Volunteer Spotlight: David LaQuerre

David LaQuerre has been a volunteer of Konbit Sante for approximately 3 years. Not only is he willing to help wherever he is needed, he does it with a big and proud smile on his face.

David first became involved with the organization after meeting Nancy Nickerson, another long-term volunteer, and her husband, our former executive director, Nate Nickerson at their church. He stated, “Nancy’s enthusiasm on how to run a successful program is what drew me in the most. Most organizations just send money without any input from Haitians. The people of Haiti know what they need and Konbit Sante tries to be as “hands off” as best they can and I really admire that.”

To put simply, David is a ‘worker bee.’ He does and completes what needs to be done. Specifically, he helps to sort the medical supplies and equipment that arrives at the warehouse and helps to fill the containers, at the time of shipping.

As someone who has never worked in the medical field, he demonstrates great care and pays attention to details. David is a retired pilot for American Airlines and occasionally tests flights for airline companies such as JetBlue. When asked how he entered the medical field and became interested in the work Konbit Sante does, he said, “I’m humbled by it.” He added, “The problems and obstacles people face and overcome, impresses me, and the willingness to give of oneself in hopes to help others is inspiring.”

According to Ben Doller, Operations and Logistics Manager at Konbit Sante, David is one of our most reliable volunteers and someone who is always willing to jump in and help out. He has spent a lot of time with us in our warehouse, providing some great perspectives for the organization and our processes for accepting and sorting donated materials and supplies. He has also assisted us with picking up large donations from far away, casually knocking out some long drives to get there and back.

Ben stated, “He has even given me some great personal advice on some car troubles I had and didn’t flinch on offering to jump in and help fix it himself – all around he is a great guy!”

David also has a special connection to the country of Haiti and saw first-hand the extremity of poverty when he visited during a business trip. He said it was hard to visit and enjoy the scenery, when the local people are struggling. Haiti has never been able to catch a break, which he believes is heartbreaking because the people there are truly amazing.

David feels thankful to have had the opportunity to help just a little. A volunteer for the World Health Organization once told him about a quote by Desmund Tutu, the famous South African theologian, “Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.”

“The passion at Konbit Sante is infectious. Konbit Sante walks the walk in an extremely humble manner,” concluded David. We feel extremely fortunate to have volunteers such as David as a part of our Konbit and we are excited about the work that continues to get done by him and our great team of volunteers.