Thursday, June 17, 2010

Thursday with the Wheelchair Group








Hola followers-

Today, the wheelchair team went to Anini, an orphanage on the South side of Guatemala City. The ride there was an adventure all on its own! We experienced Guatemalan traffic for the first time! It is definitely a different experience from the states! We also were able to see some of the remnants of the volcano eruptions. The streets were lined with volcanic rock and ash, which was an exclusive experience, since we are highly unlikely to see that in the states. The views were also breathtaking as we came down the hill into Guatemala City!

When we arrived at Anini, the children were scattered around waiting for our arrival. We immediately took our tools and baggage into the cafeteria, and the children starting arriving. Each team, composed of a therapist and a student, worked diligently throughout the morning. The chairs today have been the most difficult yet. Each team only got through 2 chairs in the 5-6 hours we were there. They needed a lot of maintenance and the supplies just weren’t matching up today.

The highlight of the day was when Daniel, a boy who never had a chair, was fitted for one. After we completed maintenance to the chair to fit his needs, he began self propelling around the room! It was an amazing site to see! He had a grin from ear to ear and it was obvious he enjoyed his independence. We have all never felt so happy and proud. It gave us as students a glimpse of the excitement and joy we will bring future patients!

Tomorrow is already our last day in the orphanages. We will go to Marina Guirola and, from what we know, the children all have chairs already. Our main job and purpose will be to maintenance the chairs and make any needed additions or adjustments. We look forward to the next adventure in our Guatemalan journey!

Funny story: Us being fashionably late, as usual:

Georganna asking: What does vamanos mean?

Kate: Let’s go!

Georganna screaming: VAMANOS!!!

Buenas noches,

Lauren (student) and Krista(student)

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