Compassion that knows no distance

This International Women’s Day, we are celebrating just a few of the women that inspire us every day. Meet Pat!

This International Women’s Day, we are celebrating just a few of the women that inspire us every day. Meet Pat!

 

Pat Potts is no stranger to charitable giving. As a board officer for Journey’s End Refugee Services, Pat works to resettle refugees from around the world in her Buffalo, NY community. She is also a regular supporter of Smile Train, one of Kupona and CCBRT’s key partners. Her visit to Tanzania in 2013, however, motivated her to take her generosity one step further.

“I contribute my time and expertise, and find helping refugees a wonderful win-win for our community. But Tanzania was a different situation.”

Before arriving in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Pat did not imagine that an encounter with a mother and daughter would result in a long-term connection to a new cause. Pat visited Tanzania with her own daughter and team members from Smile Train. It was during a day trip to Tegeta, a poor area in Dar es Salaam, that Pat met Rebecca and “Mama Rebecca,” her mother.

“I met Rebecca because her mom allowed us into her humble home after Rebecca had received cleft surgery at CCBRT.  She opened their home to us to see the good result for her daughter.”

Rebecca, 6 years old, received cleft surgery at CCBRT in 2013, funded by Smile Train.

Rebecca, 6 years old, received cleft surgery at CCBRT in 2013, funded by Smile Train.

And as Pat toured CCBRT’s Disability Hospital, the stories of thousands of other children like Rebecca, whose families struggle to afford high quality treatment, really resonated. As a mother, she felt compelled to do more.

“It was humbling, and I am so fortunate. If I could not assist these mothers who do so much for their children, how could I, as a mother, reconcile my good fortune of merely living in the U.S. and accept their hospitality?”

On her return to the U.S., Pat contacted Kupona Foundation, looking for a way to support the work she had witnessed firsthand. Kupona was delighted to provide Pat with a way to stay connected with CCBRT, and channel her support to the programs that had such an impact. For Pat, her contributions are a tribute not just to the women she met on her trip, but to the medical care that changed Rebecca’s life, and the services that change the lives of over a million people every year.

“Such safe surgeries make as big a difference to individuals in Tanzania as the work I’ve been doing with refugees in the States. My contributions are in honor of Rebecca’s mother, and in tribute to the hope and good work of CCBRT.”

Pat (second from right) meets Rebecca and her mother with our friends from Smile Train.

Pat (second from right) meets Rebecca and her mother with our friends from Smile Train.

Kupona Foundation and CCBRT are immensely grateful for the support of Pat and others like her. We channel these contributions directly to CCBRT, empowering them to provide high quality, affordable treatment for vulnerable people as well as supporting their efforts to enact sustainable, system-wide change in Tanzania.

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