Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving. We are extremely blessed to live in a world where we have so much to be thankful for. I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to be a part of something so much bigger than anything I could have ever dreamed of. I am grateful for the outstanding support I have received and continue to feel as I begin to share my mission experience. I am grateful for the tremendous amount of donations I collected and am so grateful to have had the opportunity to witness the effect they had on the children in Bolivia. Thank you so much for all you have given me.

Here is a video I love. A bunch of the clips were recorded during the mission in Bolivia.

http://www.youtube.com/createsmiles#p/a/u/0/UfHkLms9USg

Gracias por todo. Thank you for everything.

Rachael

Thanks for Everything

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United States 280 Honduras 12 Malaysia 10 Poland 10 Russia 9 Australia 8 United Kingdom 4 Brazil 3 Canada 3 Slovenia 2 Hi! I hope everyone is having a good week. I want to say thank you for reading my blog and supporting me throughout my mission experience. It is truley amazing to see how many people have read the blog. I hope you enjoyed the story on the twins. They were adorable and their mother was an amazing women. This weekend I will post the story of Lucas Careña. Have a good night Rachael

Jesus and Miguel

Throughout screening and surgery week I kepting catching sight of twin boys. I played with them and blew bubbles at them but it was not unitll the day of their surgery that I learned their incredible story.

One month shy of their 4th birthday, they are typical active boys. Jesus and Miguel are here for their third surgery -- the second for their cleft palate. They traveled 12 hours from San Miguel to get to the mission sight in Santa Cruz. Due to their cleft ballates both had difficulty eating. Food spilled from their noses. 

I observed as their mother, Milina, tryed to keep them entertained before their surgery later that afternoon. Not always an easy task with twins.We learned that she wasn't surprised at all that they both had clefts. It was expected. While she was pregnant she had a dream that they would be born this way. It is another broiling day in the hospital. Admist the worried parents, Milina, the veteran, had the only face without a hint of concern. Her boys were scheduled to go into surgery that afternoon.

They were scheduled for the same round of surgery and both underwnet operations to repair their cleft pallates at the same time. Brothers who came into this world together and share a unique and common bond, were together once again. Just imagine handing both of your children over to surgeons at the same time.

Later that day as Lindsay (my student partner) and I walked around the post-op ward  to say goodnight, we saw Milina caring for her sons. One lay asleep on a cot and the other cried. It seemed that once she quited down one boy the other began to cry. She is a warrior and with the help of a sister she calmly went through the surgical process that would ultimately lead to a normal life for her boys.

Mission Story and Video:

This weekend I was able to make a mission video and story. Here they are! Here is the link to the mission video. It is on youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDSvPvBFLg8

Mission Story:

Imagine a skinny, gaunt man holding onto his son, protecting him from the outside world of mockery while hoping, wishing for the chance for his son to be chosen to be one of the 115 patients to have surgery. The power of love that is expressed between this father and son is undeniably the most powerful thing on the earth. This father only hopes that he can look at his son one day and see that he is not ashamed of his gorgeous smile. This is Wilber Massaby, a soft spoken man with an incredible love for his son that was clear to everyone around.

Now look to through my eyes to a bench outside the post-op wing and see a young woman with light in her eyes as she talks adoringly of her eight month year old son and the new hope she has for his life. Then suddenly her emotions turn to anguish and tears well in her eyes as she recounts the action of his father who left them upon seeing his son's cleft lip. Watch the tears stream down her face as she recounts this emotional wound. This is Graciela Vargas, the mother of a baby with a cleft lip who was abandoned by her husband.

Step in my shoes and witness a grandmother who dotes on her grandson. Her joy for him is translated on his happy face that never ceased to smile. This amazing woman took on the responsibility of raising her grandson when his father walked out on him and as his mother struggles to connect with her son due to his cleft lip. Watch both laugh as bubbles blow by their faces and watch as this little boy waves goodbye as he leaves the hospital. This is Rosa Carreña, a grandmother who stepped - in to take care of her grandson and teaches him to enjoy life and smile big.  

