Disabled in a Third World Country

Eight years ago in March, we were living in Guatemala and working on getting a permanent location. We lived just outside Antigua. One bright sunny day, my husband and I had just had a massage. Without thinking I went to walk into the 2 steps down living room to watch a movie with our kids. The steps were wood, my foot was covered in massage oil and it slid down 2 steps in between the hugh couch leg and the step. I fell and my world stood still. My ankle was so broken the joint was hanging down, kept from fallin to the floor by my skin. I screamed, the kids ran for their dad and our massage guy who was very bilingual. They loaded me into the van and we went off to experience a reoccuring nightmare I had been having for the last year. Surgery in a third world country. Luckily we were friends with the mission pres. for the Mormon church. He was called and we were told of an excellent hospital in the City for those who could pay. TTL we could pay. He also called the orthopedic doctor for the church who met us there. The doc had trained at Duke Hospital in Durham, NC, USA. I had excellent care, a 2 hour operation, a two day hospital stay and 1 month as a  disabled person in a wheelchair in a third world country. No bathrooms that my wheelchair could make it into, including the bath where we lived, a husband who was definitely not Mr. Nurturer, but a 12 year old daughter who stayed by my side and helped me a lot. I got majorly depressed because of the lack of facilities for disabled people and the fact I could not go anywhere and if I did, I was treated as subhuman. Finally we returned to the USA and even tho I had 5 more months in the wheelchair, I also had PT, handicap baths and empathy. I survived as did my marriage. I already had a lot of empathy for those disabled as my PTSD has been with me since a child, but now I had even more esp. for those in wheelcahirs.
So when the Tocayche sweetheart lady, Esmeralda, came into my life, she went straight to my heart. Disabled since birth with a low IQ, she barely walks or talks. We are helping her and her 7 year old daughter with food and we recently got her a wheelchair. When Mario took it to her, the little girl in the yellow, her daughter, cried and cried. She thought we were taking her mother away. Mario patiently [ he is so good at that] explained to her that it was to help her mom get around the house and dirt yard. Finally the child caught on and then was happy.
My next dream for Esmeralda is for her to go to PT and speech therapy in Panajachel It will cost about $40.00 a month for transport for her and her sister who will take her. Please give now so we can take her to the next step.
thanks
Vicki 20.vicki@gmail.com