Do You Wonder?

It is one month until the Children of the Americas medical team volunteers drive to their respective airports in the early morning hours and board their flights for Guatemala. The weeks before departure will be spent planning, packing and preparing for one of the most intense seven days any of us will experience for the rest of the year following a COTA team. In-between the "three P's" we will celebrate  school festivals, American holidays and all of the transitions that come with the end of one season and the beginning of a new year.
Those of us, and there are many, who have one foot in each country find ourselves already mentally in Guatemala, but we realize that many of our donors have never traveled to the Central American country that we work in. They may wonder about some of the things that make COTA special. 
If we had a wish list of things our board would like our supporters to know, it would look something like this:
We have amazing surgeons and OR support staff. Truly. 

Our surgeons, operating room nurses, anesthesiologists and techs come from all over the United States. They are highly trained, skilled and compassionate medical professionals who give no less to our Guatemalan patients than they do to their American patients. And they do so at their own expense for no financial compensation while still meeting the needs of their practices in the states.  
Our pharmacy is fully stocked and funded by a specific anonymous donor and by COTA funds. No patient in Guatemala pays for medicine, because doing so would mean that they would go without. From antibiotics to vitamins, each prescription is prepared and every patient is individually educated in their own language. Doing this for over five thousand prescriptions in one week is logistically challenging and takes a dedicated team of translators and four pharmacists.

Children of the Americas medical supplies are carefully selected, donated and purchased so that each of our patients has what they need. These medications are already packaged and have been shipped to Guatemala. Packing all of the above came together in a big way, cheerfully and carefully, one a rainy day in September that would have dampened the spirits of a less resilient group.
Our volunteers are amazing. No question about it. Some are retired, most still work at their respective professions, and a few are in school; but for one week in Guatemala we are a unit of over 100 people who come together for a common cause. 

 Children of the Americas supporters are working miracles with their donations. 
Our donors are loyal, compassionate and altruistic. Most of them will never see the women and children that they will benefit in rural Guatemala. Our supporters trust us to use their donated dollars wisely, for the purpose that they are intended, and we do. We do so faithfully, thoroughly and professionally. 
Now that you no longer wonder how and what we do, supporting us financially is an easier decision to make, and so simply done by clicking here:

 GoodGiving Challenge Fundraiser for COTA 

Making the world a healthier place is a great way to celebrate the holidays.