Greetings and Happy Friday!

This story comes from Ines Franklin who just returned from a wheelchair mission trip to Peru:

A contagious smile that could easily light up the darkest night is all we could see of Ruth Gora Rioz of San Felipe, Peru. Her bright and cheerful attitude warmed our hearts on this cold day in Peru. Ruth is 28 years old and was afflicted by Polio when she was only 3. She lives with her mentally disabled sister and her Father. Her Father has carried Ruth to school for years and now carries her to work at the Municipal Office where she performs clerical duties. He seemed overwhelmed by the responsibility of two disabled daughters and could not find words to speak. Behind the watery eyes, I could see the pride he had for Ruth.

However, Ruth had a lot to say. She insists on working and developing her mind. She believes that in life, education is the best advantage anyone can have. She plans to further her education. Despite her deformed hands, she can work a computer keyboard and is very confident about her computer skills. In fact, she insisted that I give her my e-mail address so that she and I could keep in touch.

"It is like new shoes." Ruth said, describing the wheelchair to me. She could not stop saying "Gracias" to our team as she looked forward to how the wheelchair was going to improve her life. With her strong and intelligent mind and a computer she can even feel, in her words, "normal." At this point I was speechless. What more could I say...other than I will never forget her smile.

God Bless,

Don