Sweet Summertime!

kaileystutzky387

10 minutes ago

4 min read

SUMMER TIME!

At the end of June, we welcomed our final team of the summer—a small group from Indiana. They participated in our clinics, visited the elderly, and spent time with the Missionaries of Charity. I always enjoy having smaller teams because it allows me to get to know each person a little better.

In late July, I flew back to Michigan to spend time with my family. We kicked off the trip by celebrating my father's retirement, followed by two busy weekends of events. During the first weekend, we held a fundraiser for the new mission house at St. Mary's Church in Pinckney, and I also volunteered at the annual golf outing for Haiti at my home parish, St. Pius X. The following weekend, we hosted our BBOH event in Grand Rapids for the new mission house.

It was wonderful to see so many familiar faces. Thanks to the generosity of everyone involved, each event for the new mission house raised over $20,000. We are deeply grateful for this support!

While I was home, I had a wonderful time catching up with family and friends. For the first time, my brother Tyler and I tried a boxing class—and my 18 month old nephew Theo even joined in! I also went to the zoo, visited the Frederik Meijer Gardens, and spent time searching for treasures in the yard with my nephews. My parents introduced me to the Unity Christian Music Festival, which they’ve been attending for the past few years. It was fantastic to bring lawn chairs and enjoy a long weekend of great Christian music, food, and activities.

Another major highlight was attending Cassie's nursing school graduation, where I had the honor of pinning her. It was a beautiful event, and I was so thankful to be part of it. To top it off, my own nursing preceptor was there pinning another student, so I got to reconnect with her after almost 10 years!

My favorite part of being home is going on our family vacation! Vacation this year started out with my newest nephew, Grayden, getting baptized. I am so thankful that my brother and sister-in-law waited for me to come home so that I could be present for his baptism. Up north, we had perfect weather and were all able to be together for the majority of the week. We went for lots of walks, built sandcastles, relaxed in the sun, ate great food, played games and—most importantly—spent quality time together.

At the end of August, I flew back and got to meet Jessica and Adam Carlile's newest baby, Giana Julia. She is a month and a half old now and cute as a button. Before Jessica's mom, Debbie, flew back to Michigan, we were able to get sweet Giana baptized. Dr. Angel and I are honored to be her godparents. Adam later flew back with Debbie for some appointments, which gave me the chance to spend some quality time with the Carlile children.

Additionally, Dr. Angel has been taking classes to become a deacon. We recently attended the Rite of Institution of Lectors and Acolytes mass to support him, at the Cathedral in San Juan. The following week he served in his first mass in Rosa la Piedra. It was a beautiful mass, though a bit bittersweet. Many of you may remember Padre Raphael from his visit to Michigan for our fundraising events last year; he is being reassigned to another part of the country, and we will miss him greatly.

We have been blessed with two avocado trees at our rental home that produced hundreds of avocados this year, allowing us to share them with so many friends! My family wished I could send some up to Michigan!

Upcoming Mission Teams

We are also looking forward to hosting two upcoming teams over the next couple of months, both led by great friends of mine:

- Mid-October: Cassie will be leading a team, marking her first time officially serving with us as a nurse.

- November: Jasmin will be bringing her team down to serve with us, which includes three providers along with a mix of familiar and new faces.

We are so excited to have both teams serving with us soon!

In December, we have another exciting opportunity: a team is coming down to teach our staff and doctors how to use a portable ultrasound. This is an incredible step forward for us, as it will allow us to offer ultrasound services directly to our patients instead of sending them elsewhere.

Update on Projects

The clinic has been going well! We are continuing to see patients from new and even more distant communities. We are also finally taking steps to install the handrails, ramp rails, and window/door ironwork at the clinic, which we have been planning for years.

My next major project is transitioning our handwritten patient records to an Electronic Medical Records (EMR) system. I have been researching different systems over the last eight months, though the number of options has been a bit overwhelming. If anyone has any insight or suggestions, I am all ears!

Additionally, construction on the new mission house has resumed now that the funding transfer issues have been resolved. It is really starting to look like a house!