A trip to change lives

One of the fondest memories that Depen Patel has of his 2008 trip to Honduras with the relief organization Global Brigades is the reaction of the children as the bus pulled into one of the villages.

The local children, some of whom traveled miles on foot after hearing that the organization was coming, saw the soccer balls and Frisbees the team had for the children as they came off the bus and—without even a hello—wasted no time accepting the gifts and engaging Patel and the other strangers in play.

Patel will probably have more stories to share when he returns from another Honduras trip with Global Brigades taking place March 22–29.       

The Global Brigades is a nonprofit secular organization that was started in 2003 by a group of students from Marquette University and a Wisconsin church to provide relief in developing countries.

It has since become the largest student-run international relief group in the world, and has over 1,500 volunteers from over 60 university clubs, according to the Global Brigades Web site.

Patel, a PSU pre-med student, was one of the 24 Portland State students who helped check in patients, distributed medications, worked in triage and worked at their donation center handing out items such as clothes and toys at last year’s Brigade event last March.

Patel said that while visiting family in India he had seen poverty before, but this was his first real opportunity to be involved with any humanitarian effort.

“I would say it was a life-changing moment,” said Patel, who is also publicity director for Global Brigades.

Over a four-day period the Brigade team was able to see about 1,700 villagers with the help of three health care professionals working in triages, clinics and pharmacies, Patel said.

“We don’t let anyone walk away. Anybody who was in line, we took care of,” Patel said. Many of the illnesses that the workers saw were due to waterborne diseases and tooth decay. 

“It’s mostly things that could be prevented and taken care of. Obviously they don’t have the resources,” said Ashkan Abedini, who is in charge of recruiting health care professionals for the trip this March.

The PSU math and general science major heard about Brigades from Patel and Will Lynam, a Portland State student who was responsible for getting the university involved with the organization. Abedini joined Global Brigades last October.

“I heard from Depen and Will that it’s a great opportunity and it’s a great organization,” Abedini said.

Abedini is not the only one who caught some of Patel’s contagious enthusiasm. Amar Panchmatia, a post-bac student studying to be a pharmacist, decided to bring his knowledge of medicine to Global Brigade’s effort and joined the team this November as a medical coordinator.

Panchmatia said that he looks forward to getting out of the “bubble” of the United States and to gain awareness of cultures poorer than our own.

“To see it and actually use our assets to help out is something worthwhile to get out of the whole thing,” Panchmatia said.

The group is trying to raise $25,000 for airfare, shelter, food and living quarters for the trip to Honduras. They are putting on a salsa dance March 13, and are also selling T-shirts with the Global Brigade logo as a couple of the ways to raise funds for their trip.

Along with monetary needs, they are hoping to find at least one physician to join the team.

“Right now our major goal is finding physicians, health professionals and fundraising money for medications to take over there.” Patel said.

Global Brigades is also including a water brigade and dental brigade in response to the number of patients with cases of waterborne illnesses and tooth decay. Some of the 34 PSU students that are part of the medical brigade will also be part of the other brigades. The water brigade will work on ditches to bring fresh water to the some of the villages.

Abedini is hopeful that while making a lasting impact on the Honduran people, the journey will impact him and his outlook on life as well.

“We take a lot of things for granted in the U.S.,” but for the Hondurans, he said, “the smallest things make them happy.”