Mammography Clinic Commissioning Service
Progress of 2nd Mobile Mammography Clinic
Last week I sent you a picture of the beginning of the building of the mobile clinic. Here it is 3 days ago: 
Today it is all sheeted in. The wiring is done. The mammography machine is installed. Interior panelling is being applied. Interior cabinet work will be done on site and then an aluminium skin will be applied after doors and windows are installed. You may wonder why there are no wheels. They have been removed so it will fit inside the container.(They go as well!). These volunteers don’t fool around. They know the sooner it gets to Cuba the sooner more women’s lives will be saved and God will be glorified.
The money for building the clinic structure came in over Christmas – Thanks to many of you! The mammography machine only needs $2000 to finish paying for it – Thanks to my brother’s legacy. Then as soon as we raise $10,000 for shipping, it can be sent. Please consider making a contribution today!
I am amazed, thankful and very excited. I hope you are as well. Tell your friends. We need their help too!
New Video Explaining how MEMO Cuba is Saving Women’s lives
Fran Friesen of Thunder Bay recently traveled to Cuba to compile a beautiful, informative, and heart warming video that will challenge you to become a part of the amazing work MEMO is currently doing in the area of breast cancer. Watch the video below, and if you feel compelled, please donate to the cost of shipping the second mobile breast screening clinic, a cost of approximately $10,000!
A Little Paint Goes a Long Way!
In March I was approached by a pastor (Miguel Broche) working in a church in the area, for help in buying paint to finish the church they had been working very hard to build. Armando, who knows the situation in Cuba very well, said they were hard working and honest so worthy of our help. They asked for $200 for 10 gallons of paint (Cheap by our standards). I gave it to them and since then I have been getting regular pictures of the construction culminating in this set of photos of the church dedication. I hope these pictures encourage your heart the way they did mine.
It is very satisfying to use a little bit of our money to help the indigenous church in such a big way. Thanks to you who donate and help make these small things possible!
New Photo Album
Check out our latest photo album with pics taken over the last few months detailing some of the work that MEMO Cuba is doing both in Canada and in Cuba! You can view a slideshow here. Be sure to check out some of our earlier photo albums as well.
CIDA Update…. and Our Need for More Dollars!
In April of 2011 MEMO applied to the Canadian International Development agency for matching grant funds for help with expanding our life saving breast screening program in Cuba.
Over the next five years it would allow us to have a total of 12 mobile breast screening clinics which would effectively screen a million women with a saving of 480 women’s lives a year.
Unfortunately CIDA denied our request (the fifth since we began in 2004) because “…your proposal should have been better articulated:Sound Project Design and Integration of Gender Equality)
We will contact CIDA for help in learning how to better “articulate” what we are doing. When the next call for proposals comes we will apply again with this new information and hopefully be successful.
Because women’s lives are at stake we will continue to apply in the face of repeated rejections until we achieve an acceptable application.
In the meantime our MEMO volunteers are proceeding in faith to build another mobile clinic. The materials will cost $5000. The mammography machine will cost $7000. Then there is the cost of shipping: $6000. We are now totally dependent on the generosity of individual Canadians to see this miracle happen.
I quote Greg Kernaghan:
“Either someone failed to point out that their goal was “impossible”, or they simply chose to turn a deaf ear to such advice. In a sense they succeeded in the end because they didn’t know any better!” You can be part of this “Impossibility” by donating to the MEMO Mobile Mammography Initiative.
Our visionary volunteers welding up the chassis for the next mobile clinic, December 2011.
In Falcon village,Cuba, Dr Aurora arrives to begin a day of mammograms. Which one of these women's life will be saved from breast cancer?
Christmas Newsletter
Download MEMO Cuba’s Christmas 2011 newsletter now!
November 2011 Trip to Cuba
We arrived in Varedaro with 16 checked bags thanks to West Jet’s generosity. After 3 hours of arguing with the customs officer we were allowed to take 12 bags of the most useful stuff. The Ministry of Health will retrieve the other 4 bags later.
Lori gave three talks on wound care to Cuban nurses at three of the cities we work in. After the last talk she was given a bouquet of flowers in gratitude.
We asked if they received the dressings we had been sending in the containers. They said no. We then visited a warehouse in Santa Clara where all the dressings and ostomy supplies we had sent were dumped. Because they were past their expiry date they were awaiting an expert committee to go through them and say which ones were safe to use. Pray that the expert committee will use their common sense and declare them okay for use by their countrymen who suffer needlessly for lack of ostomy and wound care supplies. From now on we will use remedial measures to make sure all dressings are acceptable.
The prostate surgery program we began in Placetas is flourishing. The young Cuban Urologist has done 82 minimum access prostate surgeries since we left in June. We visited Saugua, a 300 bed hospital serving North Western Villa Clara Province and hope to support Prostate surgery there as well. They are also asking for help with arthroscopy and laproscopic abdominal surgery.
We visited the psychiatric hospital located on farmland outside of Placetas. This picture shows a small washing machine that does all the laundry for 62 patients. We will try and raise funds for two heavy duty Canadian washing machines that will help solve the problem ($800). They also need a compressor unit for a commercial refrigerator unit they have ($1200). If any of you have a good chest freezer you want to get rid of let us know as we need several for various institutions we work in.
