Goodbye Honduras

As we wait for our flight in Houston I am challenged with putting our 8 day mission trip with Operation Smile into a few words. It is only those who have been with us that can truly understand why my parents continue to push like they do to help children with facial deformity all around the world. When you watch a gifted surgeon artistically tranform a child with your own eyes it makes so much sense. 45 minutes. $240. If we can all lend a hand in spreading the word maybe someday, this unnecessary weight will not be on the shoulders of so many children and their parents.

When you and your son are also embraced by a family who does not know you until they pick you up at the hotel, you also feel quite lucky. The Gomez family took us in as their own and as a mother, it was wonderful to watch a friendship form between two 11 year olds within minutes of meeting. Riley and Gustavo had a blast together. So much so that Riley had a hard time keeping his eyes open at breakfast this morning. They made the most of every minute whether it was in their home, at Gustavo's school or in the hospital. They both made tons of children smile with their spirit. I also feel lucky to have made new friends in the Gomez family. Giselle was running around even as we left trying to help little Wendy and her family get the paperwork they need to hopefully come to us in a couple of weeks for surgery. I am grateful for her new friendship and the commitment she and her husband have made to help us with Operation Smile Honduras.

And then there is the team. What a team! Our coordinators, Christa, Meredith and Lopsang along with everyone else were happy to have us with them and all worked enthusiastically together this week to help the children. The Child Life Specialist, Lina, and her team of psychologists were amazing to watch along with our students who played tirelessly with the kids as they waited. We are honored to be included in this group of caring people.

And we cannot forget the children and their parents. The bravery and patience in dealing with their deformities is unimaginable. Yet, for the most part, we witnessed happy and incredibly cared for children who, even with the stares of others, faced each day with the hope that someday, they would not have this burden. Operation Smile screened 230 patients this week and scheduled 100 patients for surgery. On Friday, a 50 year old woman with a cleft lip with have her face repaired. When asked why she has not come to Operation Smile in years past, she claimed she was too poor. I cannot imagine what it will be like when she looks at herself tomorrow afternoon for the first time.

I thank the local volunteers of Operation Smile Sonrisa, who work throughout the year to care for these children. Just in December, they were able to operate on 47 children in their beautiful clinic in three days. My father expressed his gratitude as well commenting on the fact that 12 years ago there was mostly older children with primary lips that appeared out of the woodwork. For this mission, the majority of children who came with primary lips were 15 months and younger. It is a fine example that this problem in Honduras is being addressed due to the fact that our local volunteers stick with them year after year. From the Sonrisa Amigas to the American School and Del Campo High School students to the medical team and clinic staff, it is everyone's efforts that enables the children of Honduras to get such great care.

I will finish this blog with Riley's thoughts as he flew back to the U.S. I must say I am so proud of him. His comments reaffirm why it is so important for our elementary children to understand what is happening around the world. I do believe this influences them in more ways than we can ever imagine.

Day 9 of Mission

"I'm getting ready to get on the plane to Norfolk. I didn't eat anything weird today. I went to the hospital for a little to say goodbye to the rest of the team. One of my mission coordinators, Lobsang, plays for the Hondorian National baseball team and is trying out for professional soccer this May. The other coordinator, Christa, is my uncle's sister, so I know her pretty well. The coordinator in training, Meredith, always had a smile on her face. Lobsang loved to play around with you, Christa knew me so she joked around with me and Meredith just took it all in with a big smile on her face. The other students which were high schoolers were fun to work with. Everytime you needed someone to help you entertain a kid or translate for you, all you have to do is give them a call and they would be right over. There names are Jacklyn and Maggie. Gustavo is a good friend and very funny. The rest of his family would help you with whatever you needed. I'm glad we got to stay with the Gomez family. Gustavo would always give me company wherever we were. I don't want to tell you about the whole team, but the surgeons were great and a lot of the kids are getting smiles. The team was very nice to me and in general. The whole country is friendly. Being on the mission shows you have lucky you are to be in a safe home and not somewhere on the street or somewhere in the country or mountains. You see how less fortunate these families are and you see how overjoyed the parents are when they come out of surgery. I'm glad I could help change their child's life forever. I'm going to miss the kids, the team and the family I stayed with this past week and a half. I've done a lot of stuff this week, ate and drank some weird things and now I'm ready to go home. Before I go I want to say this week I only woke up past seven o'clock one day, so it is not like a vacation. I've been very tired this whole week and I am ready to get back home to my own bed, house, family and friends. Goodbye Honduras."

