It was my great fortune to go to El Salvador this year (2009) on the Comasagua Brigade. One of the reasons I chose to pursue a nursing career was to gain skills that would be useful in efforts like the brigade, so for me it was a dream come true. I have traveled in South and Central America, and always wanted a chance to go with something to give back to the wonderful people there.

Thanks to Kathy Garcia’s tremendous organizational powers, our group with a mountain of plastic tubs got to San Salvador on February 7. “Our” town was Comasagua, a small but tidy community about an hour from San Salvador, in coffee country. The town had been destroyed by 2 earthquakes about 10 years ago, and rebuilt with the help of Hugo Chavez and the Venezuelan army. The town’s water supply was broken, so there was no running water in the clinic or anywhere else. This presented some difficulties, but Sr. Susan, Sr. Eleanor, Kathy and the clinic staff found a solution that made our week there doable. I was continually impressed with the capacity of these team leaders to calmly and tirelessly solve the problems that came up. Our brigade provided eye exams and eyeglass fitting. The worst cataract cases were tagged for a followup brigade which will do the surgeries. We also provided general medical, pediatric, and gynecological exams.

What will I remember about this experience? I have memories of individuals who patiently spent hours waiting in line, first outside in the hot sun, then in the stuffy clinic with nowhere to sit down. Some told me they had walked more than an our to get to town. I remember the well behaved children who also waited patiently. The children, especially the babies, were dressed in their best for this big occasion. I remember the aplomb with which these folks met this novel circumstance—very few meltdowns among the children, interest and curiosity about everything we were doing. I will certainly never forget the stunningly hard, black earwax impactions I encountered (It was one of my jobs to try to get this wax out). I remember the direct friendliness of the people I interacted with. I remember the heartfelt gratitude that was expressed for our services. I remember the tireless patience and good humor displayed by a group of young Salvadoran volunteers. They provided triage, crowd control, and smoothed many difficulties. I remember the delicious and interesting lunches provided by the women of Comasagua each of our 5 days at the community center. I will remember working with a dedicated group of people who helped clean up the clinic and work 10 hour days to deliver free health care to an underserved population of strangers. I can’t say enough about the value of the experience, for us and for the people served. If nothing else, we gave them something to talk about for some time to come! I am grateful to Peace Health for its continued support of this effort.