She gave him an uncertain smile, then looked down at her watch. “We’d better get back on the road. We’ve still got a long journey ahead of us.”
Four hours later, Kevin and Angel drove into the small village of Villa Mendoza. The few existing buildings were mostly rundown shacks, and Kevin was beginning to wonder where they were going to stay while they were here. They drove on a little farther, and he saw a few new houses going up here and there. Maybe they would find something livable.
Angel pointed up ahead to a huge domed building on the left. “That’s it, right there.”
He pulled up in front of the massive structure and stopped. “You’re kidding.”
The domed building appeared to have two floors and a basement, and, even though it was enormous, it was very simply done on the outside. “What the hell is that?”
“Home sweet home. Well, for the next week anyway. This is the brand-new Villa Mendoza Dental Clinic. Drive around to the back, and we’ll see if Diego and Manuel are here. They can help us unload.”
Kevin drove around to the right side of the building where a smaller version of the domed structure sat. It had a three-car garage on the bottom, and a staircase on the left led up to a second floor. He pulled into the only open slot in the garage, between an old Chevy pickup and an equally old Ford Fairlane.
“Good,” said Angel. “They’re here.”
They had climbed out of the van and were headed over to the larger domed building when they heard a door creak open.
“Hola, Angel! Welcome back.” The tall, middle-aged Hispanic man coming toward them smiled warmly. A slender, middle-aged woman came out of the building right behind him, followed by a younger version of the first man.
Angel ran ahead to greet her friends. “Hola!” She hugged everyone. Again, Kevin wondered if she really didn’t hug everybody she met.
She turned back to Kevin. “Kevin, I’d like for you to meet Manuel, Luisa, and Diego Santiago. They helped to build this place. Manuel is a contractor. Everybody, this is Kevin, our new cameraman.”
Luisa looked alarmed. “What happened to Jonathon?”
“I’m afraid he’s sick with the flu, but don’t worry, I spoke with his sister this morning and he’s going to be fine. He’s supposed to go home in a couple of days.”
Luisa crossed herself and mumbled something in Spanish.
Angel nodded toward Kevin. “Kevin is a friend of Miranda’s brother, Miguel. He happened to be here visiting when we found out about Jonathon. I’m afraid he kind of got bulldozed into the job of cameraman.”
Kevin had the decency to look slightly shame-faced when he spoke. “Not at all. I’m glad to be of service.”
Manuel shook Kevin’s hand firmly. “Glad to meet you, Kevin, I’m glad you could join us.” Kevin nodded to Luisa and shook Diego’s hand. “Diego, let’s get these boxes inside,” said Manuel. The two men headed for the garage.
Kevin promptly followed them. “Let me help.”
The three men made short work of unloading the boxes into the hallway near the back door, and, when they were finished, Kevin stopped for a moment to look around. The walls were freshly painted in a soft sea-foam green with a bright, hand-painted floral border at the top. The crown moldings and baseboards were made of hardwoods, and both were stained in a warm honey hue to complement the color of the walls.
Angel came into the hallway with two bottles of water and offered one to Kevin. “Thirsty?”
“Thanks.” He opened his bottle and took a long, much-needed drink before looking around again.
“You want the five-dollar tour?” she asked.
“Sure.”
“Okay. Let’s start upstairs.”
They walked up the stairs and into an enormous circular room with six windows and a huge skylight in the middle of the ceiling. It held nothing but an endless supply of empty shelves, one large conference table with fourteen chairs, and a fourteen-foot square glass floor in the center of it all, overlooking a sanctuary of sorts beneath them.
Angel walked into the room and lovingly placed a hand on one of the empty floor-to-ceiling shelves nearby, caressing the woodwork. “This space will be used mostly for the storage of old records. They won’t have any records to store for a while though, since this place is brand-new. They’ll also hold business meetings in here every week.”
They walked back down the stairs to the hallway where they’d started. “This is the storage room where most of our supplies will be kept.” She pointed to a door on the left before walking farther down the circular hallway, where she went into a room on the right. “This is the kitchen and lounge for the employees. It comes complete with lockers and their own private restroom.”
Kevin looked around. “Nice.”
She smiled mysteriously and walked across the room to another door. Walking in, Kevin couldn’t help the surprise he felt. The inner sanctum, a rather large atrium he’d spotted through the glass floor above, was beautifully done, with miniature fruit trees and vegetable plants of every kind and several cozy sets of tables and chairs strategically placed here and there. Looking up, he could see the large glass opening from the floor above.
“Wow, very nice.”
“It’s very therapeutic for our staff. It gives them a place to get away from it all. For a few minutes anyway.
“Yeah, I would say so.”
“The fruit is picked by locals and sold at market to help fund the clinic.”
She led him back through the kitchen, into the hall, and down a little. “This next room on the left is the hygiene practitioner’s office. The one to the right is the dental hygienist office. Both come equipped with their own private restrooms.”
The window in the hygiene office had a good view of the atrium behind it. Therapeutic, she had called it. Given what he had learned about her life so far, he was glad she had that to look forward to this week. They stepped farther down the hall. “The three rooms on the right are the darkroom for processing film, plus the sterilization room, and the lab.”
