Carlos transitions to adulthood

When our COTA foster children return to Guatemala following their medical care in the United States, they do not always transition well. Many of the children require months and infrequently, years in the states in order to heal from multiple surgeries. Returning to the hardships of life in rural Guatemala can offer them many challenges.
Carlos was one of those cases. He returned home following several visits, three years and many surgeries in KY for his electrocution injuries. He had enjoyed an excellent foster home, schooling, and active social life. When he returned to Guatemala he had a job, but it did not last with the economic downturn. His social situation at home was strained. Carlos, like many of our older COTA patients, had the gift of renewed health but no opportunity to support himself.
COTA networked with the non-profit Mayan Families in Panajachel in order to work out a viable situation. Mayan Families needed manpower and Carlos needed a new place to call home. Six months later, Carlos is still employed in Panajachel, and is working hard to help the staff of MF's improve the lives of the rural indigenous citizens of the lake regions. It is rewarding to see Carlos doing so well in his new life. He has a great work ethic and is "paying forward" all of the care and attention he enjoyed while in KY.

Bianca comes to Lexington

Bianca has arrived in Kentucky after a year of effort from the COTA Executive Director to network care for her. Just in time for spring, Bianca flew into KY on American Airlines thanks to the Miles for Kids Program. All smiles in this photo, Bianca is adjusting well to her new surroundings thanks to her foster parents, Jennifer and Charlie. Seasoned COTA volunteers, this particular foster family has seen numerous Guatemalan children through the transition to health while in our program. Bianca is already mastering the art of bike riding and caring for the host family horse.

Bianca is being evaluated for her solid facial hemangioma. She was discovered in Guatemala during one of our surgical trips. Due the large size of her tumor, surgery in Guatemala was not successful.

Update on Alex and Angel

These two patients represent the spectrum of care that COTA specializes in for our stateside patients. Alex (bottom photo) was born with a congenital cleft lip and palate. His repair was donated by Lexington, KY plastic surgeon Dr. Andy Moore. Alex has been home in Panajachel, Guatemala with his parents for the last 6 months. His foster mother, Kim, is very excited to be visiting him in a few days! 

Angel(top photo) is representative of a patient who suffered trauma in Guatemala, and had no ability to pay for the required surgical repair. Following his donated jaw reconstruction in Lexington, KY, Angel required a dental bridge to restore his oral function and be able to eat properly. Thanks to a generous donation of many episodes of dental care from Dr. Steve Hieronymus and his wife Mary, Angel was supplied with a custom-made bridge this January. 

These two boys are from the same area of Guatemala, but had very different medical issues. COTA is very fortunate to have a dedicated multi-specialty group of medical and dental volunteers to assist us in meeting the complex needs of our stateside patients. 

Cintia and Jose have a play date

Maria's Miracle in New Jersey

Maria is seen at left happily resting in her foster father's lap as she enjoys being the center of attention in her New Jersey foster home. Warren and Beverly have fostered three children through COTA. Their medical connections in the community have enabled all three children to obtain donated surgical and medical care that was not available to them in Guatemala.

Two special ladies

Litzi, our patient from Bolivia, enjoyed a special evening recently with both of her foster mothers. Wendy, pictured on the right, fostered Litzi for COTA during a difficult year of burn care, surgeries at Shriners in Cincinnati and physical therapy. It was a demanding and critical time for Litzi to be in loving and talented hands in order to get her through the medical needs of her third degree burns. Wendy did an amazing job while working full-time. 

The transition two years ago to her second foster home with Hank and Julie of Louisville went very smoothly thanks to the loving environment that Litzi moved into. Julie (pictured on the left), current foster mother to Litzi, has provided just the right touch of love, medical expertise as a nurse, and determination that has allowed Litzi to blossom, despite her special needs. Litzi is facing several more surgeries to correct the contractures of her burn injuries. 

What a special little girl to have two such loving women in her life. 

