Getting Settled

After our journey from Catarman, the group convened at Mayor Madeleine's lovely home for refreshments and instructions for the rest of the day. We were given housing assignments and then dismissed long enough to meet our hosts and drop off bags.

Six of us were assigned to the home of Antonieta "Ann" Irinco who lived just a few doors away from the Mayor's. Our housemates included Karen (endocrine surgeon), Brad (nurse anesthetist), and nurses Susan and Debbie. We soon learned that we could not have asked for a more gracious or generous hostess.












After a quick lunch, the team piled into vans or motorized tricycles that transported us to Tan Memorial Hospital for the first time.

Bags and boxes of medical supplies and equipment awaited us!













Our team took over the entire operating wing, which consisted of two operating rooms, a recovery room, two toilets, a makeshift pharmacy, sterilization room, pathology lab, and supply room. We spent a long, hot afternoon unpacking, sorting and setting up all of these spaces so that patient care could officially begin.

By Air, By Land and By Sea

Laoang, Northern Samar was our ultimate destination, and getting there required travel by air, land and water. From the Catarman Airport, we climbed into vans for a 45-minute drive to Laoang. The municipality has a scattered population of some 56,000 people and is geographically divided into three areas. Our medical post was located on Laoang Island.

The vans deposited us at the ferry terminal where we climbed into a series of motorized boats. A boatsman steered us away from shore and across the channel to the island where Mayor Madeline Mendoza-Ong awaited our arrival.








Upon docking, we were christened with handmade, ribboned necklaces and given a cook's tour of Laoang. We made brief stops at Parish Church and the Mayor's city hall office before the group re-assembled at the Mayor's home.

Off to Catarman and Beyond

The 3:00 a.m. wake-up call came all too soon - God Bless Starbucks' VIA. This early start was necessary in order for our large group to repack, check-out, load-up and head-off to the airport for our 7:00 a.m. flight to Samar - one of the country's 7,000 islands. Our cumbersome airport check-in provided an opportunity to become better acquainted with our teammates and to find real coffee for those who failed to pack plenty of VIA for the trip.



After an hour-long flight, we landed in Catarman, the capital and largest town in the province of Northern Samar. A grateful crowd of Rotarians and citizens greeted us at the airport with smiles and banners.












We were immediately transported from the airport to Rotary Club President Joe Lim's Sugbaan restaurant where we were treated to a warm welcome, hot breakfast, and an even hotter karaoke performance.











During the morning we were briefly joined by well-known journalist Ramon Tulfo. Both popular and controversial, Tulfo is a TV host, radio broadcaster and columnist for the Philippine Inquirer. He also has a foundation. Tulfo was in town to explore an economic development proposal to build plants to process coconut water into a base for drinks. Judging by his colorful stories and Filipino groupies, it was clear we were in the presence of a rock star.

Monday in Manila

Our free day in Manila gave us a chance to explore a bit of Makati City, exchange our dollars for pesos (142 pesos for every US dollar), and hit Starbucks for a critical Grande Coffee of the Day. Throughout the city we found armed guards every 20 yards and at the entrance of every public building, including Starbucks.


A quick cab ride delivered us to Fort Santiago - one of the oldest fortifications in Manila, dating back to 1571. The Fort boasts a colorful, continuously catastrophic history, including military attacks, earthquakes, and various military occupations by Britain, the United States and Japan. During the Japanese military occupation in 1942, hundreds of civilians and guerillas were imprisoned, tortured and executed. The Fort was eventually destroyed in the Battle of Manila in 1945. Restoration and maintenance of the Fort began in 1951, and it was turned over to the Intramuros Administration in 1992.

We spent some time walking within Intramuros - the oldest district and historic core of Manila. The Walled City was the seat of government during the Spanish Colonial Period. Its walls stretched 2.8 miles and enclosed an area of about .25 square miles, providing a space for residences, churches, palaces, schools, and government buildings.



Today, beyond the walls we saw the Pasig River on one side, and a modern-day golf course on the other.

After a pleasant lunch we left Intramuros to catch a cab back to Makati City. Along the way we observed local efforts to combat Global Warming.


That evening, the medical team convened at a nearby Cuban restaurant for Mahitos, goat (in some cases) and instructions for the day ahead. The day would begin with wake-up calls at 3:00 a.m. which didn't deter some from enjoying an extra Mahito or two.

The Drilla in Manila

Our 18+ hour trip to Manila was made longer when we were stuck on the ground at the San Francisco Airport. Our United Airlines pilot had forgotten his passport, setting us back 90 minutes until a replacement pilot could be found. Despite the ridiculous delay, we made it to Tokyo Narita, Japan - just in time to scramble to our connecting flight to Manila.

We arrived at the Manila Airport, meeting our teammates for the first time at baggage claim. Besides everyone's personal luggage, we retrieved 19 huge ISM supply bags and 5 big cases of instruments and machines. It took all of us to grab and cart the gear through customs. We then had a 2-hour wait for our local contact, a truck and multiple vans, to show up to transport us from the airport to our lodging. After midnight we finally reached the Asian Mansion Condotel - our lodging for the next 2 nights.

The Asian Mansion Condotel is no mansion, but it was clean, convenient and in the heart of Makati City. We hit the sack immediately so that we could be reasonably rested for a free day in Manila before heading to our medical post.

Medical Mission - The Philippines!

Last winter while I was recovering from a couple of foot surgeries, Tom flew south - WAY south - to The Philippines where he pursued his long-time dream to do a medical mission. His experience was so positive and rewarding that he encouraged me to participate in the effort this year.

We joined forces once again with International Surgical Missions (ISM), a non-profit organization founded by Dr. Paul Radway in 2005. Based in Pueblo, Colorado, ISM's mission is "To provide opportunities for volunteer personnel to contribute surgical care in third-world countries. To support those mission trips by raising funds. To share those experiences with the community." The organization has mounted missions to Honduras and has contacts in Ecuador and Guatemala. We became part of a 28-person team that comprised ISM's 6th trip to The Philippines.

Mission participants each contribute $2500 to cover airfare, lodging and some of the necessary medical supplies. Over the years the organization has acquired instruments, cautery machines, portable anesthesia machines, etc., but fund raising is critical to underwrite a host of consumable items, such as dressings, medications, surgical gloves, etc. Dedicated to international service, our Rotary Club of Coeur d'Alene contributed $4000 to the cause which was gratefully received and carefully used by ISM.

With my hepatitis, typhoid and tetanus shots properly injected, I was ready to pack my bag and share an experience that has had Tom on fire for the past 12 months.