Winter Newsletter 2024

Maritza’s Story

Maritza is a 26-year-old mother of two young children. Her little girl is six years old, and her little boy is one year old. She lives with her husband in a rented room on the outskirts of Santa Cruz about an hour and a half from our clinic by bus. Her husband works as a mason’s helper and earns about $15 per day. Maritza takes care of the children at home and washes clothes by hand for her neighbors to supplement the family income.

One very hot and stormy day, she was washing clothes outside the house under a mango tree. Just as she was about to finish washing the clothes a strong wind broke off a limb of the mango tree, and it fell on her right shoulder. She immediately felt a sharp pain, but she was home alone with the children and had to wait for her husband to get home to take her to a nearby medical clinic. They arrived at the clinic only to find out that the doctors there were on strike. From there, they went to a nearby public hospital where she was given pain medicine and x-rays were taken. The x-rays revealed a fractured collar bone. The doctor there told her she needed a surgery that would cost between $2500 and $3500 (US dollars), depending on the cost of the surgical plates and pins that were needed. Maritza and her husband told the doctor that they had no money, no savings, and no way to get that amount of money. The doctor then suggested that they go to the local “witch doctor” to get treatment. Maritza was in so much pain that they went to see the “medicine man.” He put a paste made from the sap of a

tree on her shoulder, which only served to irritate her skin and did nothing to alleviate the pain. During the next four weeks, Maritza experimented with various creams and analgesics, but nothing helped the pain. With each passing day the pain was more intense, and she began to lose mobility in her right arm, making it difficult for her to care for the one-year-old baby. Then the baby developed a fever and diarrhea. Also, during this time, her six-year-old daughter got behind in her schoolwork, so they went to a classmate’s house to get the homework assignment. It was at this friend’s house that Maritza heard about the

free medical care at a place called Mission of Hope and was encouraged to go there. Maritza arrived at the Mission of Hope clinic in October of this year, x-rays in hand. Dr. Luis Tapia, who works in our clinic, confirmed the diagnosis of a fractured collar bone and arranged for her to have surgery several days later at a public hospital where he also works. Mission of Hope paid all of the expenses related to the surgery, including the surgical plates and screws, as well as expenses related to her post-op care. The surgery was a tremendous success, and she is very thankful for all the help she received.

The $150,000 matching gift challenge continues until December 31st, 2024. Every dollar that we receive between now and the end of the year up to $150,000 will be doubled by an anonymous donor. This money will be used to provide free medical care to patients like Maritza during the year 2025. Mission of Hope takes its financial stewardship very seriously.

We are a debt-free mission operating with a very low overhead as more than 97% of all donations go directly into our Bolivia program.

The Miracle of Sight

as they celebrate 10 years!Roni is a young man, 29 years old, who was born with cataracts on both eyes. His parents lived in a very rural area about 300 miles from Santa Cruz where they sold produce in the market. Roni had a difficult childhood,

not being able to see. He remembers stumbling a lot and having to be led around by the hand. When he was six years old, his parents traveled with him to Santa Cruz so that he could have surgery on his eyes. Sadly, even after the surgery, he could not see very well. He could only see about four feet in front of him. Beyond that, everything was blurry. As an adult, Roni worked as a mason’s helper whenever he could find work, earning about $10 a day. Working in construction was difficult with

his poor eyesight. He was usually tasked with moving construction materials from one place to another, and he often could not see obstacles in his path. Jobs for him were scarce. He could not afford shoes, so when he did find work, he was working in flip flops. Roni now lives in Santa Cruz with his wife Monica and their baby son, who is also named Roni. Baby

Roni was also born with cataracts on both eyes, so Monica has stayed at home caring for him full-time. Earlier this year, a family member told them about Mission of Hope where everything is free. First, the dad came to the clinic and was referred to a specialist. The ophthalmologist examined him and told him that nothing more could be done for him surgically, but that his vision could be greatly improved with prescription eyeglasses. Mission of Hope purchased the glasses, and Roni can see so much better now. He wears them all the time. We also took him to buy some very nice leather work boots for the job site.

While helping the dad, we heard about the baby who could not see. Monica said he would open and close his hands as if trying to grab onto things that were not there. He would also turn his head back and forth as if trying to see something. Mission of Hope arranged for baby Roni to have surgery on both eyes and paid for everything. It was a happy moment for Monica after the surgery to see him reach out and grab a toy, something he could not do before. Now that he can see, he is crawling and has become much more active. As we close out the year 2024, we want to say, “Thank you!” to all of you for your faithful support as you have prayed for us and given so generously throughout the year. It is your support that enables us to operate two free medical clinics completely debt-free and help families like this one! Because of your support, baby Roni won’t go through life stumbling and being led by the hand. Because of your support, baby Roni and his dad have been given the gift of sight! Praise the Lord!

New Executive Director

Many of you may remember that I tried to retire a few years ago in January of 2021. My retirement was short-lived as my replacement resigned after only five months, and I was called back into service. I am now retiring a second time, effective January 15th, 2025. I am so pleased to announce that Ivonne Gilmer will be the new Director of Mission of Hope, Bolivia.

Ivonne has been going with me to Bolivia since 2006 and has made 20 trips in all. She has been on many surgery teams and has also served on the Board of Directors. Ivonne has been like an administrative assistant to me as Spanish is her native language. She has made many phone calls to Bolivia over the years and has written many letters for me in Spanish. The Bolivia clinic staff know her and love her. On another note, copies of my book, Then There was Someone, the story of Mission of Hope, Bolivia, are still available by request. The book is not for sale at this time, so there is no charge for the book. It is a gift to the ministry. Simply email cindy@missionofhopebolivia.org