A Not-Good Blog

This week did culminate in a new cultural experience for me and one that I would have preferred not to have experienced...a Belizean funeral.

Ms. Augustine, officially the Foster Mother of Dorothy Menzies Child Care Centre, but who could be better described as the director, has been on holiday since the 8th of September.  Spending one's life employed with the Ministry allows for a good long vacation!  She was due to return on the 23rd of August.

About 2:00 AM Friday morning, Ms. Augustine's son died in a house fire.  His house, a wood house on stilts, was on the street behind Ms. Augustine's house.  From what I read in the news, several houses shared electricity, and the fire may have been caused by an electrical malfunction.  Anyway, Michael, aged 33 and the father of two young children, was found in the wreckage in the hallway, having died of smoke inhalation.  The fire started in the hall between the bedroom and the door out the front.

Yesterday was the funeral and burial.  I attended with many of the Centre's staff and a number of the children.  As Michael also worked for the Department of Human Development (and I had met him a number of times at the office), the church was filled not only with family and friends, but also with many co-workers.  The service was held at St. Mary's Anglican Church and was not different from what one would expect in the U.S.  Interesting was that a bus had been chartered to take people out to the cemetery, 13 miles out of town.  I went in "our" van (our Centre has a van and driver), and I did have some momentary thoughts about how many were in this van...probably nearly 20!  I was lucky to have a very light-weight girl on my lap!  It seemed like nearly everyone from the funeral also attended the burial.

Burials are different here than what I am used to, but may be similar to what one would find in coastal areas of the southeast.  The casket is lowered into a cement vault and then covered with cement as part of the graveside ceremony.  Sealing the vault was certainly the most emotionally wrenching part of the ceremony, especially as Michael's little daughter helped smooth the wet cement in place.

I cannot imagine Ms. Augustine's pain, especially having lost her youngest son one year ago to illness. There is a supportive community around her, including at the Centre, but I don't know when she can return to work after this.  The children were so wonderful.  On the way to the cemetery, the 10-year-old girl on my lap seemed to know where we were going.  She told me that she had been there last year for Ms. Augustine's other son's burial, and that it was "a very peaceful place."  It was dusk by the time that we arrived at the cemetery and after dark when we left.  The beautiful full moon had not risen yet, so it was very dark, and I cannot see in the dark very well.  A 14-year-old boy held my hand and directed me:  "a little to the left because there is mud here; ok, now there are rocks; now we'll just walk toward the light in the van over there!"  So sweet!  How lucky I am to have them in my life, and they will be the support for Ms. Augustine when she returns.

Another interesting event this week was the late call that Dave received on Friday to go to Punta Gorda to pick up a child with a head trauma.  He knew that he could not get back before sunset, so he had to arrange with International Airport for them to remain open (they close at 6:00 PM) so that he could land there where they have lights on the runway.  Then he rode to the hospital in the ambulance, which later dropped him off at home.  On Saturday morning, I drove him back to International so that he could pick up the plane and fly it back to Municipal Airport.  He's had some challenging weather to fly through this week, as well.

I am having difficulty getting one of my medications.  I'm glad that I started a week before running out. At my third pharmacy, I left the prescription.  They said that they could get the medication for me.  (The previous two pharmacies did not have it and had no idea when they would have it, though I've purchased it previously.)  But the pharmacy downtown did not call me back, so hopefully I'll get an answer tomorrow.  I'm not sure what I'll do if I can't get it.  Talk to my doctor about alternatives, I guess.  This is an example of how things are not always readily available in Belize.

We have been here 6 months now.  I can't decide if I feel like I've lived here forever or if I feel like a newcomer still.  Given my circle of friends and the routine of my life, going to work, etc., I definitely don't feel like an outsider.  I tell Dave that I have to stay here until the children graduate from high school, and now we have a couple of one-year-olds in the Centre!

This is Volunteering?

I wish that I could capture the depth of involvement I have in this so-called "volunteer" position.  As I agreed to work 25 hours/week, my 39 hours this week sets a new record!  I think the result of this over-commitment is the narrowing of my view on what I might do here in Belize for fun!  Dave, who is flying at the moment, does impact our ability to get away.  I know that my mind-set, i.e. that there is work to be done at the Children's Centre, also impacts our spirit of adventure.  For example, I have not yet been to the House of Culture or to the Belize Museum.  Both of those are only open on weekdays, and there is no logical reason that Dave and I can't go to those during the week!  I make my own hours, and if we had to leave for Dave to fly, we would still be close to the airport!  I think I am writing this blog to kick me back into a bit of tourist mode!