From the eyes of Riley

Screening Day 1

"Once again it is the end of the day and I am very tired. Today I tried fried banana and it was so gross tears were almost coming out of my eyes. I woke up at 5:30, ate breakfast from 6 - 6:30 and then went to screening for 11 hours non-stop. There I would play with the kids. I put up the front of my hair in a ponytail and ponytails like devel's horns. Every kid I walked past would smile and if I made eye contact with the adults, they would smile. With all the stress they have about getting their child into surgery, a smile always helps. All of the kids always wanted to pass the ball with you or something. It shows how desparate these kids are, because I had a mini kickball for all the kids to play with and a kid stole it or at least ran off with it. Right now Hondoras has a big water problem because of the big drought they are having. With the drought, there is not enough water for all 8 million people in Honduras. You might not be able to take a shower but if you want to you have to call someone and order water. I really wish I could speak spanish. All the small kids talk to me and I just kin of sit there with a weird look and try to figure out what they are saying. I love working with the kids. Everytime you play with them there is this big smile on their face and it brightens you up too. After a very long and tiring day I'm ready to go to bed. I'll see what is in store for me tomorrow." Riley

Day 4 of mission...

"I just got back from playig soccer with OpSmile volunteers and it is 12:30 a.m. I didn't eat anything crazy today. I saw my favorite kid and he is getting operated on. The other kid did not steal the ball. One of my team members found the ball. It did have his name on it, so he really wanted it. I was walking in the street and an adult man asked to keep the football I had in my hand. I would not let him have it because it was for the kids. I went to the shelter where the people who don't have a place to stay are. They get one little bed, three meals a day and all of them are packed into 4 rooms. I'm really tired and it is almost 1:00 a.m. now, so good night. One last thing before I go. I saw a guy called out the names of the kids to announce if they were going to have surgery or not. Many parents were very said. I would be too if I did not get picked. Goodnight." Riley

American School visit

Today we spent much of our day at the American School giving our OpSmile/Final Mile presentations. Riley and Gustavo did an excellent job. We first spoke at the school assembly. It is cool - they do both the Hondurian pledge and the American pledge first thing. We then had a chance to speak to 3rd, 4th and 5th grade separately. I opened, Riley talked about the Final Mile and Gustavo and Riley talked about their experience in the OR with Carlos on Monday with pictures. Each time they both were more and more comfortable. We even had Wendy, the little girl we are trying to get to come to Shamrock, visit with 4th grade. Although some were shy to go over and say hello, many of them did and her little face lit right up! The American School kids are all over the Operation Smile Final Mile. They want to start now! I am thrilled they have this early kickoff for next year. The principal, Mrs. Martinez, is very enthusiastic and can't wait to implement the program. Maybe Riley and I will have to go back, especially if they get permission to run in the Olymico Stadium!

OK. So Riley is out with Gustavo, so here is an excerpt from his blog. He is so tired when he gets home at night that I have not been able to get him to "blog". This is his from surgery day. It is a great journal to read because he does not fail to mention the different food he has tried. Here is a funny comment from early on. "Today I tried fried banana and it was so gross tears were almost coming out of my eyes!"

Now his surgery day entry...

