Health Bridges International

  • Who We Are
    • Mission
    • Model
    • Pillars
    • Our Team
    • Our Founders
    • Board of Directors >
      • Dr. Wayne Centrone | President
      • Dean Boyer | Vice President
      • Lee Centrone | Treasurer
      • Dr. Robert Gehringer | Medical Director
      • Benjamin Grass
      • Margaret Hendrix
      • Stephen Manning
      • Tracey Chernay
      • Patrick Flanagan
      • Monte Roulier
    • Partners
  • Documentary
  • COVID-19 Updates for Perú
  • Projects
    • Training >
      • NRP Train-the-Trainer Program
      • Programa de Reanimación Neonatal
      • Materiales de Programe
      • Blog de RCP Neonatal
    • Consulting >
      • Girasoles Home for Abandoned Youth
      • Girasoles Sanos Cycling Team
    • Connecting >
      • Anemia Prevention and Treatment Project
      • Ines Project for Medically Fragile Children
    • Serving >
      • Team Perú Outreach
  • Get Involved
    • Updates
    • Corporate Support
    • Qualified Charitable Distribution
    • Support the Girasoles Sanos Homes
    • Targeted Funding Requests >
      • Anemia Project
      • Guardian Angel Program
      • Compassion Fund - Vida y Compasión
      • NRP Train-the-Trainer
    • Volunteer
    • Events >
      • A Bridge to Change Event
      • A Bridge to Hope Event
      • 2020 A Bridges to Change Benefit Dinner
      • Adventure Run
    • Contact Us
    • Donor Impact Reports >
      • Donor Impact Report 2016
      • Donor Impact Report 2017
      • Donor Impact Report 2018
      • Donor Impact Report 2019
      • Donor Impact Report 2020
  • Blog
  • Donate
  • Who We Are
    • Mission
    • Model
    • Pillars
    • Our Team
    • Our Founders
    • Board of Directors >
      • Dr. Wayne Centrone | President
      • Dean Boyer | Vice President
      • Lee Centrone | Treasurer
      • Dr. Robert Gehringer | Medical Director
      • Benjamin Grass
      • Margaret Hendrix
      • Stephen Manning
      • Tracey Chernay
      • Patrick Flanagan
      • Monte Roulier
    • Partners
  • Documentary
  • COVID-19 Updates for Perú
  • Projects
    • Training >
      • NRP Train-the-Trainer Program
      • Programa de Reanimación Neonatal
      • Materiales de Programe
      • Blog de RCP Neonatal
    • Consulting >
      • Girasoles Home for Abandoned Youth
      • Girasoles Sanos Cycling Team
    • Connecting >
      • Anemia Prevention and Treatment Project
      • Ines Project for Medically Fragile Children
    • Serving >
      • Team Perú Outreach
  • Get Involved
    • Updates
    • Corporate Support
    • Qualified Charitable Distribution
    • Support the Girasoles Sanos Homes
    • Targeted Funding Requests >
      • Anemia Project
      • Guardian Angel Program
      • Compassion Fund - Vida y Compasión
      • NRP Train-the-Trainer
    • Volunteer
    • Events >
      • A Bridge to Change Event
      • A Bridge to Hope Event
      • 2020 A Bridges to Change Benefit Dinner
      • Adventure Run
    • Contact Us
    • Donor Impact Reports >
      • Donor Impact Report 2016
      • Donor Impact Report 2017
      • Donor Impact Report 2018
      • Donor Impact Report 2019
      • Donor Impact Report 2020
  • Blog
  • Donate

Walking Alongside - Wayne Centrone

18/5/2018

1 Comment

 
PictureThe street outside of Liliah's home.
I'm just back from another trip to Perú. The trip involved meetings and work on a number of projects. One of our partners on the Anemia Project made a trip across the Atlantic to learn more about the work of HBI. Entia, a London based medical device manufacturer, joined us for a week of meetings, trainings and site visits.

After an intense few days of trainings and project meetings in Arequipa under the watchful guidance of Karen Falkenstein (HBI's Director of Nursing and Evaluation), the Entia team flew to Lima to meet with myself and additional HBI staff.

We met and discussed the work of HBI and Entia. We talked about our organizational missions and the histories of our development. Then we visited some of the families enrolled in the Ines Project.

Liliah (not her real name) and her four children live in a home owned by her estranged husband's family. Liliah's husband left her and her four children a couple of years ago, when it became apparent two of their children were suffering from significant developmental and genetic challenges. Liliah lives in a small partially dirt floor room, sectioned off with heavy blankets hug from the wooden ceiling. She has no running water or sewage. And, with only limited access to electricity, no more than a couple of hours a day, life is a constant struggle.

Two of her children are enrolled in the Ines Project. Both suffer from what appear to be inherited metabolic disorders. Despite numerous tests and visits with some of the top specialists in the country, no diagnoses have been established. All the while, Liliah struggles every day to find a few hours of work to provide a meager amount of money to keep her family together.

Liliah and her children have been enrolled in the Ines Project for a few months. Over that time, the team has worked hard to help Liliah gain access to specialists, arrange day care services, coordinate transportation to appointments, and support her in learning to advocate for the longterm needs of her special needs children. 

This is not easy work. It requires a continuous commitment to showing up. The team makes weekly visits. Fanny and Gabby, the two nurse care coordinators on the Ines Project, often meet Liliah at medical appointments. Through partnerships with other non-governmental organizations and the Anglican Church of Perú, we've been able to connect Liliah with volunteers to help with childcare, provide modest financial support and offer mentoring and tutoring. As Liliah has gained more and more trust in the Ines Project team, she has invited us to become a part of her life. She has invited us to walk alongside her in her journey. 

​When we got back to the HBI office after our visit with Liliah, I asked our partners from Entia what they thought about the experience. Millie Clive-Smith, Chief Operations Officer and co-founder of Entia, said the experience gave her a concrete understanding of the work of HBI. She said visiting with Liliah and her children offered her a direct way to "see how building bridges of support, collaboration and compassion empowers people to change their own lives." 

Our work, from helping partners structure training and service delivery models to advocating with families living with children experiencing disabilities, is about empowering people and communities to be their own change agents. It's work fully grounded in humility and compassion. And, perhaps most importantly - it means we must walk alongside one another in this great journey.

We're just getting started. 

Thank you for your continued support. 

1 Comment
Micah
19/5/2018 03:05:31

What a powerful post - Thank you for sharing the story of Liliah’s family and how HBI is helping them to be their own change agents! It is so powerful and it seems the impact was felt by your corporate partner also. Exceptional!

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    HBI Blog

    The HBI Blog is a rotating journal from our staff. Our Blog is a series of messages from the field, insights from our work, and lessons in service.

    Archives

    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

© COPYRIGHT Health Bridges International, Inc. 2019 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.