This week was really action filled.  Without revealing too much confidential information, I will try to generally describe the kinds of situations with which I dealt.  The week began calmly enough, so I offered to help "my" assistant in reviewing files for missing documents and in separating sibling files.  In the past, families have been "lumped" in one file, useful when there are four or five children listed on each visitation form, etc.  But the Centre is in the process of becoming licensed and privitized, and files must be individually completed.

I had a meeting with the Acting Director of the Department of Human Development,  with Karen Simplis, who is a social work professor at the University of Belize, with Yvette Burks, who is the director of BERT and in Rotary and who asked me to volunteer at Dorothy Menzies Child Care Centre, and with the Assistant Foster Mother for DMCCC, Marcia Stephen.  The purpose of the meeting was to review how my presence at the Centre is going, results and challenges.  I think the group heard way more than they were expecting!  Besides the problem of 60 children in a limited amount of space with a limited number of staff to supervise and a limited amount of money/resources to address problems, I have been very frustrated with the lack of response by the social workers assigned to the children.  We have had a number of children that have been involved in incidents that have alarmed me!

I must have been heard, because the Director of Human Development called a case staffing for five children, all of with whom I have serious concerns!  16 people were involved at one point or another in this all-day meeting!  Our conference room never had so much action!  And some of that action was pretty loud!  From the meeting, I am hoping that the action items/tasks identified with dates in the next week really happen!

Some of the problems are really overwhelming for the Department, for us, and really for Belize in general.  There are few treatment programs.  There are few places to house, treat and supervise highly reactive, disturbed children.  Where is the 13-year-old boy who was raped as a youngster and who is now sexually acting out going to go?  He is a risk to himself, and he is a risk to our young residents, but those issues are true at the other facilities in the country, too.  Where is a girl who threatened a staff member with a machete going to go when she is too young for jail, there really is no juvenile detention facility that I've heard about, and there is no treatment program for violent youth?  And these are only two of five whom we addressed, and I have one more equally serious case that will have a staffing separately, hopefully soon.

So when I wake up at 2:00 AM to consider what medication might be used and who might monitor the dosage given, I feel like I am not in the volunteering world, but in the trenches of work.  And yet, I wouldn't trade it!  I don't know that I am impacting anyone in a positive way, and I don't know how I will ever measure that.  But I feel engaged in a process with others who are concerned and committed, too!  And when I say that, I mean the over-worked, over-extended social workers who receive the brunt of my complaint that these high risk children are not getting the attention they need.  I recognize that the social workers are struggling, too.  While I think that there may exist some systemic issues, the problems are certainly not new to me.  I found them in the U.S., too.

One of the funnier moments for the staff at DMCCC this week was when I was walking down the long hallway to the office, where a staff member was holding our 1-year-old new resident.  To the staff's great amusement, he pointed down the hall, saying "Mommy!  Mommy!"  (Sometimes I'm not even sure of my own identity!)

Maybe I will do something fun this weekend and my next blog will sound more like a tour book!  At least Dave and I had a fabulous shrimp dinner by the Sea at the Hour Bar & Grill last night!  Perfect temperature, wonderful food, and wine!  A treat after a long week!          

Flying by Dave!

Sunrise from Municipal Airport

Hello from Dave!  Pat invited me to be a guest writer, and since I just returned from picking up two patients in San Pedro now seemed like a good time to give you an update on my flying activities. Besides, she is in front of the TV watching NASCAR and screaming for blood, so you won't hear from her today!

Since today's trip was not atypical, I thought I would share it as a sampling of my work here.  The weekend BERT (Belize Emergency Response Team) dispatcher called me with a recent, critical stroke patient in San Pedro.  I pulled on some decent clothes, got to the airstrip ahead of the medic, and preflighted and backed the plane out of the hangar.  We were quickly on our way, over 30 miles of the Caribbean, to the San Pedro airport.  Due to this frequent route, I carry a life raft and 4 individual preservers at all times.  The elderly patient and much family drove up as soon as we landed.  Not expected was a second unreported patient.  This young woman was doubled over in much pain and was holding a hand-written note from a physician (our medic guessed appendicitis).  So we put the elderly patient on the stretcher, the young woman in the usual passenger seat, and informed family members that we would be unable to transport one companion as usual.  We get very creative attempting to accommodate everyone at minimum expense to the Ministry of Health, but strictly abide by seat belt and insurance requirements.  After the quick 15 minute hop back to Belize City, we were greeted by the BERT ambulance that transported the patients to the hospital.  I snapped some photos along the way today which hopefully will magically appear along with this text.

