One staff sergeant’s journey to Guatemala

Photo By Tech. Sgt. Christopher Sherlock | Staff Sgt. Emmanuel Gutierrez communicates with a citizen of Puerto Barrios on October 24, 2022, utilizing his bilingual skills in support of Continuing Promise 2022. Arkansas Air National Guard members participate in Continuing Promise 2022 to support Guatemala through the U.S. National Guard State Partnership Program, which develops relationships with partner countries while providing support such as medical care and increasing readiness of U.S. and partner forces. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Christopher W. Sherlock)  

GUATEMALA CITY, GUATEMALA

11.09.2022

Story by Staff Sgt. Emmanuel Gutierrez 

188th Wing

EBBING AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Ark. – I hear the sky rail remind me of my next stop in its monotone, yet slightly urgent voice, but the only thing I can think of is getting to my next gate. I take a deep breath and rush through the doors as they slide open.

I get to my respective gate just as they are calling the final groups to board.

“Whew, I made it,” I thought, relieved.

I scan my boarding pass and make my way down the jet bridge to board the plane.

“13,14,15,16,17…A,” I think to myself as I take my seat, nervously checking my pockets for my passport, wallet, and phone. As the seat belt light turns on, so do my doubts about the trip.

Growing up in a Hispanic household with distant relatives still living in Mexico, I have heard all the horror stories regarding drugs, human trafficking, and kidnapping. My mother had recently told me her cousins have to come up with a password for when family calls to verify it was truly them, and not a stranger pretending to be family trying to get money transfers. Social media is also exploited to target abuelitas (grandmas) into thinking they are giving money to distant grandchildren. I also grew up hearing about being cautious when traveling at night due to safety concerns and not driving around in a nice car. All these concerns are swelling and circling in my mind, so my main concern is being careful with my phone and anything containing information regarding my family.

The seat belt light turns off, and I swallow nervousness to make room for a self-projected sense of confidence. I know deep down my Spanish is good, but I won’t be able to shake off my Texan accent.

As I leave the jet bridge, I say my first Spanish phrase in Guatemala. “Buenas Noches” translates to “good night,” however, this is used more to wish each other to have a good night.

I continue to walk up the jet bridge, and I’m relieved to see the rest of my fellow Airmen from the 188th Wing. It felt great to see them and be part of a crowd. There truly is safety in numbers. I needed them as much as they needed me to help translate and guide them to customs and baggage claim.

We arrive at the hotel in Guatemala City, and I saw the hotel is safely guarded which provides me some relief. However, I’m still thinking about the Embassy representative’s safety briefing making it clear only some zones were safe in Guatemala City, most were not. He also made it clear travel after dark was strictly prohibited which cemented what I heard from my side of the family.

The next day, we left for Puerto Barrios on a black hawk helicopter. It is my first time in a black hawk, and I’m surprised it is more comfortable than a commercial passenger airplane. Or maybe I just felt safer around fellow military members.

I laid my head back and recalled the discussion the night before of all the precautions we should take. Use a cell phone indoors, be vigilant of people on motorbikes, and not be combative if being part of an armed robbery. These thoughts make me nervously check my pockets for my passport, phone, and wallet.

We land and make our way to the hotel. Our drivers seem nice, and it's cool to be able to understand and communicate with them. I think, “thanks mom and dad for making me speak Spanish at home!”

We get to the next hotel and rest before our first day at the predetermined location which is a city sports complex.

That next morning, our group heads to the sports complex to eat breakfast and assist the Continuing Promise 2022 mission. I enjoy the black beans, queso panela, and delicious fluffy eggs with tomato and onion. Breakfast is a definite must because the malaria pills created a cloud of nausea throughout the day. While I scarf down the delicious Guatemalan coffee, I went to different tables to facilitate communication between my coworkers and the very amicable local wait staff. I felt a sense of pride flowing through me as I took a last drink of coffee.

After breakfast, we load up and head to the sports complex. On our way, I noticed every gas station has a security guard holding a gun that looked like a shotgun. My heightened sense of caution caused me to nervously check my pockets for my passport, phone, and wallet.

The sports complex is completely fenced in with one entry point. I notice a small workforce painting, cleaning, and pressure washing. The bright new paint colors of blue and white seemed to brighten everyone’s mood. As we walked through, the staff was happy to greet us. Some have memories of the last time Americans were there and can even say a few words in English. Already, I could start to see the impact of our work, and the importance of Continuing Promise.

We continued walking into a large gymnasium with no A/C, high ceilings, and newly painted doors. The basketball court floor was old and had patchwork done, but the main part wasn’t bad at all. To the left is a large, newly painted mural. It had the Continuing Promise logo in between the American flag and the Guatemalan flag. It was beautiful, and it was so perfectly painted it looked like a sticker. I knew immediately I wanted to use the mural as an ending for every video we made while there.

We were “oohing” and “ahhing” over the mural when an older lady came in ever so gently. She stood 4-foot-10 maybe, was slightly kyphotic, and weighed probably around 90 pounds. She is most likely in her late 70s. She tried to speak with some members, but I notice they can’t understand her.

I bent down to get to eye level and begin to speak to her. She asked if we could look at her eye. Her right eye was completely covered by a white cloud. It had tears continuously coming down it, and I could tell she was in pain. She stated it was getting hard for her to work since she couldn’t see out of that eye very well, and she was constantly having to pat it dry with her tissue. My heart sank as she was explaining her issues to me. I couldn’t imagine my mom working with one eye in her late 70s.

I used my fluency in Spanish to bridge the communication between the older lady and Major Tyler Peters, a nurse who was close by, to help answer her questions. We gave her a quick recommendation and reiterated when we would be open, fully staffed, and with all the equipment and resources.

Any doubts I had about this trip were quickly buried underneath the larger cause and the reason we were there. I now knew my fluency, medical background, and public affairs duty would have a larger impact than I had expected.

As the Continuing Promise mission fully launched, I helped on various occasions to translate. The mission had local translators, however, often the patients would get turned around and ask a member who did not know Spanish something in Spanish. I would get flagged down and quickly join the conversation to bridge the gap between military members and local Guatemalans.

In addition to being a translator, my other job was being part of a public affairs team. We covered the mission but also interviewed the patients themselves in Spanish. Seeing and hearing about the mission’s impact from Airmen is one thing but asking the patients themselves in their native language is another. It filled my heart with joy knowing our help was important and was well received. We were treating hundreds of patients a day with kindness no matter the language barrier.

Throughout the mission, we filmed National Guard members carrying patients, truly listening to them, and helping them however they could. We could see the care and passion through the lens. I noticed the patients could see the care and passion too; there was no language barrier for kindness, and we could see it in their smiles and gratitude as they left with their medications and goody bags filled with literature plus some toys we brought for the kids.

In the medical field we always ask ourselves, “does the risk outweigh the benefit?” In business, we do a risk-benefit analysis “does the risk provide a benefit or return of investment that makes it worth it?” I believe no matter which way you look at it, the benefit and impact of this trip is totally worth the risk.

I felt immense pride in helping families and patients receive the help they needed using my skills as a native Spanish speaker. Being part of something like Continuing Promise was truly a memorable experience. It has made such a big impact.

As I boarded the flight to leave Guatemala City, I checked my pockets once more for my passport, wallet, and phone. This time not as nervously, and with a smile on my face.

• Date Taken: 11.09.2022
• Date Posted: 11.11.2022 12:20
• Story ID: 433135
• Location: GUATEMALA CITY, GT
• Hometown: FORT SMITH, AR, US