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Feb. 24, 2012
Setting an example of tikkun
Dr. Rick Hodes’ story of hope inspires KDHS students.
VIVIAN GRINFELD
When Dr. Rick Hodes walked up to the podium wearing a multicolored hat and tie, the students of King David High School did not know what to expect. Hodes immediately captured the attention of students and teachers alike, showing a slide presentation depicting scenes of ordinary life in his adopted home of Ethiopia.
Hodes is an American-born doctor who has lived and worked in Ethiopia for more than 20 years. He is the medical director for the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee in Ethiopia and currently works with Mother Teresa’s Catholic Mission, with patients needing life-saving care for heart disease, spine disease and cancer.
Hodes started off the hour-long presentation by showing the beautiful scenery and ancient and 15th-century architecture that is a feature of modern-day Ethiopia. Once the students had acquainted themselves with the doctor’s permanent country of residence and they had established a new bond with the people of Ethiopia, his real presentation began.
After majoring in geology at university and a stint in Alaska, Hodes realized that he wanted to dedicate his life to directly helping others. He studied at and graduated from the University of Rochester Medical School, and then trained in internal medicine at Johns Hopkins University. It was during medical school, on a summer experience to Bangladesh, that he first left the United States and was able to appreciate how much his help – and the help of others – was needed.
He first moved to Ethiopia in the middle of the famine in 1985, to teach at the medical school there. The hardships that came along with the drastic differences in lifestyle between the United States and a developing country did not slow him down. He gained a well-deserved reputation for treating spine disease, heart disease and cancer – at no cost to the patients.
During that time, Hodes was also the doctor who supervised the mass immigration to Israel of Ethiopian Jews during Operation Solomon. In total, he was the doctor for 60,000 Ethiopian Jews, who, today, make up just under two percent of the population of Israel.
Suddenly in the presentation, a different kind of image dominated the screen. It was a horrifying photograph of a boy whose back was at an unnatural and unimaginable angle – of close to 90 degrees. Some students looked away at the abnormal sight. Soon, however, the bleak photo was replaced by another of the boy, post-surgery. The transformation was incredible, thanks to the life-saving work of Hodes and the world’s top back surgeon, Dr. Oheneba Boachie-Adjei, plus $15,000 worth of screws and metal.
The rest of the doctor’s talk continued in this fashion, showing students the patient transformations that seemed, at first glance, impossible to achieve. Hodes also shared some personal stories about the many coincidences he has experienced, moments that, in his opinion are too perfect to be considered simply flukes.
For example, he next showed students a photo of an Ethiopian girl named Merdya. A giant tumor had taken over the front of her skull, pushing out one of her eyes in the front and squishing her brain behind it. Her cancer was, Hodes said, a ticking time bomb. Then, on a trip to the United States, Hodes overslept and missed his planned morning minyan and was instead taken to a random synagogue to put on his tefillin. There, he met Dr. Eric Nussbaum who, not incidentally, had a sub-sub specialty in operating only on the front of the head. After being shown the scan of Merdya’s brain, Nussbaum agreed to operate on her, pro bono. Merdya, a Muslim orphan raised by Christian nuns, was taken under a Jewish man’s care and operated on by another Jewish man. Religion and ethnicity are completely irrelevant to the doctors involved and to the children that Hodes treats.
When asked by a KDHS student if he ever got discouraged by the lack of funds or available doctors or facilities that make it so only 20 of 100 children can be treated, for example, Hodes responded that, yes, he did get discouraged. “I get discouraged every day but I never lose hope,” he said. “The positive changes I see keep me going.”
As he concluded his presentation, Hodes leaned into the microphone and read the last slide aloud. It was a quote from U.S. president Teddy Roosevelt: “Do what you can with what you have, where you are.” With that, he walked to the side of the room and left a lot for the students at KDHS to think about.
Tikkun olam, fixing the world, is an important aspect of Judaism. The KDHS students who heard Hodes speak have decided to take it upon themselves to help the doctor change the lives of sick children in Ethiopia. These are children who need help, and KDHS students are willing to give it. Under the school’s theme of Chesed for Chesed, KDHS students will give of their time and expertise as they organize a community-wide Pesach fair to be held Sunday, March 25. The fair will offer the community the services needed before Pesach: a car wash (inside and out), Pesach food and treats for sale, a garage sale and, of course, entertainment for kids (bouncy castles, games) and food. All of the proceeds from the fair will go to support Hodes’ work and the Evening to Bring Back Hope.
Vivian Grinfeld is a Grade 11 student at King David High School, who enjoys reading and writing. She hopes her article on Dr. Rick Hodes will inspire more people to donate their time and money to helping others.
Bring Back Hope gala
An Evening to Bring Back Hope is a fundraising event championed by Dr. Rick Hodes’ local supporters Gary and Nanci Segal. Proceeds from the evening will include an allocation to the University of British Columbia faculty of medicine branch for international surgery.
The goal is to support Hodes’ mission in Ethiopia. As well, Dr. Robert Taylor, director of the UBC faculty of medicine and its branch for international surgery, has partnered with Hodes and, together, the two are creating a program to improve patient care, enhance the training of surgical residents and provide opportunities for academically rigorous clinical research in Ethiopia.
Notable honorary committee members include Rick Hansen, Peter Legge, Sam Feldman, Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt, Monsignor Fred Dolan and others.
An Evening to Bring Back Hope is on Wednesday, April 4, 5:30 p.m., at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. For more information, gala tickets or to donate, e-mail [email protected] or call 604-638-7280. To learn more about Hodes’ work, visit rickhodes.org. Gary Segal and Hodes were interviewed in “A striking message of tikkun,” which appeared in the Jan. 14, 2011, issue of the Jewish Independent.
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