PAR-TAY!

In Las Delicias, one of the projects Project FIAT has sponsored is a clinic for children up to age 12 and expectant mothers. Apparently, before having the clinic, they only had one doctor in the area once every 15 days, and even then only for a half a day. As I understand it, the clinic and the traveling nurse who works for the clinic have made a huge difference in Las Delicias.

Anyway, a group from FIMRC (Foundation for International Medical Relief of Children) were working with the clinic in Las Delicias, and collaboratively, they organized a health fair at the community center. Sister Gloria donated the decorations and we had spent the previous day getting ready.

Because we were giving out free food, maybe 200 people showed up. The first portion was an information session. They had representatives from different organizations give talks on how to eat properly and what a food pyramid is and how to read one. During the second portion, everybody wandered around getting food. We had a couple hundred sandwiches prepared and laid out and decided to hand them out to the passers-by. Within 10 or 15 minutes, they were all gone. I wasn't surprised. But I've never seen adults and children alike so happy about PB&J.

To put this into perspective, there is a grandmother in Las Delicias who has taken her two abandoned granddaughters under her care. However, the three of them didn't have a place to live. Finally, an elderly couple offered to take them in. One week, when volunteers were delivering food to that family, the husband broke into tears and thanked God. They hadn't had food in the house for three days. And these were the people who took in the homeless grandmother and her granddaughters. The inherent goodness of people amazes me.