New Year's Eve Day

We blessed the new air conditioner donated by Dean Mausolf's parents.

Whatever medicines are not dispensed at the medical camps are then distributed back at GSM. We learned that the word in Telagu for pharmacy is mondula shop. We also learned the word for go is po. People at the camps apparently thought they were to visit each room. After checking their prescription slip and realizing they had already seen the doctor, we would say--mondula shop po


We visited the Bone Setter's Hospital this morning. The doctors are all related and use egg and mixes it with leaves and herbs. While waiting at the railroad crossing, the tailor came by looking for Doug & Pete to measure!! The tailor at the train crossing.


We spent a little bit of time touring the cottages at the HIV/AIDS Center. We are removing rocks and helping spread the dirt in the prayer garden. The rakes had a big shovel part and a little handle--yes, we had to stay bent over to push the dirt around.

The LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden. -Isaiah 58:11 (NRSV)

Worship at Kakavedu

We are at Kakavedu and Doug & Miriam (Henry's sister in law) led the service in song.

There was lots of singing and dancing. The team joined in with Doug singing Awesome God and Jesus is the Rock. What a fun evening!!

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. -Psalm 150:6 (NIV)

Medical Camp

We started the day (Wednesday) trying to extract Morgan's last stitch from having her wisdom teeth pulled but we had no success. Then before heading to the medical camp, we stopped to pray for those who had eye surgery yesterday and were being discharged. There were 2 hysterectomies yesterday and we prayed for them.


Ayanambakam was about 20 km. The village was small--2000 people. We were greeted with flowers. 300 people received medications and 39 Hep B shots were given. Many people came because of pain in their joints.



Some of the children were NOT happy to receive shots so we had Doug hold and comfort the children.

This is the announcement for a medical camp.





This is the road we traveled on to get to the camp

Jen is liking the food Mary has been preparing which has been wonderful!! We had the most wonderful beets today!

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified . . . for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. -Deuteronomy 31:6 (NIV)

Our First Day

Our first medical camp was held at GSM. The lobby was filled with people waiting to see doctors.

Robin (left photo) and Morgan (right photo) did a great job of 80 hepatitis B shots. As you can see, Diann had her hands full with some of the children. Diann took over the baby holding job after Helen got peed on by a very unsatisfied recipient!!!!!

Tuesday is eye surgery. These patients are in recovery after cataract surgery. Family members come to help with their after care.

The team worked great this morning. Pete took video, Jen, Stacie, Deb, and Doug filled syringes. Tara kept a tally of how many shots were administered.

After the shots, we toured the hospital-- patients were seeing the general practitioner, the new ER doctor, eye doctor, dentist, and physio therapist. This patient had suffered a stroke and had a frozen left shoulder with limited mobility in the left scapula. Another patient was receiving hand exercises to improve control over finger extension from a stroke he suffered 6 years ago at the age of 24!




After a much needed afternoon rest, we were introduced at the Ashram. The Good Shepherd Rock Solid band played with members singing and dancing. We met all the evangelists. Afterwards, everyone was treated to cake. Stacie and Tara passing out cake.



Pete has met a lot of new friends. They played rock, paper, scissors and Sam (Praveen's son) taught Pete a secret hand shake.

As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people. -Galatians 6:10 (NIV)

Arrival at Good Shepherd Mission

Let's just say that the fanfare celebrating our arrival is nothing short of unbelievable. Sorry for the dark pictures but there is no flash on the camera. The hospital was adorned in beautiful Christmas lights. We got off the bus at the hospital and walked to the Ashram. Diann was overwhelmed. She said "I don't think I'll ever stop smiling" as the children were lined up on both sides with a candle. It was so beautiful at 3:45 am Puttur time. As we prayed inside the Ashram, the children lined the pathway. Henry and the band led us to beautiful chalk colored drawings in the dirt. Doug and Pete started off the dancing followed by each one of us. We all crashed at 4 am for a 3 hour snooze. It was actually chilly!!!! The girls arrived at 8 am with tea. Morgan is in heaven!!!! It's breakfast, devotions, and then medical camp at the hospital with an afternoon siesta. Bye for now!!

The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. -Proverbs 18:10 (NIV)

Chennai Airport

We are all dressed. We have all the suitcases-yay!! Ready to go out to meet everyone

Outside Chennai airport with our flowers!! We were greeted by Henry, Praveen, Sammy, Paul, Vijay, and boys from the mission. They took our suitcases and placed them into a motorcoach. It's 1:50 am and we are about an hour and half from the mission. There are many activites
planned at the hospital for our first day-Tuesday!!

The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. -Proverbs 18:10 (NIV)

They Have Landed!

The Mission Team has landed safely in Chennai, India.. 1:45 pm Eastern Time 12:15 am (tomorrow) India Time.

Frankfurt Airport

We ate at Chilis Too at the Newark airport. Security was tight and they tried to get us to check our carry ons. The flight was great. Lufthansa is nice. Up was the favorite movie. Some of us slept, some did Flyrobics(I think it was just Helen), and some read. We are in Frankfurt and luckily we were at the head of the arrivals at security. It seems Morgan's vibrating neck pillow gets a lot of scrutiny. We are ready to board for the next leg of our journey. See you in Chennai.

