Here we are two years later, and I'm going back to Cambodia! Firstly, let me apologize for being a very crappy blogger the first time; blogging ended up being one of our assignments, but we had a group blog on which two students posted every night while we were in country. The experience was unbelievable, beautiful, heart-breaking, and life-changing all at once.
Q: Who are you going with this time, Kati?
A: I am going with an organization called International Medical Relief (IMR) which has been actively organizing medical missions for 10 years now. Our team has not been introduced yet, but I do know I'm traveling with medical doctors, nurses, dentists, dental assistants, etc.; I will be the ONLY pharmacist on this trip.
Q: How did you discover this wonderful opportunity?
A: In all honesty I have been looking for a way to get back to this amazing country since the day I left in June of 2011. I've considered vacationing in Cambodia, but my heart was never completely satisfied with that idea; it would be too hard to be in the midst of a people still so full of need and not be able to do anything for them. SO I couldn't sleep one night, got desperate, and googled "medical mission trips." When I came across the IMR website I was overjoyed to see not one but TWO trips to Cambodia departing this year. The only one that seemed like a feasible option with my schedule would be departing on September 7th and only staying until September 15th... for those of you who aren't aware of the time it takes to get there, that's two 20 hours flights (there and back) and only 6-7 days in country. I e-mailed the woman for more information, got a response in less than 24 hours, and quickly decided that this would be the trip for me IF I could find a friend to go with me so we could remain in country for a few days following the mission. Sidenote: there were several deadlines for the trip that were literally set for two days after I found it online! Is that a sign I was meant to go or what?
Q: So which friend is going with you?
A: Let me start by saying that one of my VERY best friends from pharmacy school, Alison Warren, is the one who made me realize how possible this trip really was. She simply posted on my facebook status saying she wanted to go, and from then on I was determined to find someone to be my travel buddy. Unfortunately, Alison wasn't able to make the deadlines because of her job, so I contacted a few other people before it hit and I found her, my partner in crime! My childhood friend/roommate for 2 years, Sarah Gay, has always wanted to do Doctors Without Borders and was the perfect person to accompany me on this adventure. Our conversation went something like this:
K: "Come to Cambodia with me!"
S: "Excuse me, what?"
K: "No really... here's the info... come with me!"
S: *the next morning "I sent in my application last night. Let's go!"
Sarah is a Nurse Practitioner, and I can not wait for her to experience this life-changing country for the first time! I've promised her that she will get to pick the country next time - perhaps a French colony so she can use her language skills. :) We've been through it all together, and this will definitely be one crazy, awesome experience to add to the list.
So that's that for now. Here's a little timeline info (it has all happened SO fast):
6/13/12: Found IMR and sent a request for more info
6/14/13: Got a response and started looking for my travel buddy
6/16/13: Found out Sarah sent in her application/sent mine in
6/17/13: ACCEPTANCE LETTER!!!
6/20/13: Finalized/posted T-Shirt Design (took the man all of a day to make it)
6/27/13: Bracelets came in/paid deposit
And to close it out is a fundraising hard count:
T-Shirts: $1190.00 - still have a few weeks to go and money to collect
Donations: $1160.00 (GoFundMe, Paypal, Cash/Check)
Bracelets: $152.50 (plus that's $152.50 for the Philippine families that made them... TOO COOL!)
That is a total of $2502.50 raised in literally NINE days! How amazing are you guys?! We are HALF WAY THERE!!! I hope you all realize that what you're doing to get me there is just as important as what I'll do when I get there.
Thanks for all the support so far!! "Unity is strength. When there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved." -Mattie Stepanek
<3 <3 <3
Kati
