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World Missions †
Nicaragua
Bolivia
Guatemala

World Missions

"No one can do everything, so do what is in front of you."
                                                          Mother Theresa

(NIV) Matthew 25:31-40   The Sheep and the Goats
...When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.  All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.  "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'  "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
 

     World missions, doing cataract surgery for the poor, are an integral part of what we do and who we are at Stahl Vision.  Our doctors and nurses have been to Nicaragua, Bolivia, Guatemala, and Honduras on compassionate surgery mission trips.  We have visited some of the poorest and most needy countries and cities in the world.  But every trip we make new friends, and come back the better for it.  The pictures below only begin to tell the story of our trips.  Most of the patients we see are blind in both eyes when we see them.  Many of them have not seen anything for years.  The morning after surgery, when we take their patch off, they smile, they laugh, they cry tears of joy, and they pray with you.  Once you have seen what we have seen, you can not help but come back a changed person.

Our "Mission Crew" in Salamas Guatemala.  Dr. Brian Gerlach, Missy, Roger, Patti, Luanne, Mary, Sharon, Dr. John Pajka, Dr. Brian Stahl, and in the background Pastor Mike Dennis, our translator, taxi-driver, tour-guide, and clinic examiner.  Friends for life.  Patti put up the M.A.S.H. sign post with distances to home for us all on the wall.  2005.

As we arrive at the clinic in Managua Nicaragua, patients line up all the way out the door.  Nicaragua is the poorest of the Central American countries, and most people can not afford health care.  It is 7am and already in the 90s from the bright tropical sun, and patients pack into the clinic hoping for the chance to have surgery.  2002.

Sadly, there is a near infinite number of blind people throughout the world.  As we screen patients in clinic, we triage the worst patients first.  We can typically only do an average of 140 patients during the week there with 2 or 3 surgeons.  Clinic in Managua Nicaragua 2002.

Morning prayer with the patients we did cataract surgery for the day before.  Most of the cases are very difficult, and swelling and healing times are longer.  We ask the Lord to go before us as the great healer and lay his hands on these his children.  2003.

Surgery days can be very long.  The cataracts are very dense and difficult to remove, the ORs are often very hot and humid, and surgery sometimes runs late into the night.  But the next morning, seeing happy faces of patients that can see for the first time in years makes it all worth while.  Smiling patients in Managua Nicaragua with our patients seeing for the first time in years. 2002.

Some patients are harder to measure than others.  Dr. Brian Gerlach shows great patience as he measures a two year old child in Bolivia for cataract surgery later that day.  2005.

Dr. John Pajka from Lima Ohio smiling with a very appreciative patient  in Guatemala who is seeing for the first time in years.  Notice the height difference, many patients are barely four feet something tall.  2005.

This picture probably says more than I ever could. A grateful patient from Boliva hugs Dr. Brian Stahl, 2004.

Stahl Vision- building better vision, one patient at a time...