Stories from Long Term Care and the COVID-19 Crisis

By: Kathy Petteys, Chaplain with Heritage Ministries

Originally a Webinar presentation on 9/19/20.

I am Chaplain Kathy.  I am a Chaplain with Heritage Ministries that is based out of Gerry, New York.  I work in three assisted living homes in Jamestown, NY and a Nursing Home located in Western, PA.  I want to capture the story of the people living in long term care during this present Covid19 crises.  The Elder’s story I am going to share is a composite of the many Elders God has given me the gift of knowing and walking with as their Chaplain.  

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I know they care, but time is always of the essence in getting a job done.  I never thought I would become someone’s job.

My name is Agnes Rosella Maloney.  I was born in 1936.  I ended up in a nursing home due to a series of strokes.  I could no longer take care of myself and it was too much to expect my family to take care of me.  My kids are scattered everywhere.  Only a couple of my kids stayed in the home area.  I lost my home of 40 years, two of my children died as adults (I had 7), I lost my husband 10 years ago, several siblings and of course my parents.  I feel like my life these days has been nothing but losses... Losing my independence has been so difficult for me.  Then having to have different aids give me baths and take me to the bathroom has been embarrassing for me.  I am wheel-chaired bound. They have so many to take care of it is almost impossible to sit and have a conversation just about the weather or things I enjoy talking about.  I know they care, but time is always of the essence in getting a job done.  I never thought I would become someone’s job. 

I have had a full life, but it is not over yet, I am still here.  I want you to know my story.  I have a story; everyone does.  I was born into a large family.  I was the baby of the family.  My home growing up did not have a television.  I remember December of 1941.  It was an exciting time because Christmas was coming and all my family was going to be together.  My older siblings were coming home.  I will never forget the day that our lives changed forever. It was December 7, 1941.  We were all sitting around the radio when the news came that Pearl Harbor was hit.  I remember my older teenage brothers saying to each other, “tomorrow we need to go and enlist.”  And that is what they did.  We were thrown into WWII.  Christmas of 1941 was not what we were dreaming of.  Three of my brothers left before Christmas that year for military service.  Two came home at the end of the war, one of those had been badly wounded.  We did what families do.  We helped each other out.  My childhood was also impacted by a polio outbreak.  It had struck our country for a third time in 1946. It was so bad that President Harry Truman declared polio a threat to the USA.  There seemed to be someone affected with this disease in every family.  But again as a family, we were there for each other and supported each other and our community as best we could.  Thankfully a vaccine was developed.  

I went on to grow up, get married and have my own family. My husband and I worked hard.  We were a middle-class family and as a young married couple, we did not have the privilege of studying beyond high school.  We had our ups and downs, our struggles and scares. But once again we always had each other as a family and with many friends, we were blessed.  We worked hard to buy our own home.  I was what they call today a traditional housewife. I had the privilege of staying home to care for the family and my parents and in-laws as they aged.  As my children were growing I had nephews I loved sent off to Vietnam.  It was another crazy time in our country.   We saw changes that needed to happen with the Civil Rights moment.  I don’t have time to tell the stories of people I know and the lives they lived.  Our country has seen many changes in my lifetime.  But as always I have had a loving family and a great circle of friends.

I lived a full life and my plan was to die in my own home with family surrounding me.  But the strokes took away my independence and to the nursing home I went to live out the last years of my life.  I had to have a roommate.  My only roommates in life were my sisters and then my husband. But now I was with a total stranger.  I have a strong faith in God so I know He was helping me through with all these changes.  The loss of my home was so hard, everything my husband and I work so hard for was whittled down to a small space.  But that was ok.  I adjusted.  But I still had some of my family and some of my friends who came to see me. 

I love to know about other people’s lives.  I have met folks who also, lost their independence and had to move to this nursing home I live in now.  I have met people who are moms and dads, grandparents, great grandparents, teachers, nurses, engineers, firemen, doctors, farmers, ministers, veterans of WWII and Vietnam, the list goes on and on. Such a wealth of experiences in this nursing home.  I even know people who worked here in their younger years.  Others I have met came to live here quite young due to accidents.

 I was adjusting.  As long as my family could come and see me, it gave me hope.  The hugs, the in-person “I love you”,  the gathering at Thanksgiving and Christmas gave me hope.

I have had regular visits from family.   They would come and celebrate my birthday and holidays.  One of my sons came every Sunday to take me to the church service in the nursing home.  A lady on my floor had a son or daughter come every day to talk with her while she ate breakfast and then they would take her for a stroll in her wheelchair.  When I came to live here we had special trips to the store, the county fair and every week we had Bible Studies we could attend and mid-week devotions.  We also had services for the Catholic folks and the Protestants on Sunday. A group from the Brethren and Amish communities would come and sing for us, often. Their music is absolutely beautiful and full of hope.  I was adjusting.  As long as my family could come and see me, it gave me hope.  The hugs, the in-person “I love you”,  the gathering at Thanksgiving and Christmas gave me hope.  With family and friends around me, I felt like I could get through the many losses I have faced in life.  I could live and really live in a nursing home.  

