Outreach Musings
My name is Fernell Romero, a member of FISSH Outreach. In May 2024 my wife Adnett Romero and I took our skills overseas on a two-day Mission Trip to serve the least fortunate families in the city of General Santos, in the province of South Cotabato, Philippines.
My wife and I almost did not make it to the outreach destination because we arrived 5 minutes late for our check-in at the Los Angeles International Airport and were told by the ramp agent that the gates had already closed. The Philippine Airlines authorities did not make any exemption for us to board our flight, therefore, our only other option was to take an evening flight for which we had to pay extra fees. We almost gave up and thought we were not going to make it because the re-booking fees were really expensive. However, we were determined to make it to General Santos no matter the cost and loss of time, and by God’s grace, we were able get that evening flight out of Los Angeles.
We finally made it to General Santos one day behind schedule. As my wife and I exited the GenSan Airport we were warmly greeted by the RO Diagan Cooperative Hospital staff and were immediately shuttled to our final destination. Upon arriving at RO Diagan Cooperative Hospital, we were greeted by members of FISSH, a majority of whom we never had met before, as well as the very humble and kind host, the CEO/Owner of the hospital, Dr. Renato Diagan.
On our day 1 of the outreach we were assigned as dental assistants— although I am a Clinical Researcher by profession and did not know much about dentistry! However, with the guidance of the 2 gracious and pleasant dentists, Dr. Nieva Granada and Dr. Maida Aguinaldo, we were able to perform our duties as dental assistants without any hitches. We worked from 8am ‘til about 6pm in a trailer that was converted to a makeshift dental clinic, assisting patients as they arrived for their tooth extraction procedures. We also taught patients the importance of dental care/hygiene, instructing them and helping them understand the correct ways how to take care of their teeth.
My favorite part of the “job” was being able to lend a helping hand to these people in need. From the time they walked into the clinic with throbbing, painful tooth aches, through the extraction procedure and to post extraction, it was gratifying to see them walk out the clinic smiling because they were “pain-free“ and were thankful to get their procedure free of charge! It seemed that even in difficult times the patients found reasons to celebrate and be happy, and that is one of the reasons why I join medical mission trips because the least fortunate people are the ones who inspire me to go after the same happiness.
If someone asks me, “Why does FISSH do this?” my answer will always be: “Because we love God, and we live to serve him and his people.”