On my mission it was heartbreaking to realize that many fathers weren't present in their child's life. Wilber's love for his son was opposite to that of the many fathers who abandon their children upon birth like Graciela Vargas' husband. When Wilber saw his son, Jose Maria had a cleft lip he accepted it. Instead of disappointment, he was filled with an insurmountable love for his child.  Just because his son had a cleft palate, he was still his son. Jose was not abandoned or denied by his father, he was accepted, loved, and cared for by him. When Wilber spoke of his son, he spoke quietly, and when he talked about his love for his son he was matter-of-fact. The bottom line for Wilber is that Jose is his son and he has to take care of him. There was no debate about whether to come to Santa Cruz for the Massaby’s.  It was a stepping stone for Jose’s future and the opportunity to change the life of a family and of a child.  I visited the Massaby’s by the post-op crib where Jose slept. It was stiflingly hot in the room; about six children were laying in their cribs and parents watched on. Wilber was one of two dads I saw in the room. I observed all of this as I stood in the doorway, but what touched my heart was the way Wilber gazed lovingly down at his sleeping son. He did not need to tell us he was happy. It was written all over his face.

Operation Smile gave the Massaby’s the chance to give their son a normal life. Although only two, Wilber relayed that people stare at his son and judge him. On the exterior they see a deformity but the beautiful interior is what they failed to notice.  Jose is a sweet, fun loving child and Operation Smile gave him the opportunity to go in public without scorn, to begin to talk, and to start living life normally without worrying about mundane occurrences such as eating. As I sat by Wilber, I watched Jose grab a cup of Jello and take a big gulp, something he could not do previously. The effect: a huge grin on Mom, Dad, and Baby’s face. 

Hi,

I just arrived home from Bolivia! The mission was awesome. I thought a way to share my mission experience would be to give you a brief overview of the logistics of a mission in the entry and then begin sharing stories rather than go through each day. I am going to upload my photos tomorrow but I have some from our awesome photographer Steph to show you today.

Wednesday:

We arrived in Bolivia and began to plan out our activities and toys for the mission. Here is a video link form Ross, a guest on the mission. He wrote some of the information on screening below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0VJAq7mPnA

Patient Screening Thursday and Friday:

Here is the basic order of a child’s screening process:

Station 1: Child Life – fun stuff, stress reducing stuff, crayons, coloring, toys, student volunteers and child life professionals all creating a pleasing atmosphere for the children.

 

Station 2: Basic Patient History and creation of patient file-addresses, dates of birth, history of illness – all that stuff you fill out at the doctor’s office.

Station 3: Photos – These will be used to help identify the patient and becomes a part of the patient file. These people are called “PIT” for Patient Imaging Technician. They also take the shots before surgery begins and after surgery ends.

Station 4: Vitals – height, weight, blood pressure, respiration, temperature, and heart rate.

Station 5: Surgery Consult – the plastic surgeons decide if what they see is operable or not. Some cases were too intensive to be seen at this location and needed to be referred to local specialists.

For instance, one little girl came in with two marble-sized bumps on either side of her nose. Didn’t appear like too big a deal until the CT imagery revealed an out pouching of the dura (a tissue covering the brain that holds in cerebral spinal fluid) into the maxillary sinus. That’s a big deal and requires a neurosurgeon and an altogether different team than is assembled for an Operation Smile mission.

Operation Smile is doing such great work on so many levels. They set up working relationships with the local medical community and patients that cannot be seen are referred to the right people.

Station 6a: Pediatric and Anesthesiologist Consult – This stations decides if the patient is healthy enough for surgery. Things like a high fever or airway obstructions (like a stuffy nose, for instance) can remove a child as a candidate for surgery.

Station 6b: Blood Work – looking for anemia (lack of oxygen in the blood), diseases, etc.

Station 7: Dental Exam – dental exam. Cavities, teeth that need pulling and can be done while the patient is already sedated for surgery.

Station 8: Speech Therapist – evaluates speech difficulties and gives parents exercises to help their children speak without hindrance. A beautiful soul needs to communicate! A smile is the fastest form of communication I know of, but close on its heels are words.

“Station 9”: Medical Records – The patient’s medical file follows them from station to station. Each station records data in the chart for the other stations to consider. At the end of the day the medical records are recorded into an electronic format by the appropriately named Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) personnel. Before any surgery can begin, the medical records have to be in order.

