Medical School
May 13 Cuban pianist Dayramir Gonzalez: Fundraiser for US Cuban Medical School Grads
IFCO/Pastors for Peace has a limited number of tickets for the highly anticipated US solo debut of Cuban pianist Dayramir Gonzalez on Friday, May 13, 2011 at Hostos Community College’s Center for the Arts and Culture in the Bronx.
The concert will be a dynamic evening of entertainment featuring one of Cuba’s youngest and most talented musicians to ever visit the United States.
Proceeds will benefit of the Latin American School of Medicine (LASM) Scholarship program for US students, and Casa de las Américas/New York.
Thirty US LASM graduates are now working in eight different hospitals throughout the US. Dozens more are following. Your support will help underwrite the cost of the US Medical Licensing Exams (USMLE) that all these young doctors must take in order to be licensed to practice medicine in the United States. Although they return from Cuba debt-free, the cost of these exams is very expensive. In 2011, the fees to prepare and take these exams exceeds $3,000.00
Concert tickets are $20.00. To reserve tickets, please call Ana Maria Cardenas at 201 563-1191. We must hear from you by Friday, April 29th.
The El Pais newspaper of Spain reports that “Dayramir is undoubtedly one of the pianists who lead the ship of the young generation of jazz pianists in Cuba and around the world.” Dayramir Gonzalez won the international Jojazz contest in 2006 and recorded his first album, Dayramir & Habana EnTRANCE, which was released on the Cuban label Colibri.
Dayramir currently attends the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston on full scholarship. Since his arrival in September of 2010, he has performed with Larry Harlow, Ignacio Berroa, Eddie Palmieri, Raul Peneda, Jimmy Brandly, Kevin O’Neal, Barry Harris, and Chad Sexton.
Thousands of students from 50 countries around the world are now the beneficiaries of a world-class medical education in Cuba. All LASM graduates are committed to return to their home countries and provide health services in underserved communities.
IFCO is honored to administer and coordinate the scholarship program for US students. Please join as we celebrate the music and young talent of Cuba and raise money for the Latin American School of Medicine program and Casa de las Américas/New York.
PBS News Hour Story featuring US Medical Students in Cuba
Dear friends and supporters
Yesterday we received a special unanticipated holiday gift: the Latin American School of Medicine was featured last night on the PBS News Hour! Ray Suarez did a piece about the international focus of Cuba's health care system; he interviewed 2nd-year US student Pasha Jackson and Academic Vice-Rector Dra. Maritza Gonzalez. You can see the video for yourself at this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptFqmKlSHPQ
As 2010 draws to a close, we want you all to know that we at IFCO/Pastors for Peace are SO VERY PROUD of the extraordinary young people who have chosen (and been chosen) to study at the Latin American School of Medicine! We are SO honored to have the responsibility for administering this groundbreaking program in the US! We are SO excited about our next Friendshipment caravan to Cuba! We are SO impressed by the excellent work being done by dozens of community-based projects under IFCO's sponsorship -- and we are so full of gratitude for all the extraordinary support we have received in this challenging year, especially since the passing of our beloved founding director Rev. Lucius Walker, Jr.
Our year-end newsletter will be arriving in your mailbox very soon -- and we hope you will remember us as you plan your year-end tax-deductible donations. (If you don't receive our mailings, you may not be on our snail-mail list -- in which case, please do send us your address!)
You can also make a donation to IFCO/Pastors by clicking on the "Donate Now" button on our website.
We wish you many blessings at the holidays and in the new year.
In gratitude and solidarity,
Ellen Bernstein and Rev. Tom Smith,
Acting Co-directors --
and all of us at IFCO/Pastors for Peace:
Alison Bodine
Sheila Brown
Lucia Bruno
Manolo de los Santos
Mappy Torres
John Waller
Trained in Cuba, U.S. Doctors Describe Month in Haiti
by Renee Feltz, the Indypendent, March 12, 2010
After the Jan. 12 earthquake that devastated Haiti, Dr. Melissa Barber received a call asking her to help treat people left injured and living in squalid conditions.
“There was no question,” said Barber, 30, who was born and raised in the Bronx and worked in quality assessment at St. Barnabas Hospital in the heart of the borough. “I actually resigned and I made plans to go to Haiti for a month. That is how much it’s ingrained in me to help the underserved communities when they are in need.”
Curriculum and plan of studies
An overview of the curriculum and general plan of studies at the Latin American School of Medicine in Havana, Cuba Read more >
Frequently Asked Questions
Applicant criteria
- Be US citizens (with US passport)
- Be between the ages of 18 and 30
- Have completed college-level pre-med science courses (one year each of biology, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, and physics, each with laboratory)
- Be physically and mentally fit
- Come from the humblest and neediest communities in the US
- Be committed to practice medicine in poor and underserved US communities after graduation
Applicants will be carefully selected by the IFCO Medical School Advisory Committee, based on applications, transcripts, interviews, letters of reference, etc. Final admissions decisions will be made by administrators of the Latin American School of Medicine and the Cuban Ministry of Public Health. Read more >
The Spirit of Hugo Chavez Lives On in the Struggle
IFCO/Pastors for Peace wishes to express our sincere condolences to the Venezuelan Mission in NY, the Venezuelan government, the valiant people of Venezuela and of course the family of the beloved President Hugo Chavez. Read more >
Save the Date! MARCH 30th -- Show Your Love For Cuba!
NYC/NJ Peeps! Save the Date! MARCH 30th -- Show Your Love For Cuba! Read more >
Show your love for Cuba! NYC Valentine Fundraiser for Sandy Recovery Feb. 9th
Show your love for Cuba! Save the date for the Valentine Fundraiser for Sandy Recovery February 9th in NYC! Read more >
Help IFCO Change Healthcare in the US
Here are excerpts from a recently published article by Glenn Ellis, a Philadelphia-based health writer. He outlines the tremendous accomplishments Cuba has achieved in the medical field,. He spoke with IFCO and Dr. Melissa Barber, a US graduate of Cuba's Latin America School of Medicine and effectively points to many of the historical benefits of Cuba's health care system and the ways it far exceeds US-based health care. Read more >
