Our mission is complete... we're on our way home :-)

Yesterday, Caroline did a video/powerpoint presentation (thanks for the great material Brigette!) to the American School. The school is beautiful and has taught many of the leaders of the country. Caroline did a great job with the approx. 175 4th and 5th graders, and they seemed very interested in learning more and growing their Final Mile program (even though they use kilometers in Honduras) to increase what they contribute to Operación Sonrisa. They asked many good questions and some wanted to know if they can run their final mile in Virginia with our students!

One of the last things we did was visit this orphanage. We were very impressed with how clean and orderly the 54-child facility was, and how disciplined the "mothers" are. We saw first hand what a difference foreign contributions make. Many volunteers from the U.S. and Canada visit this orphanage throughout the year and stay from a week to several months just teaching and supporting these children with no parents. Very encouraging.



Thanks for following us during this trip. We look forward to seeing you when we return!
Caroline and Mark

Mission trip starting to wind down

Caroline reminded me several times today that she wanted to write in the blog to say hi to you, our family and her friends at Alanton Elementary and beyond! Unfortunately the 5am wakeup, the busy all-day hospital schedule, and then dinner with new friends out in Tegucigalpa until 9pm wiped her out...she was asleep before we got home.

Two of the three operation days we'll witness have passed. Tomorrow, Wednesday, Caroline will do an Operation Smile video and Q & A presentation at the American School, a good friend and supporter of Op Smile in Honduras. The purpose of the presentation is to help strengthen the relationship, and to give the school a renewed excitement to grow their Miles for Smiles program.  After the presentation she will spend most of the day attending classes at the school with new friends that she's met. She can tell us what it would be like to go to school in Honduras!

Our host family - it would be hard to find a finer family than Gustavo, Giselle, Gustavito & Gigi Gomez

Almost every Latin American city has an "El Centro" or city center, centered around a church...this is Valle de Angeles' outside Tegucigalpa

In between almost every event is a chance to play, watch, or discuss "futbol," and Caroline eats it up

The next 18 slides are some of the shirts that Alanton students and friends from our neighborhood created. Even if your shirt isn't pictured below, they loved them all, and the patients really wore them into surgery!

The youth team's main job is to cheer the patients and their families up and keep them calm throughout the whole process...can you tell they shine?

Mark became fast friends with Gustavo Raudales 30 years ago in Washington, D.C., at an international student conference called Presidential Classroom, but hadn't seen him since. Only knowing how to pronounce his name and that he lived in Tegucigalpa, Honduras (8 million people), we tracked him down this week, and he's still as crazy as he was then. Young people... it's worth saving the telephone numbers of friends you meet along the way

Caroline with Cathy Snyders

Gustavo Jr, Gustavito, or Ito - you choose what to call him!

Gigi!

Jonathon, the boy Caroline and Mark followed from initial screening through surgery to post-op

Jonathon being prepped behind Caroline

Jonathon during surgery, and Caroline made it through!

Jonathon after surgery with a happy and relieved mom

Thank you for following our blog!

Patient screening complete, surgery week begins tomorrow

As soon as Caroline gave this little boy a toy car, he stopped crying...man was his mom happy

a life about to be changed...

Coloring became "serious business" during the long waits

During the mission, you see the same kids every day. Carlos never stops smiling

Juan Carlos is an expert technician, and a clown with 1000 tricks. Before you plug in any equipment, he has to inspect it to make sure it doesn't overload the circuits and bring everything electrical down

This is the "end of the line," and some of the best plastic surgeons you can find, along with our international coordinator Sarah taking a break

The food ladies said their goal is to make sure all of the volunteers gain 10 pounds by the end of the mission-do you like pizza, pastries, and does any one know what dulce de leche is?

Operation Smile, or Operación Sonrisa in Spanish, provides those patients and their families who traveled from afar a shelter just outside the hospital until their surgeries are complete

We were told this is Operation Smile's 17th year in Honduras. This new clinic will serve as the headquarters when the international teams aren't in town, and provide ongoing weekly surgeries and follow up for years to come

Grace & Sameera-juniors in high school & Caroline-5th grade...Op Smile makes it clear that the future of the program depends on its youth involvement

Caroline with Gigi & Gustavo (back row) whose parents are Op Smile Honduras supporters and who have a love for Op Smile kids - they ask their parents if they can miss school to come help!

Op Smile missions are hard work, but a lot of fun too. The volunteers went up to the mountains over the weekend for some R & R between screening and surgery weeks 

Caroline opened her mind to a lot of things this trip, even playing portero (goalie)

The volunteer team had a little rest over the weekend, and now it's time to get back to work. We look forward to watching some of the most talented medical professionals, with the biggest hearts, from around the world, change 124+ lives over the next 5 days. We'll be in touch...