KENYA

We packed for Kenya this week.  We put together 14 totes full of medical supplies.  There will be 6 physicians, 10 nurses and 2 ancillary personnel traveling together to Nairobi, then to Naivasha, Kenya to work in a new women's hospital built by a group of Nebraskans.  They have brought Kenyans to Nebraska to train and work on training them there.
I'll have the opportunity to work with a local Otolaryngologist and helping in whatever way I can.  John will be working on the stove project modeled after the project used by HELPS International (the group we went with to Guatemala last year).  The idea is to built stoves to contain the fires in homes, decrease smoke inhalation, decrease burn injuries and decrease time spent gathering wood.  It also helps protect the environment as it uses much less wood and with less time gathering wood and tending a fire the children can attend school and parents can be more productive with their time. Watch the YouTube video Stove project  It helps in so many ways.  The stoves are inexpensive and efficient.  I've included a link to YouTube that explains the project.  It is out of Guatemala but the same principle we will be using in Kenya.  NN

Nicaragua '13

We learned from our first trip to Nicaragua, that the word "flexibility" is a key word and one that we have come to be very familiar with.  Just a few nights ago, we learned that, due to unforeseen circumstances, the 2 physicians with the California part of our team are not able to go to Nicaragua with us in February.  Of course, that news blindsided all of us but we still knew that we all wanted to go back in whatever capacity that we could be used, whether it was medical or non-medical.  We now have learned that we will be working with Nicaraguan doctors, plastic surgeons from Managua.  That is great news and will be a blessing for the people in Nicaragua who have been waiting for our team to return.  We don't have a lot of details yet so are anxiously waiting to hear more news.  But our hearts are with the people of Nicaragua so we are happy to serve them in any way we can.  Please keep us in your prayers.
Carolyn Athey

Nicaragua '13

   In spite of the miserable cold & blustery day on Sunday, the Columbus Medical Mission Team, Nicaragua '13 had a very successful spaghetti feed fundraiser.  It was held at Peace Lutheran Church and we had a great turnout.  We also had a Christmas bake sale with lots of delicious baked goods.  Another addition to our fundraiser this year was a silent auction of items bought in Nicaragua on our last trip.  These items were from Nicaraguan craftsman & many from Puerto Cabezas which is where we work on our mission.  We want to thank everyone who came & also who supported us with monetary donations as well as all the wonderful baked goods.  We are always amazed at the generosity of so many who support our mission.  We also want to recognize Cargill for their donation of hamburger as well as the Barilla pasta company for their donation of all the spaghetti and spaghetti sauce and Michael Brittenham, State Farm agent, for his donation of napkins and cups.  And thank you to Jodi Dreifurst, a 2 time member of our mission team, for her donation of the table covering. We were also fortunate to have volunteers who helped us during the spaghetti feed and to them, a HUGE thank you.  Words cannot express how grateful we are to everyone who helped make this fundraiser a success. 
   In less than 2 months our team will be back in Nicaragua, and for some of of us our 4th trip back.  The people in Puerto Cabezas certainly have won our hearts and we are so blessed to have the opportunity to serve them again.  We are looking forward for the opportunity to work with our friends from California again as well as our brothers & sisters in Nicaragua.  Please keep us in your prayers as we prepare to return to help those in need in Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua.  And please plan to follow this site for blogs.  We will try to keep everyone updated as time allows & as the electricity allows us to.
Carolyn Athey

KENYA 2013

It's been a long time since I've posted because things seem to keep changing.  The civil unrest in DRC has made it too unstable to travel there.  On any given day it might be OK, but because of the rebels in the Northeast who recently took more control and threatened the capitol city, Dr. Fletcher warned us not to get our tickets and to hold off for now on our trip.  We were terribly disappointed  as we have done all the leg work, made plans and have been getting our shots for Congo.  I've put out feelers for other trips and we were all ready to sign on to a very good mission to Haiti when another African opportunity presented itself that we couldn't pass up.  This is to travel with Friends of Naivasha to Kenya with Dr. Coleen Stice, who I trained with at Mayo, and who has extensive mission experience.  Her team has helped in the building of a women's hospital in an area greatly underserved north of Nairobi.  We met with her today and made all the arrangements for 7 of us to join her group of 11 and travel together to Kenya.  Our team consists of myself (ENT), John (McGyver), Kevin Harm Pediatric NP, Wendy Kallhoff, RN, L&D nurse, Molly Dreesen O'Tool, BSN L&D nurse, Erin Scoggins, BSN, L&D nurse and Megan Kresha, Paramedic.  I will be working with a Kenyan Otolaryngologist, John will help with a stove project designed to build stoves for the huts which will prevent burns and smoke inhalation with the open fires in the homes, Kevin will work with Pediatrics, the nurses will work in Labor & Delivery and Megan will help out wherever needed.  We will all get to teach and work on a very ambitious project.  There are several websites and a YouTube video about the organization.  I'll try to link, but just look for Friends of Naivasha on the internet http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxcvcm4ePL8&feature=share and you'll find lots of information on it.  We also have a Facebook/Columbus Medical Mission Team - Africa page that we will link to.  We are very excited and everything seems to be falling into place.  We'll be having 2 fund raisers.  First at Pizza Ranch on Dec. 17, 5-8 pm, second a potato bar at Federated Church January 13, 11:30-1pm.  Also, don't forget the Nicaragua team spaghetti feed tomorrow Dec. 9 at Peace Lutheran Church at noon.