Humanitarian Projects: Our Initial Overview

Sister Kenison, hard at work
in our little office

As we received our introduction and training to our assignment, we were told it was typical for us to spend an average of three weeks each month in the office and one week out of the office. We didn't quite understand at first why so much office time was needed; we wanted to be out working among the people, getting things done! But we have come to understand the need for the preparation and coordination that occurs in support of the actual projects. There is a lot of "virtual paperwork" (online information) that is done for every project, describing the needs, the costs, the benefits, etc. We have a limited budget that has to be carefully allocated among the proposed projects, and so there is prioritization to be done based on priorities set by the Area Presidency and the Church. In addition, we have lots of partners to work with, lots of followup to do, and so on. So there is a lot of "administrative overhead" that goes into the actual efforts!

"La Casa del Señor"

As we entered the beautiful Buenos Aires temple and prepared to participate in an endowment service, so much felt different and odd; but yet so much was very familiar and comfortable. It's fascinating to experience something in a foreign language that you know well in your native language. As you try to make sense of the words, there's a need to focus and concentrate that can bring new insights and comprehension. This was particularly the case for us today as we were asked to be the witness couple. Though we may not have understood every word, we knew exactly what was happening and why, and didn't miss any of the "cues" for our responsibility. Attempting to interpret the language was relatively easy. It got perhaps a little more challenging when our turn came to participate in the spoken portions!

Early impressions of Buenos Aires

As we complete our first work-week, here are some photos and impressions of our new hometown. We're living in the Palermo area of Buenos Aires, which (we're told) is one of the nicest areas of town. So it may not be a very representative sample of the greater city. But it's our home for now, and we see mostly what we walk to within this area.

We love that the streets are all lined with these large, beautiful trees! They take up good sections of the sidewalk, and their roots tend to disrupt the smoothness of the paving tiles, but it's worth it. They add such a feeling of peace and loveliness to the "concrete jungle" that would otherwise dominate every view. Incidentally, since we're just moving from spring to summer here in the southern hemisphere, we're told they leaves have only recently returned. I'm sure it won't be quite as spectacular next winter when the branches are bare!

Project delivery: pediatric dialysis machine

On Thursday 10/10, we had the privilege of participating in a delivery for a project that was started many months ago. It involved the donation of a pediatric dialysis machine to the Hospital Posadas, one of the largest hospitals in the country. Argentina has a nationalized medicine system, so this public hospital has quite a large mission. We were told it serves as many as 7 million potential patients in many of its specialties, and has a large pediatric ward.

Hospital Posadas, Buenos Aires

Arriving in "the field"

Long immigration line!

After 14 hours of airplane time (including an overnight, with uncomfortable and interrupted sleep), it's always delightful to be greeted by red tape - in this case, an immigration line that took well over an hour of standing! Sigh. But we did survive, eventually got through the border check with minimal problems, all our luggage arrived safely, and we actually breezed through customs (the part we worried a little more about). So it certainly could have been worse! We were picked up at the airport by a delightful senior couple named Dave & Colleen Smith, and began our journey into town.

Argentina, here we come!

Loaded with luggage at the airport

We are on our way to Argentina! The past two weeks have been a great emotional roller coaster. We started out with great joy and anticipation as we were set apart two weeks ago. Our time in the MTC was wonderful and inspiring, with lots of learning and insight and occasional doses of reality about the challenges we will face.

But through this time, we have enjoyed being at home during the evenings and weekends. It's been especially fun to interact with our son and daughter-in-law's family as they moved into our home. We truly loved that part. During this time, we continued to gather our mission supplies and set aside all the clothing in preparation for eventual packing.

What is a humanitarian service missionary?

Bonnie and I are serving as Humanitarian Service Missionaries. The second week of our training in the MTC focused on the specific duties we'll have in this area. We basically function as the outreach agents of LDS Charities, the humanitarian service arm of the Church. The aims of our service focus on reaching out to those who struggle, to provide assistance regardless of their religion, race, or nationality. In fact, the efforts explicitly focus primarily on those who are not members of our Church.

The "Latter-Day Saints Charities" organization was created over 30 years ago to facilitate this mission. We have been thrilled to come to better understand their mission; it corresponds so much with our own desire to help those in need, since we recognize how richly blessed our lives are.