Summer is a time of maintenance for the ship when the hospital and the Academy close. I happily left the ship on June 2 for a visit home; meanwhile the ship sailed to the Canary Islands for dry dock & maintenance. Although I would have enjoyed seeing the ship out of the water, I'm not sad to have missed the periodic black-outs and lack of air conditioning! Pictures below are from my cabinmate who did get to experience some of the dry dock.
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| Who knew the propellers were so large? |
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| Five flights of stairs to get on the ship! Yikes! |
Instead, I experienced a summer of many joyful reunions. There were new babies to meet, friendships to rekindle, and family members to cherish time with. Summer also means fundraising, since I can't stay on the ship without the financial support of people back home. Happily I can report that I am over 80% funded for the coming year! Thank you to everyone who has given so far! If you still want to contribute (every little bit matters), you can do so at this
link. Donations made at this link go directly into my crew account and are used to pay my Crew Fees (monthly room & board), travel expenses, and health insurance. Your support means that all surgery and medical care is provided to our patients free of charge!
One of the highlights of my summer was competing in a team triathlon (my first) with my dad. He did the biking portion; I ran and swam. Unfortunately the weather in Wisconsin was only in the 50s/60s that week. So my 8am lake swim was freezing! Luckily I have a special talent for swimming in cold water.
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Team Triathlon with my Dad
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| Houston friends |
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| Took my dog to the beach! |
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| Camping with my best friend |
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| Together again: Whitworth University roommates |
What's Next?
On July 20, I leave the States to meet the ship in the Canary Islands. As the maintenance crew works to finish up their summer projects, the Academy Leadership Team (including myself as the Head of High School) will start our preparations for the coming school year and for teacher orientation week. After a week of teacher orientation, school will begin for students on August 8. Sometime around the beginning of August we will also set sail for Douala, Cameroon, our next port. The hospital will open shortly after we arrive. Our Mercy Ships screening team is already hard at work in Cameroon finding patients who need surgery, so we will have patients as soon as the hospital opens.
The patients we serve suffer from the diseases of poverty. Small medical issues become large when treatment is not available or affordable. For those new to my blog, below you will find some photos that show the kind of work we do.
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| Christelle received transformative surgery for her face. |
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| David's facial tumor was removed |
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| Miracle's leg was straightened and now she can now walk, run, and play! |
Thanks for joining me on this journey by reading this blog!