Saturday: Patient Lists posted and Hospital Decoration

There were over 200 children screened but there’s only enough room to fit in about 125 surgeries: 25 per day over five days. And that’s running with six plastic surgeons (one of them is on rotation) out of two rooms, one room has three operating tables in it and the other has two.

All the people that have been screened show up to learn if they’ll get the surgery that will change their lives. Susana, the speech therapist stood on a chair and began to read names, one at a time. This was a joyful and also heartbreaking day to witness.

Sunday: Team Day

We played the name game and got to know everyone better before surgery week began. A big part of what makes missions happen is teamwork and communication so we used this day to get to know everyone.

Surgery Week: Monday through Friday

We woke up early and five operating tables operated at a time. Screening was still going on and it was a busy week. Patients came in the night before and then waited for surgery the next day. Around 25 patients were operated on each day.

·         This is just a brief overview of the logistics of the mission I have tons of photos and stories to share as soon as I upload my photos.

·         Thank you for all of your support and donations. The toys were awesome and the monetary donations allowed me to buy a ton of supplies to bring with me.

·         I learned a ton of cute Spanish phrases. For example Chow Chow means bye bye.

·         The kids and families were awesome. I cannot wait to share their stories and their pictures. 

 Thank You to everyone who supported me and gave donations. We were able to operate on around 120 patients and screen over 250 which was awesome. The blog domain is not allowing me to upload videos and some pictures but there will be more to come. Also the blog is putting white background on text and I have not figured out the cause and how to remove it so sorry about that.

-Rachael

Back from Bolivia!

Hi,

I got home form Bolivia Sunday morning! It was an awesome experience and I cannot wait to tell you more. I will be updating my blog with stories as soon as the website repairs are done. Unfortunately blogspot is doing a repair untill Thursday. Look forward to stories from my mission to Bolivia with video and photos. sorry about the delay. I want to saythank you to everyone for your suport and donations. It was awesome to leave knowing I had a ton of people praying for me and supporting me. I cannot wait to share all of the details from my trip!

Rachael

So Excited!

I leave in a little over a week! I am so excited and cannot wait. I am swamped with homework but would like to share this. The second team confirmation packet came and with it came a schedule for the mission. This weekend I am going to purchase a bunch of toys with the monetary donations I have been so blessed to have. I have a ton of donations and am excited to just have to get the remaining items. I want to say thank you to everyone. I will post a longer post soon.

Bolivia 2010 - Mission Schedule3 October 2010 PC Sarah arrives in Santa Cruz
5 October 2010 Team departs
6 October 2010 Team arrives in Santa Cruz
7 October 2010 Screening begins
8 October 2010 Screening Continues
9 October 2010 Team Bonding Day
10 October 2010 OR set up
11-14 October 2010 Surgery Week
15 October 2010 Half Day/Pack up/Final Party
16 October 2010 Teams depart from Santa Cruz

- Rachael

Awesome Night with Heartworks:

Yesterday I had the great honor to give a small speech at the Heartworks meeting. Heartworks was founded by Megan McDowell. She is truly an incredible person. She founded Heartworks as a non-profit Acts of Kindness group in response to the tremendous kindness that sustained her family and other families in the months and years following September 11, 2001.  In short notice, about a week and a half, she asked the group to bring in donations for my mission to Bolivia.

I had a soccer game yesterday against New Providence, a team who beat us 6-0 last season. I was awaiting the game with great anticipation and we battled out a 3-2 loss, a great improvement but disappointment nonetheless. I rushed home ate a quick dinner and threw on one of many Operation Smile t-shirts. My dad drove me over to a member of Heartworks home for me to share a bit about what I was doing for Operation Smile. I wrote a short speech during some free time during school and was stressing out about it.

As soon as I walked through the front door all of my anxiety disappeared as the women all began talking to me excitedly about Operation Smile and how awesome it was to be doing what I was doing. I believe wholeheartedly that Operation Smile is a fantastic organization and the fact that they allow students to attend missions is unique and I am so grateful to be doing so. I made sure to share this with everyone who uttered the words “It is awesome to see a 16 year old doing this”. Operation Smile is my passion and without the organization I would not have the opportunity I now have. Megan wrote me a nametag and one for my dad, the only man in the house. I felt welcomed into the great environment that Heartworks has almost instantaneously.

