A History of Care for Life
Off to Mozambique
Despite the warnings and the obstacles, Cindy and a group of friends felt impressed that they had to go. In June of 2000 their group of seven arrived in Mozambique without much of a plan except the advice they had been given to “speak to the highest level of government they could get in to, and ask how they might help.”
In what can only be described as divine intervention, just a few days after arriving they were able to meet with the National Minister of Health over Planning and Projects. He detailed the challenges they faced and ideas were exchanged. One possible project where help was needed was a maternal and child health project to train traditional birth attendants. He recommended they start by having the group observe a training course in a remote area of a neighboring province.
After two days travel, the group discovered the floods had washed out the only two roads leading north to their destination. They never did find the training, but in the process they witnessed the desperate and all encompassing poverty caused by decades of political oppression, civil war, and the tragic aftermath of the recent floods that wiped out whole villages and left their all too scanty food supply now ruined.
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Naked, stunted, malnourished children, handicapped adults crawling on the ground with twisted or missing limbs, a blind woman with her hands and feet purposely severed in an intimidating act of war, left their group with seared impressions never to be forgotten. They met with leaders of rural towns and villages, spoke to destitute widows and homeless orphans and overwhelmed health care workers. They saw children holding school under a tree and writing in the dirt with a stick. A crumbling rural hospital had only one stethoscope for 4 buildings and no sheets or blankets, only a small cloth to go under the patients head.
Even though this small group of visitors had nothing to offer these people, just the fact that someone knew of their plight seemed to bring hope to them. They plead with the Americans not to forget them – to please return some day soon. Their expressed needs were simple: a pencil, soap, seeds, and most of all - knowledge.
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