Day 5: Thursday, June 18th, 2026
The lives of 199 patients were changed during this four-day mission. 118 wheelchairs, 6 walkers, 20 canes, and 18 pairs of crutches were distributed across 125 mobility clinic patients. We saw 44 general surgeries in 42 patients and 30 gynecological surgeries in 16 patients.
For the reflection preceding the last day of our mission, Tony began with a few moments of silence before dismantling popular notions of success. He reminded us that all we can do is be the best that we can be, and the art of listening makes us wiser and stronger. Now, on the final day of our mission, Tony quotes Luke 12:48, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded,” asking us to reflect on our work and accept all the feelings that may accompany its conclusion. As one of the team bloggers, I missed some of the best moments of laughter and tears with the team. However, I absolutely don’t regret living in and appreciating every moment, because this week will too soon become a memory.
I am grateful that I have been able to devote my entire mission to documenting its events and to share my thoughts and feelings with all of our friends and family at home. However, the other 43 team members were busy changing lives all day and, unfortunately, may not have had the time to share their anecdotes. To change things up on the last day of the mission (because I’m sure you’re tired of hearing just from me), I offer brief insights into the perspectives of team members in different roles. While every team member I spoke to unanimously agreed they would absolutely return for next year’s mission if given the opportunity, each offered a profoundly unique rationale. I hope that each of these testimonials will convey a myriad of feelings, and that each reader will be able to read the thoughts of someone they know and someone they don’t.
Aiden (triage) – My favorite part of the mission was seeing the different perspectives. In the U.S., you see these big hospitals, and we already see people getting medications and basic care. Coming here, it’s different from the U.S. because people here don’t have the resources. I feel both tired and sad. I feel like I’m leaving behind a family, but I am so grateful I helped so many people.
Brian (general surgeon) – The highlight of my trip was definitely working with the OR team. They made it so easy, especially Kat and Jamie. I loved meeting everyone who came and trying new local foods. We did a lot of great things this week, and I’m happy with everything we did. Coming out of this mission, I am mostly happy and relieved that all of our patients went home happy.
Elizabeth (physical therapist) – I loved seeing how impactful the list of things is for people here. It changes their lives, and many patients in the mobility clinic were confined to their homes before they were given wheelchairs. Now that they can go out to things like church and into the community, their faces lit up. Under their circumstances, it doesn’t take much to move the needle. I feel like I’m leaving this place carrying a new definition of love. The way communities showed up for one another and made sure people who had no other way and nobody to help them got here. Particularly, there was one woman in the mobility clinic who was in her eighties and a blind amputee. Since both of her children work during the day, she traveled by bus for 6 hours and had to leave at 3:00 am. This is very powerful work, and it is fulfilling—but exhausting work. I’m definitely leaving with my cup full (A Rocky reference that was explained in the Day 1 blog).
Jamie (scrub tech) – I would say my part is that people can come together from everywhere, not know each other, and make it work very well. Brian and Kat’s OR was great. Kat and I knew each other from home, so we knew how each other worked. Brian was very easy and chill, and I think that’s why everything went very smoothly in our OR. One of the highlights of the trip for me was eating dinner together after a long day of work and sharing stories about what happened during the day, since we don’t get to see each other much.
Julie (physical therapist) – My highlight of the week was seeing how hard the caregivers work for their family members, and making their job a little easier. I feel very tired after this mission, but it was all worth it, and I would come back.
Kat (nurse circulator) – I think one of the biggest things that stood out to me was that they still use paper charts here (For context, one patient accidentally took his chart home with him earlier this week, which caused a lot of pandemonium). I think it’s beautiful that we can all come together for one goal: to help one another.
Liz (pre-op nurse) – My favorite memory from this week was caring for patients and working alongside Guatemalan nurses. Since I speak very little Spanish and the nurses spoke no English, there was very little communication in the beginning. It could get frustrating at first because we were in each other’s space and had no efficient way to communicate. However, by the end, we were sharing dinner ideas, laughing, and joking. At the end of today, they gave me a handmade goodbye card.
Madeline (CRNA) – Always, my favorite part is how easily people who have never met each other just start working as a team. I feel grateful that we made it through the week with everyone being super safe.
Mitch (wheelchair assembly) – My favorite memory was seeing everyone working as a team to leave people better off than they were when we got here—and watching the soccer game in the lounge with the wheelchair crew. I plan to return next year. It’s a happy challenge to understand how much needs to change or improve in the world to make a large impact, but it’s a great reminder that you can make a large impact in a small radius for the better, and try to take that back and practice it every day.
