SUBJECT: Vacation Bible School at Kaikan

AUTHOR: Becky Gates, her husband David, and three of their five children - Katie, Carlos, and Kristopher, work together with her parents, sister and family, in a medical aviation program in the jungles of Guyana, South America.

DATE: September 8, 1997

"OK, I'll come right away," I heard my mother answer. I glanced at my watch. It was almost midnight.

I hopped out of bed. "I'll go with you, Mommy."

Ingrid, her husband, Errol, and Tyza, their one year-old daughter had come to our village about five months before. Ingrid was six months pregnant and very sick with malaria. We started her on treatment. Slowly she improved. They were staying with his sister, Lucita, and her family of five. Lucita's house is only about 9 feet wide by 12 feet long. It is divided into two small rooms. Even though conditions were very crowded, they all agreed it would be best if they stayed till after the baby was born.

On the first of July a beautiful baby girl joined the family. Praise the Lord it was a normal delivery. A few weeks later, Ingrid again came down with a full blown case of malaria. She was so ill she couldn't nurse her baby. Then Tyza came down with malaria, as well as Freeman, Lucita's husband.

Freeman has been sick for months now. Despite treatment, he kept having relapses of malaria. Just a few weeks before, he had become very weak and jaundiced, so David had flown him to Georgetown, where he received treatment at the government hospital. Somewhat improved, he returned to Kaikan, only to suffer another relapse.

With so many sick people, Lucita's small house seemed like a hospital. Ingrid was vomiting repetedly, Freeman was shaking like a leaf from chills, and Tyza was burning up with fever. My mother gave Ingrid a shot and started an IV.

The next morning Ingrid seemed much better. She had not vomited since the injection, but Freeman seemed worse. David was making a few local flights, then he planned to fly a couple of students to Georgetown, since school would be starting in a few days. We decided to send Freeman instead of one of the students. Freeman was so weak by this time

Freeman was too weak to walk

that he was not able to walk up to the runway. His hammock was strung up on a long pole which was carried by two men. However, by the time David finished the local flights, it was too late fly to Georgetown, so it was decided that they would leave first thing in the morning.

The health worker fixed a place for him to sleep at the medical post, which is close to the runway. Lucita spent the night with him, leaving Errol at her house with the five children and Ingrid. You can imagine the desperation Errol must have felt when Ingrid began vomiting again. Fortunately, we don't live too far from their house, but he had to leave them alone to run to our house to let us know, and he didn't even have a flashlight.

We dressed quickly with pants and shoes to prevent getting bit by a snake. Only two nights before one of the villagers had gotten bit by a snake on that very path. He managed to kill the snake. We were relieved to find that it was not poisonous.

It was a very dark night, and we both marveled that Errol could have found his way without a flashlight. My mother gave Ingrid another injection and started another IV. As Ingrid rolled over for the injection, she gasped, "Granny, I feel so sick. I just don't think I can make it." Those words would haunt me later on.

Early the next morning David set out for Georgetown with Freeman. About an hour later my mother went by Ingrid to give her some medicine for malaria. She had not vomited anymore, but she seemed drowsy as she took her pills. Because of all the malaria in our village, David had flown in the health worker from Waramadang to do blood smears on everyone. She had gone with my mother to see Ingrid and do a blood smear on her. They were standing under the mango tree by our house discussing where they should go next when I saw Lucita's boy run up to them. They all hurried back down the path.

What's going on? I wondered. I hoped Ingrid hadn't taken a turn for the worse. A couple of minutes later I was startled to hear a wailing sound coming from Lucita's house. I felt a stab of fear in my heart. I remembered what Ingrid had said the night before about not making it. Without taking time to look for my sandles, I ran barefooted down the path and up the hill, praying as I went.

Already people were crowding around the doorway, but they immediately let me in. Ingrid was lying unconscious in her hammock. Errol was sobbing hysterically, patting her face, begging her not to die and leave him alone. My mother quickly told me that her vital signs and color were good. I placed my arm around Errol's shoulders and asked him if I could pray with him. I do not know if he is a Christian, but he quickly agreed. After my prayer, my mother prayed. By then Errol had settled

Ingrid is taken unconscious to the plane

down.

I ran back home and placed an urgent call on the radio for David to come back as soon as he had dropped off Freeman for another critically ill patient. Two and a half hours later, he was back in Kaikan.

Once again we strung up the hammock on a pole. The man who had gotten bit by the snake two nights before took one end, and Errol took the other. My mother walked beside Ingrid, holding the IV bag and shading Ingrid's face with an umbrella. She was looking more pale, but she briefly regained consciousness when we reached the airstrip.

David pushed the passenger seat all the way back, and strapped Errol in with the jumpseat seatbelt. Then we padded the floor with a sleeping bag and placed Ingrid with her head on Errol's lap. David then strapped her in with the passenger

Error and Ingrid both strapped in ready to fly

seatbelt. He tied the IV bag to a hook on the ceiling, so it actually worked quite well.

One of the conference worker's made arrangements for them to be met at the airport and to be taken immediately to the hospital, as David had to turn right around and head back for Kaikan in order to get back before dark. This was on Friday, and he wanted to be in Kaikan for Sabbath.

I'm happy to report that our prayers have been answered, and Ingrid is doing much better, though we heard that the following day Errol came down with a high fever and was diagnosed with malaria. At the moment we are helping to care for her babies since Lucita teaches school during the mornings.

We pray that God will continue to use our little airplane to help these dear people, not only with their medical problems, but also to help them learn more about the love of God.

You may write to Becky at: gates@andrews.edu

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