Mission to Cambodia 2014
from Jessica Cammuse, Nursing student

Today I woke up excited for a new day in Cambodia. I had the opportunity to visit five families battling with HIV and TB. It was very heartbreaking to see these people but also warming to know that Hope, the organization that is with the hospital, helps supply these patients with food and for some a place to live.

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This first lady we visited could not even get out of bed and was so frail and weak.  She could not have weighed more than 50 pounds. It was a pretty awesome moment when her son asked if we believed in God and when he said they did too. Before we left, we prayed over her and it was a beautiful moment.

The last man we visited was also very emotional.  We has HIV and prostrate cancer, he was homeless but Hope have him a place to live. He invited us in and told us his story.  His story began during the Khmer Rouge regime when he was only four years old.  The Khmer Rouge killed his father and mother leaving him and his 4 brothers and sisters abandoned. Luckily, he escaped to Vietnam.  He also told us that when his siblings and neighbors found out that he had HIV, they abandoned him.  The man was so grateful for us as we were grateful for him.  Not only are we helping change the lives of Cambodia, they are changing our lives as well.

Later this evening we went to a nursing party with all the nurses in the hospital. It was so much fun! They were teaching us dances and we were teaching them dances. I quickly learned I did not have the rhythm do do their dances correctly but it was still a blast. We all did the wobble and it was crazy how many cameras were on us. It was amazing to get to know the Cambodian nurses more in a different setting than the hospital. It is always so funny that no matter where you are, if someone has a camera everyone tries to jump in the picture. We took tons of pictures and have memories that will last forever. I loved that we were able to get out and enjoy ourselves Cambodian style.