"I'm back after the first day of surgery week. I didn't eat anything strange today. Here, the buses don't have fronts and if you ride in a car you get shiny and sweat a little because it is so hot. This morning I went to see an operation. It's amazing how they fix the kids. The surgeons like take the lip apart and put it back together. It was a cleft lip. I sat down for about 50 seconds then was fine the rest of the surgery. When we showed the mom her child, Carlos, she was crying because she knew it would change her child's life forever. After surgery, I played with the kids who were about to go to surgery. If you give them a toy, you have trouble getting it back. Next, I went to post operation. Once the numbing wears off all of the kids are kicking, yelling and screaming but they will be OK by tomorrow. I'm going to dinner now. I'm back from dinner and I'm going to tell you more about surgery. You couldn't touch anything, there was alot of cutting and blood, the child had an oxygen tube through his throat and in his lungs to breath and at one point, my grandfather cut one of the nose flaps loose. It's crazy to watch and see how it comes together at the end. I have to go to bed now." Riley

yep, word for word and more where that came from! I will try to wrap my arms around this experience while traveling tomorrow. I have been blessed with this wonderful opportunity to spend time doing so much good with my son. It is a true gift to be able to share together. Thanks mom and dad for inspiring so many people! love you both. brigette

Day in the OR

Today was the big day and what a cool experience. Riley's grandfather, Poppy, was here in Honduras with some special people from NJ so we had a chance to all go into the OR with him and watch him operate. The little boy's name is Carlos, a 14 month old with a cleft lip and palate. This was his third time trying to get surgery since he was born. The first time, he had a cold so they could not operate, the 2nd time this past December, he was so chunky, they could not find a vein to place his IV. After 8 times trying, they said they would have to wait. They actually put him on diet! Today had to be his day, right? After a bit of a wait, we put on our scrubs and had a chance to play with Carlos in the Child Life room. He has quite the personality.. He enjoyed playing with the ball with Riley. When the anesthesiologist came to get the baby, I was amazed by the mom's calming presence. She barely even said goodbye to him saying that he would just cry harder if she went to hug him. Riley, Gustavo and Giselle got a brief run down from my dad on the rules of the OR and we were in. The anesthesiologist Mark from Michigan, tried for a quite a bit to get the IV in and finally it worked! Not knowing how their bodies would handle being there, all three stood to the side for a short bit. Since we were not scrubbed in, we could not touch anything sterile, which was not so easy considering their were two tables running in each room. Once they realized they wanted a better view of the operations, all three went right to the top of the table and listened carefully to my dad's teachings. Gustavo was very concerned with the extra pieces of flesh hanging out, and constantly asked my dad if he was going to do anything about it. With a bit of laughter in the room, he told Gustavo that with patience, all would fall into place. The thumbs up picture was when the lip was finally closed... something Gustavo could not wait to see. It was fun having his curiosity in the OR. Everyone was extremely patient with us, teaching anesthesia and surgery along the way. I was proud of all of them. With only a couple of dizzy spells throughout, they were all able to witness the miracle of a smile. I think if given the chance, they would have gone back for more! We also had a chance to see Carlos handed over to his mom and that was the moment that everyone talks about and why we work so hard to help these children. She was very stoic for a few brief moments and then her tears started to flow. After all of this time waiting, her baby boy finally had a beautifully complete smile. You could feel in her tears and in the gratitude of her eyes when she looked at us that she was grateful. It was a beautiful thing to witness. My dad even had Gustavo translate that even though he was quietly crying, he had been given pain meds so that he would not be in pain. It was really a one of a kind experience and I am so grateful that Riley's new Hondorian friends could do this along with him.

Isabelle, check out your hospital gown on little Maria! She is wearing it with pride! love all of you, brigette and riley

Late night soccer & Team Day

This is going to be quick as we have to get to bed for the 5 a.m. start to the first surgery day. Everyone is so excited! Last night went until 12:30 playing soccer on a gloriously lit turf field. The Hondurians were very good, but Riley held his own and was one of the first picks for teams. It was a great night.

Today was team day and after a fun couple of hours shopping in Valle de Angles, we went to a students mountain house to chill. That is what we did. It was a bit cold for the pool, but the kids made it in along with a few of the team members. It was a warm sunny day eating Papousas and learning about each other. We then drove back to the clinic where we held our team meeting and played the infamous name game. Riley and I both proved our worth and it is amazing how you really do get to know everyone. My dad finally arrived with a potential donor from NJ with an entourage of people. They received a tour of the clinic and will be with us tomorrow at the hospital. We are off to bed to be ready for the 6 a.m. breakfast meeting and the last cheer for a good start to the week. Riley will be going into surgery tomorrow so it is going to be a big day! Buenas Noches! (is that right?) love to all my ones at home.. brigette and riley

Surgery List & OR Set Up

Since we have a minute, I wanted to catch everyone up on the days events. We starting this morning with the surgery posting. 216 children were seen on Thursday and Friday and 96 have been set for surgery. There are a few on a waiting list depending on how quickly the days go and maybe a few more may be selected. There were no major tears today which was very nice. It is again, a nice scenario here because the kids who were not selected can be taken care of eventually through the OpSmile clinic.