Happy holidays to our COTA patients and their foster families

What an amazing gift our host parents offer our stateside patients. It is no small thing to accept a medically fragile foster child from a developing country into a family, yet Children of the Americas is blessed with amazing people who do this for our patients without any financial compensation. 

Happiest of holidays to all of our foster parents and our pediatric patients who are fortunate to share their hearth and homes. 

I recently had the pleasure of traveling to Panajachel to help with an Ob/Gyn clinic, and thanks to Sharon from MayanFamilies, I was able to see both Angel and Alex (our two COTA children who are from this area).

In the accompanying photo, you can see Alex being carried by his grandmother (his mother had just had another baby and was still recovering at home). She brought Alex to see me in order to arrange his cleft palate repair during our surgical team in January. The lady standing to her left is Angel's mother. 

It was wonderful to see both patients doing well back in Guatemala with their families. 

Baby Alex safely home to Guatemala

Our adorable patient Alex, from Panajachel, Guatemala is safely home following his successful surgical repair of his wide cleft lip. Dr. Andy Moore in Lexington, KY donated the surgical expertise necessary to repair Alex's lip. In partnership with Central Baptist Hospital (Lexington) and Oldham Country Pediatrics, Alex was the fortunate beneficiary of excellent care while he was here.
His journey home was an eventful time for foster mother Kim, who accompanied Alex back to Guatemala. The fostering experience came full-circle for Kim as she met Alex's parents for the first time, and was able to receive their thanks in person for all that Kim, Jay and their son Alex had done for their baby. There were not many dry eyes during the visit, and despite their economic constraints, Alex's parents provided a meal for Kim and Sharon (Mayan Families Coordinator) during the visit.
When he arrived home, Alex's mother was pregnant with her next baby. In order to support Alex's formula needs, Mayan Families has made regular donations of powdered formula to Gloria so that she can keep Alex's nutrition in an optimal place for him to be operated on for his cleft palate during the COTA 2009 team. It is a comfort to Kim, Jay and the COTA staff to know that this support mechanism is in place for Alex's family.

Lourdes healing after surgery at Shriners Hospital

Loudes, seen below with host parents Bobby and Lisa, has triumphed through 9 weeks of hospitalization, and is resting in her foster home in western KY. The dedication of the Shriners staff was amazing as they worked through all of the issues involved in getting Lourdes through her physical therapy, in-hospital schooling needs, wound care management and ambulation training.
We could not have asked for a better situation for this child with her complicated leg bone surgical needs. Lourdes is scheduled to fly home in mid-December to a family that will be amazed at her maturity, new health and English skills. Bobby and Lisa are to be commended for their dedication to the many needs Lourdes had while she has been here.

Jose arrives following diagnosis on Team 2008

In January of this year, Jose and his father traveled several hours to find Children of the Americas doctors in Tiquisate, Guatemala. Jose had been suffering with a long-term and rapidly growing hemangioma of the face. Although he is only five years old, Jose's tumor was already the size of a grapefruit and had spread from his upper cheek to below his jaw. COTA staff were reluctant to commit to finding surgical intervention in the United States, since this was a severe and very large growth that would require an interventional radiologist, anesthesiologist, pediatrician and possibly pediatric plastic surgeon. We left Guatemala with an promise to Jose's father that we would try, but we had minimal hope that we would be successful.
Seven months later, due entirely to the determination of April, fellow COTA host mother and busy mother of five, Jose arrived in Tennessee to a group of medical professionals willing to donate their skills to help him. New foster parents Margaret and Scott from Hixon, TN were ready to provide for Jose and include him into their busy household. Kenny, an ER physician and COTA host father, went "above and beyond the normal call of duty" by flying to Guatemala to escort Jose here (there were concerns about bleeding from the tumor with flight pressure changes.)
Six weeks later Jose has had his first round of sclerotherapy injections, is learning English and enjoying life in his temporary home. He has had excellent care and the tumor is reacting positively to the interventions. We are most grateful to the amazing and caring people in Tennessee who refused to forget the needs of a little boy in Guatemala who had no hope of finding care.
Once the tumor has reduced significantly, a photo of Jose will be posted.