IMM(UNE) Club volunteers bring smiles and aid to Guatemala

Thirteen University of New England students recently returned from a 10-day mission to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, led by Assistant Professor of Spanish Steven Byrd, Ph.D. 

The trip was spearheaded by International Medical Missions at UNE, known as IMM(UNE), an undergraduate club that organizes short-term medical missions of one to two weeks for students of all majors at UNE.

While in Guatemala Jan. 5-15, 2012, the IMM(UNE) club provided free healthcare screenings and basic dental hygiene in various locales, assisted by a local doctor, and explored the culture with Byrd as the group leader and translator. Byrd was also invited to speak at the Antonia de Marure elementary school about improving literacy and cultural learning in the community.

UNE medical biology student and IMM(UNE) club president Kate LeGrand '14 called the trip "an eye-opening and life-changing experience."

This was LeGrand's second medical mission; she traveled to Ecuador with the group in 2011.  She cited the balance of hands-on medical experience under the guidance of a local doctor, together with the kindness and generosity of the Guatemalan people and the friendships she developed with her fellow UNE students, as the greatest benefits of the trip.

Fellow med bio student Samantha DeMelim, also a returning IMM(UNE) volunteer, agrees: "All of us became so close during the trip. We also got to know the local host families, who were so welcoming, open and friendly.  They prepared us an authentic Guatemalan meal over an open fire.  They had no electricity ... we ate by candlelight."

The group's primary location was the city of Xela, where they stayed at a hostel. From that base, they visited the local villages surrounding the city, either by foot or by van.  At a nearby elementary school, the UNE students taught dental hygiene skills such as toothbrushing and flossing, and presented each student with a new toothbrush - a small but treasured gift.  The group also assisted with painting classrooms in the school.

This was Professor Byrd's third mission trip with UNE; he accompanied the group to Ecuador in 2011 and to Peru in 2010. Byrd said the group made an interesting two-day excursion to two different organic coffee and banana plantations. 

He explained: "One plantation had an extraordinary history. It was a real-life 'Occupy' movement.  A wealthy landowner abandoned the property years ago, and local peasants moved onto the land. They made their homes there, many living in tents, and started cultivating the land.  They finally went to the government and asked if they could have the property, and the government agreed, and they have been farming it ever since."

The other organic farm had a markedly different history, with the current landowners literally paying a price for having descendants associated with the decades-old civil war.  Byrd called it "a lesson in commerce in a foreign land" for the UNE students.

Other highlights of the trip included a hike up the Santa Maria volcano and a visit to the colonial city of Antigua.

But it's the people they encountered, and especially the children, who created lasting memories for the UNE volunteers.  As tears welled in her eyes, LeGrand said, "The Guatemalan people have huge hearts. We came home with so many incredible stories."

LeGrand and DeMelim, who are both minoring in Latin American studies, are already looking forward to next year's IMM(UNE) trip.  While the destination is yet to be determined, the planning and fundraising will begin in just a few short months for another trip of a lifetime.