Kenya Heart and Sole

My name is Oded Polat and I am 32 years old. Originally I am from Israel and arrived at the US after meeting my wife in Israel. I am a graduate nursing student from the University of Massachusetts in Boston and am studying to take my final nursing exam (started attending UMASS at the Fall of 2009 and graduated on December of 2013). Hopefully by the time you will read this letter I hope I will pass the exam and will be a certified nurse.

I am married and have a 4 months old boy and we also have 2 cats. My family and I leave in the Cambridge area. The rest of my family are all back home in Israel. I have some medical experience as I was a medic in the Israeli army as well as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) for about a year. In case you don’t know, EMTs are the medics on the ambulances. I am currently working as a nurse assistant in the Cambridge hospital and am hoping to work there as soon as I receive my nursing license. I have never been to Kenya or Africa in general but always wanted to visit. I really enjoy seeing other cultures and am very exited to participate on this trip mainly because I will be joining as a professional who came to assist and not as a tourist, eventhough I cannot wait to see your beautiful country (I have looked at pictures on the internet) and meet the locals.

Looking forward to meet and work with you side by side. See you in a few months, Oded Polat

Hello! My name is Ericka Garufi. I am a junior at UMass Boston studying to become a nurse. I previously went to Stony Brook University in New York. I have an older sister named Alexandria, a younger sister named Emily, and a puppy named Milah. I have played soccer all my life, including both university teams at Division I program at Stony Brook and now a Division III program at UMass Boston. I enjoy the team camaraderie and teamwork in pursuit of a common goal.

During the summer, I had the opportunity to work at the department of mental health in Boston as an intern. After working closely with people with various mental illnesses I decided to start a new chapter of an organization called Active Minds at UMass Boston. It aims to reduce the stigma and change the conversation surrounding mental health.

My passion for nursing stemmed from volunteering in various places. The first was in a pediatric hematology/oncology unit at Stony Brook Hospital where I recorded over 100 hours. Also, on a study abroad trip to Tanzania I received a service certificate for working at many orphanages. I love reading and doing outdoor activities in the summer such as going to the beach and biking with friends.

After I graduate and receive my nursing license I would like to do international traveling nursing. I like experiencing different cultures and learning new things. My future goals include becoming a family nurse practitioner.

My name is Victoria Zerbato. I am currently a senior in the nursing program at the University of Massachusetts Boston. I live in Medford, MA and I work at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in the cardiac ICU as well as Massachusetts General Hospital on a surgical trauma floor as a nursing assistant. I grew up in a very small town in Maine where there was less than 500 students in my high school. I have always wanted to travel and got my first chance as a junior in high school. I was chosen by one of my professors to be a student ambassador with an organization called People to People. We traveled to England, France, Italy and Greece over a month long period. It was a life changing experience.

After graduating, I took college courses off and on, but didn’t really know what I wanted to do until I started working at a facility for adults with mental illness. That job taught me more than I could have ever imagined and helped me decide on pursuing nursing as my career. I began taking nursing courses at a local community college, but there was a waiting list for clinical placement and I knew I wanted to get my bachelor’s degree so I transferred to UMass Boston. Through UMass I have been extremely lucky to learn and work in some of the best hospitals in the world and have the honor of being hired at two of them. In addition to work and school I have been taking cardio kickboxing in an effort to stay active. I also try to go back to Maine whenever I can to visit friends and family. I am very thankful and excited for the opportunity to work with Kenya Heart and Sole. I want to be able to use my nursing skills and knowledge to help those that do not have access to medical care as we do here in Boston. I am very interested in cardiac disease treatment and prevention and working with nursing students in Kenya. I feel I have a lot to learn from this experience and hope I can help others learn as well.

My name is Leah Ottenstein, and I am a student in my third year in the Undergraduate Nursing Program at the University of Massachusetts Boston (UMB). As president of the Student Nurses’ Association at UMB, I helped to found and run a peer mentor program that helps undergraduate students to better handle the pressures of nursing school. I also volunteer with the medical team at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in my role as captain of the UMB College of Nursing and Health Sciences Boston Marathon Volunteer Team. I transferred to UMB from Tufts University, where I studied history with a focus on Latin America. I have worked in veterinary hospitals for seven years as a veterinary technician, most recently in the operating room.  I was born and raised outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but my family is from Argentina. I am engaged, I love animals, and I have four pets at home. I also enjoy doing yoga regularly, hiking, and traveling. I speak Spanish, and last summer I studied medical Spanish in Costa Rica. I have previously been on three service trips, one to the Dominican Republic, one to Brazil, and one to Honduras. I am passionate about health disparities and social determinants of health, especially in the global context. I am very excited to see how my career develops, but I know that it will involve advanced practice, research, and work in global health.i

My name is Anh Phuong Le, currently in my junior year, is pursuing my Bachelors of Nursing degree at the University of Massachusetts Boston with an anticipated graduation date of December 2015. I was born in Vietnam, traveled to the States in January 2010 with my family when I graduated high school in Vietnam. I am not a stranger to difficult situations as I have had to adapt to the many challenges of a new culture and a fresh environment all the while having to take care of my siblings as the eldest in the family. I also have grown accustomed to the new environment and thrived in it by building strong relationships with both the UMass Boston and my local communities. I have grown these past 4 years into a hardworking, outspoken, and I enjoy helping and caring individual by consistently volunteering to take leadership roles throughout my classes at UMass Boston and continuing to do so through mentoring and giving advice to underclassmen. Because of my background, I am fluent in both English and Vietnamese. I have received my BLS CPR and AED training certificate from the American Heart Association. I also have clinical experience from Carney Hospital and have done over 100 hours of community service work which includes being in the 2013 Boston Marathon as part of the Wheelchair Sweep team organized by Dr. Adrienne Wald, an event that I will remember for the rest of my life. In January, 2013, I volunteered for the Hurricane Sandy Relief effort and have expectations to go to Kenya trip in summer 2014.

I grew up overseas in Poland, India, Lebanon, Greece, and Germany. My family moved back to the United States when I was a teenager, but my love of other cultures and people was firmly ingrained in who I was. I graduated from the College of William and Mary in 1989 with a BA in International Relations. A few years ago, I returned to school to become a nurse. I am currently pursuing a BSN from UMass Boston. I expect to graduate in May 2015. In addition to nursing school and working at South Shore Hospital as a nursing assistant, I have five children from 22 years old to 3 year old. I enjoy all the activity that children bring to a house: soccer games, ballet recitals, noise and laughter.