The Placetas hospital smoke blackened kitchen was washed by the local fire department and received one coat of paint. We left 10 gallons of white paint for a second coat to finish what has been a four year process with some of you actually being involved in helping paint. Patience and persistence eventually pays off.
Doctor Aurora is working very hard directing the Placetas mammography clinic and the mobile clinic. She is finding a very high incidence of breast cancer among the women of Placetas.
I delivered a replacement ultrasound transducer probe used for prenatal checks in Placetas. It was bought second hand off EBay for $1000. New it was $16000!
This is just a little of what we did, what was done and what we learned(good and bad). We have many things we can share that are not appropriate for the universal internet.
If you or your group or church would like to hear personally, contact us as we would love to come and share with you. And as always we need money. Please remember MEMO as you do your end of year charitable donations.
Thanks for your interest and support of God’s work through MEMO Cuba.
Jerome
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- Here you see Lori Owens the wound care nurse and Fran Friesen the photographer, the other members of this team.
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- Lori gave three talks on wound care to Cuban nurses at three of the cities we work in.
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- This picture shows a small washing machine that does all the laundry for 62 patients.
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- The Placetas hospital smoke blackened kitchen was washed by the local fire department and received one coat of paint.
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- Here I am delivering a replacement ultrasound transducer probe used for prenatal checks in Placetas.
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- Smile!
Fundraising Dinner Huge Success!
How do you define success of a fund raising dinner?
By the fact that the food was excellent?
That you met some new friends at your table?
That you were reminded of God’s faithfulness and blessing to MEMO over the last seven years?
That people have been challenged to pray for the people of Cuba that they will realize God’s love for them as their physical needs are met by MEMO?
Or by the amount of money raised ($11,000 after expenses were paid)?
Or that a woman came up to me with tears in her eyes and said “I am a Cuban. Thank you.”
Well, all of the above.
We praise God for moving the hearts of His people to give so generously.
We trust that, though unseen, you will continue praying for MEMO.
The money will pay for container #44 to be packed and shipped Saturday, November 26th with enough left over to pay for
3 months of mammography film which we sent in the last container.
Blessing on each one of you.
MEMO Project: D.O.L.L.s – “Dolls Offering Lots of Love”
Originally the idea was to give Cuban children in hospitals a nice doll (for most, the first doll they had ever had) and have a Canadian pray for the child prompted via a digital photo of the child. For the first few years we were unable to find a champion to organize the program here in Canada, and very few people volunteered to pray for the children.
That has now changed with Charlotte Hutton taking on the task with a great passion and love for the children and to serve the Lord.
Charlotte has also expanded the idea by using it for an outreach to local girls who will learn to sew using dolls as the Club project.
Elim Community Church in Thunder Bay’s Current River area has volunteered to provide physical space, encouragement, and accountability for the program.
As well, Charlotte’s vision is to teach other home skills such as cooking while providing Christian mentoring and appropriate adult love. Charlotte says: With a 4-H type spin on it, girls age 11-14 can learn to sew dolls for the kids of Cuba. We will alternate a sewing project and a cooking project and ask if they’ve had any answers to prayer that week, etc. These conversations will lead to a lot of interesting dialogues and I can hardly wait. Elim will run the project. I am going to mainly be responsible for gathering the adult ladies who sew D.O.L.L.s for Cuba as a compassionate ministry arm of MEMO Cuba and a helper for the kids.
Charlotte asks: “I would ask for prayer that the children, ladies, and the mentors for the children would respond to this meaningful program, that our work would succeed and hearts would be blessed and the children will know that they are loved by us and the Lord.
We need workers, kids, and a heart for the Lord. (We have lots of materials.)”
Charlotte’s past experience indicates that many of these children come to the club hungry: “One of the stumbling blocks of previous Clubs was that the kids come in hungry, they want their snack first. So we will give them a cup of soup when they get to club and then they pay attention when we teach them to make that soup. (Give a Fish or teach to fish). Our first project is set up for the last two weeks of November and first two weeks of December. Of course, these are the older girls from the three years of previous club activities.”
For those of you going on the Friday, October 14th. MEMO dinner look for the D.O.L.L.s display table and sign up sheet. Charlotte will be there to talk to and ask questions. You can also sign up by dropping an email through our Contact form.
Here is the schedule:
1. D.O.L.L.s Project Sewing Day
Saturday November 5th, 2011
at Elim Community Church
260 Black Bay Road
9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Lunch Provided 11:30 a.m., Free Will Offering Accepted.
All Materials/Machines Supplied but You May Bring Your Own If Preferred.
For Details and to Register, call Charlotte @ 622-2611.
All Ladies Welcome.
2. D.O.L.L.s Project for Girls Ages 11-14
Make Dolls and Teddybears for the Sick Children in Cuba
Learn to Sew and Knit
Thursdays 3:45 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. flexible
November 17, 24, December 1, 7 inclusive
All Materials Supplied,
For Details and to Register, call Elim Church @ 344-3391.
Maybe this is the opportunity you have been looking for to make your life more meaningful!!!