Loney family doctors treat earthquake victims in Peru
Dr. John Loney and his wife, Dr. Teri Loney, of Sunrise Beach, Mo., and Dr. Linda Loney and her husband, Dr. Tom Cooper of Newton, Mass., recently traveled to Pisco, Peru, on a medical relief mission to care for victims of an earthquake that occurred in August 2007.
They were volunteers who served as part of a team that included physicians, dentists, nurses, a psychologist, and other support staff.
John, Linda, and Tom were the only American medical doctors on the team, and Teri served as the only psychologist.
The earthquake measured 8.5 on the Richter scale and caused more than 500 deaths and untold devastation in an already-poor area south of Lima. Many of the surviving victims were relocated to camps in the desert or barren country side, where they lack food, electricity, and running water.
Clinics were held in four of these relocation camps. Medical and dental relief teams from other parts of the world have been going to the area monthly since the earthquake occurred.
The clinic the Loneys worked in saw almost 850 people per day. They gave away eyeglasses and medicine, and provided prenatal care, counseling, and dental work. They were there for four days.
Linda Loney said the experience was awesome and life-altering, but the situation was overwhelming.
"The conditions the people were living in were horrible," she said. "They were living in makeshift huts and it was dusty and dirty. You felt you could never do enough to help those people."
The Loneys served with a group of volunteers from Missouri under the auspices of Medical Missions for Christ.
John and Linda are children of Leona Loney, formerly of Pilsen, and the late James Loney Jr.
