Volume 202 | July 1 , 2020

Mirian's Story

The past few months have been both difficult and mentally draining for people across the globe. The anchor that believers have is their faith in God. We know that God will never place more on us than we can bare. The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed many of us out of our comfort zone calling for the need for additional prayer and time with God. During these times, leaning on the strength and understanding of God has allowed many of us to push through our feelings of hopelessness and despair. This is no different for Mirian Mejía, a nurse from Tegucigalpa. Mirian traveled to Catatcamas in March to apply for a nursing position with the Secretary of Health. Upon her arrival, she and her husband were greeted by Predisan staff members and notified that health protocols would require them to spend time in the quarantine center before entering the city. During her time in quarantine, Mirian expressed her gratitude that each day the chaplains would share the word of God, pray and encourage those at the quarantine center. She states, “Thanks to the chaplains of Predisan, we got into the habit of doing evening devotionals to pray and worship God." Mirian also expressed her gratefulness to the physicians working in the center. "Dr. Claudia bought a Mother’s Day cake for all the mothers in the quarantine center since they had to be away from their family, it was a beautiful gesture," said Mirian. Once she and her husband finished their time, Mirian applied for the nursing position. It just so happened that she was temporarily assigned as a nurse for the quarantine center. Mirian noted, “I felt very happy because I was already familiar with how everything worked; it was a beautiful coincidence." Currently, Mirian is serving as a nurse in the Polyclinic treating patients with respiratory symptoms. She is essential to the COVID-19 response as she works side by side with Predisan staff.

Looking Forward From The Past 90 Days

Board Member Spotlight: Paula Garrett Behind every nonprofit’s public face is a dedicated team of volunteers: the board of directors. The time, energy and vision of these individuals is the driving force in a nonprofit’s ability to achieve its mission. Nonprofit boards of directors provide essential leadership and strategic direction to an organization. Predisan has a history of board members that go above and beyond to answer the call to duty. We want to highlight, Paula Garrett, a former board member who has served with Predisan for over fifteen year. Read below our interview with Paula regarding her time as a Predisan Board member. How long have your served with Predisan?  My first trip to Predisan was in early 2007, I joined as a Board member of Predisan. What is your fondest memory of your time serving with Predisan? I have many wonderful memories so it’s hard to choose. Beautiful memories of sharing worship, communion, meals, long drives on bumpy roads, laughs and dancing with Hondurans and Americans together. Memories of watching both Amanda and Doris in their element doing what they do best- negotiating, loving people fiercely, leading others and sharing their love for God.  My first experience was definitely one I will not forget though. I went to Predisan with a medical group from Baylor. (My brother-in-law, Cliff Fullerton, volunteered me to go.) They all left for the mountains or the operating room so I met daily with the Finance and Administrative staff of Predisan. We were reviewing process and internal controls. They were a group of young, talented Honduran professionals. They taught me about Predisan, patiently answered with my questions, translated Spanish to English, and shared stories. As a result, we spent many hours laughing. I quickly grew to love these new friends! I was also able to roam around the Good Samaritan Clinic and see the people served by Predisan. The experience helped me to want to get to know Predisan more and be involved with the organization. How has Predisan blessed your life?   In so many, many ways. I have been blessed with so many beautiful relationships by being involved with Predisan. I could fill a page with the names of people that I have met through Predisan that have positively influenced my life and made my life richer as they have shared their love for Christ and others. We all had at least one thing in common- the desire to help others and our love for Christ. Relationships with Predisan staff in Honduras or the US and relationships with board members and volunteers have blessed my life tremendously.   What would you say to the next generation of Predisan supporters regarding the organization?   Get to know the people that are leading the organization as well as those the organization is serving. Take a long term approach in building relationships and spend time loving on others and let them love on you. I would also encourage them to listen and learn before making recommendations and changes.

Staff Memories with Paula

"I worked with Paula for many years and it impacted me so much how she was committed above and beyond her board responsibilities to oversee Predisan financial management as the Finance Committee Chair. She is a very busy top executive for an international corporation but she always had some time to attend board meetings, make field visits to work and train us. It was a delight to work with her. She was able to combine work and fun at the same time. I am so grateful for her dedication and commitment to Predisan. " - Martha Rivera, Development Support Officer Paula Garret has been our advisor in the financial operations of PREDISAN for many years, her transfer of knowledge to me has impacted my professional growth as CFO, her professional knowledge and her gift of service have been crucial to guarantee the good stewardship of finances at PREDISAN. She is a wonderful person, whom I greatly admire and appreciate so much. - Keydy Flores, CFO

Interested in Volunteering Virtually? We can use your help. Please contact Morgan Alexander at [email protected] for our Volunteer Opportunities. We'd love for you to work with us!

For details on  Planned Giving Options   such as Stocks and Bonds, Estate Planning or through our Endowment Fund, please contact us at  [email protected]

Thank you, friends, for partnering with Predisan.  Thank you for praying that healing, health and salvation will flourish for God’s people throughout the mountainous communities of Honduras.   Sincerely, Amanda Madrid MD Predisan Honduras CEO

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