Then this virus hit out country after Christmas 2019.  COVID-19 is what they call it. Who would ever thought the government would come into my nursing home and tell us we could no longer have in-house visits.  We have a restaurant in our home and that was closed.  We all had to eat isolated in our rooms.  The shocking rules kept coming.  Our hairdresser was not allowed to come in.  NO HAIRCUTS! Some of us had our hair done weekly.  Many of the men had regular hair cuts every other week.  The most shocking thing we were told was that our families and friends were no longer allowed to visit us.  Oh yes, I could see them through a window.  But sometimes there was a glare or I could not hear.  Even though they were only inches away, it felt like they were miles away.  I wanted to hold my new great grandchild, but I could not.  In the nursing home, group activities were stopped and no more gathering for church.  The Catholic deacons could not come in to give services or communion.  This happened several weeks before Easter 2020. Now Thanksgiving and Christmas are coming.  Will I have to live through those holidays without family and friends?  We had a bit of hope last week, families were able to visit, but six feet apart and no touching, mask on and someone present so we would not be able to sneak in a hug.  Then staff tested positive, asymptomatic, but positive.  Back to the rules of no visits.  Everyone who gives my care in this place is masked and has to wear eye protection.  So many barriers.  Honestly, why live?  The community that gave me life and a reason to live cannot even come near me. What is most important to me has been taken away...family.  I see in other residents besides myself: a very deep depression, hopelessness, anxiety.  I hear other residences say, “I miss my wife; I am old, I don’t have much time left; I can’t hold my grandchild or great-grandchildren; It doesn’t matter if I get Corona or not, I am going to die without seeing/holding/hugging my family; All I want is my hair cut; I cannot hear through a window!; All I want to do is go out with my son for ice cream;  I have completely lost my summer;  I am bored; I have to be in hospice to have family hold me again...” 

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Where is Jesus?  That is where I want to begin with my story as a Chaplain.  I understand that the lockdown in nursing homes saves lives.  This virus, as we know when it gets into a nursing home it spreads like wildfire.  When I was a little girl growing up on a dairy farm in the Adirondack’s of New York, a neighbor,  by the name of Ann came and picked me up for church.  I was unchurched.  She had a little girl my age at the time (5-years-old), my best friend during those years.  My memories of my little church fill me with joy.  Ann and her faithfulness to bring me to church when she and her husband had a bunch of kids was such a blessing to me.  Ann in her 90’s died in a nursing home where the virus got in and spread.  Her family could only stand outside the window shouting I LOVE YOU MOM.  She loved Jesus and I know I will see her one day again! That brings me hope and comfort.

As a chaplain, I see the human plaques of HOPELESSNESS, LONELINESS, and BOREDOM invading the humane spirit.  Because of the laws passed down to us from the government, we are limited as to what we can do as humans.  BUT that does not limit God.  God is never limited.  When you think God has abandoned you read and memorize Zephaniah 3:17.

“ For the LORD your GOD is Living among you, He is a mighty Savior, He will take delight in you with gladness.  With His love, he will calm all your fears.  He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”

For such a time as this the Lord Jesus has called His believers to lead and be His Voice.  Jesus is with us and working through us as believers.  In these months, my Chaplain responsibilities can be defined by three words:  PRAYER/LISTENING/VISITATION.  I do prayer walks around my Nursing home in Pennsylvania several times during my work week.  The Lord Jesus has given me many opportunities to not only share the love of Jesus with the Elders but also with their families and my co-workers. 

I would like to conclude with this thought: Every day at work I need to put on 2 types of PPE.  One set is my mask, goggles, and a gown(at times). The other PPE is found in Ephesians 6:

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the

time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike. I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.

The “chains of Coronavirus, does not stop the message of Jesus.  Where is Jesus?  He is right here, in you and in me.  He is Immanuel! God with us!

Living Life with Purpose

By: Tim Kratzer, M.D.

I find myself thinking a lot about Nundu where a Free Methodist rural hospital is located. Nundu is where we raised our family and lived out our missionary call to provide healthcare in the name of Jesus. How did we end up in South Kivu, a province of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, far away from family and friends?

God works in amazing ways, calling us to serve him and transforming us to be the people we were created to be. As a 6th grade student, I very clearly heard God calling me to be a missionary doctor. I even wrote a grade school term paper on the Belgian Congo, as it was known in that day. It’s a long journey from being a 12-year-old to being a 75-year-old retired missionary doctor. Connie was also being called to be the wife of a missionary doctor, even before she met me at Greenville College. As I entered medical school, it was not just me but it was us. How did we complete the course?

Family, friends, and faith in God have guided us along the way. Christian faith was modeled for us in my family. The fellowship of believers nurtured us. God has been with us each step of the way. The Free Methodist Medical Fellowship, as it was known when I was a medical student, came along to encourage us in only the way a group of healthcare professionals could. I met with folks who understood where I was in my journey of faith and professional development. In that fellowship, I met folks who encouraged me to follow the call into medical missions and supported me with their prayers as my wife and I were appointed as Free Methodist missionaries.

The journey is not yet complete. We continue to be a part of what is now known as the Free Methodist Healthcare Fellowship. I fellowship with others who continue to see healthcare as more than a career. For each of us, it is a calling. Our time at Nundu was interrupted when we left Central Africa during a time of civil unrest. By God’s grace, the Deaconess Nundu Hospital continued to minister, and now we have the blessing of encouraging the work of the church as it continues to provide healthcare in South Kivu.

The mission of the Fellowship is to encourage healthcare professionals to pursue their careers as a calling, a calling to minister in the name of Jesus. I am encouraged in that calling. We as a Fellowship continue to reach out to young people as they respond to God’s call on their lives. What a blessing to live life with a purpose.

