Three Superstars
In almost any sport there are those who stand out who are ‘just gifted’. In music there are prodigies and virtuosos. It takes a lot of natural talent and hard work to become one of these ‘best in your field’ stars. We all had the kid in college who walks into class on the first day, and everyone knows the grading curve just got harder. We have three stars that I want to highlight. They are all in medical training. Nius has graduated from medical school and is doing his internship. Antoinetta and Adrian are getting close and will be following closely behind Nius.
Each of these young people faced impossible challenges to get to where they are today. Nius was 17 years old when his village was destroyed, and nearly 500 in his village lost their lives. No one from his village had ever become a doctor or dentist. He had not had a good high school education which was a challenge for him. In order to get into med school he had to get his academic standard up to a much higher level. Nius took the entrance exam for medical school three times and passed each time but could not get accepted for the few openings available. He was persistent, and after an interview with the president of the medical school, he was given a place with the condition that he learn English. He took one year to learn English well enough to read his text books. He is an amazing person and has overcome every mountain placed in front of him. He is an inspirational student and touched many of his instructors with his compassion and determination. He will be our first medical doctor to have graduated and to serve at our base. He is home grown and the finest person you will ever meet. We have Adrian and Antoinetta just behind him. They both have worked hard and will come to serve as new staff at our clinic and hospital after they finish their internship.
In addition to these three, we have nurses, pharmacists, midwives, accountants, dentists and lab techs who have either completed or nearly completed their training. It is vitally important to raise up our own leaders to assure the success of our future work. These are the superstars in our game: the game of saving lives.