Hi, this is Noel Lloyd writing from the Dominican Republic.

Bryce Alan Flurie and I have just finished our first day out in the field getting the stories of kids who’ve had surgery at the CURE Dominican Republic hospital.

We spent our day traversing the streets (always an exciting adventure to us Americans) of Santo Domingo and its suburbs along with Pastor Samuel and Damian from the CURE hospital.  As Bryce and I are not the most fluent people in Spanish, Samuel and Damian served as our invaluable translators.

We had the opportunity to visit with three girls named Emeli (age 4), Ashley (age 4) and Germania (age 9).

We spent about an hour with each child, taking photos and video and interviewing their parents.  Each time, we heard a similar story of despair, determination…and the healing each child found through CURE International.

As you can imagine, it was moving for all of us to be there and hear the parents tell their stories.  And to see a happy Emeli at school with her classmates…and to learn about the progress Ashley has made despite having to learn to walk on a prosthetic limb…and to watch the radiant smile on Germania’s face as she takes her first steps on straight legs.

Germania with her mother, Damien and Pastor Samuel

The highlight of the day for me was to see how little Emeli’s family surrounded her with so much love. Her parents proudly showed us a carefully prepared photobook documenting their daughter’s road to healing. Her parents also told us how her older brothers always looked out for her and made sure she was always safe. Watching Emeli and her brother walking hand in hand down the road is an image I won’t be forgetting any time soon.

Emeli with her two brothers

As we prepare to go back out tomorrow, I’m looking forward to meeting more of these families. It reminds me how lucky I am to work for an organization like CURE.

More updates this week.  Remember to follow our daily travels on Twitter at helpcurenow.