4/21/2023

 Had our first eye clinic today! Very small church, tight quarters but we made it work!

Teamwork made the dream WORK! 

When we arrived at the church, there were many people already waiting!

There were stations set up so that everyone who came for glasses would go through in a certain order.

1- Registration and witness bracelets with explanations were handed out. Karen said it was so helpful to have an interpreter at this table with her. 

2- Health check. Overall eye health and the workers here wrote notes on the registration forms which were very helpful to have at the other stations.

3- Eye Testing for near and far. The eye charts have pictures of hands with fingers going up/down/left/right so they can be used in any country, for any age person. Most people’s tests were very straightforward. Several were pretty difficult to get to the right prescription a person needed. We persevered and when we had ones that were taking long or needed an interpreter, Eliu or his wife, Soni jumped right in to help us out. 

4-Distribution. Several workers pulled glasses from the supply boxes and bags that matched the prescriptions on peoples registration papers. The glasses were then checked to be certain the prescription worked by using the eye charts again. Sunglasses were also given out. The sun in Belize is very bright and hot being so near the equator so the sunglasses were frequently requested. 

5- People would then take their glasses to the last station to be sure they were fitted properly. Walt is a wiz with the tiny screws and Al was able to put his large equipment mechanical skills to work on the little glasses. Eye drops were given out here also. And then they were on their way!

A few of our interesting clients that just stood out to us all today-

- The young boy who would race thru showing his hand signals so pleased with how quickly he could do it, and then Rachel finding some Power Ranger sunglassses for him.

- The Woman who came with a burned hand from cooking who ended up with a prescription of -4, no wonder she burned herself! 

- The woman who acted so very nonchalant about needing glasses until the eye paddle was put up to her eyes , her eyes widened hugely and she busted out with the most incredible smile cuz she could SEE! Charli even cheered! 

-We were all impressed with how patient people were as many had to wait quite awhile to go through, and how kind they were to each other, even jumping in to interpret for an elderly gentleman. 

- Young boy who moved his hands during testing in such a fun way, I told him it looked like he was doing a robot dance which made him laugh.

-The firefighter who has trouble adjusting between the station house and going outside after shift got some sunglasses.

-The woman who’s eyes were so bad from Diabetes’ trouble and  we just could not get a perscription for was given a cane. She was pretty excited about that and tried it out right away, whacking it to and fro. 

The sweet young lady who was telling me how she is on a worship dance team for the church we were at and it is so fun! After cleanup, she blessed us with one of her dances. Here is a short clip of it. https://youtube.com/shorts/vInKMdGgCro?feature=share

- The Woman who I really connected with because she sews. A lot. Funny how you can find a kindred spirit anywhere, at any age, speaking 2 different languages but still understand each other. ❤️

We had a very successful and fun day here.We pray that tomorrow we can make the same, if not more of an impact!