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Helping with hand and heart

Community

Special to the Chief

Throughout our entire 13,271-km journey from Squamish into the heart of the Central Highlands of Guatemala, we found no road more challenging than the final 47-km stretch of rock, gravel and dust on the way to the small village of Nuevo Eden.

Our motorcycles sputtered in the high altitude, as we switch backed our way nearly 8,000 feet up a steep mountain pass through a series of rapidly changing road conditions. From soft dirt to hard, jarring ruts, around tight corners and across narrow bridges - the road demanded every bit of effort and concentration from behind our helmeted heads.

The striking scenery of pine forests and tumbling ridgelines distracted our attention from the frequent avoidance of pigs, dogs, roosters, chickens, goats, cows, horses and the steady flow of pedestrian traffic that characterizes life in rural Guatemala.

Our destination was Nuevo Eden, a secluded mountain village home to just 25 families with a total population of 138, and site of the Squamish Rotary Club's Centennial Project for 2005. Prior to our Oct. 1, 2004 departure from Squamish, Nuevo Eden was our only planned destination on our way to South America. We had made arrangements with Ueli Liechti, Squamish Rotary Club member and co-ordinator of the project, to volunteer our hands and hearts to help in the construction of a much-needed medical clinic. We had no idea of when we would arrive, we simply wanted to help anyway we could.

Spearheaded by Liechti in 1999, 'Casa de Colibri' (or Hummingbird House), as the project is known, was instigated to help the medical needs of the people of Nuevo Eden and many of the 6,000 inhabitants of 22 surrounding villages where necessary medical assistance is almost unattainable. For those seeking medical attention, the nearest clinic is a bone-jarring, three-hour 4x4 trip to the nearest city of Barillas, and is by no means free.

"Guatemala, like other 'poor' nations," said Liechti, "has no public universal healthcare in rural areas. Our goal is to establish first aid diagnostic services and to provide pediatric training of midwives, health through cleanliness, and the training of health providers."

Pregnancy complications are one of the primary reasons for the project. If an emergency cesarean section operation is required, it can cost between 5,000-6,000 Quetzales (about $900CDN) for the procedure. With the average daily wage for indigenous Guatemalans an abysmal three to four dollars, it is often simply not an option.

Most of the village population, the majority of which are men and boys, earn a living by venturing off into the hills to cut, chop and collect firewood every morning. By securing huge bundles together with rope and carrying the load from straps on their heads, they then begin the long walk back to the village. Children as young as five can be seen emerging from the forest after a day's work. Some of the wood is used to fuel fires for cooking, while the remainder is neatly piled in front of their homes to be sold to trucks that enter the village each day. Women also earn money by making strikingly colourful clothing by hand, which is worn by most of the country's Indian population. When they head off to the markets of Barillas to sell their goods, they bring with them any surplus of produce that hasn't already been sold or traded within the community.

But amongst mountainous terrain difficult to cultivate and the relative newness of the village (it was government-formed in 1999) - a surplus of produce is rarely seen. Orange and avocado trees have not yet matured, and maize is the only crop cultivated. Bananas are the only immediate source of fruit, and vegetables are rarely present. Small clusters of green onions and other wild vegetables of the jungle are gathered on a frequent basis, but are limited in quantity. Consisting almost entirely of beans and corn tortillas, the nutritional content of their staple foods lack many of the essential vitamins and nutrients necessary for balanced health. Tomatoes, potatoes, squash, peppers, carrots, broccoli and avocado are only purchased from Barillas when a family's paltry budget allows them the luxury. But on their meagre daily wage, such luxuries are few and far between.

"Many of the children get worms, high fevers and infections because of not eating healthy or not eating enough," said Maria, 29, a local resident who chooses to live in Nuevo Eden because of its stunning natural setting. "Some people don't know who to ask or what to do when a problem arises," she said. "We've always needed something like this. It's too far to go to the city and too expensive."