The Lord says, "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye." -Psalm 32:8 (KJV)

Mission Trip Prayer

Today we begin a journey of mystery and surprises. God, we ask you to travel with us as our compass and guide. Please give us the confidence and assurance to support, promote and encourage one another during this journey. Persuade us to walk outside of the familiar and into the many opportunities that lie ahead. Remind us to be accepting and willing participants in the lives of those we meet. May we remember that while we are enthusiastic and eager to offer our talents and ourselves to those we meet; we may be amazed at the gifts of community, friendship and love we gain from our collective efforts with others. As we work, interact and play gently remind us to be respectful, compassionate examples of Christ. Provide us times of rest and silence to meditate on the experiences of the day and allow the Holy Spirit to refresh our bodies and minds so we may continue our work each day. We ask that the work we do and words we speak be used for peace and justice for those unable to speak for themselves. As our mission work is completed remind us to humbly extend our appreciation to our hosts and pray for their continued work of service to others. Finally may we return safely to our family and congregations to share the love and experiences of our mission work. God, allow our experience to be the catalyst by which our congregations are transformed and continue a mission of service and love to our community and the world. Amen.

Written by Robin Herb

On Sunday, December 6, 2009, the 2010 Good Shepherd Mission India team was commissioned at a service at Calvary United Methodist Church in Mohnton, PA. The team will leave for the mission in Puttur, India on Sunday, December 27, 2009 and return on Saturday, January 9, 2010. The team has spent the last six months raising money to hold five medical camps during their stay.

The team is made up of: Deb Bierly, Morgan Boyer, Diann Connor, Stacie Dougherty, Tara Durkin, Helen Hartman, Pete Harvey, Robin Herb, Doug Pearson and Jennifer Werner.

The team will be busy leading Church Services, working at the HIV/AIDS center, playing with the children, and dedicating a cottage at the Center in honor of Terry Connor. Along with the dedication , the team will serve a meal to the mission staff and families.

Pray for the team during their trip.

I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. -Isaiah 6:8 (KJV)

Ramesh

We were limited on internet access the last several days. In an earlier post, we told the story of Ramesh's first visit to see Maureen and the mission children running to help him as he was struggling up a hill. This picture depicts the wonderful spirit of giving that is shared by all we were able to treat through the phyiscal therapy clinic at the mission hospital.

Our carriage ride to the Taj Mahal and group photo on the Princess Diana Bench, which was made especially for her visit. The Taj is breathtaking and we are now steeped in Indian history from our very intelligent tour guide, Arif. It makes us appreciate and respect even more the people we came to serve. We are safely home. We will post some wrap up pictures tomorrow and have many tales to share and stories to share. It was a wonderful trip.

The group made it from Chennai to Delhi. Their tour guide met them at the airport and they took a 4 hour drive to Agra, where they spent the night. Good fortune was on their side, because their hotel rooms overlooked the Taj Mahal! The next morning, they were able to take a horse carriage ride to visit the Taj Mahal. Needless to say, words and pictures do not do this place justice.

That evening, the group went to another site, and they were scheduled to visit the Red Fort of Agra the next day. After they visited the fort, they were returning to Delhi to begin their voyage home.

The intrepid travelers are in the city of Pondicherry. Pondicherry is a former French enclave formerly known as French India. Pondicherry was relinquished by the French to India in 1956. The French influence can still be seen throughout the city. This costal town on the Bay of Bengal is a two hour or so van ride from Chennai.

While in Pondicherry the group visited a paper mill, a textile factory and did some sightseeing. The group with make it's way toward's Chennai today (our Saturday night their Sunday morning). The group will fly from Chennai to Delhi and visit the Taj Mahal and other places of interest.

Pictures to follow.

Our last day at the mission began with a wonderful breakfast at Vijaya Grace's house with Winnie and Minnie helping serve us. We stepped onto their sleeping porch after breakfast and they thanked us for all the work we had done at the mission.

The morning session was steady with return patients. The team was overwhelmed with the way the patients thanked them for their work. One after another return patients came to wish us "happy journey" and express their gratitude. In the afternoon, the team met with Sagar to discuss all the patients they had seen. Over 90 patients were treated, most on a returning basis. Sagar served lunch at his house and then after rest the team went to the HIV Aids center to view the progress and pray for Henry's vision for caring for Aids patients in their last stages of the disease. It was made especially poignant because Remaka was with us - a lady who contracted aids from her husband, who then left her. She came to the mission over a year ago despondant and desparate and found care and love from the Good Shepherd staff. She was thrilled with the center and plans at some point to be a patient. After saying goodbye to the children at the Ashram we had dinner at Praveen's house. The girls are now having their hands painted with henna by the mission girls. We leave tomorrow for Chennai, Pondicherry and then Delhi. We are not sure how much we will be able to post but want to leave this final picture. Ramesh had come for his first visit with Maureen. He is the paralyzed man whom she treated last summer. A cushion was donated for his use and he was coming for treatment. He was having trouble getting up the hill and all the mission children ran to help him and bring him to Good Shepherd. This expresses the sense of community we have experienced here. It is an amazing place - we keep saying "TII" or "this is India". This will stay with us forever.

