotter category. But our spirits are up, as we hope for a speedy and timely return home.
New Flight Info
As you might expect, the scene at the airport this morning was a chaotic one. We decided to get there extra early, though, in hopes of at least arranging some way home. As fortune had it, one of Brad's oldest friends was working the counter at the desk! He sadly told us that all flights to the Newark/Philly area are canceled for today and tomorrow. So, here are the new plans:
Monday: everyone leaves San Pedro Sula for Houston (depart 11:45 AM, arrive 3:28 PM)
Then our group has to split up.
P.J./George/Kenny/Michelle: leave Houston at 7:05 PM Monday and arrive Pittsburgh 10:47 PM Monday
Susan/Mary Cate/Mary Beth/Bob/Reid/Marco/Stacie: leave Houston 7:15 AM TUESDAY and arrive Pittsburgh 11:03 AM TUESDAY
From Pittsburgh, we will have to arrange cars to get us to Newark (for P.J., George, and Kenny's cars) or Philadelphia.
There is a slight possibility that these plans will change, if Continental decides to add a flight Monday or Tuesday monring direct to Newark. As of now, that has not happened. If that happens, we will let you know as soon as we can.
Obviously, this is not ideal, but it is all out of our control. We will be staying at the hotel Copantl in San Pedro Sula - the same hotel we used for our mission in 2008. It is a very nice place - we are safe and very comfortable.
For now, we hope everyone back home is safe and dry!
Rest - And a Change in Plans
Today we enjoyed a much-needed day of rest, and traveled to Copan to visit the Mayan ruins there – a culture that thrived 1300 years ago. The drive was a long one, but it was well worth the time to see the stepped pyramids and intricate carvings of this part of the Mayan kingdom. The ruins were amazing, and helped provide at least some context for us to better understand the country we’ve spent trying to help.
The ride back to the hotel provided plenty of time to reflect on the week, and to think on the future. It’s hard to think on Honduras and not worry about the current state of affairs: half the people of this land are below the age of 16, and from what we can see their prospects for the future do not look so good. But seeing the gorgeous landscape, and working with the amazing people, we don’t find it impossible to have hope for the future of Honduras – and we pray our work has been a small part of building that hope.
Upon arriving back to our hotel, we’ve discovered that our scheduled flight into Newark has been canceled because of the hurricane bearing down on the east coast of the States. We are perfectly safe here – the storms in the mid-Atlantic region are the issue. We are currently working on alternative travel plans, and will keep you posted.