Post-Conference Fellowship Zoom

For those FMHF members who want to fellowship, we plan to have a Zoom call Saturday night, September 19, at 7 PM. EDT. People can briefly share what they are doing and provide a reaction to the earlier talks.

We also want to get your thoughts on future events. Should we plan on more virtual meetings? If we meet next year, where do you want to meet and is there some theme you would recommend?

If you might want to participate in Saturday evening’s Zoom fellowship email normwetterau@aol.com and he will send you the link. The link for the conference, which can be found here, will also be emailed to you. The link for this fellowship will be different and will only be sent to those requesting it.

Other News for our Fellowship

There is no charge for our virtual conference, but we would appreciate $50 dues or a donation to our group. You can give on our website here. Why not do this now?

We are also looking for some new board members. Pray and email normwetterau@aol.com or call norm at 585-705-8811.

FMHF News - August 2020

Free Methodist Healthcare Fellowship is going to do something TOTALLY NEW!

Our fellowship is 60 years old. Initially, medical missions was the main interest. We gathered together for fellowship and to hear a church leader, professor, or pastor minister to us over a weekend. We plan to continue to do that after the Coronavirus is over. Over the years our mission moved more to promote holistic healthcare and being a resource to our churches. It was not just a fellowship, but a group of health care professionals that tried to reach out to our churches. We still had retreats focused on missions, but also on suffering, and one with chaplains on visiting and ministering to those who are ill. We had a session at General Conference on substance abuse. Over one hundred pastors, delegates, and friends attended.

The coronavirus has forced us to cancel our fall in-person conference but is giving us an opportunity to do something new: a virtual conference that is easily available to many more Free Methodist Healthcare Professionals. This will take place Saturday, Sept 19 at noon EDT. The theme will be Holistic Health Care in the Midst of the Coronavirus Crisis. The Free Methodist Chaplains Association will join us in this conference and are supplying most of the speakers. The zoom conference will be live, so those listening will have a chance to ask questions or make comments. People can also post comments on our website. The program will be recorded and placed on our website, so if you like what you hear, you can share it with others.

Chaplain Larry Lyons and Rick Kerr work in hospitals and ICUs. Chaplain Kathy Petteys works in a nursing home in Rochester, NY. They will share the challenges of sharing God’s love with patients, their families, and the hospital staff. Some of the patients might not get better. Staff are exhausted. How does one deal with fear in these situations? Chaplains Richard Reynolds ministers to the homeless. He also got coronavirus, so he will share as a chaplain to the poor who are at high risk and also share as one who became ill. Finally, Steve Noblett, director of Christian Community Health Fellowship will share some of the challenges that Christian office-based practices faced. He will then share his own view as a Christian as to what this epidemic might mean and what our response might be.

At the end, there will be an opportunity for questions and short responses. The total conference will last 2 ½ hours. Longer meetings on zoom can be difficult. so we want to be mindful.

To learn more about the Conference and to find the link, click here.

Just click on the link. You will be asked to give your name but you do not need to sign up in advance. The Zoom access which belongs to Northeastern Seminary can accommodate several hundred people. Please join us. If you have any questions email normwetterau@aol.com

A Prayer Amid an Epidemic

By: Kerry Weber, Executive Editor of America Magazine

Originally published in America Magazine: The Jesuit Review. Used with Permission.

Jesus Christ, you traveled through towns and villages “curing every disease and illness.” At your command, the sick were made well. Come to our aid now, in the midst of the global spread of the coronavirus, that we may experience your healing love.

Heal those who are sick with the virus. May they regain their strength and health through quality medical care.

Heal us from our fear, which prevents nations from working together and neighbors from helping one another.

Heal us from our pride, which can make us claim invulnerability to a disease that knows no borders. Jesus

Christ, healer of all, stay by our side in this time of uncertainty and sorrow. Be with those who have died from the virus. May they be at rest with you in your eternal peace.

Be with the families of those who are sick or have died. As they worry and grieve, defend them from illness and despair. May they know your peace.

Be with the doctors, nurses, researchers and all medical professionals who seek to heal and help those affected and who put themselves at risk in the process. May they know your protection and peace.

Be with the leaders of all nations. Give them the foresight to act with charity and true concern for the well-being of the people they are meant to serve. Give them the wisdom to invest in long-term solutions that will help prepare for or prevent future outbreaks. May they know your peace, as they work together to achieve it on earth.

Whether we are home or abroad, surrounded by many people suffering from this illness or only a few, Jesus Christ, stay with us as we endure and mourn, persist and prepare. In place of our anxiety, give us your peace.

Jesus Christ, heal us.

Meet Our Speakers: Steve Noblett

Steve Noblett, Director of the Christian Community Health Fellowship will speak at the upcoming virtual retreat on September 19.

In addition to several Free Methodist Chaplains, Steve Noblett has accepted our invitation as a speaker. CCHF is a fellowship of over 200 Christian community health centers. He will share with us and invite feedback and response.

During the Coronovirus crisis, he has spent hours on the phone with directors and staff of Christian Community Health Centers as they have had to deal with overwhelming stresses and also choices that they have had to make. Whereas other speakers will talk about hospital and nursing home issues, he will talk about primary care and community issues.

In addition, he will share his own vision of the crisis as it involves the church and the opportunity that the church has today. Things are falling apart with a health crisis we cannot control, the closure of schools, massive unemployment, and the protests against racism and police violence. The racism and police violence have been with us a long time, but in the midst of everything that is happening, all this is boiling up and action is demanded, yet all the issues, when taken together, are beyond a human solution.