Everyone sat down in the living room of the house and one woman lit candles in memory and in prayer for countless people and situations. To name a few; the armed forces and veterans, those affected by cancer and their families and communities, Maggie Doyne (she spoke at the leadership conference) and her orphanage and school in Nepal, The minors in Chili, and they lit a candle for me. When my name was said I was so touched and felt a great comfort to know all of these kind and generous women were praying for me and supporting me as I journey to Bolivia and back. Megan introduced me to the group and I stood up to share my speech. I said one line from the crinkled paper I was holding and then just spoke from my heart about Operation Smile. I feel that when one speaks form the heart it is more touching and impacts a greater amount of people. The women were very supportive and welcoming and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to speak. I printed out some fact sheets from the Operation Smile website and made contact cards so the women could contact me.

My experience at the Heartworks meeting is unforgettable and I cannot wait to share stories and pictures from my mission when I return home. The ladies brought in around five bags of donations. This is so exciting for me to see especially because there were some items I had not gotten yet. The donations range from play-do to toy cars to books and to glue sticks. Bolivia is the poorest and one of the least developed nations in South America. The children will be so happy to have some toys to play with and they will be put to great use. I found a picture of the awesome prayer board from the meeting but do not have any other pictures to post. I wanted to thank Heartworks again and thank my tremendous Aunt Karen for helping me out and introducing me to Heartworks.

Thanks again Heartworks,

Rachael

To find out more about Heartworks here is their link: http://www.njheartworks.org/index.htm 

Donations Donations Donations:

The past week has been a busy one with a great list of accomplishments

• Junior year begins
• First soccer game of the season

• Shots and pills with the an awesome travel nurse for Bolivia

• Some awesome generous people have given donations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This week:

• The United Methodist Women’s group at my church donated $200 dollars to help me purchase supplies for my mission

• My Aunt successfully asked a group she is part of called Heartworks to have a small toy drive and donated $50 to help me purchase materials
• I was able to receive around 60 Burger King crowns for a theme day during the mission

• My Mom purchased a few awesome children’s books in Spanish for the mission and I hope to eventually donate them to a school/orphanage I will visit on my mission

I just wanted to give a huge shout out of thanks and appreciation to everyone reading my blog, donating supplies or money, and giving me a ton of support as I prepare for my mission to Bolivia in October. I am including a few pictures from past missions to illustrate the joy the children feel in having the toys to play with. They sure are put to god use!

I also wanted to wish luck to my friends Cristy and Yanelle who are traveling to Columbia in a few days! Also I added a small box on the left side of the blog with links to some other Operation Smile blogs. They are fantastic. Yanelle has one up and will be posting news from her mission. A few people I know also just returned home from missions to Fortaleza, Brazil; Taxacala, Mexico; and Kolkata, India.

-Rachael

ps. Sorry for this picture at the end. I have trouble with removing and editing pictures once they have been added.

Journey to Bolivia: MTW

In the beginning of August, I went to Denver, Colorado to take part of Operation Smile's Summer Mission Training Workshop (MTW) with about 60 other students ages 16-18. We were selected as ambassadors and student educators for Operation Smile and were given the amazing opportunity to come together and train to go on an International Medical Mission. It was so awesome to stay in Colorado with my new Operation Smile family and to grow stronger as leaders and friends. We were inspired and had a million laughs and memories to last a lifetime.

For three days we learned all about Dental Hygiene, Oral Rehydration Therapy, Burn Care, and nutrition. Great presentations by the Elected Leadership Council (ELC) and speakers filled us with great excitement and anticipation. The last night we all gathered in the lobby of the University of Colorado and prepared to walk to a park for the final party. We were so excited that when it started pouring rain no one seemed to mind. We all took pictures, ate huge burritos, and had a great time. At the end of the party, and the moment we all were waiting for finally arrived. Everyone who attended MTW, students, sponsors, and student programs, all gathered for a group picture and then we sat together waiting to find out where we would be going for our mission.

Giving mock presentations during MTW

I sat with my roommate from the previous year’s International Student Leadership Conference and we both were almost shaking in anticipation. This year, an ELC would call up the students and their sponsor and then hand each a scroll. I remember everyone’s faces just grow with joy at seeing the location and dates of their mission. When my name was called I was so excited and filled with joy.

