May, 2024
Last Sunday was my first day with Partner for Surgery. I have lived my entire life in Antigua, Guatemala, but Sunday was the first time I entered Obras Sociales del Hermano Pedro, a non-profit hospital.
This past Sunday 56 children arrived in the care of their Mothers to receive corrective surgery to repair their cleft lips and palates.
One Mother caught my attention. She had two children that looked like they might be twins, except that one had one had an extreme bilateral cleft lip, and the other? A normal smile.
Gris, the mother of Dareck and Derick, came to the Surgical Mission accompanied by her mother-in-law, Francisca. They were enrolled in this surgical mission by their Health Promoter Surama in Huehuetenango, located 234 km from Antigua, where medical missions take place.
Dareck and Derick were born on December 22, 2023, and are now four months old. Gris mentioned that due to her baby’s condition, she is afraid of hurting him, and feeding him has been one of her biggest challenges. Thanks to these medical missions, she feels great economic support.
As Dareck was prepared for surgery under the skilled hands of Dr. Travis Tollefson on Tuesday, Gris’s anxiety was palpable. Handing her precious child to the waiting doctors was undoubtedly one of the hardest moments she had ever faced. With tears in her eyes, she entrusted him to their care, knowing it was for his well-being, yet unable to shake off the distress.
In that moment of vulnerability, I offered Gris a glimpse of hope and reassurance. I shared with her photos of other children who had undergone similar surgeries and were now thriving in the Recovery Room. It was a small gesture, but one that carried immense weight, easing her fears and bolstering her resolve.
When little Dareck was in the recovery room, a vibe of peace and tranquility filled Gris and Francisca. They were overjoyed that everything had gone well with his surgery. Gris carefully and tenderly fed her baby with a special syringe filled with her own breast milk, and then gave him his medicine.
Dareck and Gris’s journey is not over yet. They will return home to Huehuetenango, but in approximately six months, we hope to perform surgery on the other side of Dareck’s lip, and then on his palate. We will continue to perform home wellness visits until we are able to complete Dericks surgery, so both twins will become truly identical.
Together, we can ensure that every mother and child has access to the quality healthcare they deserve.
Thank you very sincerely for your support!
Emily López
Resource and Development Manager
