Legacy Projects International A global outreach community

Leadership group helps to build clinic on tiny island

ARUN SIVASANKARAN Forum Publishing Group

July 16, 2009

Not too long ago, people in Ile De La Gonave, a tiny island off Haiti, dreaded even the thought of falling ill.

For people in the island, being sick meant walking miles and then going by boat to Haiti before they could get medical help. Thanks to the combined efforts of a nonprofit organization and a group of business people in Coral Springs and surrounding communities, life is easier now.

A medical clinic opened on the island recently with the help of money raised by Legacy Projects International (FL 154), a leadership group, and Vision International Missions, the nonprofit organization. The response from residents was immediate; the clinic served more than three hundred people in just the first three days of operation.

Jason Graham, a member of the leadership group and a Coral Springs resident, said he was glad to be part of an effort to make live easier for people in need. "Haiti is suffering; this island is even more in need of help. People there have gone through much in recent years. We initially thought of building a small school, but the place was more in need of a clinic."

The fundraising efforts have so far yielded $18,000. The third of the events was at the Country Club of Coral Springs. "We need to raise more money [so] we plan to organize more fundraisers. The clinic is our legacy [and] we want to ensure it has what it needs," Graham said.

Ken Whitten of International Missions remembers the first time he visited the island, which is a two-hour boat ride off Haiti. "There are no tarred roads; all you have are dirt paths. You travel at 5 mph most of the time. I saw some people carrying a pregnant woman on a bed. I later learned that they were taking her to a hospital in Haiti. It would have taken her days to get there."

"We have a full-time nurse at the clinic [and] we also have a part time pharmacist and a functional pharmacy," said Whitten, who is in charge of operations in the island. "The clinic has three beds for overnight patients, a waiting room and an examination room. There are other clinics in the island but they are unmanned and have no medicine to speak of."

"We plan to continue supporting the clinic for a year at least," Whitten said. "Most of the hospitals in Haiti charge $3 just for consultation; the fee at the clinic is just $1. The fee for medicine is minimal as well."

Members of Legacy Projects International plan to visit the island later this year, said Sandra Holmes, one of the members. "This is an ongoing project. We all have worked very hard and we want to do this as best as we can. People in the island really need all the help they can get."

"It is an amazing feeling to be able to help people," Holmes said. "I know there are people in my backyard who need help, but these are people who have been devastated by major storms. No one should have to walk miles to get medical help."

For more on Project Haiti or to donate, visit www.legacyprojectsinternational.com/project-haiti.

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