This year marked our Iowa MOST’s 10th trip to Guatemala. Some have come every year; for others, it was their first time. But no matter how many times you go, it’s always a life-changing experience.
Personally, I’ve felt so supported on this trip, by people at home as well as in Guatemala. Everywhere we went, people wanted to shake our hands and tell us thank you for coming. Even the flight attendant on the way out of Guatemala said “Thank you” over the intercom. It almost makes me feel guilty because it felt like I was getting so much more than I was giving. Because the truth is, we’re all lucky to be there – lucky to meet these people, lucky to get to share a week of our lives with them, and most of all, lucky to get a new view of the world that you only get when you step outside your comfort zone and connect with people who may be entirely different than you. The trick is bringing that new perspective back home where it hopefully makes you a more generous and compassionate person.
There are so many people who supported us on this trip. Here are just a few who made the trip possible.
- Johnson & Johnson for all the ways they supported Iowa MOST, but most of all for loaning us three amazing employees to take with us.
- Huehuetenango Rotary Club for their generous support of the Iowa MOST volunteers and the patients we serve. They helped us in many ways over the course of the trip, from feeding us to giving us a ride up a mountain.
- Rotary Clubs of Rotary District 6000 for years of substantial donations to fund the costs of this project. Your steadfast support makes this project continue.
- Hospital Salus for the use of the hospital and the support of all the fine staff without whom this mission could not be realized. Thank you, mil gracias.
- DHL Global Forwarding for donation of the shipping of our supplies to Guatemala. We appreciate our long-time relationship and the generosity shown to us.
- Knowledge Meridian for processing applications, for gathering information and communicating with the team making the process work smoothly and efficiently.
- Rapid Reproductions for ten years of providing team recognition certificates and team name badges. Thank you yet again!
Here are some pictures of the love we were shown on the trip.