But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh...... Genesis 40:14

Jeanette traveled South and West ten hours by train to visit with Anne Walters. Anne lives and works on a hill station called Ooty. Hill stations are just that, hills or mountains that are very temperate and more lush than the semi-arid landscape at Good Shepherd Mission. Ooty has an elevation of approximately 7000 feet and is somewhat of a retreat area and has tea plantations. The picture above is of Anne overlooking some of the property owned by Freedom Firm the group that she works for. The picture with the horse shows Anne and Carmen (one of the volunteers) with one of the horses who are also kept on the mountain property. The last picture shows Jeanette and Anne having coffee at a Coffee Day (new franchise in India) and just visiting and catching up. Jeanette spent the day on Tuesday meeting people and seeing all the facets of the Freedom Firm ministry.

You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of your inheritance— the place, O LORD, you made for your dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, your hands established. Exodus 15:17

Tuesday night words from Maureen:

The students continue to show remarkable resilience. As our final days at the mission come near, we are having mixed feelings. The work here is hard, and often heart-breaking. Yet, we have formed so many relationships with the people of the mission, and our hearts are growing heavier as our time to leave gets near.

One of the challenges has been to be resourceful in using what we have to make shift what we need.... last week we used tape to make steri-strips to cover a wound, and we used a blood pressure cuff to measure hand strength (in place of a dynamometer), and tonight we finished the process of melting and remolding a right hand splint to make it a LEFT splint!!

This morning the students went to the roof of the hospital, to enjoy the wonderful view of the surrounding mountains. Shortly after, we got very busy in the clinic, and saw about 12 new patients, and about 30 returning patients. During the mid day break, the bangle vendor came by the mission, and the students bought bangles for themselves and the hostel girls.

This evening, Erin had a lesson in sari wrapping from Winnie. After two tries, she felt like at least she had the idea of it... the application being a bit harder.

Sunday was a full day. The group spent most of the day in Kolladam worshiping with the villagers. To the left is a picture of the church in Kolladam. Sister Jeanette brought the word and the group served communion.



After services, the group had a chance to walk through the rural village. The girls had a chance to see some very primitive lifestyles.

After leaving Kolladam, the group went to Yenattavedu. This is where the church is dedicated in memory of David Miller. The group was warmly welcomed by Brother Protop and the other families. The village sends their greetings back to the United States.

The group is looking forward to getting back to work at the clinic. Sister Jeanette is leaving the group for a few days to visit Anne Walters in Ooty.

News from Saturday:

This is Sujima. She is a mission girl and Saturday was her birthday! To celebrate, she gave the group some treats and asked for their blessings.

The group traveled to the temple at Tirumala on Saturday. It is the second largest religious pilgrimage site in the world. Worshipers wait in line for anywhere from 15 hours to 2 days just to be able to see a god statue for less than five minutes.

Tidbits from earlier in the week:

As anyone who has been to India knows, sometimes the food can be an issue. On Thursday, Brother Henry had Mary drive 70km to Tiraputi in order to get the group some pizza! Upon their return, I am sure that the group will be nominating Brother Henry for the Nobel Peace Prize for this specific effort!

On Wednesday night, the group had the chance to witness a wedding in the ashram. Since the groom formerly worked at Good Shepherd, Henry let him have the wedding there. Although they arrived late because of their work at the clinic, the Americans were given honored seating in front of the bride's family. As an act of goodwill, the Mausolf family was kind enough to loan the happy couple two chairs from their living room.

News from Friday!


Friday was another full day at the clinic. The group saw a number of the same patients, along with some new ones. The group worked until about 1:30 p.m., and then "took rest" until the evening clinic which started at 5:00 p.m.

Here is a picture of Samuel. He has muscular dystrophy. His best friend brings him to the clinic daily. Samuel is 17 and very bright. He is at the top of his class. The therapy is helping him gain strength and mobility.

There is always a surprise in India! This is a picture from the Friday evening clinic. Each night during the clinic, the power goes out at some point. Here, the group was treating a stroke victim when the lights went out. As they lifted his pantleg, they discovered an ugly wound from a motorcycle accident. They donned the gloves and bandaged it up by flashlight. After finishing, they walked him out by candlelight.

Friday night ended with a religious service at the Ashram with the mission kids. Although some children are gone for the summer break, a number have remained because they have no place else to go. The service was dynamic and ended with a prayer for all. God bless.

Everything is well in India. These pictures are from Wednesday.

Erin went to the "Indian Spa" and got a head massage from one of the mission boys!

Early Wednesday morning the group hiked to the top of a local mountain to watch the sunrise. Upon their return to the mission, they were treated to some Indian tea.

After the clinic, the students gathered to take their "soap notes" and discuss thier cases.

Erin and Amanda are helping an elderly woman who had a stroke. She has come for several treatments.

Natalie helps a younger lady who is having trouble with knee and foot pain.