Dear friends, on October 12, 2015, 9 years ago, the Hospital Shell adventure began. A year from now ago, we went through the most serious crisis, which we overcame in a good way through God’s intervention. Our team has grown together, employees have taken on responsibility, especially the managers Ing. Ela Villacis and Dr. Aslin Santos. And thanks to Dr. Bezemer, the Dutch tropical doctor, it was possible to keep the consultation fees very low for over a year. A donor paid a large amount every month to compensate for the costs. This discount expires at the end of the year.
From the beginning, it was our aim to make the hospital independent of donations. We are currently managing this to over 90% and we are pleased with the further development, especially over the last year, when we had a huge deficit and were on the verge of bankruptcy.
The parable of Jesus about the house on the rock during a storm has become important to me these days. Jesus is our rock. On His behalf, we started the foundation 11 years ago with a team. Many of them left for various reasons, new ones joined. The base team has grown together. Our faith has to be visible in our medical work. We encourage others to do the same. This is happening more and more. It has proven itself in the storms. In other words:
Jesus is the rock on which the Shell
Hospital is built and we want to celebrate HIM again and again. He started the work and HE will continue it. It does not just depend on gifted leaders. HE leads in HIS way.
When the foundation was founded, the Wolffs thought of a board of trustees in Quito that would oversee the hospital in Shell from there. That has since changed. Most of the foundation’s members are directly connected to Shell. At first we were afraid of nepotism, but the statutes now prohibit it. And so Dr. Rivera, the director, occasionally works as an ophthalmologist in Shell. Dr. Bezemer has been working partially with us for many years and will be more involved in 2025. Some of the foundation’s members are integrated into the hospital team.
In an important meeting a few days ago, a new unit was formed in the management team. We have reorganized the finances. We are happy about the joint growth of the hospital. 3 surgeons from the Vozandes Hospital in Quito have been helping us out Monday to Thursday for many months. Now a new surgeon, Dr. Eladio Pupo has joined us. He doesn’t just want to be the weekend cleaner. Both sides have to come to an agreement and are on board. We pray for a good solution. For the first time, we have more doctors in this field than are needed. There are also finally changes in the finances. Some areas have to increase the income because cleaning, general expenses for electricity, etc. have to be covered.
Ecuador is suffering from extreme drought, the power plants have too little water – the result: power outages of up to 11 hours a day, which cost up to over $1000 a month for the diesel generator. There are always road closures due to repair work or mudslides. Bridges have to be repaired and patients cannot come. The country is in a permanent crisis due to political problems and the activity of international drug cartels. We are working in this crisis. It shows why a mission hospital with an international focus is a rock in the storm in this part of the world and why Jesus Christ has placed us there. Thank you for all your support in prayer
and gifts,
The Shell Team
(Eckehart & Klaudia Wolff)
Donations: Lightway Medical Foundation
P.S.: Actually we have nobody to correct our
English letter. So, please, forgive the errors…
PO Box 8066 Fort Wayne, IN 46898
Checks can be mailed there, or you can donate through the websites. LightwayMedical.org/donations.