Enfin c'est la derniere jour a Haiti! Alas, our final day in Haiti has come! We bid adieu to Jeremie early this morning, boading our 16-seater 'puddle jumper' bi-prop plane to Port-au-Prince. To say that we were sad to leave would be an understatement. Jeremie and the people of Haiti have left an indelible impression upon us.
Upon arriving in Miami, Anthony spotted a true public health celebrity upon leaving the plane. Imagine our surprise to see DR.PAUL FARMER disembarking from the same flight! Dr. Farmer is best known for co-founding the organization Partners in Health that has worked for many years in Haiti's central plateau, among other international locations. Dr. Farmer was recently featured in a segment on CBS's 60 Minutes. A number of us have been reading Tracy Kidder's book Mountains Beyond Mountains about Farmer's work in Haiti.
Undaunted by Dr. Farmer's celebrity, fearless Anne Cavett approached Dr. Farmer at baggage claim introducing Team Haiti. Anthony risked the wrath of TSA and boldly asked for a picture. Dr. Farmer was more than happy to oblige the students that were present. Holding a brief salon, he congratulated us all on our recent efforts in Haiti and the importance of social justice. He acknlowledged the importance of nursing in global public health activities and even quoted our very own Bloomberg School of Public Health's motto, "Saving 1,000,000 lives at a time".
Celebrity sitings aside, the encounter was a perfect way to wrap up a perfect global health expedition. It should be said that Sheila was delayed at passport control. However, we quickly whisked her over to Dr. Farmer for a brief introduction and handshake while he was wheeling his baggage cart away. Overall, we were impressed with how personable and willing he was to engage us with our interest in public health nursing in Haiti.
As a final note - *MERCI AN PIL* to our true public health leader and unsung hero, Dr. Sara Groves who's fabulous insights and relationships made our trip an unforgettable experience!
Signing off - TEAM HAITI