We have arrived! Many thanks to all of you who sent us on our way. All of the boxes you see in this picture were filled with supplies, medicines, sports equipment, crafts, unicycles, laptops, letters for the kids and staff, and much more from our friends and family at home! Every box went through customs without a hitch- thanks to help from Dodie, our in-country contact who helped us get right to the front of the lines. Not one box was opened or questioned. It was wonderful to walk outside the craziness of the Manila airport and spot Kuya Toto's friendly face in the crowd. We felt like we were coming home!
Our drive from Manila to Lucena was quite and adventure! We did a bit of detouring and off-roading to avoid an accident that was blocking the entire road. It was a great initiation for our two new team members- Ryan and Kelly- who have never experienced the excitement of driving and weaving through traffic in the Philippines. We zipped around tricycles (motor bikes with side cars) carrying 10+ people, jeepneys (the open buses), bicycles, and vehicles galore. We even drove up a road so narrow we were afraid of wedging the van in the alleyway. Jeff even jumped out to maneuver a boulder out of the way.
The great news is that we arrived a Sankey safely, just in time to shower and see the kids during their morning break. How wonderful to see all of our kids again! There were many questions and much laughter. Jeff is doing great with his tagalog- and the rest of us are listening and learning as we go.
Our plan for the rest of today is to prepare for the medical outreach programs that will begin tomorrow. We are hoping to get done with the sorting and training before dinner so that the rest of the evening can be spent with the kids and staff. Kuya Toto has organized the medical outreach days so that we will work from 8 AM-2 PM, so that we can maximize our time at Sankey playing and working. The kids and staff will be attending the medical missions with us- to act as nurses and translators at all of the stations. It also looks like several Filipino doctors will be joining us for some of the outreach programs.
Please pray for safe travel for our final team member Melissa, who will be arriving on Sunday. Please pray also for good sleep and strong bodies as we see and treat many sick people over the next few days. We love you all and will check in again soon!
