Global/Local

Global

by Renee DeGross Valdes

Elena Bargo (B.B.A. '09), was vacationing in the Dominican Republic on Jan. 12, 2010, when she felt tremors from the earthquake that devastated neighboring Haiti. Four days later, she wrote to friends and family that she was postponing her return home indefinitely.

A certified professional rescuer, Bargo traveled in Haiti with 30 volunteers who, in the days just after the earthquake, provided aid to more than 8,000 people. She administered first aid, cleaned infected wounds, stabilized broken bones and provided medication to the victims.

She also worked in an orphanage in Léogâne - the epicenter of the quake - where she played with children and otherwise tried to keep them smiling. For the entire three months she volunteered there, Bargo slept in a tent.

"I have done things I've never imagined I would do. I have seen things I have never imagined I would see," she said. "Haiti is an amazing country with amazing people. This has been undeniably one of the most interesting and rewarding experiences of my life."

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Local

by Jeremy Craig

Songkhla Venza and other students in the GSU chapter of the American Undergraduate Dental Association this summer helped to bring smiles to the faces of people who can't afford dental care.

The students volunteered to work with Medical College of Georgia dental students at the Ben Massell Dental Clinic, metro Atlanta's major indigent dental care clinic. They assisted with multiple dental procedures such as tooth extraction, fillings and even root canals.

"The best thing about being able to volunteer here is that you get an experience that many people don't get anywhere else," said Venza, president of the GSU AUDA chapter.

Beyond learning, though, the experience was highly rewarding, said Tabatha Reece.

"It's great to work with Massell," Reece said. "After coming in, the clients just feel better, and feel better about themselves. Until you go and do it, you don't realize how rewarding it truly is."