Oceanside Rotary Club sponsors child through Gift of Life

The Oceanside Rotary Club is sponsoring a two-year old boy from Ecuador this month through Gift of Life. Josue Vera and his mother, Patricia Pizarro, arrived from Quito, Ecuador on Jan. 19 and are staying at the Ronald McDonald House in New Hyde Park.

Eliot Liebner, a member of the Oceanside Rotary Club, has been working with Gift of Life for over 20 years. Since 1975, the organization has helped arrange and cover the costs of life-saving surgeries for more than 10,000 children from all over the world.

“It's an amazing thing,” said Leibner. “It's so rewarding.” Leibner has personally sponsored 20 children through the Rotary Club. He picked up Josue and his mother at the airport, and has been showing them around New York and helping them with shopping for clothes, groceries, and other basic needs.

Speaking through translator Carol Barnett, Pizarro explained that Josue has had health problems since he was about a year old. He does not like to take baths or get wet, and often experiences flu-like symptoms. While Josue is a very active little boy, he tires quickly. Doctors in Quito told her he had a heart problem, and referred her to Gift of Life. Pizarro said she feels very blessed to have the opportunity, and knows her son will receive the best care here in the United States.

Liebner said Josue will undergo surgery at a local hospital on Feb. 3 to patch a hole between the chambers of his heart. Until then, Josue and his mother will enjoy some sight-seeing and well-deserved rest in New York. And while she was nervous before her first trip to the United States, Leibner said Pizarro now feels at home: “Now she feels she has a family here.”