talofa!

I just got back from a trip with my mom to western samoa. my mom started a program for her PhD dissertation and is now the director of a non-profit organization that is working on treating and preventing rheumatic fever, which is a huge epidemic among samoan children. my dad has gone with my mom a few times to perform echos in various schools and test for rheumatic while my mom has educated parents on how to recognize the symptoms and seek treatment before the disease progresses too far. through their efforts they have already saved the lives of many children, and the organization is only growing. I am so proud of my mom! she has worked so hard and her efforts have definitely paid off. this time around my dad was only able to stay for a week so I gladly accepted my mom's invitation for me to join her for the second half of her trip! we had such a fun time together and I learned a lot touring the hospitals on the island and visiting some of the schools. samoa is an amazing place with some of the most beautiful, kind, and happy people I have ever met. I am so glad I had the chance to see my parents' work firsthand and be a part of it in some small way. I can't wait to go back, hopefully with mark next time-- with all the rugby down there (there were literally rugby fields everywhere), I'm convinced that he will fit right in.