CHCC – God is Alive in Beautiful Nicaragua!

This was the second year our team had the privilege to serve in El Crucero with the local team at Project El Crucero’s Clinica Susie Syke. Our 14 member team consisting of 2 doctors, 2 nurse practitioners, 2 nurses, 1 EMT ,1 surgical tech, 1 dental hygienist, 1 dental student as well as 4 very essential non-medical team members, completed 400 medical evaluations/treatments, 100 dental evaluations/cleanings and 125 fluoride treatments. We served at the Clinica Susie Syke as well as 3 outlying villages – Temua, Des Andrerro and Nueva York. It was wonderful to return to the same villages we visited last year and see familiar faces, give each other big hugs, and be amazed at how all the kids had grown!

Relationship building was a big focus this year and our team made sure we identified the leader in each community we visited and spoke with him/her personally, and learned more about the village and their lives. We gave every one a name tag, and made extra effort to call each person by name and make sure they knew they were loved. Our team also provided 375 family portraits for people who came to our clinics. For some people, including a 75 year old gentleman, it was their first opportunity to see themselves in a picture! It was amazing to see their faces light up as they looked at their pictures together as a family. It was one of many joyful and humbling experiences for the team.

We also attended Bethel Church in El Crucero for their Sunday evening service. What an amazing blessing to be able to worship God with them in both Spanish and English!
Our hope for the future is to expand to 2 medical/dental trips per year, begin basic health education classes, and continue to build relationships at the clinic, in the villages and with the church. We want to impact an entire generation with preventative oral hygiene, health care, education, and spiritual growth!

God is alive in beautiful Nicaragua, come serve with us in 2017!