Marge Pelletier, APRN, of Salmon Falls Family Healthcare in Somersworth, traveled to Haiti in February 2010 to volunteer her medical expertise to the thousands of injured and sick in Leogane. She traveled with an organization called Life and Hope Haiti, a tax-exempt non-profit organization formed by a Haitian American woman, Lucia Anglade, who wanted to give something back to her homeland. The hospital in Leogane was completely destroyed in the earthquake, so Marge and the other volunteers will need to be ready to treat over 300 patients per day at the Asile St. Vincent De Paul compound, where elderly, disabled and orphaned residents are being cared for.

In preparation for the trip, Marge Pelletier brought donated medical supplies, but only as much as she could carry. Dr. Michael O’Connell, owner of Salmon Falls Family Healthcare, donated some of the supplies, over the counter medications, pain relievers and vitamins, as well as the generous sum of $5,000 to go toward medical costs and rebuilding. Agnes Charlesworth of Life and Hope Haiti said, “This $5,000 contribution will go far in our efforts tending to immediate medical needs and rebuilding. One of the remarkable things about Life and Hope Haiti is that all of the funds and donated supplies go directly to the people in Haiti. Our whole-hearted thanks go to Dr. O'Connell and Salmon Falls Family Healthcare, for their interest, support, and generous contribution to Haiti through this organization”

To learn more about Life and Hope Haiti or to donate funds, visit www.lifeandhopehaiti.org or visit SalmonFallsMD.com for more information.