Kevin pointed to the large piece of equipment standing right outside the darkroom. “What’s this thing?”
Angel stopped next to the machine and leaned back against the wall. “You haven’t seen your dentist lately, have you, Kevin?” She bit back a grin at the look of mock terror on his face and placed one hand on the side of the machine. “This is a panoramic X-ray machine. It takes one big X-ray of the complete jaw structure. It’s one of the more expensive pieces of equipment we have here. Come on.”
They walked farther down the hall, and Angel opened the next door to her left. “This is the waiting room, also complete with its own restroom.” She opened the next door. “And this is the front office. We have already hired and trained two local women to run the front office and process insurance claims. Not that there will be many claims to process. Most of our clients won’t have insurance.”
Angel stepped across the hall and opened another door. “This is the hygiene supply closet where we keep toothbrushes, floss, etcetera, as well as toys for the children. The next two rooms on the left are the dentist’s or hygiene practitioner’s rooms, and the next two on the left are the hygienist’s rooms. I’ll be working in these two. On this trip there will be one dentist and one hygienist, and each of us will have two assistants to allow us to use our time more productively.”
Angel pointed to the doorway down the hall. “There’s also a fifth room for an assistant who does flossing and polishing and impressions for bleach trays, partials, and so on. This place runs better than most dental offices back home do. We also have the most up-to-date equipment to work with.”
Kevin shook his head. “You know, you’d never have guessed what was in here from looking at the outside.”
“Yeah, I know. We have to make sure we use the money efficiently or we wouldn’t be able to build very many.”
“How many are there?”
Angel leaned back against the wall behind her. “This building is o
ur eleventh completed dental project. We’ve got two more we’re working on a few kilometers south of here, not to mention the six medical clinics that we’ve established so far.”
“How do you find dentists to work here? This is kind of in the middle of nowhere.”
“We have a dentist who rotates to different offices once they’re established, but the dental hygiene practitioner is the backbone of the office.”
“You mentioned that before. What is that?”
“A dental hygiene practitioner is kind of like a nurse practitioner. They can do everything a certified dental hygienist can do as well as simple extractions, simple fillings and anesthesia.”
“I’ve never heard of a dental hygiene practitioner before.”
“You’re not alone. Most of America hasn’t caught on to it yet either,”
“And where do you find a dental hygiene practitioner willing to come out here and work?”
“In order for a village to qualify to get a dental clinic built in their community, they have to send two people from the area to school. One is sent to dental hygiene practitioner school and the other to dental hygiene school. They have to complete their training, pass their board exams, and agree to work here for double the years of their education. If they agree to do that, their education, including their room and board, is paid for in full by the Angel’s foundation. The community also has to help raise funds to help to pay for their education. Everybody has to help in order to make it work.”
“I’m impressed.”
She nodded. “On to the basement.”
Kevin followed her down another set of stairs to the floor below. There she pointed to the other end of the enormous room. “Down here we have two rooms at the far end with a total of ten beds for the volunteers. There are four restrooms. Two on either side of the bedrooms and two on the opposite side of the basement. There’s a kitchen, a dining area, an entertainment area, and a laundry room, complete with two changing rooms. Everyone who works with patients is required to change before they leave the building and an assistant does the laundry every day. We have better infection control than most places back in the U.S. The basement also doubles as a community center and a storm shelter for the neighborhood when needed.”
Kevin pointed at the stage, microphones, and a computerized sound booth on one side of the room. “You have a stage?”
“Yeah. You remember I told you there would be singing and dancing this week?”
“Yeah, I remember. I thought you might have been pulling my leg, though.”
“Nope.” Angel tucked her thumbs into imaginary suspenders and said with her best hillbilly impression, which wasn’t hard with her southern drawl, “I don’t do much leg pullin’ no more.”
They both laughed.
“I’m glad to hear it.” Kevin peered around the room once more. “This place is remarkable. Somebody really thought this out.”
Angel looked pleased. “Well, thank you.”
He looked at her in disbelief. “Wait a minute. Did you plan this? I thought you said you were a hygienist?”
“Oh, and hygienists can’t have brains?” She gave him a teasing look. “I’m not just another pretty face, you know.”
He smiled and took a step closer to her. “I’m finding that out.” When she blushed and looked away, Kevin nodded at the two bedrooms. “Is that where we’ll be staying?”
“No,” Angel shook her head. “We get to stay in the penthouse.”
“The penthouse?”
“Over the garage is a three-bedroom apartment. After we leave at the end of the week, the new practitioner will move into it, and it’ll be hers for as long as she works here. One of the perks of working with us. Do you want to see it? We probably need to get settled anyway. Tomorrow is a big day for us.”
“Okay. I’ll get our luggage.”
* * *
Kevin retrieved their bags from the garage, and they headed up the stairs to the apartment. It had a large living room with a huge picture window facing the mountains. The room had been lovingly decorated in soft colors similar to those in the clinic and contained an overstuffed sofa, loveseat and chair, as well as a coffee table, two end tables, and an empty entertainment center. To his left was a kitchen with a breakfast bar and an empty dining area. A door led to a small half bath.