He points to Romans 8:22, where the creation is groaning as in the pains fo childbirth, yet birth will come and God will act. He believes that what is happening is the result of massive failure of human efforts, but at such a time God can act. Christians need to show Gods love and hope. It can be a time for people to turn to God as they see how Christians have responded to all these troubles (if we are responding in the right ways.)

After his talk, we will open the virtual floor for others to comment on. How do we respond as health care professionals but also as Christians and members of our churches? People can also share their thoughts on our website.

The Great Reset

By: Dierdre L. McCool, Vice President - Butterfield Foundation

So many things have changed since the Coronavirus entered our world. At Butterfield Foundation, we experienced a COVID-19 workplace exposure on March 13. Within three hours, we scrambled to put policies and technology in place to allow our team to self-quarantine and work from home. Like many other states, Oklahoma had Shelter-in-Place legislation that launched within a few weeks of the exposure. Thankfully, we had become experts at telecommuting!

During the early days of the pandemic, responses to the unknown befuddled me. Mass hysteria seemed to be ever-present as was the lack of hand sanitizer, Clorox wipes, bread, flour, and toilet paper. Businesses closed, highways were eerily empty, and masks hid smiles. Fear and anxiety were constant undercurrents. Many charitable clinics and social service organizations started to struggle financially. Securing PPE and other necessary supplies to minister to at-risk populations was proving expensive. The Butterfield Foundation acted quickly, setting aside $200,000 in Covid-19 grant funding.

In my neighborhood, I noticed some interesting ripple effects. Children began to appear on our sidewalks on bikes, scooters, roller skates, and at our pond with fishing rods. Dads and moms strolled by our house holding hands. Unruly yards morphed into garden masterpieces. My life also changed. My husband and I cooked healthier meals, walked every morning, and increased our prayer life. We had more time for family and friends. Jesus was – and still is – resetting my pace and priorities.

I recently learned Corona means “crown” in Latin. In essence, COVID-19 is the “crown virus.” Based on how things have changed, I would certainly agree it wins the prize for changing the world in 2020. However, another Person wore a crown that promises eternal change: Jesus Christ. Over 2,000 years ago, He donned a crown of thorns so we could experience redemption and complete restoration. Thankfully, His crown trumps all crowns!

It seems as if God is up to something during this pandemic. He recently brought the following Scripture to mind:

Isaiah 43:18-19 - “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”

According to Christianity Today, millions of worried people who turned to the internet due to COVID-19 anxiety have ended up connecting with Christian evangelists and coming to know Jesus. They have exchanged a mutable crown of fear for an immutable crown of love. The Great Commission is resetting…it is going digital.

Many of the charitable clinics in Oklahoma – and throughout the nation - upgraded technology and implemented telehealth. The ability to reach more patients with whole person healthcare is expanding. Is He in the process of re-setting healthcare too?

I think He is offering all of us a chance to reset our lives.

In closing, I want to encourage everyone to evaluate heed the words of the Isaiah to see what – if anything - Jesus wants to “reset” in your life. The following are a few questions to help you get started:

1. What needs to be “set again?”

2. What needs to be different?

3. What specific areas of life would you like to change?

4. Where do you need to spend less time?

5. What do you need to more of?

6. Why do you want to change these things?

2020 Conference Update

Free Methodist Healthcare Fellowship Fall Conference:
September 19, 2020 - Virtual Conference

Theme: Holistic Healthcare in Times of Crisis

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Change in plans for fall conference. This year, we will be meeting virtually and instead of in-person. Our board made the decision to cancel the in-person fall conference at the Essenhaus due to Coronovirus but we want to try something new and hope you will all participate and invite others to join.

We plan to have an online program on that Saturday, September 19. We plan to have a site where people can ask questions of the speakers and we can include some online discussion rather than just a lecture. We will likely meet for 3 to 4 hours on that Saturday, although we might also try an online fellowship time Friday night.

Our theme will be Holistic Health Care in Times of Crisis. The total program is being developed, but we plan to have several chaplains from the Free Methodist Chaplains Association share their experience with the Coronavirus epidemic. We also plan to invite one or more people from the Christian Community Health Fellowship to share. More details will be forthcoming. We welcome your input at normwetterau@aol.com.

There are some advantages in this. People from the West and East can attend. People can attend without traveling. We do not have to spend a lot of money flying speakers to Indiana and we can have more speakers and panels. Yes, we would prefer to meet face to face, but we can use this situation beyond our control for the good of our society.

More information will be sent out in early July. If people encourage others to join in, more people will know about the Free Methodist Healthcare Fellowship so spread the word.

A Light in the Darkness

By: Dierdre L. McCool, Butterfield Foundation Vice President

“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” (Matthew 10:8)

Early Christians turned the world upside down when it came to fulfilling Christ’s command to care for the sick. Love so characterized the early Church that Tertullian reported Romans would exclaim, “See how they love one another!” When a devastating plague swept across the ancient world in the third century, Christians were the only ones who cared for the sick, which they did at the risk of contracting the plague themselves. Meanwhile, pagans were throwing infected members of their own families into the streets even before they died in order to protect themselves from the disease.

