Hello beautiful family and friends,

I come to you today to ask for support in cause I find very dear to my heart. As most of you are aware, I am a first year graduate student at Des Moines University in Biomedical Sciences. I am doing research in an immunology laboratory working with NK cell leukemia and potential treatments.

My future goal is to become a biomedical scientist in the field of research and development for medications, treatments, vaccinations, etc. As Americans, we are facing a tough economic time... healthcare is a topic often discussed lately. Although we may think we are having a rough time, it is hard to imagine that the majority of people in Honduras have never even seen a doctor. Can you imagine your child, friend, niece, father, etc. not having adequate access to healthcare? This includes even the basic needs that we take for granted in the U.S. such as physicals, pap smears, medicine, dentistry, prostate exams, etc. These are few and far between for our South American neighbors.

As a future research and development scientist, it is imperative that I gain knowledge of the needs, culture, and livelihood of the areas of the world that need healthcare.

The majority of the drug companies target production of vaccines and drugs to developed nations where profit can be earned. This leaves underdeveloped nations behind. Not due to an inability to treat, but an inability to gain a profit. The serotypes of diseases in many of these suffering nations are not addressed. My ultimate goal is to attain knowlege from the natives and understand from both a scientific and layman's perspective how scientists, such as myself, in developed nations can tend to the needs of patients around the world with the resources we are blessed with in the United States.

I can not do this alone. I need your help! My goal is $1500. This will cover my plane trip, housing in a rural village, and medications