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HAITI IS A SMALL CARIBBEAN COUNTRY, A SHORT NINETY-MINUTE FLIGHT FROM FLORIDA. GEOGRAPHICALLY, HAITI IS SO CLOSE, BUT THE REALITY OF LIFE THERE IS UNIMAGINABLY FAR FROM OUR COMFORTABLE LIVES HERE IN THE
U.S. |
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DR. JOHN CARROLL HAS BEEN TRAVELING TO HAITI TO WORK IN HOSPITALS AND CLINICS FOR NEARLY TWENTY YEARS. UNFORTUNATELY, HAITI HAS ALMOST NO RESOURSES IN TERMS OF GOVERNMENT FUNDING FOR HEALTHCARE
FACILITIES, MEDICATION AND DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. WHENEVER POSSIBLE, DR. CARROLL TREATS PATIENTS IN HAITI USING WHATEVER MEANS AVAILABLE. HOWEVER, FOR LIFE-THREATENING PROBLEMS REQUIRING SURGERY, OFTEN A PATIENT'S ONLY
HOPE IS TO COME TO THE UNITED STATES FOR HELP. |
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THE HAITIAN HEARTS PROGRAM BEGAN IN 1995 WHEN A VERY ILL BABY IN NEED OF LIFE-SAVING SURGERY CAME FROM HAITI TO THE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF ILLINOIS AT OSF SAINT FRANCIS MEDICAL CENTER. THE
SERVICES AND TREATMENTS, GENEROUSLY DONATED BY THE HOSPITAL AND PHYSICIANS WERE SUCCESSFUL AND TODAY THE CHILD THRIVES. SINCE THEN, MANY CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS HAVE BEEN BROUGHT HERE FOR SURGERIES THAT
ARE NOT POSSIBLE IN HAITI. |
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DR. JOHN CARROLL AND THE "HAITIAN HEARTS" REQUEST AND NEED YOUR HELP. OVER THE PAST 5 YEARS DR. CARROLL AND HIS ASSOCIATES HAVE TRAVELED TO HAITI AND RETURNED WITH OVER 60 CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS IN
NEED OF MEDICAL TREATMENT THAT INCLUDE: MAJOR HEART PROBLEMS, CANCER, BURNS, HYDROCEPHALUS, FACIAL DEFORMITIES, EYE PROBLEMS, TUMORS AND MORE. |
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IMAGINE GIVING BIRTH TO A BABY THAT YOU CANNOT FEED OR CARE FOR. THE CHILD HAS A CONDITION CALLED HYDROCEPHALUS OR FLUID ON THE BRAIN. HIS HEAVY HEAD WEIGHS ABOUT AS MUCH AS HIS FRAIL BODY.
FRIGHTENED AND HELPLESS, THE MOTHER ABANDONS THE CHILD JOUELES, LEAVING HI, TO DIE. WHAT IF YOU WERE SIX-YEAR-OLD ABDON, WITH A HEART DEFECT? HE CAN'T PLAY OR RUN WITH THE OTHER CHILDREN. IN FACT, HE SPENDS MOST OF HIS
TIME IN A SQUATTING POSITION IN ORDER TO BREATHE. |
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IS IT POSSIBLE TO RELATE TO THE FIVE-YEAR-OLD GIRL, MEJEANE? WHILE SUFFERING WITH A HIGH FEVER, SHE IS TAKEN BY HER PARENTS TO A WITCH DOCTOR WHO DOUSES HER WITH ALCOHOL TO BRING DOWN THE
FEVER. LATER THAT DAY, SHE FALLS INTO AN OPEN FIRE PIT BURNING MUCH OF HER UPPER TORSO, INCLUDING HER ARM, CHEST AND FACE. FENELUS HAS A DIFFERENT PROBLEM. HE IS THIRTEEN WITH A SOFTBALL SIZED FACIAL TUMOR. HE HAS ONLY
SIX MONTHS TO LIVE. MIKE, AGE EIGHT AND SCHNEIDER, AGE THREE WILL CERTAINLY DIE WITHOUT MAJOR HEART SURGERY. |
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THESE ARE ONLY SIX OF THE SIXTY CHILDREN WHO HAVE BEEN GIVEN A CHANCE TO LIVE. THIS IS DUE TO THE KINDNESS OF DR. CARROLL, OTHER VOLUNTEER DOCTORS, NURSES AND MANY FAMILIES AND INDIVIDUALS
THROUGHOUT THE TRI-COUNTY AREA WHO HAVE OPENED THEIR HEARTS AND HOMES TO PROVIDE LOVE AND CARE FOR THESE NEEDY HAITIAN CHILDREN. |
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AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE GENEROSITY OF OSF SAINT FRANCIS MEDICAL CENTER THROUGH THE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF ILLINOIS. |
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WE STRONGLY URGE ALL WHO WOULD LIKE TO GET INVOLVED WITH "HAITIAN HEARTS" TO DO SO. TO HELP THESE DESPERATE HAITIAN CHILDREN, PLEASE SEND YOUR DONATIONS TO:
HAITIAN HEARTS
P.O. BOX 2363
EAST PEORIA, ILLINOIS 61611 |
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