Mobile Humanitarian Care Unit - You can help make it happen!

In my previous post, I mentioned having to rent a van and driver because the convent vehicle had not been reliable for our use visiting the remote leper villages.

I thought I would explain that issue with the use of pictures.

Their current vehicle is a 1995 Mekong 4 x 4. It was only produced for a couple years in Vietnam and replacement parts are not readily available.


The one day we did use it to go to a leper village was a real challenge. There is an ever so slight slope going up out of the convent grounds. The driver would rev it up, put it into gear and we would lurch forward only to have the car stall. Again and again he would go through this procedure as we inched up the incline until we finally reached level ground and could proceed forward. I was sure we were just going to "blow" the engine trying to get to the top of that hill.


This is definitely not the type of vehicle you want to rely upon when you go to the remote locations to visit these leper villages.



This group of sisters services 68 villages with 700 lepers. The nearest of these villages is 10 km (6 miles)and the farthest is 80 km (50 miles) from Pleiku city. They have a total of 29 sisters who can make these visits.

However, their ability to visit and deliver the food, medicine, bandages and medical care the people need is seriously hampered by the condition of this vehicle.

Currently they travel to the more remote villages on motorbikes and are restricted to what they can carry to take in to tend to them.

If the roads are in good shape and wide enough, they will take a large cargo van that they have to carry any food they are delivering. However the cargo van is limited to two people so they end up still with nuns traveling by motorbike as well.

If they have visitors, they end up renting a passenger van and driver to make the trip but that is not economically feasible for the more regular visits they need to be making to each of these villages.

Our long range plans are to figure out how to obtain a better vehicle for their use...in doing so we could assure that 700 lepers and their families would be receiving the loving care of these nuns.

I picture a mobile humanitarian care unit of sorts, bringing them

LEPER BANDAGES



MEDICAL CARE FOR THEIR WOUNDS




MEDICINES FOR LEPROSY AS WELL AS MORE COMMON AILMENTS


LIFE SAVING FOOD SUPPLIES









It is possible and would really make the difference for these people. If you would like to help assure regular deliver of food, medicine and wound care to these lepers, send your donation to The D.O.V.E. Fund, P.O. Box 350741, Toledo, Ohio 43635 with the notation of "Bandage Brigade".