Today, many Christians continue to risk their lives to bring hope and healing to the sick and dying in some of the poorest countries on earth. Butterfield Memorial Foundation (BMF) actively collaborates with organizations advancing the Kingdom through funding and encouragement. In 2019, BMF staff conducted site visits to several ministries who have received funding from BMF in the past. We plan to visit others later this year.

During a visit to Burundi, Shelly Goodnight, BMF Grant Committee Chair, Dierdre McCool, BMF Vice President, and Jennifer Richardson, Director of Programs, participated in the Widow and Orphan Conference hosted by Sister Connection. We had the opportunity to visit several of the widow’s homes.

A visit to Kibuye Hospital was inspirational. The group learned how Busoma was made and had the opportunity to tour the hospital and see the community where all the missionaries live. A new pediatric wing is under construction.

A visit was made to Hope Africa University to see how the solar power project funded by BMF was coming along.

During our visit to the Van Norman Clinic in Bujumbura, we saw the ongoing need for expanded maternity services and the excellent training provided to the staff.

In January 2020, Hal Hoxie, President of BMF, and his wife, Kathy, along with Anita and Sarah Baird, traveled to India to participate in the dedication of the Eric Hostel at UMRI Hospital and participate in graduation at Immanuel University.

If you are aware of a non-profit, Christian healthcare organization that is in need of funding, just direct them to our website to complete a Letter of Inquiry at butterfieldfoundation.org.

Looking Back on 50 Years

By: Frank Ogden, M.D.

In 1970 I first arrived in Burundi to serve at Kibuye Hospital with my wife Maxine and 3 elementary school-age children. I was following several doctors who had served before me since 1946 when the hospital first opened, chiefly, Dr. Esther Kuhn, the founder, and Dr. Len Ensign. Others came for short periods. Ever since my freshman year at Seattle Pacific College (SPU) I had been preparing for this moment. That’s when God used a course in anatomy and physiology to confirm my call to missionary service.

What we found on arrival was a 42-bed hospital staffed by a handful of African nurses led by a Canadian nurse, Doris Moore. We had basic equipment with which to do medicine and surgery—a portable x-ray machine and a generator to power electric lights in the operating room. Kerosene lanterns were important for night duty in the wards. The water supply was usually good, though sometimes lacking. The pharmacy had basic medicines most of the time. We didn’t have fancy facilities and medicines; but God was with us, helping us meet the challenges.

I plugged right into building up services for the years ahead while doing my best to serve a population of 250,000. Since the road was only paved partway from the capital city of Bujumbura, our 100-mile journey to Kibuye was an all-day event, especially in rainy season. Nowadays it takes 2 ¼ hours.

Frank Ogden School of Medicine

Never could I have dreamed what was to transpire ½ century later, but here we are in 2020 and that small hospital with only one doctor most of the time has been transformed into a medical center with 229 beds and 18 doctors, half of them Africans. Also, there are 10 interns. Besides these, the hospital campus includes medical students and nurses in training in conjunction with the Frank Ogden School of Medicine, a division of Hope Africa University. Who could have imagined? The facilities’ expansion alone are amazing enough—two-story surgical ward, three-story pediatric building, two additional operating rooms, solar power, and an eye center, just to name a few. Recently Kibuye Hope Hospital has become a training facility for surgeons as part of the Pan-Africa Academy of Christian Surgeons (PAACS). We are so grateful for the team of Serge missionaries who have really developed Kibuye as the foremost Christian medical center of Burundi.

In the early days, there was no blood available so I had to devise a way to take it from a patient and store it until his operation 2 weeks later in order to give it back to him. Being the only surgeon I was quite busy caring for every kind of illness. Often people came from a far distance, even adjacent countries such as Tanzania and Congo. Epidemic typhus was a devastating epidemic. We had nearly 100% fatality rate until I learned that one 100 mg tablet of doxycycline would cure it. Pfizer Lab gave me the medicine for the clinical work and sent me to Czechoslovakia to present it at a medical conference. We have now eradicated typhus from Burundi. When I retired for the second time, finally hanging up my scalpel in early 2013, we left a one hundred thirty bed hospital as a referral center for 10 health centers. We knew that a team of young doctors was coming later that year to continue the work in the highlands of central Burundi. It was gratifying to me to help train the first class of medical students (from Hope Africa Univ) and attend their graduation in December 2012.

There were some setbacks in the progress to becoming the medical center it is today. A civil war came in 1972 that caused many of the hospital staff to be killed or flee. Then again in 1993, a second genocide caused chaos in the country and devastation to the hospital. Nevertheless, God continued to bless Kibuye through the troubled times, enabling faithful staff to offer healthcare and hope to many. Though I was absent for some years Dr. Dave Crandall, a general surgeon, began building the new hospital at Kibuye in 1973. When I returned three years later I completed the construction and appreciated working in this much larger facility with two operating rooms, maternity, wards, lab, and pharmacy. In 1990 I started the feeding program (Busoma) to prevent the malnutrition of children which has since grown into a major nutrition program with the help of Free Methodist International Childcare Ministry (ICCM) and other donors.

In 1993, while on home assignment in the US Maxine was found to have colon cancer. After a 3-year battle, the cancer recurred and I lost my wife of 39 years. In June 1997 the Lord gave me a new helpmate in order to continue working for Him in Central Africa. Carol Watson had been an evangelistic missionary of the Free Methodist Mission for 10 years in Rwanda prior to the genocide of that country. She had no trouble adapting to life in Burundi due to the similarities in language and culture. We served the hospital and the church full time until 2005 when I retired just short of age 70.

