nancy & scott schiff-slater team march 2016

My name is Nancy Schiff-Slater.  I live with my husband, Scott, in Hallowell, Maine which is a small, old New England river town in central Maine.  

I work as a staff attorney for the state-wide poverty law organization here in Maine which provides civil legal services to Maine’s low-income community.  My interests include yoga, runnning, meditation and the arts and love spending time with those love. I’ve  had the good fortune of traveling to Honduras, India, and Ethiopia on various medical trips doing a variety of tasks from helping out in the operating room to using my crude and informal skills assessing for and handing out eye glasses.  

This will be my second COPI trip to Vietnam and I'm thrilled to be joining the March medical team. I stand ready, willing and able to help out in whatever way I can.

This is Scott:  I am a 58-year-old family practitioner in Maine, and will be coming on the mission with my wife Nancy.  I work in a small two physician private family practice, about 4 blocks from our house, which was built in about 1800.  I can walk to work almost as easily as driving to work (though embarrassingly I usually drive!).  

We have been on a number of other volunteer medical trips together, including with COPI 2 years ago.    I worked in New Orleans as a volunteer physician after Hurricane Katrina, and we have both worked number of  times in Honduras, then in India, Ethiopia, Mexico, and Haiti.    It is my goal to spend more time on these activities as I continue to age. 

We have a talented wonderful 24-year-old daughter, who graduated art school about two years ago, has traveled to Honduras and Mexico with us, and now lives in Brooklyn, New York.   And, we have an adorable but sometimes needy Portuguese Water dog, who is staring intently at us right now as we write this, and waiting for us to take him for a walk, already! 

I, Scott, am obsessed with the outdoors, and a little bit with exercise, and I spend whatever free time I have, hiking in the mountains, bicycling, skiing, snowshoeing, etc.     I enjoy my work as a physician, as well as my role in the local community.  Family is important to me, and I spend a fair amount of time driving back and forth to Boston, visiting my elderly mother, taking her out to the grocery store, etc.   

We are thrilled to be going back to Vietnam with COPI, meeting everyone on our team, and being able to take care of, and learn more about, the people of Vietnam.   

kate forrester team march 2016

Hello! My name is Kate Forrester, and I am from St. Louis. I am a physician in my last year of residency in pediatrics, and I will be starting fellowship training in pediatric emergency medicine this summer. This will be my first trip with COPI and my first visit to Vietnam, and I very much look forward to meeting all of you!

michael douglass team march 2016

Greetings Fellow COPI Team Members!

I am Michael Douglass and live along the banks of the Mississippi River in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. I was born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa but have lived here in Wisconsin since 1982.  For thirty years I directed a historic site complex owned by the Wisconsin Historical Society called Villa Louis.  I retired in 2013 and have spent the summers since then working as a Park Ranger at Effigy Mounds National Monument  - a beautiful Park Service site of 2500 acres with 14 miles of hiking trails….…. I will return this summer as lead ranger.

I enjoy collecting and restoring antiques and live in a 100-year-old craftsman-style house.  Recently, I acquired a small house on an adjacent property that I am restoring as a vacation rental property.  

I am active in my Lutheran church and am currently serving as Council President.  I also teach seventh-grade confirmation and sing in the choir. I garden, camp, hike, cook and still do some historic re-enacting -  attending late 18^th and early 19^th century fur trade events.

This will be my second COPI mission. Last spring, I had the privilege of participating in the team and teaching a lot of kids how to brush their teeth….I look forward to meeting you all and returning to a truly remarkable place…..  it is, indeed, a privilege to serve. 

betsy pitlick team march 2016

I am an Emergency Department nurse in Seattle, Washington. Nursing and healthcare is a relatively new career for me. I was previously an Assistant Vice President at a large bank, managing web content for the Commercial Group and Home Loans intranet sites. Deciding I needed a change, I quit my job and spent several months backpacking alone through Southern and Eastern Africa. Upon returning, I decided I wanted to be a nurse. It was something that combined my love of people and helping others. I was an Emergency Department Technician for four years and have been a nurse for almost a year and a half.

I love to travel and explore, meet new people and experience new cultures. I also love cooking and all things food-related. So far, I have traveled to 23 countries, with many more hopefully to come. This will be my second trip back to Vietnam, with my first trip being a month long solo trip in 2006. I fell in love with the country, visiting Hanoi, Ha Long Bay, Sapa, Hue, Hoi An, Kon Tum, Ho Chi Minh City and then traveling through the Mekong Delta to Rach Gia and then Phu Quoc Island. I regret not learning Vietnamese after my last trip so I can communicate more effectively (I am terrible at foreign languages), but look forward to revisiting some of the same areas, meet more wonderful people and see new areas. I will be joining the Spring 2016 mission before heading off on a 5 day hiking excursion into Son Doong, the world's largest cave, located in Central Vietnam.