Oscar (interpreter) – I like how quickly you can form a community when hearts are together, supporting each other. We have been together for only six days, and we have become a real community. The friendships we made this week are going to last forever. I loved the smiles I saw on people’s faces. You can give them so little, and they feel so blessed.
Pamela (post-op nurse) – I didn’t think I would feel anything until seeing a patient cry. This is what hit the most: she actually really appreciated what the team had done for her in surgery. For one patient, the first order of business upon waking was to ask for a beer. She said, “I love you so much and wanted to invite you all to my house for dinner.” Then her eyes filled with tears, and she began to cry. This hit. What the team does is remarkable. The difference in appreciation from the states where healthcare is a standard is that if you don’t do it right and people don’t get adequate pain medication or care, they go to the boss and complain. There is a contrast. One is appreciative, and one tells you’re not doing enough and wants more. These people have genuine appreciation.
Sherry (scrub tech) – My favorite part of this mission was meeting people from around the country and working together. I worked in the OR, but I thought the wheelchair clinic was very cool because they were able to provide walkers, wheelchairs, and canes to people who had never had mobility in their entire lives. I really enjoyed working with Angela and the rest of the OR team as well. I would definitely return to this mission, but I would bring more dry food from home and be very cautious about not getting sick.
Sue (interpreter) – I believe that, in general, care is needed, and it makes all the difference. It makes it different and improves the quality of life. I’m sad to be leaving, and I wish I could stay a few more days to share more with them. I also remember the eighty-year-old patient who left at 3:00 am to come to the clinic. That was extremely powerful, and it is definitely a highlight for me.
Telfer (anesthesiologist) – My favorite part of the mission is facilitating surgeries for the Guatemalan people in the community. I am grateful to have been working with the same anesthesia team as last year: Chad, Chris, Madeline, and Kristina. I feel very content and grateful coming out of the mission.
Lastly, I was to especially highlight the behind-the-scenes efforts of Megan Craft, one of our team leaders, and all the work she has put into building and supporting this team. Despite all the work of starting a new family, she has put in countless hours alongside Rocky, Clarissa, and Dana to make this mission possible. Even though we missed her this year, she has followed along with the team every step of the way and offered a few words of reflection herself.
Megan (team leader) – I truly enjoyed reading the blog each day. I loved reading that despite so many of you becoming sick that you all persevered and stayed focused on your goal, while staying positive and motivated. That’s what these trips are truly all about: strangers coming together, and becoming a family united towards the common goal of serving others. Each member of the team brings something special and unique to form the perfect team that is team 912. It’s unique to any other team before because it’s the combination of all of you. I’m truly inspired by the strength, commitment, and positivity that you all showed. I hope you’ll join us on a future trip so that I can work with you, but if not, please know that whether you serve once or many times it’s more than enough. This is a drop of water that can create a wave around you from the lives that were impacted and inspiring others to help and love those around them. Safe travels home and enjoy your day tomorrow exploring Antigua.
As much as this mission is about the team, it is ultimately about the patients and their families. While many of us will return home carrying memories, friendships, and stories from this week, our patients will return home carrying something much more tangible: a wheelchair, a walker, a cane, a successful surgery, or simply the knowledge that someone cared enough to help. As we prepare to leave Guatemala, Tony’s allusion feels especially fitting. Each member of this team has been blessed with unique abilities, opportunities, and experiences. This mission has reminded us that those gifts are not meant to be kept for ourselves, but shared with others. The responsibility that comes with being given much is not a burden—it is a privilege. Soon, we will return to our homes, our jobs, our schools, and our daily routines, but we will remember the patients who journeyed for hours to receive care, the families who sacrificed so their loved ones could be treated, and the communities that came together to support one another. Most importantly, we will remember that meaningful change does not always require grand gestures. Sometimes it begins with simply using what we have been given to help the person in front of us.
Thank you all for such a memorable and wonderful week!
Sara Ty, Blogger
Don’t take any moment for granted.”
Rocky shared those words during the closing of our final morning reflection before we headed to our last day at the hospital. He reminded us to savor the day and be fully present in every moment. After a week filled with long hours, illness, uncertainty, love, and laughter, his words carried even more meaning.
That idea had become a theme of the trip for me and many others, and the people we met throughout the mission continued to reinforce it.
