COSY JOSEPH
It's been 24 years since we established the Gaskov Clerge Foundation (GCF) to provide healthcare, education, and sports opportunities in Haiti and the US. While our journey has seen extraordinary moments, the past three years have posed significant challenges. In reflecting on our work in Haiti, we've learned that qualities like persistence grit, and resilience are vital. Your support fuels GCF's mission, and today, we unite with a shared commitment to drive change, create a brighter future, and ignite hope where it's needed most. Thank you for being part of this journey.
Our mission, rooted in love, compassion, and determination, has empowered thousands of individuals to date. This in itself, is a testament to the resilience and strength of the human spirit.
Let me share some of these stories with you, stories that embody the essence of driving change. Shedly, who just graduated from high school in Haiti this summer, aspires to become a doctor. She embodies the dreams that we've helped nurture. Francesca, another student, graduated from nursing school and now seeks to give back to her community as an orthopedic nurse practitioner. Ralph Edmond, who graduated from high school in 2018, is now in his final year of engineering school.
But our work doesn't stop there. Our dedicated medical staff has completed over 70,000 patient encounters since 2015, tirelessly educating patients and stabilizing their health.
And then there are the stories of homes being rebuilt, symbolizing hope. People like Jocelyn and his family, left homeless by the 2021 earthquake, now you have a place to call their own. Jocelyn said that his home is now the landmark in the neighborhood. You either live before the "pea green and pink house."
But let me be clear, none of this would be possible without the grit, the persistence, and the resilience that have defined our journey for the past 25 years.
Our work has not been without challenges, but it's precisely in the face of adversity that our determination shines brightest. We have remained steadfast in our commitment to driving change because we believe in the potential of every individual and community we serve.
In closing, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you. Together, we are the driving force behind the transformation we've witnessed. Together, we are the embodiment of hope and change.
Thank you for being part of this incredible journey, and may our collective efforts continue to illuminate the path forward.
The Gaskov Clergé Foundation (GCF) board is composed of seventeen members. The Board sets policies, oversees the foundation’s programs and meets regularly throughout the year to discuss the foundation’s activities. The chair executes board policies and manages the foundation’s programs and operations. The chair regularly evaluates the foundation’s operations to improve board efficiency.
Cosy
Gervais
Pierre
Elizabeth
Cosy Clergé-Joseph, PMP
Chairperson of the Board ccjoseph@gaskov.org
Gervais Charles, M.D.
Vice-Chairperson
Pierre Richard Jason
Treasurer
Elizabeth Ledan
Secretary
Serge Thys, MD
Medical Director (South) sthys@gaskov.org
Claude G. Ferrer, Ph.D.
Education Director
Dominique Deltor, MD
Carline Emile
Anselm Joseph
Special Projects
Herzen Clergé
Public Relations
hClergé@gaskov.org
Karl Joseph Sports Director,
Webmaster
Regine Bataille, MD
Fund Raising Co-Chair
Berthe Leveille-Tulce, PhD
Fund Raising Co-Chair
Eleonore Suze Millien, NP
Medical Supplies Director
Roby Marsan, MD
Yseult Belfort
Marie France Conde, MD mfconde@gaskov.org
The Gaskov Clergé Foundation (GCF) exists to perpetuate the legacy of Gaskov Clergé.
The foundation is a nonprofit, philanthropic organization established to promote health, sports, education and sciences in both the United States and Haiti. GCF is committed to empowering individuals and will carry out its mission by:
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Establishing both domestic and international programs/scholarship funds that assist deserving individuals who are pursuing academic excellence in the sciences.
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Developing resources for preventive health care in Haiti that encourage the philanthropic participation of physicians, nurses and other allied health professionals, along with the corporate community.
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Fostering the mental and physical development of young, Haitian athletes by providing support and assistance in developing the necessary infrastructure to prepare these athletes for competition.
GCF History
Gaskov Clergé’s death in 1999 left his friends and family in chaos, disbelief and horror. He was the life of a party on Friday; was hospitalized on Saturday; and on Sunday March 7, 1999, he succumbed to liver cancer at 38, at the dawn of a promising and fulfilling life. During the days following that excruciatingly painful reality, we, his family and friends, decided to grieve his loss by giving a part of our modest lives back to our community in his honor, hoping to someday stop the tears and heal the wounds.
That pledge yielded the Gaskov Clergé Foundation-GCF. Instead of surrendering to depression, we spent our time on countless lively discussions which shaped the organization’s character and future. We defined our mission to be one that will empower individuals by giving them access to education and health care. With modest contributions from relatives and friends, we completed the tax-exempt recognition process and embarked on carrying out our mission the following summer.
Our goals were to implement a medical mission in Haiti and to provide scholarships to as many children as we possibly could. In August 2000, with a team of approximately 30 doctors, nurses, a support staff, and many bags of donated medical supplies, we traveled to Les Cayes, Haiti on a shoe-string budget, with the goal of seeing 500 patients in 5 days. We exceeded that goal by the second day. By the 5th day, we examined 1,500 patients with hundreds more not seen by our volunteering Physicians. As for the scholarships, we started with 10 children as recipients and also had to turn away many more. On the last day of the mission, I was tired, brokenhearted and tearful. The tears were partly from the liberating feeling of being at peace with Gaskov’s death through the lives we just touched. Also, my tears were from an overwhelming feeling of inadequacy…in the face of such unfulfilled basic human needs…the right to a decent education and health care.
Since 1999, GCF’s medical missions became the main source of medical care for many who can’t afford to see a doctor. Until 2015, GCF led many medical and relief missions that offered free health care and medication to an average of 2,000 underserved patients in the region, many of whom traveled from the most remote areas. We have provided financial assistance for several life-saving surgeries in Haiti and we are now operating Klinik Fonfred, a standard medical clinic in a rural community near Les Cayes, which features four exam rooms, a triage area, a dental clinic a lab, pharmacy and radiology room. The staff at Klinik Fonfred has fulfilled over 30,000 patient encounters since its inception in 2015. For the Education component, we have sponsored close to 1,700 children. Many of our past scholarship recipients are now graduating as Lawyers, Doctors and Nurses, among other professions. We have empowered them to blossom into productive human beings with a brighter future.
Here in the US, Gaskov Clerge Foundation continues to work with the Palm Beach County School District to sponsor a county-wide essay contest that challenges students from all backgrounds to write about Haiti. Dozens of students have benefited from our sponsorship.
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