For those of you who are new to the Horizon Belize Medical Missions trip, I thought you might enjoy understanding the history behind this wonderful event. So here is a little of the history... Dr. Jay Logeman asked for permission for several years to start this trip. It was his vision and persistence that brought us to Belize in 2004.
There were 23 people on that first mission trip. They did village clinics in conjunction with St. Elizabeth Hospital, built a house in San Victor, and offered to do surgery at Orange Walk Hospital.
While the surgery team was not active for several years, the village clinic continued each year. The team asked the government to assign the same villages each year. This, along with other changes, has improved the health care in the villages. This year, our goal is to provide medical clinics in four villages. Along with the village clinics, we have added Vacation Bible School style activities for up to 200 children as we visit each village.
The house team has built houses each year in San Victor since 2004, and in some years they have built more than one. In fact, this year the goal is to build 2 new homes and provide repair and maintenance to several others.
Dr. Mangat, Dr. Logeman, Dr. Kerschner, and Dr. Devore returned in 2007 with a full team of nurses and anesthesiologists. They had hundreds of patients come to their selection day and performed over 4 dozen surgeries. This has continued each year since.
The Horizon team grew from a consistent 23 the first few years to 50+ the last four years. Additionally, the ministry has expanded to include training to other churches.
Currently there are 5 churches sending 3 teams. They will serve 12 villages through medical clinics, build houses, perform surgeries, and reach out to the communities. A total of 369 person weeks will be donated to Belize at the end of this ninth year!