The most exciting news was that we may have Wendy Maria Gutierrez Rodriguez coming to Virginia Beach for Shamrock's Operation Smile Final Mile. She and her parents will stay with the Cooper family and we gave them great reassurance today that they will in great hands. The parents are very excited and the little girl is completely adorable. She is the one in these pictures. We have to process her paperwork, etc. so even if this does not work out, she will be taken care of. She comes from a town Aidea Agacualpa Gamarauguila and are part of an indian tribe there said to be one of the kindest and most honest of the country. They were twinking with excitement today at their opportunity saying that they feel like God has chosen them. I feel very good about the prospects and will keep everyone informed.

We are leaving now to explore the city a bit and I will try to post again later!

Screening Day 2

It was a quieter morning at the hospital today... a nice flow of people that showed up for screening, but a calmer group of children. We did lots of crafty things with the kids todayas the patients could all fit inside. The puzzles have also been a hit although I have been amazed at how few of the kids know how to go about piecing a puzzle together. I tried to teach them with my limited spanish, but to no avail, the kept trying to put together pieces that did not fit. oh well. to our surprise, a 50 year old woman showed up today. The Hondurian people said it has been a long time since they have seen a patient so old. I believe they will be able to take care of her which I cannot imagine. It will be interesting to watch her reaction when the list is posted tomorrow.

Riley took off by 11 to go spend some of the school day with Gustavo at the American School. While he was gone, I took a wonderful tour of the Operation Smile clinic where they treat children monthy with cleft lip and palate. The whole place was more than impressive. clean, happy, and all about the taking care of the whole child. Our countries that have pushed to erect these buildings are truly lucky to have a place just for these kids to come. One of the pictures posted is a mural which displays all of their donors on fired tiles. It is way cool. I loved it. We also had a chance to visit the shelter just a few blocks up from the hospital where the patients stay to wait for treatment. again, another impressive component of this mission for it is run by the Sonrisa Amigas, a wonderful group of friends that have taken on Opsmile with their heart and soul. They have food there for the patients and if possible, a bed for them to sleep in. It is bed to bed, separated in a women's area and men's but clean and available to all that come from far away to seek surgery. The volunteers are very happy and even the high school volunteers are a part of this initiative. I watched one of the volunteers lead the families in prayer before lunch. They even have that covered. It is a wonderful feeling to know the Hondurian volunteers are here to take care of their people in such a caring way. I have no doubt this country will one day catch up with this problem and be able to treat their people without us. A beautiful thing.

Then it was my turnn to visit the American School and many of you will be happy to hear that they are going to organize the Operation Smile Final Mile for the elementary program. The principal was so excited! Riley's new friend Gustavo is so excited to lead the way too, which is even better. He keeps asking, "so after that, how can I help?" He will come with Riley to the hospital on Monday to witness a surgery and then I cannotl imagine what will spin in his little head! The school is amazing, especially this outdoor covered area that has basketball courts and lot of space. Riley loved how everything was outside. It would be nice to have something like this at home for sure. Wednesday we will visit back at the school to give our presentation to the entire elementary school and then will visit with 3rd, 4th and 5th to show the videos. Should be a great day!

We head to the hospital tomorrow early to help post the surgery list. Gustavo and Giselle will come with us. I hope to quickly show them the shelter and the clinic too. We are supposed to go to Tatumbla, a mountain town, where the Gomez' have a home. They said it is so different then where they live in the city. We're there! good night to all of our friends and family back home!

oh, and Riley's quick comment " it is cool to see different places in our world." can't get him to say anymore because he is working on his journal....

