The day began with a bit of a rush as Lee and Michelle Sonius' alarm clock failed to wake them up. Sharon Kealy knocked on their door about 10 minutes after 5 a.m., wondering if something was amiss. Besides the faulty alarm, Lee was still feeling under the weather. He decided to stay home to recover and Michelle volunteered to drive the shuttle for the team.
At about 5:30 am as the team prepared to leave, Dr. Bob Carpenter made a quick trip to the waiting van to retrieve something. In his haste and with the shadowy light from the street, Bob didn't see the open gutter -- two feet deep. Stepping in full force, he fell hard as the team in the van gasped, fearing the worst.
Skinning his shin and wrenching his back, Bob was clearly in pain but refused the strong suggestion he stay home. He gamely climbed in another vehicle and joined the team for the day. He hobbled around, but continued giving chiropractic care all day, taking only occasional breaks to elevate his injured leg.
Once the team arrived in the small village of Kortorbu (which, I'm told, means "crab hole"), the day improved. Setting up in the shade of a large tree and in a small shelter, the team saw around 250 patients in a very short time. Dorothy Nelson moved to the nearby soccer field to sing and play games. A real highlight for me personally was the chance to help her teach the kids how to play "red light, green light." I couldn't help but smile at the frozen poses and huge smiles when I shouted "red light!" and stopped them in their tracks.
As the day wrapped up and the team took turns in the latrine before the long drive back to Accra, Dorothy found her own quiet and inventive way of giving Michelle the "red light." After using the latrine and allowing Michelle to enter, she absentmindedly shut the latch from the outside, locking Michelle inside.
Ever the Africa veteran, Michelle simply waited for rescue . . . knowing she had the keys to the van.
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