Last week Angela, our National Development Director, was on vacation with her family in Mexico, and she sent our staff the following email:
My family and I have had a great time soaking up the Yucatán sun. We couldn’t miss the opportunity to visit the amazing Mayan Ruins of Chichen Itza, which was one of the largest Mayan cities located in the eastern portion of Yucatán state in Mexico.
It took 2.5 hours on a bus to arrive to our destination. The road trip reminded me of many mission trips I’ve been on because we got to see the “true” Mexico away from all the resorts along the beach.
Along the way one of our stops was in the small town of Valladolid. This is where you will see the majority of the townspeople still using the typical dress of the Mayans, and the buildings around the Main Plaza painted pastel colors.
Most of the tourists went shopping while we were eager to see the very old Catholic Church of San Servacio since it was Sunday and a service was going on. As we walked out of the church we encountered a young man seated in one of our GEN_2 wheelchairs! It was such an amazing moment for me to find him randomly. Luiz was 24 years old and couldn’t really talk. He had gotten into a really bad fight and lost his ability to walk 10 years earlier. He got his wheelchair 4 years earlier. You could tell he has a lot of miles on it. His mother was sitting behind him. We chatted for several minutes. For me it was so special because my kids and hubby got to see our work in action. My kids got to see firsthand what we do. Thank you everyone for all your hard work!!!
And thank you for your generous support that makes each and every wheelchair a life-changing reality for people around the world.
Blessings,
Don Schoendorfer
