Fundacion Manglar Maya

The Foundation building on Calle 12, Celestun

Celestun has a local non-profit, unfunded foundation office that is used for a variety of volunteer activities.  Our friend Marie-Francoise Lalande has been teaching free English lessons to children each Saturday morning and Chris started helping her a few weeks ago.  

 

After learning of Christine's background in nursing, the Director of the Foundation, Adis Wonka, introduced the idea of health related education sessions to a meeting of primary school parents and scheduled an introductory session, which was held on February 5.  At this initial meeting, 14 people were in attendance.  The topics of interest that they brought forward ranged from the management of hypertension to diving decompression.  Of the 14 topics suggested by the attendees, all but 2 are first aid topics.Although there is a day-time clinic here in Celestun, emergency health-care in the evenings and on weekends is nearly non-existent.  Calling the national emergency line would connect you with an ambulance service over an hour away so it is doubtful that would be of any really useful assistance. 

Christine sent a letter to the nearest Red Cross office, in Merida, to request their help for supplies and teaching.  Meanwhile, it was decided to schedule the first instructional class on Choking, for Tuesday, Feb. 10 while our friends from Alberta, Kathy Howe and Sylvia Barron, were visiting.  They are both nurses as well and offered their assistance in putting on the class.

Chris helping people practice Heimlich maneuver

Kathy Howe discussing first aid for choking babies

Kathy demonstrates back blows on a choking baby

Fifteen people showed up (13 women, some with their kids, and 2 of their husbands) and they ran two simultaneous sessions.  Kathy taught one group how to help with a choking baby while Chris and Sylvia taught the other group how to help adults.  Adis and her colleague Esa, and Marie-Francoise helped with Spanish translation and they were lively and fun sessions with active participation and lots of questions.

An attendee practises back blows on Sylvia Barron

While they await a response from the Red Cross regarding how they can help us out here, another session on Controlling Bleeding has been scheduled for next Thursday, Feb. 19.  We're hoping to organize some kind of ongoing fund-raising program as currently, the volunteers pay for all of the supplies themselves which really limits how much can be done at the Foundation.  And after learning more about the need and seeing how appreciate the attendees were, we'd really like to help provide a variety of classes for people at the Fundacion Manglar Maya.