In Guatemala

From Left to Right: Doug Wright, Julio Fuentes, Lucky Fuentes, Blanca Tajosh, Silvia Lobendahn, and Leone Lobendahn

From Left to Right: Christie Kitto, John Calveri, Betty, Julie Bagley, Lindsey Black, Leone Lobendahn, Levi Calveri, Brooks Shotgunn, Eddy Fuentes, Sadie Blasucci, Tiffany Shotgunn, Christine Diamond, Jamie Groesbeck, and Silvia Lobendahn

Leone Lobendahn and Blanca Tajosh

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Wow! This has been such a great experience. We are a group of 13 and we came together to do great things in Guatemala. The group from both UVU and one recent BYU graduate, Doug Wright from 2FtProsthetics have taken 14 amputees and have built 15 prosthetic legs all within less than a week's time. The Guatemalan people are all so kind and feel as if we have made such a difference in their lives.

But we as a group also feel as if all of the amputees we saw this past week have changed us forever. We heard many stories from our 14 amputees. Some were affected from birth, others from cancer, others from illnesses, and yet many others had been amputated due to an accident.

One of the stories that touched us deeply was the story of 25 year old Blanca, who is a single mom of seven year old Jonathan. She was born with a lower back deformity which was operated on when she was three months old. This operation left her with the ability to walk, but only eight years later, she found out that one of her feet had developed an ulcer.

One month before Blanca turned 15, she was told that she would lose her foot due to an infection in her bone that developed years ago from the ulcer. John Calveri, a Digital Media student at UVU, who is documenting the trip for his senior project has captured Blanca and her story on video during this trip.

Our small team has been blessed with a chance to get to know so many wonderful people, and children who will always remain in our hearts and whom we hope to continue a friendship for years to come. La gente chapina (the chapina people) are great people for their strength, and their wonderful spirit.