Love and laughter are infectious. Throughout the week, both gave our team energy when we needed it most. That morning, the bus buzzed with excitement and was filled with laughter and shenanigans. Mitch, Gabby, Jeneane, Sue, Canty, Telfer, and I played an increasingly intense counting game.
As we laughed together, I felt a sudden wave of appreciation for the people around me. In less than a week, we had gone from strangers to people who had shared blood, sweat, tears, and countless unforgettable moments.
At the mobility clinic, the team cared for approximately 25 people. With supplies continuing to run low, every remaining piece of equipment mattered. Some of the wheelchairs were small and could not be folded or adjusted to fit every patient.
“Give them a choice,” Elizabeth reminded us.
Even when we could not provide the perfect piece of equipment, the team listened to each patient, explained the available options, and allowed them to decide what would work best in their daily lives.
Every patient reminded me how special it was that all the choices and circumstances leading up to that day had brought us together in the same place, allowing us to share even a brief moment with one another.
One of the patients I met was Elena.
Elena has been blind for five years and also has significant hearing loss. She trembles, struggles with her balance, and relies heavily on her family for support. A year ago, she fell and broke a rib. Just two months ago, she became so ill that she could not move at all. Although her health has since improved, she remains physically fragile.
Elena lives in a household of six, surrounded by grandchildren, a godchild, and other relatives. Her granddaughter-in-law, Josabell, has been one of her primary caregivers for the past two years. Josabell began caring for Elena after completing her studies and continues to do so while looking for work. When she cannot be home, the family finds someone else to stay with Elena.
Elena holds onto the independence she still has. She can wash herself, while her family helps with the activities she can no longer manage safely.
Interpreter Jeanine complimented Elena on her dress. Because we had to speak loudly for Elena to hear us, she jokingly responded, “Do you want me to take it off?”
The entire room burst into laughter.
Despite living with blindness, hearing loss, trembling, and limited mobility, Elena still found a way to make everyone around her smile. Her humor reminded us that joy can remain present even when life becomes difficult.
Watching Elena and Josabell also reminded me how fragile life can be. A fall, an illness, or a change in someone’s health can quickly reshape an entire family’s daily life. Yet their care for one another showed how people continue adapting one day and one moment at a time.
We also met Ezequiel, a 15-year-old boy who arrived with his mother. Ezequiel was born with a condition affecting his right ankle. When he was six, he broke his right leg and has since undergone four surgeries.
The first procedure initially appeared successful, but his condition worsened after the hardware became infected. It was then removed. His skin became inflamed and infected, and the bones did not heal back together properly.
He was later referred to the capital for a procedure involving a bone graft. However, the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted his treatment, and his family could not afford to continue pursuing care.
Today, Ezequiel lives with a severe nonunion fracture, meaning the broken bones have not joined together. His right leg is bowed and approximately three inches shorter than the other. Because the condition has existed for years, a brace alone cannot fully correct it.
The team fitted him with the support available and began the process of referring him through Faith In Practice for further surgical evaluation. The road ahead may still be long, but the referral offered something his family had been searching for: another possibility.
Through all of this, Ezequiel remained a curious 15-year-old. His favorite thing to learn is a Mayan dialectic. Talking with him reminded me that he is far more than his injury and medical history. He is a student with interests, goals, and a life still unfolding before him.
Rocky had asked us not to take the final day for granted. Elena and Ezequiel gave those words deeper meaning.
Elena reminded us how suddenly health and independence can change, but also how humor and love can endure through those changes. Ezequiel reminded us that years of delayed care do not mean hope is lost.
Throughout the week, we witnessed pain, illness, limited supplies, and uncertainty. But we also witnessed families carrying one another, patients making us laugh, team members stepping in wherever they were needed, and strangers becoming friends.
As the final day came to an end, I tried to hold onto the small moments—the laughter on the bus, Elena’s joke, Ezequiel talking about what he loves to study, the care shown in every corner of the clinic, and our celebratory dinner together.
We may not remember every procedure, every number, or every piece of equipment we distributed in the days and years to come. But we will remember how people made us feel and how much love and laughter filled these days.
It was an incredible privilege to work beside people with so much knowledge, skill, compassion, and experience, and I learned so much simply by watching and listening to how they approached their work. Most of all, I am thankful to the people of Guatemala, who welcomed us with such warmth, generosity, humor, and grace. Their strength and kindness made this mission unforgettable, and we will carry their stories with us long after we return home.
“Don’t take any moment for granted.”
Jessie Lin, Blogger/Photographer
