Jacksonville, Fla. – The Facing Futures Foundation at Shands Jacksonville anticipates the arrival of Henok Addis, a 4 year old from Ethiopia with a facial tumor. The boy is scheduled to arrive in Jacksonville on Monday, Dec. 15. His trip is made possible thanks in part to a medical team under the direction of Barry Steinberg, MD, DDS, Chief of Division Oral and Maxillofacial surgery, University of Florida.
Dr. Steinberg established the Facing Futures Foundation in the mid-1990’s. His mission with the organization is to enhance the health and well being of pediatric patients with facial disorders, like Henok. Steinberg says, “Someone has to take care of the children. If something can be done to correct their deformities, then I want to do it.”
Steinberg also works along side the Facing Futures team, made up exclusively of volunteers from a variety of medical specialty areas. They include craniomaxillofacial surgeons, neurosurgeons, plastic surgeons, otolaryngologists, speech pathologists, anesthesiologists, and specialized nurses. Together these professionals hope to offer a promising future to Henok and children like him.
Steinberg was introduced to Henok through the Children’s Cross Connection; a non-profit organization dedicated to helping indigent children with severe medical problems. They provided Henok with a passport, medical visa, donated airline ticket and host family to care for him during his treatment in Jacksonville.
W. Lorenz Surgical, a Jacksonville based company, will be donating necessary equipment for Henok’s surgery. Lorenz manufactures a complete range of craniomaxillofacial products including titanium plates and screws for craniomaxillofacial fixation as well as a complete line of instruments for craniomaxillofacial and orthopedic procedures.
Facing Futures helps children here in Jacksonville as well as abroad. The team of health professionals travels to Vietnam annually to help hundreds of children there. In addition, they also take time to train Vietnamese surgeons in the latest procedures enabling them to carry on the Facing Futures mission.