The Caribbean on the way to San Pedro on Ambergris Caye

                Patient transfer








For you pilots out there and others interested in aviation, I thought I would tell you more about the flying environment.  With the exception of the International Airport and San Pedro (which recently completed an upgrade and runway extension to serve the growing international tourist business), the airstrips I use are around 2000 feet long (about half what we might be accustomed to in the U.S.), with my home Belize Municipal Airstrip the shortest at 1800 feet.  There is no correcting a bad approach on short final; it has to be on the numbers (except there are no numbers) and airspeed to work.  Though the runways are paved, they are rough and there is much loose gravel in the turnouts and parking areas, making protecting the prop a constant concern.  With the exception of ATC radar services in the 25 nm veil around International, all flight is "see and avoid" VFR with voluntary position reporting.  The weather is not usually as violent as a New Mexico thunderstorm, but the constant high moisture (a temperature-dewpoint spread of more than 5 degrees is unusual) and multiple cloud layers are a navigation challenge and the source of frequent pop-up showers and thunder.  There is a welcome doppler radar facility at International (unusual in this part of the world; much larger Guatemala City does not have weather radar) that is accessible through the weather service website. Unfortunately, it is down about half the time (the half when I think I need it!).  Another unique phenomenon is the constant pedestrian flow across the runway in Punta Gorda, including the nerve-racking game of chicken that the school kids sometimes want to play with departing aircraft.  Look at the satellite view on Google Earth of Punta Gorda and you will see the very well worn path that continues a major town street right across the runway.  Belize Municipal, my home airstrip, is listed at 4 feet above sea level, but at high tide with any wind surge from the east, the runway goes underwater and debris is left behind when it recedes.  This closes the airport while a large crew attacks it with shovels and brooms to get the aircraft back in the air.  There is a terrific and much-needed improvement program underway that will double the length of the runway and raise it a few feet, but is likely 2-3 years from completion.

A highlight of this adventure is getting to know the BERT team.  There are, I believe, 17 total employees, virtually all certified medics, that fill roles including driving, dispatch, medic, and training. Yvette, the National Director, is the dynamo that keeps the place going and doesn't seem to realize that you can't do what they do on that budget!  She could be a very successful serial entrepreneur!  Barbara runs the office and handles dispatch on weekdays, but no longer flies.  Dennis is a long-serving BERT veteran who also has the unenviable responsibility for keeping at least 5 of the 8 ambulances running at all times.  Javier, the training director and senior medical advisor to the team, is a professional clown on weekends.  Lavinia is an engaging and energetic presence that takes rotations on call for flying in addition to her other duties in training and administration.  Carla is a team veteran that simply loves to fly.  She usually shuns the headset and chatter and gazes contentedly outside.  Hyram, a bright, earnest young man that soaks up knowledge like a sponge and is very proud of his medic role, is addicted to the flying experience and has determined he wants to be a pilot!  Of course, I am encouraging that by giving him training materials and inflight tips on our way to pick up patients.  His interest has been part of my motivation to begin studying for the written exam in pursuit of my CFI rating.  He has even investigated training possibilities in the U.S. and Canada (learning here is almost not possible).  Juliana's home is Punta Gorda, and each time we land when she is aboard she is greeted by a family member with hot food!  I accuse her of making up these emergencies so she gets fed.   Ronya is a quiet, unflappable young woman that cooly deals with whatever comes her way.  Sam is another relatively short tenure staff member that always reassures me that the co-pilot is ready to take over if needed!  Though Dennis and Javier occasionally fly, the others are the regulars I fly with frequently.  This isn't everyone, but I wanted to give you a sampling.

I've now been "the BERT pilot" for just over 5 months, logging over 200 hours in the process.  This compares with an average of 100+ hours a year in our Bonanza the past decade in the U.S.  I have gained even greater respect for commercial pilots and the demands for precision and consistency along with the need to fly on someone else's schedule, not my own.  While the flying is a huge challenge and rewarding experience, the experiment in a different kind of service and my attempts to judge the value of my contribution is the real lesson.  As the leader of Wings of Hope likes to say: "you are not a pilot but a volunteer field worker that happens to know how to fly a plane."

Many of our patients are not urgent and sometimes you wonder if the plane would really be necessary in this case, but there are many clear illustrations of the value of the service we are providing.  Several weeks ago I was returning from Punta Gorda (our most distant pickup point) with a very tiny premature baby and properly concerned medic as darkness approached and a storm formed in Belize City (our home airstrip has no lights).  Yvette called the International Airport and they stayed open in case I had to divert.  The storm moved out of the way, we met the ambulance in darkness, and I was very certain that we had given that baby a chance.  A great outcome to a great team effort!

So goes a day in the life of a BERT pilot!

Clouds on the mountains of southern Belize