Note: This was sent to Sen Toomey following his announcement that he has sided with the Democrats in supporting the impeachment/Senate trial of Donald Trump, no longer in office.
Sen. Toomey:
Almost 20 years ago my (future) wife and I decided to depart from our comfortable small town, middle-class lives and venture into the world of volunteer charity work. This first led us to Guatemala, then East Africa, and finally back to Central America. In Kenya, in 2002 and 2003, I was the medical director (PA) of a very remote clinic, this being during the time of the AIDS crisis. I suspect you couldn’t begin to imagine the misery, suffering, and death I encountered on a daily basis: malaria and AIDS especially, but also diseases as far reaching as typhoid, cholera, and even rabies. There were too many failures, never enough successes, lots of gut-wrenching sadness, and even occasional joy. My wife had the courage to travel by herself and join me at this clinic, and I recall with timeless admiration when a young woman had just given birth with resultant vaginal tearing, and my wife held in one hand the patient’s hand, and in the other a flashlight so I could see to do the surgical repair. In looking at a summary of your biography, I suspect we saw more of this reality of the world in a day then you’ve seen in your lifetime.
In the mid-2000’s we decided to develop a kid’s oriented project in Honduras, which we opened in a small, rural village in 20007. This included educational and reading experiences, a feeding program (typically we served 100’s of meals a week), wholesome recreation and sports- basically a place where impoverished children could feel safe and be kids. Once we were told of a 2 ½ year-old girl who weighed 11 pounds, was hairless, and covered with scars. We took her to an “expert,” a local physician, and were told she was beyond salvage. Nevertheless, we provided her with intensive nutrition and other measures, and today she is a healthy teenager. In this type of work there are frequently unexpected and significant challenges.
Carole Ann Milljour
Great letter Reid! I certainly hope you post any response you get; however, I am doubtful that will happen. Anything to open their eyes to what they're doing not only to this country, but to themselves who in the end, will experience the same unfortunate outcomes.... evil never wins in the end! I truly believe that the persecutors will thus become the persecuted! I pray that God will continue to Bless and save America and that His Divine Providence will ultimately shine in the end! Even though we are experiencing real anarchy, it will not last. Much good will come out of all this chaos and the evil and corrupt will be seen for what they are. Only then can we make strides to improve our condition. I'm a true optimist who believes anything is possible and that we should never give up!... there is always hope; and goodness will prevail in the end!
Carl Butler
Reid,
I admire your work on behalf of the downtrodden, sick and forgotten people all over the globe. It is sad that the view from the Beltway does not reach those places in a personal way, and I doubt that the plight of suffering people will ever be much more to those folks in Washington than a passing sound byte opportunity.
I too supported DJT and he has done more for the masses here in America and around the world than the establishment crowd would ever deem to do or dream to do. I too bristle at being painted with a very broad and very black brush just because I am a conservative. Frankly, no one I personally know fits the descriptions so easily and glibly and thoughtlessly dropped on them by ignorant elites. It truly puzzles me how little self-awareness those people possess. And while my heart aches for the immediate future of our nation I must agree with Carol Ann Milljour and confess that I also believe the tables will turn and that in spite of the cascading effects of idiocy flowing out of our nation's capitol I still maintain a hopeful spirit.
Those who have shown their true colors and abandoned whatever shred of conservatism they may have once possessed are now showing their truly colors. They never really have been for us, the little guys, and that is as plain as it can get at this point. One of the main achievements of the Trump administration was to drag these creatures out into the open so that we could all see them for what they really are and I am mighty thankful for that.
I hope you do get a response from the senator's staff. It might be interesting to see how they spin their perspective, especially now since the impeachment has run its course and DJT has been acquitted.
Keep the faith, there is yet light at the end of the tunnel.