Raguraj is currently the president of the International
Medical Health Organization, a nonprofit group that
was trying to medically rebuild parts of Sri Lanka
after 20 years of war. But now, that plan was completely
thrown out the window.
"The first thing that came
into my mind is we need money, right? Because whatever
you want to purchase or send, we need the money,"
Raguraj said.
Raguraj immediately began calling
the more than 500 doctors in 20 different states
that make up his organization and soon had about
$50,000.
"I was crying, my wife was
crying, I wanted to get relief by crying. It was
so drastic, the pictures of dead bodies. I have
never seen my country like that," said Dr.
Joseph Angelo, Raguraj's colleague.
Angelo is one of the doctors making
the three-week trip to Sri Lanka. Besides money,
he said they also need supplies, like IV sets, syringes,
needles, bandages and, most importantly, water purification
tablets.
"I'm quite sure, as the time
goes on, we'll be getting more and more doctors
that want to help us," Raguraj added.
Like thousands of South Asian immigrants
around the world, he has been doing everything he
can to get aid to disaster victims.
Lowell Melser Reports: Bel Air
Doctor Heads Up Effort To Aid Tsunami Victims
"We have to help our own people,"
Raguraj, who left Sri Lanka 19 years ago, told The
(Baltimore) Sun.
There are about 100 Sri Lankan families
in Maryland, most of whom live in Ellicott City,
Columbia and Silver Spring. The group will hold
a fund-raiser in Bethesda Thursday night at the
home of a local Sri Lankan family.
Donate: International
Medical Health Organization
The country was among the hardest
hit by the disaster, which occurred when an underwater
earthquake off Sumatra triggered enormous waves
that surged ashore from Malaysia to India. Sri Lanka
suffered 20,000 deaths, with more than 7,000 others
missing and likely dead.
Raguraj, 40, has been getting help
from his wife, Arani Raguraj, a genetics researcher
at the Johns Hopkins University. During the day,
while her husband sees patients, she's on the phone,
coordinating contributions from Sri Lankans around
the country who want to donate food, money, medicine
and clothes.
"I'm just trying to do whatever
I can," she says. Arani Raguraj, 36, will accompany
her husband to Sri Lanka next week. She's not a
doctor and won't be able to provide medical care,
but she is sure there will be plenty to do.
If nothing else, she said, she can
simply sit with those who want company. "The
survivors will need someone to talk to," she
said.
SOURCE:
http://www.thewbalchannel.com/news/4033876/detail.html
