I crammed my two giant roller bags full of Children’s Tylenol, Neosporin, and other donated over the counter (OTC) medications, carefully nesting the boxes together for maximum capacity like a game of suitcase Tetris. I changed out the ice packs in the small coolers containing other medical supplies for our CCH clinic. “Keep Refrigerated,” the package instructed. Easier read than done in this case. But like so many things in Haiti, where there’s a will there’s a way.

I was preparing to lead a very small CCH “Come and Serve” team — two volunteers from the US with 3 more volunteers joining us from Haiti. I prayed over the bags that these medicines would bless other families in Haiti. I felt grateful for the Tylenol and Neosporin in my own medicine cabinet.

This time of year is always crazy for me now that our family has four school-aged children. We are wrapping up year-end standardized testing, appreciating our teachers, playing season-concluding sports tournaments, and preparing for summer activities. Moms in Haiti are doing a similar “May” dance but their steps look a little different. “Get my neighbor’s kid to tutor mine so they pass their grade level exams. Plan for extra mouths to feed over the summer without school lunches. Get my kids to the free clinic now before we can’t go over the summer. Strategize the best timing for when to sell our goat to pay school tuition in the fall.” We are the same. We are different. I am the one with two suitcases of medicine.

When we arrive at EMEVO school Monday morning, I see the moms and dads, grandmas, grandpas, and big sisters already sitting on the benches. I see how patiently they wait in service to their families; to get Tylenol, to get their daughter’s cough checked out, to understand why their son is limping. I see a girl tutoring her little sister with a workbook so this waiting time is not wasted time. So much has been invested in this precious girl, it must not be wasted.

In addition to treating run of the mill coughs and colds, these school clinics turn up more serious problems that might have gone overlooked. Previous school based clinics have identified children with serious issues for surgical referrals. This time, CCH Interim Clinic Coordinator, Lourdemie Eugene, and Lead Physician, Dr. Francois identify a boy with an abscess on his foot. They transport him to our primary care clinic where he is treated and on the mend.

We are so pleased to announce that we are partnering with Alternative Gifts International to expand this program in the coming year. Look for us in the new AGI catalogue to be released in July!

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But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Right now, May is ending and summer is beginning. Right now our school clinics provide the only neighborhood-based healthcare for these kids. These clinics are needed, utilized, and appreciated by families in Haiti.

I speak with one mom who says that her daughter’s skin is much healthier thanks to the medications she’s received over the past two years from CCH school clinics. Dave Pierre, CCH Education Liaison, tells me that 90-95% of parents make sure their kids show up for these clinics. I don’t know of any other school activity in the western hemisphere with that level of parent engagement!

If you can “Come & Serve,” your presence will absolutely make a difference. If you cannot come to Haiti, making a donation, hosting a fundraiser or collecting OTC medicines are other great ways to serve (contact abby@cchaiti.org). Please help us help families thrive in Haiti.

written by Abby Gwaltney, CCH Director of Communications & Outreach