Photo courtesy of ANERA
Toledo physician Randa Mansour-Shousher recently gave 3 year-old Palestinian refugee Ammar El-Ali a life-changing gift: an operation that would provide Ammar with the ability to hear for the first time in his young life. Ammar was born in a refugee camp in Lebanon, with his parents unable to get medical treatment for him due to the high costs. Dr. Mansour-Shousher, an audiologist, received a phone call from a colleague who was traveling in Lebanon, asking for help. Dr. Mansour-Shousher then began rounding up a local medical team to donate services to perform the operation. The surgery proved to be an overwhelming success, and Ammar is now able to live life as a normal child. Read more about Dr. Mansour-Shousher and Ammar’s story here.
In addition to her work as a physician, Dr. Mansour-Shousher is an active philanthropist. She serves as an active board member for the Toledo Hospital Foundation, the Center for Arab American Philanthropy (CAAP) and ANERA, where she works to service the hearing impaired refugees in the Middle East. A few years ago, Shousher worked with ANERA’s staff in Gaza, screening 20,000 preschoolers for hearing problems. She succeeded in receiving donations of crucial equipment, working hard to give the Gazan children the gift of hearing.
In the fall, Shousher traveled with 9 other volunteers to Jordan to deliver hearing aids and treatment to about 500 children, most of whom reside in refugee camps. Dr. Mansour-Shousher also was the host of the 100 Arab American Women Who Care – Toledo Event in August 2014.
On behalf of all of us at CAAP, we truly appreciate all the great work that you do and hope you continue to share your love and care with the world!
Click here if you’d like to read about more Arab Americans working to make a difference in the world.