Phil Plunk founded International Hands in Service and Project Salud y Paz in 2001 as a way to address the rampant dental care needs in the rural highlands of Guatemala. Along with the help of the local Camanchaj bomberos (volunteer firemen), Phil slowly spread the word and built the relationships necessary to sustain his small practice. Since its founding, Salud y Paz has grown exponentially thanks to Phil’s hard work, alongside volunteers and staff. Currently, Project Salud y Paz consists of 3 clinic locations, Colegio Susanna Wesley, and rural mission teams. Phil handed off the Executive Directorship in 2011, but reamined heavily invested and involved. Phil Plunk passed away in December, 2018.
Phillip Lester Plunk was born on January 27, 1951, and died at age 67 on December 28, 2018. In 1984, Phil began leading volunteer teams each summer to Guatemala with the United Methodist Church Volunteers in Mission. In 1999, Phil closed his dental practice and founded Project Salud y Paz (Health & Peace), and served the Mayan population full-time in Guatemala. Working through Iglesia Methodista, the local Methodist church, he established his first dental clinics in Urbina and Camanchaj. Salud y Paz eventually added a full-time MD to provide medical services, followed by clinics in San Antonio and Cunen. In 2009, preschool Colegio Susanna Wesley was opened, providing Mayan children with the fluent Spanish language skills they need to succeed in the public school system. They are now bi-lingual (K’iche’ and Spanish) and are breaking the educational barriers to success.
Read the full obituary of Phillip Lester Plunk here.
A Memorial service was held on Friday, January 4th, 2019, at Washington Avenue Christian Church in Amarillo, Texas.
On the morning of Monday, March 25th, 2019, family members, loved ones, coworkers, neighbors, and friends gathered at the main clinic in Camanchaj to celebrate the life and legacy of Salud y Paz founder, Dr. Phil Plunk (1951-2018).
Leading the roadside procession from the clinic to the church was Manuel Panjoy Suy, longtime friend and Salud y Paz dental assistant who learned everything he knows about dental practice from Phil. Manuel led the group from the clinic to the local Iglesia Metodista, also known as “Alfa y Omega”. The pews of the small Methodist Church were packed from wall to wall with those paying their respects to Phil and the legacy he’s left in the community of Camanchaj. Guardian (Groundskeeper) of the Camanchaj clinic, Sebastian Saquic Tomin, provided a beautiful sermon and reflected on the bíblical idea of good works and Phil’s daily work as a dentist and teacher. Music and messages filled the intimate space. After the memorial service, all were invited to a meal together. SyP kitchen manager and cook, Miriam Maribel Ajanel Ortiz, insisted on Phil’s favorite, a Guatemalan traditional dish made with lots of time and love–pepian.
Notably, the Camanchaj Bomberos (volunteer firefighters and ambulance service) were in attendance and presented Phil’s brothers with a beautifully framed photo of Phil. Phil had a strong relationship with the local bomberos in Camanchaj.
To honor him in the fullest way possible, staff, volunteers, and supporters of Project Salud y Paz and Colegio Susanna Wesley plan to carry on Phil’s vision and mission of health, peace, and education here in Guatemala.
We are ever-grateful of Phil’s lifework in the Guatemalan Highlands, the people it has already served, and the people it will continue to serve in many ways for years and years to come.