Chinta: Selamat Valentine's Day

Hello to all of you on Valentine's Day - for some of you in eastern Canada just waking up to it, for me it is evening and the day is almost done and in the west of Canada you are still in dream land. I also know there are readers in other countries and for you, who knows what day and time it is. What a big world we live in with so many time zones!

pink cooler hold serum for immunizati

It has been a good day today - a loving skype with Don this morning to get my day underway and working with Berty and my organization on  focus group planning for the two villages. The plan I have mapped out will hopefully leave trained facilitators to carry forward the work of meeting people with disability in their villages, being able to identify who may qualify for some assistance, complete all the data necessary and get it to the right place for conisderation.  First we need volunteers and also to have information that I've learned about over the last year readily available for them. We hope from all the people we have invited to the focus group that 4 volunteers will come forward and that the group will design how they wish the information to be left, easily acccessible and simply understandable. I will keep you posted as to what they come up with. I have my ideas, but this needs to belong to them, using their ideas.

clinic building: outside is cooler, cement wall for seat

In the meantime, we have been visiting more people in the villages - the lasst two being children with significant disability. One was a 3 year old boy, but the size of a 4 month old with no motor control. We visited his family on Tuesday last week and set up for them to bring him into Kupang to the free therapy clinic but sadly he died that Friday. Life here is very difficult at times, and I am not suprised to see the number of coffin makers along the road, with an abundance of little ones laid out for others like this little fellow.
On the up side, this week's good news is that the young woman we delivered the wheelchair to in December is such a treat to see. We visited her last week and her face radiates dignity as she greets people in her chair. She no longer sits on the cement floor and even though the door to her bedroom is narrow, she navigates backwards into her small room with finesse! Her mother has now agreed that we can proceed with an application for her to go to Solo, Java to take a skills course and she is hoping to be accepted to learn computer operations. This is fantastic news as in our first visit before the wheelchair came her mother was adamant that she could stay home and learn crafts to make money as she is good with her hands and very creative. But as with many young people, her mother's ideas were not her own. We are now in the process of getting her forms completed, photos copied, medical checkup and letter from her village head dentifying her as a resident in good standing and coming from a home "in need".  Once the forms are completed we will get them picked up and delivered to the government office then go with the official when she is ready to do her face to face assessment for the final decision. Oh so much buracracy and nothing is quick and easy in getting the paper work completed. Many trips to the village one hour away - if Berty is driving as she is much speedier than I! On these trips I am her passenger.

clinic day mouth hygiene presentation

Elmi is the woman who is 18 years old, lost both legs two years ago in a motor accident and now has a dream. Cool, huh?
These are the things that keep me going through the rough patches such as a few I've had recently, but I'm back on the horse as they say in the west! Also thanks to the love and support of family and friends - you know who you are. a big THANKS

Again, Happy Valentines to all and may love be in your day and always.

Morton in white- hmmmm donuts and lumpia

I'm including photos of Morton at our favourite stop on our bike rides - Borneo Bakery and a couple from the last health clinic in the village. Dogs, babies, pregnant women. AND, lots of immunizations and vitamins.

parking guy at Borneo on a calm day