Student preparing to make springtime medical mission BY LARRY HLAVENKA JR. Staff Writer Derek Kong Like many college students, Derek Kong will travel to a tropical country for his spring break. That's where the similarities between Kong and other students will probably end. While his classmates tan themselves on sandy beaches and sip margaritas until dawn, Kong will be helping refugees and providing medical relief in the Dominican Republic. Kong, of Marlboro, is a sophomore pre-med student at Tufts University, Medford, Mass. He is a 2005 graduate of the Freehold Regional High School District's medical sciences learning center at Freehold High School, Freehold Borough. He will be part of a team of 20 students, doctors and nurses who will provide medical assistance to Haitian refugees who have fled their nation to the Dominican Republic. Haiti and the Dominican Republic share an island in the Caribbean. The mission will be sponsored by the Timmy Foundation (www.timmyfoundation.org), a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting medically deficient communities around the world. Under the direction of Dr. Charles Dietzen - known as Dr. Chuck - the organization took root in 1997 after Dietzen conducted relief trips to Haiti and India. The organization is named for Dr. Chuck's brother, Timmy. Colleges around the country have joined in the effort, including Ball State University, Purdue University and the University of Colorado. Kong, 20, was hand-picked by his university after a lengthy application and interview process. He estimated that between 75 and 100 students applied to participate. Last year, Kong said, he attempted to go on a mission, but was passed over in favor of older students. Plus, "everyone is so qualified," he said. Now that he is preparing for a trip of his own, Kong is looking forward to the educational and outreach portions of the effort. "In America we take our health care system for granted," he said. "A lot of people have insurance and can walk into a doctor's office with a small co-pay. In these countries the medical system isn't as advanced." As part of the mission, Kong said the group will build a triage area complete with first aid supplies, personal hygiene items, pain relievers, cold medicines, heartburn treatments and vitamins. On what he hopes to learn, Kong said, "I want to be able to come out with a more heightened sense of awareness. I'm pretty excited - it's my first time doing something like this." For the pre-med student who eventually hopes to enroll in medical school, Kong said the trip will also serve as a reminder of the diversity in the medical field. He does not anticipate any difficulty on the mission, nor is he apprehensive about traveling to a foreign nation. "I think the most basic [problem] is to be able to communicate with the locals," he said, while noting the university will provide Spanish classes to help bridge the gap. To help defray the cost of the trip, Kong, an accomplished violinist of 16 years, plans to sell his professionally made CD. Students must fund-raise themselves. In the future, Kong hopes to continue with such efforts. "A lot of people that have done this before said it was a snowball effect," he said. To assist the effort or to obtain a copy of Kong's CD, contact him at dkong.violin@gmail.com.