Newsletter - October, 2013
| October, 2013 Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me." Matt. 25:40 Published by the Society of the Good Shepherd, P. O. Box 122, Amberson, PA 17210. (717) 349-7033 |
Bibi is a 15-year-old girl from Honduras who charms people with her smile and determination. You would probably say that this is not unusual for a girl her age. But Bibi has an extraordinary life story that makes her smile a bit more special... Nery, Bibi’s mom, took her little girl Bibi to the hospital for the first time when she was 3 years old. Bibi had digestive bleeding that didn’t seem too serious, even though it worried Nery. Nery thought a “few tests and a couple of pills” would solve the problem. Little did she know it was the beginning of a lifetime of pain and struggle for Bibi.
Instead of a “few pills,” Bibi was admitted to the hospital for five months. Doctors said she had colon polyps. She continued with medical treatments for two years and underwent five different surgeries. Yet, her health problems continued. When Bibi was 7, she was diagnosed with colon cancer. By that time, doctors told Nery there was nothing else they could do for Bibi and she was declared terminally ill.
Nery did not give up. She could not afford other doctors or treatments, so with much prayer and some natural remedies she cared for her daughter at home. However, when Bibi was 9 years old she was diagnosed with transverse myelitis, a neurological disorder caused by inflammation across a segment of the spinal cord. This caused Bibi to lose consciousness, and she was in a coma for two weeks.
When Bibi awoke from the coma, she could not feel her legs. Doctors told Nery that Bibi had only a 0.5% chance of ever walking again because of the damage this disease had caused to her spine. Against all odds, Bibi did walk again, but she still had many health complications due to the spine disease and her colon cancer.
At 12 years of age, Bibi was diagnosed with still another disease—axial spondyloarthritis, an inflammatory rheumatic disease of the spine. With this disease came terrible pain that only added to her suffering. Later the doctors discovered that Bibi had a tumor on her spine that was putting pressure on the central nerve of her spine. While she was still 12, Bibi suddenly experienced pain so severe that she was not able to move. Her legs shook uncontrollably.
Her mother took her to the hospital, where she received strong pain medications. However, her pain episodes kept increasing in duration and intensity. So doctors performed a procedure on her spine that they hoped would help relieve the pain. Unfortunately, it had the opposite effect! Her pain became so intense that she had to receive high dosages of morphine.
Finally, in mid-November of 2012, at age 14, Bibi had another crisis. This one lasted for ten months. Her pain never left, and morphine could only lessen it, not block it completely. During the peaks of pain, Bibi would lose consciousness, and she even suffered cardiac arrest. She remained in the hospital for several months during this crisis, and the doctors had little hope that Bibi would ever recover. In May of this year, Nery decided to take Bibi home because nothing else was being done for her at the hospital. Doctors warned Nery that if she moved Bibi from the hospital she would die on the way home. Because the hospital stay was not helping Bibi, Nery decided to do it anyway. After a two-hour trip and nine shots of morphine, Bibi made it home. Even though she was alive, her condition did not improve. In fact, on May 27th, after 18 hours of continuous extreme pain, Bibi suffered a stroke that induced a coma-like state for several days. Then on June 18th she had another cardiac arrest.
However, to the amazement of many people, including Bibi’s awed doctors, she then started to recover. Finally, in August of this year, her pain started to lessen until it completely disappeared! And that was not the only miracle. She was able to completely stop morphine all at once without withdrawal symptoms. Furthermore, her allegedly “dead” intestine started to function normally!
After 10 long months in bed, Bibi sat up in her bed for the first time in mid-August. Two weeks later she started to move from her bed to her wheelchair. Two weeks after that, she was using a walker to move around her house. No doubt Nery’s (and many others’) prayers were heard. Nery and Bibi are both grateful for the wonderful miracles God has done in Bibi’s life and they are trusting God will continue to heal Bibi (she still has a tumor in her spine) and provide for them. Nancy Barahona
Our Meeting With Bibi
The account above was written by our Honduran correspondent, Nancy Barahona. Having heard Bibi’s life story, Deborah and I were looking forward to meeting her when we went down to Honduras in September, 2013. Having heard the account of Bibi’s health struggles, I was expecting to meet someone who was surviving in a hapless, pitiful condition. In fact, I was afraid she might even be in a semi-vegetable state.
