Chilar: Journey of a Lifetime

In the 1970s, more American college students could be found hitchhiking through Europe than riding mules to remote Mexican villages. Yet Kaye Kvam, at 21, chose to spend six months in the wild impoverished village of Chilar as a medical volunteer with Project Piaxtla. With only the barest of training, forsaking the relative ease of her life in California, she cared fro all ages, and all types, while learning much about medicine, herself, and her Mexican neighbors. In September 1974, she put her college career on hold and stepped into the unfamiliar. Through her experiences in Chilar, Kaye developed her deep love of people, her strong faith, and her positive, invincible outlook on life. Including photographs and personal drawings, with her signature humor, she lovingly recounts her amazing experiences. Kaye wrote this book during the last year of her life, and was taken much too young by ALS and cancer. Her courage and determination to help others, even when in much personal pain, is inspirational.