We have had a wonderful two weeks with the Beyer family, and on Tuesday we drove them to the airport for their journey home. (One of their daughters, Kathlyn, is remaining with us for an extended stay of two additional weeks, and we love having her here.) Their trip ended on a sad note, however, when Anita received a call that her grandfather had passed away. So instead of traveling home, they went straight to Virginia for the funeral. Please pray for their family.
In addition to our normal work and ministry, on Wednesday Wanda and I were able to journey over toward the coast with Dick Rutgers and Pat Duff. During that afternoon we experienced a temperature increase of about 15 degrees as we dropped in elevation. By the time we reached our destination things were plenty hot and humid, and this is not even the hot time of year. In addition to the heat we were also exposed to the back and forth verbal bantering between Dick and Pat. Dick had “forgotten” his hearing aids, although I wonder if it wasn’t by design so he could pretend not to listen to Pat. Meanwhile Pat kept trying to prevent Dick from talking while she was attempting to translate:
Pat: “I can only listen to one person at a time!”
Dick: “Just make sure it’s me!”
Our first stop was at the home of Gabriel. He is eight years old and has Spina Bifida. His back has never been repaired, so this little guy has a large mass on his back that prevents him from sitting up with firm back support. Dick delivered a new wheelchair and fitted it with a back pad that is positioned higher, allowing the lump to fit underneath. This chair also has the benefit 
of folding easily as his family takes him to physical therapy each week. This journey is actually a nearly two hour trip one way on a crowded chicken bus, so a folding chair is a great asset to them. We were blessed to meet this wonderful family!
From there we delivered Herlindo to his home. Herlindo is the younger brother of Ronnie who passed away in February of Muscular Dystrophy. He had been showing some weakness and weight loss, and his mom was concerned that these were the early signs of MD. Dick picked him up and kept him for five days so that he could take him to Hermano Pedro for testing. I am pleased to report that he is free of MD. While they are still waiting on a few test results, the general consensus seems to be that he is still depressed from losing his big 
brother, to whom he was very close. After a few days with Dick he seemed much happier and was eating like a horse! When we took him home we were able to meet his brothers and sisters. There are seven children remaining, including Herlindo. While there, Wanda got to hold some little ones so that made the entire trip for her!
Then we traveled through the town of La Gomera where we delivered a load of vitamins to a medical clinic and picked-up wheelchair applications. At this point, it was after 3:00 pm and we still had not eaten lunch, so we stopped at a roadside chicken place for a quick bite to eat. The food was good and it had some tables under an awning, so it was a welcome stop. By the time we had eaten and left we all felt renewed.
It was great afternoon together. I saw that Pat has finally gotten used to Dick’s driving as I saw no tears and heard no screams. However, I think maybe Wanda has become a Catholic as I believe I saw her cross herself a few times as she sat in the back. (Now that I think about it, I think she started that around the time I started driving here.) In reality, everyone felt better when Dick let Herlindo ride in his lap and steer.
When we returned back home we dropped Pat off at her apartment in Antigua and Dick came back to our house. He needed a break and a place to do some journaling so he spent last night upstairs. I just realized that I should probably go check on him to make sure he is not wandering around lost. I think I saw him carrying his GPS around the house last night.
Blessings from Guatemala!
Daryl, Wanda, and the Fulps
