January 2009 Mission - Update 4
Saturday morning saw the team head out to Mikinduri. Ted Grant and Paul Connolly had been to Mikinduri the previous day and were stuck in the mud roads on four different occassions. With the help of tractors and numerous Kenyan children they managed to get through to Mikinduri. The Kenyan clay does dry quickly however a heavy rain overnight on Friday night produced roads that were next to impossible. After contacting Fr. Bernard in Mikinduri, two four wheel drive vehicles were dispatched to come help us. Without their assistance we could not have been able to get through. The trip was another one of those amazing experiences. In spite of the hardship and the three hour duration, we were enriched by the generous assistance of Kenyans who came to lend a hand.
When we finally arrived in Mikinduri four hours late for the official opening of the feeding center that was built by MCOH we were treated to a bountiful supply of local culture, entertainment, food and politics. It all lasted three and a half hours but was a wonderful way to connect us to the people of Mikinduri. They went beyond the call of duty in expressing their deep gratitude for the support they are receiving from Canada. The children served by the feeding center all waved Canadian flags with great excitement when we arrived and throughout the day. The entire event was heartwarming, uplifting and provided further fuel to spar the team on for the final ten days.
The positive impact of the MCOH team continued to be made as clinics continued through to Friday. The vision team which consists of Shawna and Shara Quinn, Karen McKenna, Paul Connolly, Rita Grant, Cheri and Cindy Butt have accommated record numbers of people during three days of clinics in Meru. They along with a number of Kenyan assistants have served over 250 people each day. All members of the vision team experience heartwrenching moments. Two examples would be the lady who came back to the clinic a second day to thank us because she could now read her bible. A second highlight entailed a young ten year old, assisted by Shawna, who walked seven kilometers and needed glasses for both distance and reading. The heightend need of this young child and the broad smile on his face upon receiving his glasses was reward enough to fuel the vision team’s continued motivation.
The dental team headed by Bill Allen and his wife Nancy and assisted by Shara Quinn combined their efforts with Kenyans dentists to extract 302 teeth so far. They have had so many people to see that they often have to extract the worst of two or three bad teeth. It is truly amazing to see the wonderful work these people can perform under less than ideal circumstances. It is really backpack dentistry with inadequate lighting and patients sitting in patio chairs. This team demonstrated amazing efficency and effectiveness. The saddest case we’ve seen was a three and a half year old who we removed two teeth from and within the next year or two will need all of his baby teeth removed.
The team will spend the next two weeks working with Fr. Bernard and Chief Alex setting up clinics in remote villages in Mikinduri. We are very excited to be in the community where the organization was founded and working with the Kenyan people who first inspired Ted Grant to return to Kenya again and again.