Edmundo Perduo, Casa de Colibri's local Mayan promoter, has spent the past few months gathering census information to provide project planners with a better understanding of the personal needs of the Mayan population in the region.

"There are no doctors and no free medical attention in this area," said Perduo. "It's a long way to Barillas and women have died halfway there from pregnancy complications. It's a serious problem if the baby is in the wrong position."

When we arrived at Nuevo Eden in late afternoon - stinky, sweaty and wearing a mask of caked-on dust - we were greeted by a horde of smiling children, most of whom we would get to know on a first-name basis during our five-day stay. They gathered around our bikes, peppering us with questions about where we came from, what our names were, and how long we were going to stay. A woman soon approached us, wearing a bright smile complemented by the colours of her traditional Guatemalan dress.

"Bienvenidos a nuestros Aldea," she said, gently shaking our hands. "Welcome to our village." She sent one of the boys off to get the keys to unlock our wood-planked cabin; a rustic little affair, round in shape with wooden beds, a smooth concrete floor and a small attached kitchen complete with a gas stove and pots and pans hanging from nails.

With the setting sun came the nightly orchestra of howler monkeys bellowing high in the treetops - while a thousand different birds mixed high-pitched whistles with the barking and yapping of every dog from each neighbouring village.

In the morning, woken early by screaming roosters, we had a look at the cleared site for the new medical clinic. A shade of disappointment drew over our faces when we found out that there were no materials available to begin construction, as this was the primary reason for our visit.

However, we decided to help wherever and however we could, turning our attention to the school and the 33 students who learn within its wooden walls. We started by teaching the eager and attentive students some basic English greetings and the numbers one to ten, and the words healthy, happy and clean.

The next morning we joined forces with several men in the village to build a door for the school and an outdoor toilet for the students to use. When it came time for recess, we implemented what we called 'Projecto Basura' (the garbage project). The students were teamed together in groups of three or four, each given a garbage bag, and encouraged to race around the village for 20-minutes gathering as much littler as possible.

Christina offered the teachings of yoga, meeting with a group of women who gathered on the earthen floor in one of the ladies' homes for an introductory class. Many of the women only speak their native tongue known as Q'an ho'bal, so Maria acted as a translator for Christina during her first-ever class in Spanish. The result of the class proved to be medicinal and enriching for the women, who suggested she teach another class for the children that same afternoon. We swept the red cement floor of the school, moved all of the desks out of the way, and a dozen or more kids formed a semi-circle around us as Christina led them through a series of basic poses and breathing exercises.

In return, we had the opportunity to be led into the jungle by machete-wielding children who knew exactly which plant or tree bore fruit. Each evening, members of the community came by our cabin just to talk and learn more about who we were and where we came from. The kids voluntarily washed our dishes, swept the concrete pad in front of our cabin, and practised their English in unison, enthusiastically yelling out numbers and words just learned.

This special little place called Nuevo Eden has little running water, no electricity, and experiences poverty on a daily basis, but the smiles on their faces and exuberant laughter by far make up for their lack of material wealth. In hospitality, friendliness and at having fun, they are rich beyond dollars. At 7:30 every morning, the misty jungle atmosphere is awakened by the sound of children belting out the Guatemalan national anthem. Soccer games in the dirt field in front of the schoolhouse take place every day before dinner, and an aqua-blue lagoon hidden at the base of the lush-green hills provides a natural swimming pool of serene beauty for those who desire a freshwater bath.

They enjoy who they are, where they are and what they have. We were treated as though we were members of their community for five memorable days, and can only hope we helped them as much as they helped us.

The completion of the Squamish Rotary Club Centennial Project is scheduled for the spring of 2006, when a residing Guatemalan doctor will begin treating patients with the help of visiting doctors from Canada and the United States. If you would like more information about 'Casa Colibri' or how to make a tax-deductible donation to the project, please contact the Squamish Rotary Club.

To contact Todd Lawson and Christina Tottle, and to follow more of their adventures, visit www.sunfirefoto.com.

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