INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Much like thousands of other college students, Frater Vince Amabile, Past Epiprytanis of the Mu-Xi Chapter, trekked thousands of miles during his 2012 Spring Break. It was a trip that forever changed not only his life, but also those who he came into contact.
Frater Vince did not venture to a beach or a private resort destination, but to a remote location in the country of Haiti.
Vince’s journey first took him to Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. He then took a small charter plane to Hinche, in the far western part of Haiti, to a humble compound where he would sleep, prepare medicine and get ready every morning. Frater Vince was on a mission to help others by providing medical care to those in need.
The days started at 5 AM, “We rode to remote villages, sometimes two or three hours to help the Haitian people. The only real structures were churches, which we used as temporary facilities to see patients. I saw things that you would you never see in the United States. Polio, Elephantiasis, there was a man that had an infection on his leg, which was so bad you could smell it from 10 feet away, everything below his knee needed to be amputated.”
Vince and his crew would see hundreds of patients every day, “We helped so many people. I remember helping remove a keloid scar from a women’s ear lobe and working with children to make them healthier. I strongly believe we improved the lives of many Haitian people.”
After exhausting yet rewarding days, Vince and his team would get back to the compound and eat quickly then would stay up late prepackaging medicine. “We prepackaged thousands of medicine packs. We packaged everything from vitamins to pain killers to heart pressure medicine.”
Vince truly changed lives during his spring break, especially his own, “I want to be a medical surgeon because of this experience. I also learned I would never want to be a dentist; there was a Haitian dentist pulling peoples teeth without any local anesthetic. I could never imagine.”
Vince’s work was possible through the Haiti Endowment Fund, a non-profit, non-government organization that has been working actively in Haiti for over twenty-five years. The organization sends medical missionaries several times a year to provide medicine and basic healthcare to the Haitian people.
All of TKE Nation is sincerely thankful for Fraters like Vince Amabile. He truly exemplifies Love, Charity and Esteem and building Better Men for a Better World.
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