After that we went as volunteers, going for 3 months each year to help, often with the assistance of other short term doctors - especially Dr. Jerry Rusher and Dr. Patricia Rees. There were also three African doctors in residence. We built a 16-bed dormitory for medical students coming for clinical training, a new maternity, and a quadruplex for the expected arrival of the Serge Medical Team coming in 2014 with 6 new doctors. Thus, I could fully retire at age 78.

Now two of the graduates from our medical school have returned to serve at Kibuye after their specialty training in surgery and ophthalmology. Another graduate, a Ugandan, having trained in surgery in his home country, is now establishing a Christian hospital in his home area. We thank God for these first fruits of the new medical school.

It is very gratifying to look back on 50 years to see the phenomenal growth of Kibuye--- from a 42-bed, one-doctor mission hospital, to an important Christian medical center, Kibuye Hope Hospital (soon to be 300-beds) with multiple medical staff, including many specialists. All glory to God for His provision and protection for a half-century of service.

Experiencing Divine Compassion - A Response

By: Tim Kratzer, M.D.

A response to The Gifts of Healing by Pastor Colleen Dick from our December 2019 newsletter.

Pastor Colleen Dick’s sermon got me to thinking. What has divine compassion looked like in my own life and how can I experience and offer that compassion, me with my limited resources and weak faith? So again, what does this divine compassion look like? When I see the hungry I offer food. When I see the thirsty I give water. When I visit the sick I offer hope for a cure. When I encounter the stranger I invite him in. When I see the naked I give covering. What is my resource for these ministries of compassion? How can I offer hope when I see no hope?

My resources are never sufficient, but I am blessed. Peter and John at the temple had no money to offer the cripple, but they offered what they had. They had faith that in the name of Jesus he could rise up and walk. What is the motivation? In the name of Jesus…does the world know about Jesus? Sadly the majority of God’s created ones go on as if they will live forever. Those who are well supplied live as if they can take care of themselves, even to the point of not caring about their eternal souls. They are occupied with collecting riches here on earth, not thinking about their life beyond. Those who are impoverished or embattled are so beaten down that they see no hope. But I have encountered the Divine and know that there is life beyond, that there is hope. I am changed as divine compassion, the very Spirit of God, changes me and flows from me?

Divine compassion has stepped into my life and gives me power over sin and death. I say, “Yes”, to God, and the Spirit of God changes me in ways I could not imagine. What did the Holy Spirit do in the life of the early church? Those who were taught that they had to fulfill the law, were freed from the condemnation they had experienced under the law. Those who were serving the gods of their own creation, found the God who had created them and their world. Slaves were set free. The sick were healed. Sight was given to the blind. Hope was given to a world that was ruled by earthly, self- serving powers.

What is the Holy Spirit empowering me to do in today’s world? How can I experience divine compassion? I recall the question I began with, how can I experience and offer divine compassion, me with my limited resources and weak faith? I have eyes to see, keep them open. I have ears to hear, listen to the world around. I have a heart created to experience the Divine, feel with those who are seeking for meaning in the confusion of this broken world. Consider the many ways in which I have been blessed, share those blessings with others. Give witness to God’s transforming presence in my life, and thereby share that power which makes miracles possible. Divine compassion is Spirit directed, knowing no limits. Divine compassion is transforming, enabling me to live knowing that what I see now is but the beginning of life everlasting. Divine compassion gives me hope, even as I experience the weakness of my flesh. It suffers with those in need, but not without hope.

What is my hope?

“So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life.” (I Cor 15:21-22)

What a blessing to know that in the journey we call life I have experienced divine compassion, and in experiencing divine compassion I have been introduced to the author of eternal life. As I am infilled and empowered by the very presence of God, the Holy Spirit, I am indeed experiencing and offering divine compassion. I belong to God and his power is present in all that I am and all that I do.

I am drawn back to Paul’s words of instruction in I Cor 15:3-4.

“I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day.”

Then Paul goes on to give his testimony of God at work in his life.

“But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me-and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace.” (I Cor 15:10)

So I come back to Pastor Dick’s sermon on the “Gifts of Healing” and the question, “Divine compassion. Have you ever experienced divine compassion? Divine meaning ‘of or belonging to God’ or ‘proceeding from God.’ ” I would suggest that the compassion that arises from within me is of the Holy Spirit and gives witness to the power of God which has power over sin and death. What a blessing is mine to live in that spirit-filled reality. Thank you Pastor Dick for reminding me that God is at work demonstrating divine compassion in today’s world.

Special Newsletter: Coronavirus Pandemic

(Our regular spring issue is ready to go but will be sent out in May)

BY: NORMAN WETTERAU, M.D. - FMHF PRESIDENT

An issue of Wholeperson Health Care was ready to go out in March but as the epidemic spread, I waited. We will send the issue out soon and it will include information on our retreat planned for Sept 18-20, plus an article by Frank Ogdon, and one by Tim Kratzer.

What can we say about this epidemic? What do we say to our family, our friends, and our church? I have been asking God. For me, I have had a pretty easy life. I was drafted but not sent to Vietnam. I have had the same job in the same community and good health. I have had good Christian Friends and seen God work in our community and many lives.

