First-year medical student Greg Valentine has his mind on missions as he attends the University of Texas Medical Branch, helping in a Galveston free clinic, a new border-town medical ministry and at a Romanian orphanage.
“Besides spending hours a day studying to be the best doctor he can possibly be, he consistently gives back to the community,” wrote fellow student Lisa Minsloff. “It is during these times of volunteering when he is reminded of why he’s becoming a doctor: His goal in life is to improve the lives of people around him.”
For his service in faith-based ministries, Valentine has been selected as a 2009 Unsung Hero.
Valentine, a Galveston resident, joins others selected by The Galveston County Daily News from across the county who were recently honored with a plaque at a reception.
Valentine grew up in Houston, earned his undergraduate degree at Baylor University, then made Galveston’s UTMB his top choice for medical school because the schedule would allow him flexibility in serving in missions.
He already had a taste of mission work before arriving in Galveston; he spent two summers mentoring boys at the Broken Heart Foundation’s orphanage in Bucharest, Romania. He plans to return.
Valentine’s volunteer work in Galveston centers on the St. Vincent’s House Free Clinic, which is staffed by volunteer health professionals and UTMB students under the supervision of practicing doctors from the faculty.
He also is part of the team for a new project sponsored by Baptist Student Ministry.
A group of 22 UTMB students and four faculty traveled to Piedras Negras on the Mexican border recently to see more than 160 patients on one Saturday alone.
The new ministry, “Hands and Feet Medical Mission,” involves volunteer students and faculty across a range of disciplines, including physical therapy and nursing.
“We really want to have long-term relationships with people of border towns, especially Piedras Negras, so that they know we’ll be coming on a regular schedule,” Valentine said. He envisions the mission becoming a monthly project.
Valentine has learned a lesson in his mission work — blessings flow both ways.
“When I first started, I had the mindset that whenever I would go over, I would be a blessing to these people,” he said.
“And yet, every time, it’s not me being a blessing to them; they are so much more a blessing to me.
“They completely transform my life and teach me something about my life I would never (have) known,” he said. “To see these people, who don’t have much, and yet they try to give you so much, it means so much to me.”
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Details To Note
• Hands and Feet Medical Mission is sponsored by Baptist Student Ministry. To donate supplies or funds, call Michael Goodman at 713-292-6588.
• St. Vincent’s House Free Clinic, 2817 Postoffice St., is a program of St. Vincent’s House, an urban mission of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas. For more information, check their website at www.stvhope.org.
