Sunday, January 18, 2015

Off he goes!

 
After a couple days of publicity and packing, Rick boarded the plane on Thursday and arrived safely in Liberia on Friday evening.  He spent Saturday and Sunday catching up with our country director, Will Elphick and his wife Jenny, and with Dr. John Fankhauser who has been the primary missionary doctor at ELWA Hospital through most of the Ebola crisis. Tomorrow it's back to work. But he is hoping to find somewhere to watch the playoff game tonight, even though it might mean staying up most of the night....yea, not sure he is going to make it through that. Maybe the first quarter.

Here are some photos from the week.

























Rick will be blogging from Liberia in the next three weeks.  His blogs will appear here, but will link to the CNN website for the last few paragraphs, so don't be thrown off.  We are praying that many people will read the blogs and continue to pray for the Ebola crisis to end in West Africa. We also hope that people will understand more about the ongoing needs for health care infrastructure in Liberia and other vulnerable parts of the world through Rick's story. 

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Rick,

I am a fourteen year old boy and I have been praying for you and other American and African patients since I first heard of the Ebola Virus outbreak in late July. I am so grateful and glad that you are alive and well.

When I first about the infections of Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol, my heart dropped. These are fellow Americans who were trying to help other people. I knew how the disease processed. I did not at all want them to have to go through that same ordeal.

And then, when their transfers to the United States were announced, I was nervous, yet confident and hopeful for their recoveries. The illnesses of you, Ashoka Mukpo, Dr. Ian Crozier, Nina Pham, Amber Vinson, and Dr. Craig Spencer were no different. Unfortunately, Mr. Duncan and Dr. Salia did not survive, but I continue to pray for and think about their families every day.

Thank you for your work for the people of Liberia. It makes me very proud when I learn that fellow Americans are helping others and making a difference in their lives. I have truly been inspired by the stories of all the American Ebola survivors and have a greater desire for helping people as I get older.

As you return to Liberia, I pray for the safety and good health of you, your colleagues, and your patients. Once again, thank you for hard work and dedication to the people of West Africa.

Best wishes to you and your family. You are one of America's heroes. God Bless.

Anonymous said...

Wow, thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers! Hang on to that desire to help people--Helping people is it's own reward, in many ways. May God use you to bless those around you, both now and in the future. Yours, Rick