“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap,
if we do not give up.”- Galatians 6:9 (ESV)
We have always been thankful for the dedicated and talented group of people
God has brought here to work at Esperanza Health Center—and now, that
appreciation is greater than ever. Our best efforts of planning for our future
could not have prepared us for what we are facing now with the COVID-19
pandemic. Responding to this crisis while still providing ongoing care to our
patients and community has required perseverance, flexibility, and deep
commitment.
Although we do grow weary, we persevere because God promises that we will
reap in due season, as the scripture says. Esperanza has endured hardships
before; almost a year ago we celebrated our 30
th anniversary and recalled
God’s faithfulness through many difficult periods. Our history reminds us to
persevere and we will, with God’s help.
Flexibility is the name of the game as we make changes—sometimes daily—in
how we provide care and add new services. Many of our patient visits are now
done through telehealth, while others take place in the clinic with new
procedures in place to keep everyone safe. We have added COVID-19 testing
at all sites, including drive-through testing at our Hunting Park location, and
outreach testing in Kensington. Our Community Health & Wellness department
delivers food bags and checks in with members of our seniors’ group, which is
unable to meet weekly like they used to.
The commitment of our Esperanza family is inspiring. We recently entered into
a partnership with Rock Ministries to provide free walk-up testing in a tent next
to their building and close to our Kensington health center. We asked our staff
to let us know if they want to serve there and the response was immediate.
Jonathan Montenegro (photo below, C) said this about his commitment to work
there: “At my interview 13 years ago, I said I would do whatever needs to be
done and that hasn’t changed. That’s why I am here, there’s a need.”
We are strengthened by your prayers and financial gifts—thank you! Your notes of encouragement, emails, and sharing our social media posts let us know that you are with us in this work. If you have not already, will you consider giving now to our COVID-19 Relief Fund by clicking on the link below? Your support helps us to not give up or grow weary.