Screening Day 1

Yes! We finally have internet access! Last night we were so wiped out we had to get to bed. That 5:30 wake up call came at us too fast. So, with that being said and a full 11 hour day of screening behind us, all is well from Honduras!

We are with a team full of Hondurian volunteers as well as members from the US and they could not be more supportive of Riley and I being here. As the team briefed everyone at breakfast this morning, the key word was patience and that stood strong all day. The in country staff expected a larger turn out, but after still working on the 140 or so kids that showed up today, it is probably good that they will get to treat everyone who came. The great thing about Honduras Operation Smile is that they have a clinic which treats children year round and so even if a child could not be operated on this time because of low weight or health, the opportunity does exist in the near future. There was a 40 day old baby that came today with a bilateral, so small, she looked like she was newborn. They have given the mother all the instructions and means to fatten her baby up with the hopes that they can take care of her in the next year. That being said, I did see this mom in tears talking to the psychologist when leaving tonight, so of course, this is still very difficult. The poverty is great here and I am sure this mommy is trying to figure out how to afford the food to make this happen.

So, how did Riley do? Really great! I do not think he can believe he worked for 12 hours today. his little eyes were starting to waver while waiting for pick up. as I expected, the kids loved him. One little boy stuck to his side all day long which I am not sure how he felt about that! There is another adorable child that won his heart and he has said this is the child his $240 will go to. I believe he will be scheduled to get his palate repaired next week. I think the great needs of these children sunk in a little bit for him today. Everything we pulled out to play with the kids somehow made it into the bags of the parents and luckily will get great use. Riley was expecting to hold on to one ball for the week to play with the kids and that snuck out with an older child. I asked him to realize how insignificant this really is to him and how truly significant this is to this boy who may finally own his own ball for once in his life. We'll see if he turns up during surgery week with the ball! The music was a big hit and helped us for musical chairs and red light, green light. We tried to teach them Big Bootie, but they did not pick up on that so well! Maybe Ninja tomorrow?

I have nothing but good things to say about the people here. Our Operation Smile staff and volunteers have done everything right and they are so enthusiastic about helping us and the children. The children are extremely happy and loving, eager to play and engage. Some of the older children took some time to warm up, but eventually were at least close by to watch what we were doing with the younger kids. We did not see many kids with primary lips, mostly younger children a year and younger. Most have had their lips repaired and are back to get their palates done. We did see some older kids who are in desparate need of revisions in hopes that they can look more normal. They will post the surgery list at 6 a.m. saturday morning!

We are staying with Giselle and Gustavo Gomez and their children Giselle and Gustavo. Gustavo is in 5th grade and Giselle in 7th. Riley and Gustavo took no time to be friends and we are lucky for that! Gustavo is very outgoing and happy and so excited to have us here. Tomorrow Riley will go to school for a bit with Gustavo and we will talk to the principal about the Final Mile program. Gustavo has already said he wants to help and with his personality, it is sure to be great! Posted is a picture of Gustavo and his mother with Riley last night.

That is a wrap for day 1. They do not expect as many children tomorrow so we will start at the hospital and then head over the the American School. This weekend, we hope to see a bit of the area and Lopsang, our mission coordinator, has already arranged for a soccer match for anyone who is willing. I only realized tonight at dinner with the Gomez' that the Hondorian team is in the World Cup and they said it has the whole country in high spirits. We will be sure to watch them compete this summer.

Missing you, dave, alec, will and isabelle.... thinking of you alot and hoping you had a great day. hasta manana..
love, riley and mom

Pre-MIssion Trial

We are two days out from jetting off to Honduras with Operation Smile on what is sure to be quite an experience. Our bags are almost packed and all the goodies that were donated by friends are filed away in baggies ready for play. Thanks to all of you who helped us with that. The children will be so thankful! Also thanks to the 5th graders at Alanton Elementary who helped us with the hospital gowns. We will be sure to post some pictures so that you can see how much color they brought to the hospital.

So, log on and get ready to follow us. We will try to post nightly. We will be gone from Feb 23rd - March 4th. smiling all the way... riley and brigette