Warm and friendly people, beautiful woven fabrics of the brightest colors, smoke rings exhaled by an active volcano, fields of coffee and corn…This is the Guatemala I experienced.

In July, my daughter and I joined three other dentists, one dental hygienist and ten non-medical personnel on a volunteer trip with Global Dental Expeditions, providing much needed dental care to children in a Guatemalan village. We set up a mobile dental clinic in San Martin Jilotepeque, about a two hour drive from Antiqua (Guatemala’s ancient capital). There we provided dental treatment and oral care instructions to 450 children ages 5 to 19. Because this was the third year our group’s clinic visited the same village, the children’s oral care had improved, and it was heartwarming to see that we had made a significant difference in their lives. Our efforts were received with much gratitude and appreciation by the families we helped. It was truly a joy to be a part of this project. The trip was also sponsored by Dentists Climb for a Cause, so as a finale we climbed Pacaya, one of three active volcanoes in the region. It was quite a thrill standing near the peak, about 15 feet away from a molten river of flowing lava.

My fellow volunteers were a fabulous group of people from all over the U.S.  We worked s hard as I’ve ever worked, and I still had one of the best times of my life. So I’m going back for more—a humanitarian trip with the same organization to Vietnam in February.