While I have lived in Seattle for about 18 years now, I grew up on the East Coast in Maryland. I was actually born in Vietnam and was left on the stairs of a hospital in Saigon before being adopted as a baby to my wonderful parents in the United States. Part of my career switch to nursing was with the eventual goal  of volunteering on medical missions to give back to some of the countries I have previously visited and fallen in love with.These are a few of the main reasons that this COPI medical mission really appealed to me. I am extremely excited to be part of this team and this trip!

tara ford team march 2016

Hello! My name is Tara Ford. I live in NYC and work as a Physician Assistant specializing in women's sexual health. I have been to Vietnam twice before, once with my father in 2000 and again with friends in 2012. I was deeply moved by the generosity and care shown to me by the Vietnamese people during both of my trips. After my last trip 4 years ago I vowed I would not return again simply as a tourist. I also vowed I wouldn't return without my father. My father served with the US Marine Corps during the Vietnam War from 1968-69. I have been fascinated with Vietnam since I was a young girl and I'm thrilled to return this time to provide medical care to those in need. I am also thrilled that my father and mother will join me at the end of the mission in Saigon! We plan to travel around to the different areas where my father served. A trip like this is a dream come true for me and my family and I am grateful for the opportunity to be of service to the Vietnamese people throughout the country. I look forward to meeting everyone real soon!

bob mckinnon team march 2016

I am Bob McKinnon from Atlanta, Georgia.  I am a CPA by profession and specialized in not-for-profit colleges and universities for many years.  I retired last year as Vice President for Finance and Administration for a small private university in Georgia.  I still do a bit of consulting work with colleges and universities on financial and accreditation issues.  I also continue to serve as a finance evaluator for the Southern US accrediting commission.

This will be my third trip to Viet Nam.  The first was in 1969 – 1970, an all-expense-paid excursion courtesy of Uncle Sam.  I served as a weapons control officer at a radar site on top of Nui Son Tra, better known to some as Monkey Mountain just outside of Da Nang.  You can still see the radar site from Da Nang city or the beaches – looks like three little golf balls on top of the mountain. 

My second trip was last year when we traveled with Vets with A Mission (VWAM), another NGO which conducts medical mission trips to Viet Nam on a regular basis.  We worked in two clinics in Hoa Bac, a small hamlet in the mountains west of Da Nang.  We saw 1,102 patients there, and would have had more had the weather cooperated. We also formed friendships with a number of our translators (mostly recent college graduates), and remain in touch with them via Facebook and email.  They are a lively bunch and we enjoy hearing about their adventures.

 

We’re looking forward to meeting and getting to know each of you.

nancy mckinnon team march 2016

I am Nancy McKinnon and travel is something I love! Back in my single days I traveled the USA and also lived in London where I was able to easily travel throughout all Europe.  The best travel was for pleasure but I always tried to make sure I had a lot of fun on business trips!! 

This will be my 2^nd trip to Vietnam, Bob and I went last year with a group called Vets with a Mission.  It was a Medical Mission trip and we helped in a couple of clinics near Da Nang meeting so many extraordinary people in such a beautiful country.

Before retiring last year, from the US Government, I worked in Financial Management at the CDC and before that for the IRS, which is a “travel” experience to a different world.

Bob and I have been married just over 16 years and have 3 children and 8 grandchildren – who have seen more pictures and heard more talks about Scotland and Vietnam than they feel entitled to.  We are just trying to make sure they really understand – “it’s a small world after all”.

frani jenkins team march 2016

Frani Jenkins -  I am a Physician Assistant in a Community Health Center in Craig, Colorado although I live in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.  

Being a PA is actually what I call my “3^rd life”.  I taught high school physical education and coached gymnastics and track.  

After 10 years, I got a master’s degree in Sports Medicine and have been a certified athletic trainer for 32 years.  In 1995, I switched gears again and went to PA school.   This will be my 8^th COPI trip.  I love the people of Viet Nam.  They are gracious and appreciative and it is a privilege to serve them.

raina zeeh team march 2016

Hello, I am Raina Zeeh. I feel blessed to know each of you a little bit because we have spoken on the phone. I look forward to learning more about each of you.
I first went on a mission trip with binh in 1994. On that trip I fell in love with the Vietnamese people and country. With binh's help, my husband, Curtis, of nearly 23 years and I adopted our two children, Thane age 17 and Nina age 14 from Tam Binh Orphanage (also called Good Shepherd Home) in Saigon. Since 2006 Curtis or I have served as mission team leaders for the Spring mission trip. This will be my 14th trip to Vietnam and my 9th time as a leader. My salaried job is as a nurse clinical coordinator in cardiology at the University of Utah. In my spare time I volunteer in many aspects with COPI throughout the year and am a COPI board member.
I am very excited to lead another mission team. We will all work hard, have our fair share of fun and hopefully gain 35 more friendships from both sides of the world. I look forward to serving with each of you.