The unknown of healthcare

I have told many of you the story of how I came to trust that our health care needs would be provided for in Nicaragua.  It was a principle fear that I had before moving and the Lord gave me a concrete picture to walk out in faith because His resources are greater than any resources I can acquire.  I want to share with you a few stories that have recently happened with the health of our family. 

After our trip to Laguna, Nolan began to have a very severe ear infection.  In Nicaragua, you can go to any pharmacy without a prescription and buy most generic antibiotics very inexpensively if you know what you need (example Amoxicillin 7 days dose for about $8).  He has not had antibiotics for a least 12 years so I wasn’t sure how he would react.  We tried one round but the ear infection came back right away causing him not to be able to use his jaw much to eat or swallow.  Rachel, a wonderful friend we have made here in Salinas who runs a restaurant and lodge, lives just down the beach and is trained in massage and natural therapy techniques.  She volunteered to see him and adjust his neck to open up his system to respond and heal.  Rachel helped to heal my foot when I had damaged my heel running on the beach. After 8 months of pain, I had developed a limp.  Rachel noticed when she was volunteering in Tribu Radiante and insisted on taking a look.  She has also helped Dustin recover from neck injuries from surfing (man we sound like old people).  We feel so thankful to have such a talented and competent friend to help us recover our health when we have issues and she lives just 5 minutes walking down the beach.  Another way we have been deeply cared for is through two of the members of our Water & Light board who are nurses and extremely knowledgeable with good resources of people they can ask for sound information.  Chip Scott and Jess Hopson have answered so many questions over text and photos like:

Does it need stitches?
What is ____________ prescription that was left behind by a traveler?
How much is too much vomitting?
Can I get a video about how to put an IV in?
Can you sort all of these medicines into categories so I can use them in an emergency?
Does this expiration date really matter?

Rachel is fearless about volunteering to teach our students about body movement, exercise, and relaxation techniques.  The students call her Inhalar Exhalar (which means Inhale, Exhale).

We are so grateful to be supported in this way.  Health care here is very hands on.  They will let you give yourself shots, IV’s, and pretty much any prescription over the counter.  So you need a good resource to ask, "How do I do this?"  We are thankful for the people who have been placed in our lives that care for the physical needs of our family and allow us to feel confident in our work.  

Another thing to know about Nicaragua is that health care is relatively inexpensive.  I needed to have a chest x-ray a couple of years ago to confirm whether I had pneomonia or not and I was able to walk into an x-ray clinic in Leon and pay $20 to get my lungs x-rayed in less than 30 minutes.  We then texted a photo of the x-ray to Chip for a second opinion.  Month by month we put away a little money into a health care fund and we just pay when we need to use it, which is rarely.  

Sidenote:  Dustin is actually an expert now at dog IV’s and giving animals shots.  I just hope he doesn’t have to use his skills too often on humans.  

Health care is a huge need in our community and some of you have been apart of giving towards supplying our clinic here.  We have dreams of creating a health center some day and will wait until the moment we meet someone who can collaborate with us in the passion for creating equity for our community in their basic human rights.  Our friends Rachel, Chip, and Jess share our dreams and I can’t wait to see what the future holds as we work together to empower our community to pursue health.

-Angie

World Changers

When Mrs. Marquardt returned to Mariner High School in Everett, WA after visiting us in Nicaragua she was passionate about connecting students from Salinas Grande with her own students. Her stories about the learning conditions in our small fishing village inspired a group of passionate young ladies to present a project at Washington Global Issues Network Conference. Their dream is to open the world to the students of La Tribu Radiante by helping them learn to read and giving them access to literature. It takes about 15 days of work to afford a book in the local economy. This is where the dream for a community library was born.

Artist rendering of the eco-library at La Tribu Radiante

Our goal is to build a library with as much recycled material as possible. This will create a fun space for learning while reducing the amount of trash in the community. We’ll encourage our students to take ownership of the project by showing them how to make an eco-brick. Using funds raised by the students at Mariner, we’ll then purchase those eco-bricks and hire local tradesmen to construct the library. Trash will be kept out of the ocean and surrounding area while the people of the community will receive an opportunity to earn a little extra cash. To make it fun we’ve decided on a ship theme for the library. Part of the library (the cabin of the ship) will be constructed to be water tight so the books will stay clean and dry for years to come. The bow of the boat will provide multiple spaces to sit in the shade and sail away with a good story. We can use all the help we can get to make the Library Ship a reality. If you are feeling adventurous, we’d love to have you come experience life in Salinas for yourself. You could haul down books or help with construction. Even a project using recycled material takes money. Of course we are excited to fill the library with books, so donations to the project are much appreciated. 100% of all funds donated will go toward the construction of the Library and filling it with books.

When paths are woven together

When I am in the thick of the day to day, it is easy to focus on what has to be done for the future and dwell on everything that has yet to be accomplished.  Last week I took a quick trip to the States to visit donors and pursue some new opportunities for Water & Light.  Conversations with old friends and the 6 hours of driving between Portland, Oregon and Boise, Idaho gave me some time to reflect on what has been accomplished in Salinas Grande in the past year.  Sometimes it takes looking back to gain the momentum needed to push forward.   I became aware, more than ever, that the Lord began weaving our family’s story together with a small fishing village in Nicaragua a long time ago.   

One example is our computer teacher Yunior.  He finished high school and started on his computer degree at the university about 5 years ago.  When he rode the chicken bus to his first Saturday of classes, we were living on the Oregon coast and I did not know Salinas Grande even existed.  Fast forward to January 2019.  We had spent the last year building a children’s center, moved into a small home on the same property, and had 6 generously donated computers ready to be used.  The internet was finally hooked up and we were in search of a teacher.  I knew of Yunior from his work volunteering as a mentor for SuNica and so we asked him if he would be interested in a job as the Tribu Radiante computer teacher.  It turns out that after going to computer school every Saturday for the last 5 years, he was graduating and ready to find a job.  Over the years he had gone toe to toe with his father (a fisherman) who wanted him to quit school and work on the family fishing boat.  What’s the point, his father thought, there is no hope of ever getting a computer job that pays.  Yunior respectfully followed his dream while volunteering as a mentor and helping with the family business.  Our path collided with his in late January when we offered him a job using his degree in his hometown.  He told us it was his dream to come back to Salinas and teach young people about computers, but he had no idea where he would find the resources he needed.  You could say it's a coincidence that we found each other just at the right time, but I believe things happen for a reason.

La Tribu Radiante and an interview with Yunior

A little glimpse.......

Last year at this time, we had dear friends visiting us.  We would walk down the beach from our rental house and stand on the property we had purchased.  We turned in slow circles in the center of nearly an acre trying to decide where to start with the ideas we had for using this land to love our community.  As we dreamed, we put sticks in the ground to mark the corners of possible buildings.  A place in the shade to conduct classes, a bathroom, a home for our family, and a casita to share with others.   Just like when we sold our home in Oregon and moved Salinas Grande, we found ourselves in the position of needing to take  a risky first step to begin building in foreign country with limited funding.  We were clear that we should start with a space for the children’s center and we took the first step on Chirstmas Day 2017.   As I write, seven guys from Salinas are still working, we have a place for students to enjoy, and a home for our family.   Be encouraged, if you have a dream…pursue it.  Here’s a little glimpse…….