So imagine my surprise when instead I met a lovely, bright, cheerful girl who holds herself with regal posture. I almost felt like I was in the presence of a princess. I had been expecting to converse with Bibi using my woeful Spanish. But to my surprise, I quickly discovered that her English was far better than my Spanish. It turns out that between her times of being in the hospital or bedridden, Bibi has been attending a local bilingual school. Bibi is a very smart, diligent student, and despite the terrific health challenges she has gone through, she has been at the top of her class academically. In fact, she is hoping to eventually become a doctor. Deborah and I found Bibi to be very gracious, optimistic and charming. We didn’t hear a single complaint from her while we were with her. In fact, if it wasn’t for the fact that she was sitting in a wheelchair, I would have assumed that Bibi was an ordinary—or perhaps I should say, extraordinary—teenage girl. She even recited poetry to us that she had composed. She also played some hymns for us on a small electronic keyboard that someone had given to her.
If I had not known that Bibi had been out of bed for only a few weeks before our visit—and that she had been in a coma just a few months ago—I would never have believed it!
Who Is Paying for Bibi’s Medical Care?
You may be wondering who has paid for all of Bibi’s extensive medical care. Thankfully, the Honduran government offers free medical care at public hospitals. So all of Bibi’s hospital bills have been paid for by the state.
And, to be sure, the doctors in Honduras are very competent. But the hospitals and clinics often lack the diagnostic equipment that is taken for granted in the U.S. All of the doctors I’ve met in Honduras are severely overworked. Plus many treatments, medical exams and medications are not available for free—especially expensive and rare ones. So Bibi has not received the same treatment she would have received if her parents had been wealthy—nor the treatment she would have received in the States.
Family Finances
Bibi and her mother Nery are among the poorest of the poor in Honduras. Bibi’s father left when she was a small baby and she has never seen him since. Nery has survived with the little part-time work she has been able to do. However, taking care of Bibi has been a full-time job. Bibi and her mother live in a village on the outskirts of Siguatepeque. This village has no public hospitals nearby. So Nery and Bibi have to travel for at least two hours each way to get to the nearest public hospital, which is in Comayagua.
For several years now, the Society of the Good Shepherd has been providing Nery and Bibi with monthly support of $50, which Nery and Bibi have stretched to cover their basic needs. The Society plans to continue to provide this support until such time as Bibi and Nery are completely on their feet. To top matters off, Nery herself has had serious medical issues, which she has largely disregarded because of focusing on Bibi’s health. She, too, has cancer and also a rare infection throughout her body that doctors are still studying. As a result of these medical problems, Nery has anemia, low blood pressure, lung issues, and has lost sight in one eye.
In spite of all these health issues that would weigh most people down, Nery and Bibi have remained cheerful and strong in Christ. They have been examples to all of us in faith, love and prayer.
How Can You Help?
We come across so many needs when we are in Honduras, that sometimes I simply feel overwhelmed by them. Thankfully, we serve a God who is much greater than any of the problems His people face. And we have an army of fellow Kingdom believers who care about people like Bibi. Here are some specific things you can do on behalf of Bibi:
1. Prayer. It seems quite apparent that the only reason Bibi is still alive is because of all the people interceding for her. And we have no doubt that there will be many more prayers lifted on behalf of Bibi after this newsletter goes out—which we very much appreciate. But what Bibi really needs is a number of people who will persevere in prayer for her. So would you consider adding Bibi to your prayer list and pray for her regularly for at least the next 12 months?
Bibi’s medical needs are a lot greater than the Society’s resources. So we specifically need for you to pray for God’s miraculous intervention and His healing on Bibi’s behalf.
2. Time. It would not surprise me if somewhere there is a ministry or secular benevolent organization that would have the resources to bring Bibi to the U. S. to receive the specialized medical care she needs. However, I don’t know who this ministry or organization would be. If you have access to the Internet, would you be willing to devote some time on behalf of Bibi to research this out? It would be a wonderful thing you could do for Bibi.
If you are willing to do such research, you can call us at (717) 349-7033 or email us at goodshepherd@scrollpublishing.com to let us know. Or, if you would prefer, you can do some digging first and then get in touch with us if you uncover an organization that can maybe help her. Either way, if you need further information about Bibi, we can hopefully provide this for you.
3. Other. If you’ve given any donations to the Society in the last few years, unless they were earmarked for a particular project, you’ve been helping to provide monthly support to Bibi and Nery without realizing it. They (and we) thank you for this. If you would also care to make a special one-time gift to Bibi, just send it to the Society and let us know that it is a special gift for Bibi. We will make sure she gets it.
It would also mean a lot to Bibi, if you wrote her a personal letter or card to let her know that you have read her story and are praying and thinking of her. You can send such letters and cards to the Society at the address below, and we will see that your letter or card gets hand delivered to Bibi. Thanks so much. David Bercot
The Society of the Good Shepherd, P. O. Box 122, Amberson, PA 17210 • (717) 349-7033
Click on the following link if you would care to make a donation to the work in Honduras: Donations
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