Replacement by prayer

To make our clinic run smoothly, we had to have a receptionist, someone who could warmly greet patients, help schedule future appointments, and maintain order in a waiting room which was often filled with dozens of wiggly elementary school kids (cute, but hyperactive). The dentists' wives were busy serving as assistants, so we customarily recruited a wife of one of the senior missionary lawyers.

Lonna sits with our receptionist, Sister Ellen Clayson

Sister Ellen Clayson had served faithfully as our receptionist. But, in December 2017 her mission was over, and her husband wanted to take her home to California with him, greedy guy.

Knowing that she would soon leave, we began to desperately look for a replacement. Unfortunately, no one was available. But, rather than panic, we reminded ourselves that we were in the Lord's employ and if He thought that we needed a receptionist to continue our work, He would provide one for us.

Without a receptionist, we would have been in deep trouble.

It was about this same time that a Guatemalan mother brought her 19 year-old son into our clinic to have his teeth checked to prepare him for an upcoming missionary call. After his exam, I reported our dental findings to the mother, and casually asked her about the other members of her family. She said that her older daughter had recently been sent home from a mission in Mexico due to health problems. The daughter was devastated that she was unable to complete her mission. She was feeling unworthy and depressed, and was currently searching for a job. The mom asked me if it would be possible to have her daughter work at our clinic. I replied that we were all volunteers and had no money to pay for an employee. "No, no, no," she said, "I mean do you think she could serve for free at your clinic until she finds another job?"

With that information, I had an idea. The mother gave me the name of their stake president. That evening, I called him on the phone. I suggested to him that the daughter, Andrea, could be called as a local, service missionary. She could complete the time that she had missed as a full-time missionary, and with that call, she could get over her guilt, be of service to the children of Guatemala, and work as our receptionist. The phone call was on speaker-phone, and although Trudy couldn't understand much of the Spanish conversation, she did understand one word that the happy president repeated over and over, "Perfecto, perfecto, perfecto." Within a week, the call was issued and Andrea began working with us in the dental clinic.

Andrea's smile and bilingual skills
were great assets.

Andrea served at our front desk for more than a year. When she finally left, she immediately found a job working as a receptionist for a doctor's office. Her time with our clinic had been a wonderful blessing to us, and also a wonderful growing experience for Andrea. For both Andrea and our clinic, the answer to our prayers was perfecto!

Later, we were blessed to have
Sister Sandra Jeffers also work with us.