Megan Coffee

Megan Coffee, leaning on a wall in Haiti ((David Rochkind))

I do not know Megan Coffee personally, but I wish I did. I wish that I could see her curing all the patients that she helped, almost as if she were a miracle worker. I wish I could feel the emotion of someone who is doing all of this work just because she cares. I choose Megan Coffee as my hero because most people work hard to get extra money. Megan didn't get paid and she simply cared for others out of the kindness of her heart. Megan is risking her own life to save others and that is what I call a hero. Megan's amazing story of being a life-saving doctor now gets shared.  

In Maplewood, New Jersey, Megan Coffee was born in the year of 1979. She is the daughter of two university professors and both of her parents took time to care for Megan. She graduated high school at Columbia High School and went to college to earn the degree of chemistry. At this point, Megan didn't know that she would become such an inspiration. It was June 12, 2010 when Megan, now age 33, got a call from her friend in Haiti. There had been a massive earthquake in Port-au-Prince that demolished many people's homes, possessions, health, and sadly, loved ones. Megan had grown up to be an infectious disease doctor and that is exactly what they needed in Haiti at that time. Without any hesitation, Megan rushed to the scene to cure people from tuberculosis and AIDS, which is a disease that can be healed by transferring the blood of one person into the veins of another (or blood transfusion). Both tuberculosis and AIDS could be easily passed on by when people who have an active TB (tuberculosis) infection cough, sneeze, or otherwise transmit fluids through the air. The diseases spread fast and Megan was up for the challenge. It was two weeks after the earthquake hit that Megan arrived in Port-au-Prince. When she got there, she found that most of the doctors that came with her were surgeons or general practitioners. Dr. Coffee was one of the very few infectious disease doctors. The Haiti hospital was made of a few large white tents that were located in a parking lot. Sadly, this was the largest of hospitals there and probably the least safe. Megan had hundreds of people who were seeking miracles. So, Megan set to work, volunteering 12 hours a day, seven days a week. During the earthquake, more than 160,00 Haitians died. Dr. Coffee saved at least 500 using only her love and heart and help from her fellow doctors. As Megan once said, "I love it here, I want to stay and help make other people feel better and that is what makes me feel better myself." She showed many examples of giving up time and money to help sick patients and strangers. For example, most patients didn't have enough resources to buy extra food to gain needed weight beyond the food that they were supplied with at the hospital. So while Dr. Coffee was not caring for sick patients, she was going out to those in need and supplying them in order for them to have a safer and balanced life. As of 2013, Megan was still set up in Haiti. At this point, everyone thought she was extraordinary. Everyone except for one person- Megan, herself. She liked being humble and sticking to what she loved to do. She avoided getting self absorbed and treating herself as some lifesaver. She just knew what she had to do and only wanted to live in the moment.

Overall, Megan may sound like a big superhero in Haiti who everyone needs, but everyday she wakes up and puts all of her energy into helping others. She does not want to be seen as a hero, but she wants to be remembered for how Haiti was rebuilt so quickly after such a mass destruction. Megan is simply a leader to the people of Haiti and she should be an even bigger influence to the lives of Americans. We all need to look up to her, learning the qualities of a true American. Being modest, hardworking, and charitable is what we all need to supply our part in our own community.