The Best Experience of My Life (Natalie)

(Note: Natalie is another one of our summer expedition members...)

I had the best experience of my life in Peru. I went there not quite knowing what it would be like and I am a little high maintenance but as soon as I saw those kids at El Bichito, I fell in love with them and it seemed like nothing else mattered.

I am a dental hygienist and so it was my job to give all the kids dental exams and TMJ screenings. Most all of the kids had dental decay. We actually decided that the most prevalent disease among all of the kids was dental caries. But there wasn't much we could do.

At the El Bichito the kids would come up on the second floor of the building which had no roof and no privacy. There we would have them sit on kitchen chairs or benches and using flashlights, give the exams.

All of this was going on while others in our group along with volunteers from Porcon were building brick walls to start finishing the second level. That is not a very good environment for doing invasive dental treatment.

Hopefully there will be a dental and medical group that go so that they can do something to help. They desperately need it!The kids were so patient with the surroundings and also with all of us who only knew patchy spanish. It was fun to see them laughing at us when we said something wrong! But they helped us to learn how to say new things and I found out that they really love "football" i.e. soccer. We were also able to give them oral hygiene instruction- Mainly just how to brush their teeth- then we passed out toothpaste and toothbrushes. We had all the kids gather in a big group outside and then a few of us demonstrated brushing technique while Carmeron interpreted. I think it was pretty fun for all of us. We had one big toothbrushing party.

I hope that one day I can return to El Bichito to see the progress on the building and to spend more time with those wonderful, sweet kids. This experience has changed my life.