Teresa

Hello Everyone,

I'm sure most of you have at some point visited our Elderly and Orphan Feeding Program in San Jorge.  

If you haven't, you MUST visit sometime because the elderly who come to eat there are just precious!

Unfortunately, I have some sad news about Teresa, the head cook of the program.  

Three weeks ago, she began having a sharp pain in her abdomen while at work.

Not wanting to bother us at the office, she continued her job through Wednesday and into Thursday as well.

The pain became worse, so she finally went to the local hospital in Sololá. where they told her she needed gallbladder surgery, but they didn't have the medicine to help her or a doctor to do the procedure.

Not wanting to get set aside and forgotten, she tried to find a private doctor, who charged her $95 for a consult and blood exam and wanted to charge her $1600 for the surgery.

She came back to Panajachel, hoping to find some help at the private clinic here.

There, she had the surgery, but has had to borrow a large amount to pay for her care.

Teresa did not want to tell us any of this because she is already so grateful for the help that she has received with a house that is almost complete and the sponsorship of her children.

As a single mother of six, she values education above all else and asked the person that she borrowed from to wait until her children are out of school in November to start making payments.

She told me that she will pay it off, even if it is only Q100-Q200 ($14-$28) per month, but she wants to make sure that her children have their transportation and other school costs covered so that their grades don't suffer from her illness.

The total amount that she has borrowed for her medical care is $1280.

Teresa is currently still recuperating and is not back to work yet, but thankfully she does not seem to be suffering from any complications.

If you are interested in helping Teresa, who does so much for Mayan Families Elderly and Orphan Feeding Program, please make a donation to help pay for her emergency gallbladder removal on our website: http://www.mayanfamilies.org/DonateNow under "Family Aid" for "medical for Teresa, mother of #864).

Thank you so much, every little bit will mean a great deal for Teresa and her children!