In celebration of Mother’s Day, our Family Segment features mother and daughter team, Paulette Labinpuno RN and Kaitlyn Martinez PTA. Paulette and Kaitlyn traveled with our team to Arusha, Tanzania this past summer and experienced volunteering together for the first time. Read more about how this mission made a lasting impact on them both.
Technology with the Human Touch
Often, we receive messages through our website, Facebook and Instagram pages, or in response to our newsletter requesting help. That help can be for a parent, a husband or wife, or the patient themselves. Through modern communication, we can connect these patients with local hospitals and sometimes are able to serve them during an Operation Walk Mission. Below is one such story.
Meet Dr. Kamran Movassaghi
It is with pleasure that we introduce the Lawrence D. Dorr Operation Walk Scholarship winner for 2024, Dr. Kamran Movassaghi. This scholarship was founded by Operation Walk Los Angeles Angel and long-time donor, Ms. Paula Paulus, to honor and celebrate Dr. Dorr’s distinguished career. This scholarship grants fourth or fifth-year residents in orthopedic surgery, aspiring to specialize in joint arthroplasty, the opportunity to participate in Operation Walk’s international missions.
Introducing Potential Patient; Jeffrey Busog
As we gear up for our mission to the Philippines this summer, we have received several requests from locals and their families. These requests describe hardworking people whose lives have been interrupted by joint disease, damage to their knees and hips due to accidents, and other debilitating causes. One such individual is Jeffrey Busog. His wife wrote to us in January with the hope that her husband could be considered as a potential patient for our upcoming mission at our partner hospital in General Santos City. Team Leader, Lisa Fujimoto PA, coordinated with the hospital administrators to find him a place on the screening list. Jeffrey will be evaluated, like all potential patients, orthopedically and medically to see if he qualifies for surgery. Below is his story.
Operation Walk for the Baldwin Bunch is a Family Affair
During our most recent mission to Tanzania, we had the rare occurrence of three family members volunteering and working side by side. Kyle, Ava, and Kate Baldwin made the journey working in Physical Therapy, as Administrative Coordinator, and in the OR respectively. Since the inception of Operation Walk, this family has dedicated their time, talents, and service to helping restore mobility one surgery at a time. Hear how their involvement in our organization and this trip has and continues to shape their lives.
Why Become an Angel
When you join our group of philanthropists, you help provide life-changing surgeries to those in desperate need of a miracle. But beyond that, you help to build a bridge between donors and patients. Our Angels have the opportunity to make a direct impact on the lives of our patients, their families, and their communities.
Our Angels all are motivated by our commitment to Operation Walk, here are some of their whys.
Armando (Cuba 2022)
In 2019, Armando had reached a standstill. Both of his knees no longer cooperated, and walking was increasingly difficult. Armando relates that the damage to his knees was probably related to his military service. After military life, he worked primarily for the Department of Transportation, monitoring worker organization and salaries. This job required him to ride a motorcycle from town to town. Admittedly, this did not help his damaged knees.
As the years passed, the damage increased due to wear and tear. He consulted with local hospitals, but then the Pandemic struck. It wasn’t until January 2022 that he connected with Hospital Fructuoso Rodríguez Orthopedic and learned that an organization called Operation Walk would be visiting in April. He submitted his application for screening at this point.
Armando’s first steps after bilateral knee replacement
On April 1, during our patient screening, Armando remembers that each patient was seen one by one by the “American Specialists”, and he was #30 on the list. When his turn came, he was evaluated by one of our teams that included Dr. Steve Barnett. That afternoon, Armando was given the news that he’d be admitted the following day and receive bilateral knee surgery.
Two days later, Armando claimed that he was a new person. He greeted Dr. Barnett and his staff and showed them his new mobility. He was discharged the following day. “A total blessing on this institution. I can’t believe what a difference surgery made in such a short amount of time.” Armando recalls. He returned to his home in Santa Clara and continued his physical therapy. He says that almost two years have passed, and each day walking is a blessing. He explained, “There are still some small discomforts, but nothing to do with how I felt before. Operation Walk makes it possible for one to return to life.”
Armando hiking in the mountains with his family, two years after double knee replacementToday he can do activities that were out of reach due to his physical limitations. He can take care of his home, run errands, and spend time with his family – all things that were out of reach before his surgeries. Two of his favorite activities are going hiking with his family in the mountains near Trinidad, Cuba, and playing with his granddaughter.
“Because of Operation Walk – these things, all things, are possible.”
Patient Updates From Innocent and Amina
We wanted to share the progress of two patients operated on our 2023 mission to Arusha, Tanzania. Both Innocent and Amina are doing well and finding a rhythm to their lives after joint replacement surgery.
It’s All About Family
In the next few months, we will be exploring the family connection within the Operation Walk organization. Team members have often raised their children in our community and emphasized the importance of volunteerism, service, compassion and giving back to both the local and the global community. These second-generation volunteers bring a new energy, spirit, and vision to Operation Walk. Often young volunteers go into the field of health care to become the new face of medicine.
This month’s story features the Holsbeke family. Matt Holsbeke NP and his wife, Sandy Holsbeke PT, have been active members of our team for almost twenty years. They’ve dedicated many hours to fundraising, organizing and participating in mission trips around the world. Matt explains his commitment.
The Youth Movement Continues
These past few months we’ve featured young volunteers who are stepping up to be the next generation of volunteers for Operation Walk Los Angeles. We’re happy to introduce University of Wisconsin-Madison student, Isabella Umali-Grawe. We thank Isabella in advance for taking time to out of her busy schedule during midterms to share information about herself, her goals after graduation, and why it is important for her to volunteer on our upcoming mission to the Philippines this summer.
Patient Updates: Juliana Kanseba
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This past summer during our recent mission to Arusha, Tanzania, we had the honor of meeting Juliana and her daughter, Josepha.
Juliana and Josepha live in the countryside about an hour and a half outside of Arusha. Juliana used to travel by bus, a three-hour round trip to Arusha, six days a week to work at her job in a textile mill. She worked at the factory for over twenty years before the onset of osteoarthritis in her knees started to slow her down both on her travels into the city and at her job.