By JOSHUA THOMAS

C-S-E Editor

CANAJOHARIE — Canajoharie High School Seniors Morgan Jacksland and Alyssa Paratore, two of 14 local residents departing for a Guatemalan medical mission February 10, were on hand Sunday evening during a take-out benefit at Mercato Pizza Restaurant, preparing food, selling baked goods, and chatting with diners about their upcoming trip.

The girls are the youngest, and only high school students, taking part in the trip, and while both are excited to have the opportunity to participate in such a meaningful experience, anticipation often doesn’t exist without a healthy dose of nerves.

Jacksland, who has travelled outside the United States before, but never to an impoverished area, said “I’m a little apprehensive, but very excited.” Paratore, with a smile, agreed that she’s “a little nervous, but mostly excited,” stating that no matter how much they learn about Guatemala, they’re essentially “walking blindly” into what’s sure to be an overwhelming situation, especially being that this is Paratore’s first trip to another country.

Since the girls are not doctors, their responsibilities will include working with kids, comforting them while they receive shots, and passing out supplies such as coloring books, crayons, glue and other craft items that were assembled by St. Johns-St. Marks Lutheran Church in Canajoharie, which Alyssa is a member of.

The biggest challenge, both of them agreed, will be to overcome the language barrier. While Paratore has taken Spanish for the past five years, and has a basic conversational understanding of the language, Jacksland is a French student. Luckily, she said that her French teacher also speaks Spanish, and has taught her numerous key words.

The preparation process for the trip took place over a two-month period, with the 14 travelers meeting regularly to discuss money and supplies. Talks centered around what items to pack, as Jacksland said, “we’re pretty limited on space,” because the group is bringing a ton of items to donate. Jacksland said that aside from the vast array of items they’ll donate when they arrive, the girls will basically only be traveling with nurse’s scrubs.

The journey to Guatemala will be a long one, as the group will depart by bus to New York City on February 9, where they’ll board a plane at JFK airport at 11 a.m. The plane will fly to Miami, FL, where they’ll board another plane to Guatemala. When they land, they’ll travel by bus to the hotel they’re staying at. The group will travel from the hotel to the village they’ll be assisting on a daily basis.

Alyssa said that it’ll be exciting “just seeing how different it is from here,” while Jacksland said that she most looks forward to “the experience we’re going to get from it, the memories, the people we’ll meet.” She noted that she expects the mission to be extremely humbling, citing the local flooding as a source of inspiration for her decision to accompany the group, as the suffering she witnessed brought her to realize that there are people around the world that deal with poverty and suffering not only when disaster strikes, but on a daily basis.