Two of my roomates from the International Student Leadership Conference the year before

I walked to the front of the group and stood next to my partner Lindsey and our sponsor Ramona. I remember trying to cut the tape on the scroll and failing, then Lindsey tried again no luck, and then Ramona finally cut the tape and we saw that we would be going to BOLIVIA!

Some of my firends showing off their mission assignments

The expressions on people's faces as they opened the scrolls better describes
the emotion in the room then words ever could

After seeing that my mission would be in two months I knew I had a ton of preparation to do but was so thrilled for the task. The next day we went into Denver to shop at an outdoor mall. I walked into the Borders and bought a travel guide about Bolivia and read the whole introduction and section on Santa Cruz in one night. The joy and passion I have felt for Operation Smile has continued to grow. When I received the email that I had been selected to go to the MTW I ran out of my bedroom and through the house telling my whole family that I had gotten in. I again felt like running through the halls of the university and doing the same, I am sure everyone did.

Pictures from the first day

All I can say is wow. Operation Smile provides me with immense happiness and purpose. I have become so passionate about the organization and love everything about it. This next step of going on a mission is so exciting and I am thrilled to be able to share it with you. Tomorrow I will post about ISLC.

We really did become like a family during MTW and I made great friends

Rachael

Bringing Smiles to Bolivia:

Thank you all so much for visiting this blog and helping to change the lives of children through Operation Smile.

As you may know, I'm going to Santa Cruz, Bolivia on an Operation Smile medical mission from October 5th to the 16th. I'm extremely excited and honored to be a student volunteer!! Operation Smile provides life-changing facial reconstructive surgeries to children born with cleft lips and cleft palates in third world countries.

That is where I am going !!!

My role on the mission will be to teach Burn care and Prevention, Oral Rehydration Therapy, Oral and Dental Hygiene, and Nutrition in local hospitals, schools, orphanages, and villages in Bolivia. I will also be responsible for spending time with patients before and after their surgeries.


I will be leaving on the 5th of October and will be spending approximately 2 weeks there. Bolivia is a landlocked country in South America and is bordered by Chile, Brazil, and Paraguay. My mission is going to be half run by Operation Sonrisa Bolivia, the Operation Smile foundation in Bolivia and by international volunteers. I am collecting items to take to the kids of Bolivia. Anything will help, but I’ve put together the following list of supplies that I need in particular.


Operation Smile changes lives in about 45 minutes and $240 dollars. Through your donations to those who have so little, you too, can change a life. Your support in providing any of the listed or not listed items will be so priceless. Thank you in advance for all your support!


SUPPLY LIST FOR MISSIONS


White paper on a roll to make a mural
Baby Toys
o Light weight
o Plastic rings that you put on triangle
Children Toys
o Coloring pages
o Toy cars
o Pipe cleaners, string, lanyard for friendship bracelets
o Beaded Necklaces
o Cards: Old Maid, regular
o Magazines (for the older girls)
o Face paint
o Soccer balls and a small pump
o Twister
o Jenga
o Plastic Turtles
o Toothbrushes
o Stickers, Stickers, Stickers!*
o YOYOS
o Sidewalk chalk
o Pipe cleaners
o Toy sunglasses
o Bubbles Bubbles Bubbles bubbles*
o Pens, pencils
o Small notepads/journals
o Inflatable balls (Specifically globes are a hit)
o Hair accessories (barrettes, headbands, etc)
o Small stuffed animals
o Latex gloves
o Small play jewelry
o Crowns
o Hats
o ANYTHING that lights up
o Leis
o Basically anything that can be found in the dollar store

You can also help by:


• Donating (I can use the money to go buy the supplies I don’t get donated)
• Spreading the word through Facebook, Blogs, Twitter, word of mouth.
• Making “Get well soon” cards for the children after they receive their surgery
• If you have any other ideas, please let me know! I’ll be taking anything and everything that I can pack in my weight limits (50 lbs.)

 

I appreciate all of your support and all of the donations. I am super excited to bring them to the children in Bolivia. Everything you provide will be put to great use and I will post the many pictures of the children playing and enjoying the great donations. Thank you so much.

Rachael