On the other hand, I have been aware of disaster overseas, especially in Congo and problems in the US among the poor in our own community. My neighbor lost two children last year: one age 15 to a car accident and 6 months later his older brother who no longer lived at home, to a drug overdose. I visited my neighbor, prayed for many of these situations and contributed money, but was never in such a painful situation.

Some of you have been in even worse situations: riots, civil war, and overwhelming disease with little to do for the disease. Now we are not on a mission station that lacks supplies and treatment but in the US. We have no treatment except respirators but not enough. We do not have enough gowns. Some of our mission hospitals are chronically in that position.

Now everything has stopped. I am not sure what is more frightening, the disease, or the collapsing economy. Will people have food? Where will governments get the money for the relief that is needed? How long will this last?

We read Bible verses telling us that God is in control but still have anxiety. People look to us for treatment and assurance but we are also looking for assurance.

I am asking those who read this to send their thoughts to me so we can post them. I am asking us to pray for each other. Any crisis brings out the best and worst. Some drug addicts in treatment are relapsing but others from the streets now are coming in for help. Those in good marriages end up stronger but for others, the marriage will become worse. Email me your thoughts: normwetterau@aol.com and we might post some of them.

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Christian Community Health Centers

This site has excellent summaries of how some of the urban health centers are addressing the coronavirus epidemic. Much of this is not in the regular press and is worth reading and praying about.

Lamenting and Rejoicing at the Same Time

Many of us receive Word and Deed e-mails from the medical group in Burundi. Eric McLaughlin, who spoke at our retreat in 2018 (see our Dec 2018 newsletter), wrote a recent post which I felt was very appropriate for this time in our nation. He has granted permission to reprint it here.

In addition, the book which he talked about publishing is now available at Amazon: Promises in the Dark: Walking with Those in Need Without Losing Heart

Those of us who attended the 2018 retreat will want to read more about the subject and those who were not able to attend should even more order it. This short piece from Word and Deed is a sample of the wisdom and vision God has given him. As we pray for our own country in this epidemic, pray also for Burundi, and the rest of Africa. This virus could be even more devastating there.

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By: Eric McLaughlin, M.D.
Original Post

We are living in a time of loss.  And so are you, fellow inhabitant of planet Earth.  This season is not what anyone predicted.  We cannot go where we thought we could go.  We cannot do what we thought we were doing.  We cannot be with those whom we thought to spend time.  We do not know when things will change, which makes any significant planning nearly impossible.  Early February has this amazing nostalgia.  The glory of that ordinary life - we knew it not.  May we know it better when it returns.

Watching people all over the world grapple with this time of loss has shown me two seemingly contradictory responses:

First, there is an increased call for the importance of lament.  Articles such as NT Wright’s and different books (including my own) have been sources of resonance for a lot of people.  Lament is indeed a gift to us in times like our own.  We don’t have answers, and we don’t know yet when answers will be forthcoming.  Our normal means of decision-making and anxiety-mitigation have been stripped from us by the utterly unprecedented nature of the global COVID- 19 pandemic.  We don’t know what to do.

Here, lament gives us the words and even the emotional stance that we need.  We cry out to God.  We pour out our complaint.  We ask “How long?” as more than a rhetorical question.  We don’t understand, but can at least know to whom our complaint is rightly addressed.  We do better to take the ugliest thought to God than the most cleaned-up thought anywhere else.  “We don’t know what to do, but our eyes are on you.”  (2 Chronicles 20:12)

The second response is one of celebration and beauty.  As our normal life becomes restricted, and in many places slows down, there is a need to find some form of celebration.  People write notes to each other.  You may have seen more longtime friends on Zoom in the past couple of weeks than you have in years.  Yesterday, my wife walked through our house loudly singing Les Miserables tunes (“One day more!”) and the kids joined in.  The joy and the beauty are a defiance of the fear and the darkness, and this is as it should be.

I have loved watching the art and the music that Covid sequestration has already birthed.  My med school classmates are posting brilliant dual-piano pieces that they are playing together despite being a time zone apart.  Our team intern’s watercolors of a beautiful JRR Tolkien quote are circulating on social media.  I can’t remember when the beauty of American spring was so celebrated in photos.  The human creative spirit inside all of us, which is part of humanity’s role as image bearers of a creative God, has hardly ever been so evident.  We need this.

So we find that we need to lament this loss.  And we find that we need to fill the void of this loss with a celebration of beauty.  And it feels impossible to do both of these together.  Give me one or the other, and some kind of path is laid before me.  But both?  I can feel my feet sticking to the ground.

God's Eternal Plan

By: Tim Kratzer, M.D.

We live so much of our lives as those driven by circumstances and victims of misfortune. We have entered into that reality as we find ourselves dealing with this COVID-19 pandemic. We’re confined to our homes. Friends and loved ones have been hospitalized, and some have lost the battle with this unseen enemy. Our economy has been turned upside down. Jobs have been lost. Accumulated wealth is disappearing.

Early on during this period of social isolation, Connie and I were reading from John 2:13-22 where the cleansing of the temple is described. In other Gospels, this event is placed just before the week of the Passion of Christ. Here we see Jesus beginning his ministry as he sets matters straight with the spiritual leaders by cleansing the temple. So also Jesus steps into our lives, setting our priorities right.

Jesus came, the Word become flesh. Now he steps into the temple, to give witness to God’s eternal plan. The Jewish center for worship, prayer, instruction, and sacrifice had become a place of commerce. The sacred had been reduced to the secular. What did Jesus see? Money changers and the selling of livestock were crowding out those who had come to be in the presence of God.

