Save One Life

Hola! From Camp in the DR

Laurie Kelley April 5, 2008


Tropical, warm, friendly… these words always come to mind when I am in the Dominican Republic, a country that I have been fortunate to have worked with for 10 years now. Today was our first day of camp, the 9th annual “Yo Si Puedo” (Yes, I Can!) bringing together 42 boys with hemophilia for three days of fun, socialization, education and medical treatment. 

We arrived last night and were met by Mecho Benoit, good friend and executive member of the Fundación Apoyo al Hemofílico (FAHEM), the national hemophilia organization. We drove to her sister Haydee de Garcia’s home. Haydee is the president of FAHEM. Any baseball fans reading this? Her husband is Damaso Garcia, former second baseman of the Toronto Bluejays. They have a wonderful son with hemophilia, now 23.

We brought with us lots of factor, toys and supplies for the 42 campers. After a wonderful meal (food is delicious and fresh in the DR) we repacked a bit and retired, worried a little about the weather as it might rain.

We had overcast skies today but no rain. We met up with the boys and their moms at the Robert Reid Cabral Hospital in the capital, Santo Domingo. After some joyful reunions, we toured the new hemophilia wing of the hospital. Most impressive! Funded by the Bill Clinton Foundation, it was amazing to think that just 10 years ago, there was barely any care at all for patients with hemophilia: no factor, little training, certainly no place to call their own. But one thing the DR did have was dedicated people, like Haydee and Mecho, and also doctors Joanne Travers and Rosa Nieves.

Camp was just 20 minutes away at a lush and beautiful location in San Cristobal. Today’s agenda was settling in, some athletic and team building games on the basketball court by Raphael, a volunteer phys. ed teacher, arts and crafts, lunch and a lecture by a dentist, which was actually informative and a lot of fun.

We also took the opportunity to interview some of the campers to update their profiles for Save One Life. I won’t lie to you: not everything is happy and rosy in the DR. Too many children, far too many, are crippled, especially the teens, but even some of the younger ones. There are many reasons for that, which I’ll try to share tomorrow (if I can blog).

This is a special camp for us. Save One Life raised enough funds last year to provide 50% of camp funding. We have provided almost all the factor. But most of all, I witness that all those boy I met when they were eight years old, are now young men, returning as counselors, ready to help the next generation. I know I am getting old when I gasp at their height, their maturity, their potential now being realized. Where did those little boys go? Now we marvel at the younger boys, just learning about leaving home, socializing with other with hemophilia and experiencing camp for the first time. Whatever the language or culture, one thing for certain about hemophilia, camp is a winning program for all.

Save One Life Celebration

Laurie Kelley November 19, 2007


Friday night was the first Save One Life celebration in our seven years of operating. Save One Life is a nonprofit organization I founded in 2000 after visiting families with hemophilia in developing countries, and seeing their desperate needs. The program provides direct sponsorships for people with hemophilia who live in poverty. We celebrated a turning point: we finally have operational funds that will allow us to expand our work, and we’re sponsoring over 240 children in eight countries.

The event was a social evening, held in Ipswich, Massachusetts, at New England BioLabs’ spacious auditorium and entryway. Joining us Friday night were sponsors, donors, volunteers and guests who are interested in learning more about hemophilia and the developing world. After a social hour with cocktails, attendees were seated in the auditorium, where I presented a 30 minute multimedia presentation on my travels to Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Central America. The slides were graphic and moved many to gasps. I think we made our point; that children with hemophilia were in need of help now, help that we could provide. Following the slide show we distributed pledge cards, and amazingly, we raised $9,000 in minutes! One-third of the money will be used to fund hemophilia camp in the Dominican Republic; the rest will go to sponsor children currently waiting for sponsorship, and the rest will go to operations.

Our special guest speaker was Fendi Valdez Bisono, a young man with hemophilia from the Dominican Republic and our liaison there. He spoke through an interpreter. I’ve known Fendi for 9 years, and watched him flourish as he’s received factor, education and training. He hopes to make a difference in the lives of the children he knows, and to be a mentor to them. He told our audience of what it was like to grow up without factor, and how it has left him with arthritic joints and hepatitis C. But nothing slows him down. He managed to get a college degree, married and is self-supporting. He donates a great amount of time to FAHEM, the national DR hemophilia organization. He owes everything to “God, family and FAHEM,” in that order. His words were stirring.

The rest of the evening included awards to special donors, sponsors and volunteers, and then coffee and pastries. The pledges made attendees eligible for prizes, including free round trip airplane tickets, three nights at a resort in the DR, and two nights at a local posh historical hotel. Thanks to everyone who made this evening a resounding success, a memorable event and a stepping stone to better health care for hemophilic patients in great need of financial aid.

See all the photos here!

To learn more about Save One Life, visit www.SaveOneLife.net

(Photos: Laurie Kelley and graphic designer Tracy Brody, who created the Vision and Mission Poster; Fendi Valdez Bisono with board member Mark Zatyrka and fiancee Sasha Fles)

Count Your Blessings… and Share Them

Laurie Kelley February 19, 2007

When you think you are going through tough times with hemophilia, I want you to think of some children I know. Born into poverty, suffering from hemophilia, these children usually have no access to factor, and endure horrific suffering. Some of these children are like Gorla. Gorla is ten-year-old boy from India with severe factor VIII deficiency. He is in the third grade and does miss school due to his disorder. He does not speak English. He has a 13-year-old brother, Yagna, who is also factor VIII deficient. His parents are agriculture laborers, who raise milk buffalos. The family income is only $2 a day.

Imagine trying to live on $2 a day. You can’t just pick up the phone and order factor when you are bleeding. You often cannot even go to the hospital for treatment; there is none. You simply endure it and suffer. Sometimes, you die.

We don’t want that to happen to Gorla. If you want, you can change his life. Save One Life is a nonprofit that provides individual sponsorships for boys like Gorla. In fact, Gorla himself is available to be sponsored!

I founded Save One Life six years ago. I sponsor 5 children with hemophilia personally, and see first-hand the difference it makes in their lives. We currently have almost 200 children in eight countries sponsored, but we have a long way to go. Would you like to help? Consider sponsoring a child in need, like Gorla. Just $20 a month could change his life, and enrich yours. Go to www.saveonelifeinc.org today, and share your blessings.

Saving Lives

Laurie Kelley January 22, 2007

On January 11 I gave a presentation on our company and its humanitarian programs in developing countries to the employees and management of New England BioLabs, the oldest biotech company in the US, and where my husband Kevin is employed. The employees heard about our unique model that solicits and attracts factor that normally would be destroyed (from HTCs, homecare companies, patients and chapters) and ships it free of charge to the developing world. In 2006 we broke all records by shipping 9.7 million units (about $9 million worth of factor)!

We also presented our nonprofit Save One Life, which provides individual sponsorships for children with bleeding disorders in the developing world. We provided photos and talked about the ravages of untreated bleeds. NEB proved to be a gracious host and attentive audience, and quite a few employees asked to sponsor children. If you would like to learn more, visit www.saveonelife.net. We are helping to ease the suffering and save the lives of children who are often forgotten, neglected and in need of immediate help. Congratulations to NEB, a company with deep social conscience and compassion.

Book I am reading: “Take Yourself to the Top,” by Laura Fortrang. ****
I’ve read this gem twice before, but it’s always good at the beginning of the new year, to motivate, reassess and move forward with gusto.

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