“Well, this is it.”
“So this is the penthouse, huh?”
“Yep. Impressive isn’t it?”
“Actually, it looks very comfortable.”
“Thank you. The bedrooms are down here.” She headed down the hall, Kevin following with their luggage. “Dr. Conner usually takes the master bedroom, Jonathon the first on the left, and I take the last one down the hall. If it’s okay with you, I’d rather share a bathroom with you than with Dr. Conner.”
Kevin grinned. “What, does Dr. Conner leave the seat up?”
“Something like that. His highness thinks even the master bedroom is beneath him. He’s married to one of the smartest women I know, but he’s constantly chasing women every time he comes down here, including me. I try to keep some distance between us. He’s ah…persistent though. Very persistent.”
“Wait. He hasn’t ever…hurt you, has he?”
She sighed. “No. He’s not stupid, just relentless. He should be arriving soon with the rest of the team. As soon as we unpack, we need to get the camera equipment out of the van and get ready to film their arrival. You’ll need to get everything on film. There’s gonna be a small service at the cathedral right down the road with dinner afterward at the community center.”
He blinked. “Cathedral?”
“Yeah…cathedral, you know, it’s a place where people gather to sing and pray and worship God.” It was Angel’s turn to stare. “You don’t have a problem with that, do you?”
“Well, no. It’s that…”
“It’s that what?”
He decided to change the subject. “I didn’t know you were Catholic.”
She patted his arm. “I’m not.”
An hour later, camera in hand, Kevin filmed the arrival of the bus as it came rolling into view. Angel and some of the locals stood outside the clinic, cheering the busload of volunteers as they pulled in. Angel greeted the dentist, albeit rather coolly, and welcomed the assistants wholeheartedly, hugging each one in turn and thanking them for being a part of this mission trip to the Villa Mendoza Dental Clinic. They were led to the community center and given a few minutes to freshen up before the service.
A little later, Kevin stood in front of the cathedral, watching Angel’s back as she disappeared inside. The outside of the large Catholic structure was beautiful, but intimidating. Well…for Kevin anyway. The large columns and the tall stained-glass windows seemed overpowering. He contemplated how, and even more why, someone had built this huge structure in the middle of this seemingly lonesome valley. He took a deep breath and headed into the building, where he almost fell to his knees.
It was one of the most beautiful buildings he had ever seen. He couldn’t wait to get his camera up and rolling to capture the exquisiteness of the elaborate structure surrounding him. He didn’t feel any special connection to this place, no feelings of holy rapture or hallelujahs, but it was still beautiful—unbelievably beautiful.
Several minutes later the service started, and he quietly slipped into the pew next to Angel. The number of people who had apparently come for the service surprised him. He was pleasantly surprised again when during a prayer, Angel reached over and slipped her tiny hand into his.
When the service was over, the entire village brought food to the community center for dinner. After Kevin had eaten, he picked up the camera and walked around the room, filming various locals who lived and worked in the village.
At nine o’clock, Angel stood on the stage and made an announcement in Spanish followed by the English version. “I want to thank all of you for coming to welcome us and for bringing all this delicious food. I hope everyone will join us this week
for our planned activities. We have something planned for every night from seven to ten o’clock. Monday is movie night, Tuesday Latin dancing, Wednesday karaoke, Thursday line dancing, and Friday we’ll have a farewell banquet and call it a night because you’re all going to be exhausted by then.”
The crowd laughed, and Angel continued, “Don’t forget there’ll be a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday morning at eight to officially open the Villa Mendoza Dental Clinic. I hope you’ll join us for that as well. Thank you for coming, and I hope to see you tomorrow night.”
As the villagers gathered their things and left, the dental assistants converged on Kevin, taking him aback, rather. Angel walked over to stand between them. “Okay, ladies. Let me introduce you. Ladies, this is Kevin, and he is going to be filming our mission work this week. Now, I know he’s awfully cute, but for the next few days, he belongs to the Angel’s Foundation, so let’s make sure we treat him with the respect that he deserves and give the man some breathing room, okay?”
The assistants reluctantly walked away, leaving Kevin alone.
“Thanks. I thought I was about to be mobbed.”
Angel laughed. “I don’t think this is that kind of crowd. Let me introduce you to somebody.”
Kevin followed her to the other side of the room where a pretty young Spanish woman stood talking with Diego.
“Kevin, this is Savannah. She’s the dental hygiene practitioner for the Villa Mendoza Dental Clinic. She’ll be taking over the practice next week.”
Savannah smiled and extended her hand. “Hola, Kevin. It’s nice to meet you.”
Kevin shook the young woman’s hand. “Likewise.”
Angel gestured to Diego. “And you remember Diego.”
“Yes. How are you?” Kevin shook the young man’s hand.
“Well, and you?” asked Diego.
“I’m good, thank you.”
“Diego and Savannah are engaged.”
“Well, congratulations to you both.”
“Gracias,” Diego and Savannah said in unison.
“They have graciously planned their wedding to coincide with one of our future mission trips so that we can all be here.”
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