What did Jesus do?

“Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased (the merchants) out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and the cattle, scattered the money changers’ coins over the floor, and turned over their tables. Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, ‘Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace! ‘”
(John 2:15-16)

So what was God’s plan? The Jewish leaders questioned Jesus. “What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.” (John 2:18) Jesus replied by saying that if this temple were destroyed, he would raise it up in three days. The Pharisees did not understand as many people do not understand today, even our so-called spiritual leaders. He was speaking of his sacrificial death, resurrection, and eternal purpose.

But there was one Pharisee named Nicodemus who was beginning to understand. “’Rabbi,’ he said, ‘we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.’” (John 3:2) John in his Gospel reports that many began to believe and trust. (John 2:23) They were being introduced to a God of love. “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

In this time of suffering and uncertainly, we put our faith in God who promises us eternal life. We die to self and are born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. What a blessing to be reminded of our eternal hope.

Will the Corona Virus Change America?

By: NORMAN WETTERAU, M.D. - FMHF PRESIDENT

At this point, everything seems negative: staying at home, worried that we or a family member might die from the virus, and the economic collapse that our nation seems to be entering into. This epidemic is uncovering some weaknesses and unaddressed problems in our land. Will we decide to address these? So far it appears we might. Both political parties are suddenly concerned with the uninsured, even those who were previously opposed to any expansion in our government health programs. We do not want the uninsured to stay at home, infect others, and then die, leaving children without parents or grandparents. Suddenly some who had opposed the expansion of government-subsidized health care are concerned.

Children are going to school at home, but many had no home computers or internet access at home. Suddenly large school districts are finding ways to correct this situation. This problem is no longer pushed under the rug.

Then there is the problem of the marginally employed, the waitresses, taxi drivers, and part-time store clerks who are out of work. Both political parties came together to provide money for some of these people. We are all concerned that they have shelter and food. More problematic are the homeless and undocumented workers who are now unemployed. The virus can easily spread through homeless shelters. When we are to shelter at home, what happens if we have no home? Every unsheltered person is a risk to others but these people are unsheltered due to the economic status and lack of a home. Some of these problems might be harder to address than the issue of health insurance or computer-based education for all, but still need to be addressed.

Another issue in our basic economic system is fine in good times but not for a crisis such as this one. Dr Stiglitz, a professor at Columbia University and 2001 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economics wrote an opinion piece in the April Time magazine: Vol 195, No 14. He points out that markets can be shortsighted and risk-averse. Of course, the markets seemed to work wonderfully in the past few years, but their efficiency does not prepare us for a crisis. We needed to produce and store gowns and masks but how can one expect a company to produce things that they are not paid for and then store them for some emergency that may never come. There are things that a free economy is good for and things that the government needs to do. A totally free enterprise healthcare system has not prepared us for this and by itself, it cannot solve the problem. It appears that now people recognize this, but what about the next time? He compared what we have done to buying a car and saving money by leaving out a spare tire. Everything is fine and we have more room in the trunk until a flat tire occurs. Dr. Stiglitz writes: “We have been running our entire society without spare tires and proud of the seeming efficiency we’ve gained, and never prouder than in the health care sector.”

So we are responding to many of these challenges. It has been surprising how both political parties can agree. Let’s pray that this can continue. The real question is, once this epidemic is over will we remain concerned for those without insurance, the unemployed, the homeless, and the small businesses? Will we return to a very efficient private health care system that running without any spare tires?

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For continued discussion, check out this article from the University of Michigan.

How to Protect People who are Homeless During Covid-19

2019 Retreat Summary

BY: NORMAN WETTERAU, M.D. - FMHF PRESIDENT

Serving God Through the Stages of our Lives
Stay plugged into the Powersource

Around 45 of us joined together with our speaker, Dr. Bill Morehouse, as we examined this topic by examining ourselves. One thinks of young people making important decisions and seeking God’s guidance but as long as God has left us on this earth, we need to continue to examine what we are doing and what God’s calling for us is. Our calling is also not just as a physician or nurse but as a Christian. We need to stay connected to God daily. Dr. Morehouse kept reminding us, not to just seek God's guidance and help but to stay plugged into the powersource through regular prayer. He kept repeating: “stay plugged in” and this requires regular times of prayer.

He provided specific advice for prayer taken from Bob Sorge’s Reset: 20 Ways to a Consistent Prayer Life. A handout on 20 ways to a consistent prayer life and additional materials and notes can be found on Dr. Morehouse’s website (scroll down to Free Methodist Healthcare Fellowship.) This list includes ways to escape distraction, the need to repent, cleanse, praying the scripture, and taking time to listen to God. He encouraged us to journal during our quiet time. The notes from the conference are posted on his website as well.

One of the best parts was dividing into groups that looked at medical practice as a mission, serving the poor, community outreach, mentoring students, and preparing for retirement. Small groups kept lists of ideas that were shared with the larger group. What was interesting was that many of the listed things did not just apply to our profession. We can serve the poor in many ways. We can mentor medical students but also youth in our church and family members.

Retirement is not the end but the beginning of another stage of our life. We do not finish but graduate into retirement. There are tasks to retirement including mentorship, passing the baton, investing in the extended family, and focusing on building His kingdom.

At the end of the weekend, some of us felt that we were just beginning. If we stay plugged into the powersource, God can do great things in our lives and we will not burn out or become exhausted.