The underserved indigenous population in rural areas of Guatemala are in desperate need of dental and medical care. Many causes of death and sickness are preventable. Unfortunately, many indigenous people do not have access to any resources for a variety of reasons, including accessibility, language barriers, and poor government management of the healthcare system.

 

Initially, our dental volunteer days in the mountains would begin by packing the dental and medical supplies and instruments, anesthetic, and medications and jumping into the back of a pick-up truck for the drive even further up the mountain. The travel is up winding rough gravel roads through the most breathtaking parts of the Guatemalan Mountains. Along the way the scenic views are incredible, however, the poverty is equally profound. Mostly children and women waited for hours in the sun, to be treated in makeshift clinics with only the supplies and equipment they were able to physically carry into the villages. 

 

The development of The Center of Hope provided a much welcomed location to provide these services in a more central location. Each day, the dental volunteers treated children with severely decayed and infected teeth in makeshift clinics at the Center. The adult conditions are equally disturbing. Many of these people go to bed each night with severe toothaches and with no hope of relief, treatment, or medications.

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That endeavor has taken a huge leap forward through the construction of a permanent dental and medical clinic in the Mayan village of Valencia, with the potential to serve 50,000 people in need from the surrounding villages. We are grateful that some contributions were made which  enabled us to  build this more accessible permanent clinic. We are now  able to host more frequent groups of travel dentists and medical professionals allowing us to serve more people in need with more sustained care. This is life changing for both the Mayan people and the groups who travel here to treat them.

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The Mayan people reside in adobe huts with mud floors. Families of 8, 10, and more people live in 1 or 2 rooms. Children are dying of respiratory problems from wood burning stoves used in poorly ventilated homes.

 

Children having children with no hope of changing their lives, because they have no opportunities. On the faces of children you can see the excitement and hope. On the adults a stoic look of acceptance.  We aim to change that look.

 

Volunteers return with an appreciation of their own lives and the experience that comes from getting to know the gentle, loving, and compassionate people of Guatemala. This experience truly has an impact that lasts forever.