Michael and Maci Berkeley

Mike is an orthopedic surgeon who came to Chihuahua in 1989 to establish a crippled children's clinic. Joined by other U.S. and Mexican health care workers, the clinic expanded into the Sierra Madre Mountains and developed into the comprehensive health care programs we have today. Dr. Berkeley works primarily at the Samachique hospital where Maci helps to administer the staff. They have two sons, Robert and Matthew. Mike serves as president of Mexico Medical Missions. For an informative and interesting article about Doctor Berkeley, click here.

 

 

 

 

 

Jacob and Raquel Sotelo

Jacob and Raquel Sotelo and new son Nathan arrive in Samachique in the summer of 2010 to become the full-time directors of our Community Health Evangelism (CHE) program. Jacob is an ordained Presbyterian minister. He and Raquel were formerly based in Zihuatanejo, where they worked with Medical Ambassadors (Lifewind International) as the principal CHE trainers for Mexico. They will continue their national training duties with Lifewind while providing leadership for our CHE program.

 

 

 

Dr. Pedro and Rosie Ramirez

Dr. Pedro and Rosie Ramirez returned to our hospital staff in 2009. Dr. Ramirez was the first Mexican doctor to join Dr. Mike when the hospital opened almost 10 years ago. In 2006, God led them in a different direction, but brought them back in 2009 to fill a new need for a doctor. Dr. Pedro now serves as our Medical Director.

 

 

 

 

 

Tom and Cathy Shank

Tom and Cathy Shank work in the remote community of Santa Rita. They served in the community of Yeposo for 5 years before returning to Arizona where Tom pastored an Anglican Church. They returned to the Sierra in 2003 to begin the work of evangelization and community development in Santa Rita and the surrounding communities. Tom and Cathy have 6 children. Their youngest, Christina, currently lives with them in Mexico.

 

 

Josefa Peña D.D.S.

Josefa Peña D.D.S.provides dental services to our hospital and clinics. Originally from Veracruz in the south of Mexico, she came north 20 years ago with a desire to serve the people of the Sierra. Dr. Josefa travels often to Santa Rita with Tom & Cathy Shank to do dental work and help with ministry projects. 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Dagoberto Gallaga, M.D.

Dr. Dagoberto Gallaga, M.D. came to Hospital Misión Tarahumara in 2001 from Michoacan, Mexico. Dagoberto serves as a general practitioner and his Tarahumara wife Virginia ran our pharmacy in the past. They have three children: Armando, Denise and Adelaida.

 

 

 

 

Mary Gallegos

Mary Gallegos is a registered nurse from Delicias, Chihuahua, who joined us in 2002. Mary administers our surgery department and does community health work in remote villages.  Mary also oversees the Contagious Diseases Program which manages diseases such as tuberculosis

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edwin and Shelley Rivera

Edwin and Shelley Rivera joined us in 2006 along with their 3 girls. Shelley is a midwife who serves as director of the Birth Center and Edwin serves as Director of Personnel for the hospital. For more information on the Riveras, please go to www.riveraministries.org.

 

 

 

Esperanza Vázquez D.D.S.

Esperanza Vázquez D.D.S. is a dentist from Mexico City who joined us full time in 2008. She divides her time between the dental suite in the hospital and remote villages doing community health work. She oversees our work in the village of Chikué and provides support to the young Tarahumara woman and former hospital employee, Lupita, who is the teacher for the government

 

 

 

 

Carlos and Miriam Rojas

Carlos and Miriam Rojas work at Hospital Misión Tarahumara where Miriam is a nurse and Carlos works as an X-Ray technician and provides maintenance services.  Carlos also operates our well drilling rig. Carlos and Miriam met at the hospital and continue to serve together. They have three children: Abisai, Janiel and Gabriella.

 

 

 

Jose Luis and Lety Ramirez

Jose Luis and Lety Ramirez provide administrative support for our mission. They live in Chihuahua where Jose Luis is also director for Methodist Missions for northern Mexico, as well as president of COMIBAM, the national missions organization for Mexico. They have three children.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

David and Delia Hardin

David and Delia Hardin and their son Esteban are part of our aviation team. David graduated from the Moody Mission Aviation Program in 2004 and came to MMM to help establish our mission aviation program. David is our aircraft mechanic, and also helps with the well drilling ministry, general maintenance, and ambulance service. Delia is from Samachique, and met Dave while on our hospital staff. They married in 2008.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Francisco (Paco) Velasco

Dr. Francisco (Paco) Velasco is a Family Physician from Mexico City who joined us in 2008.  He and his wife, Norma, have 3 children and live in the nearby town of Guachochi.  Dr. Paco manages our outpatient clinic area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Carmen Reyes-Cabrera and Pilot Mark Egolf

Dr. Carmen Reyes-Cabrera is from Baja California and joined us in 2005. Carmen divides her time between working as a General Practitioner at Hospital Misión Tarahumara and providing medical care in remote communities. Pilot Mark Egolf graduated from the Moody Mission Aviation Program in 2004 and came to Mexico Medical Missions to help establish our mission aviation program.  Mark and Carmen were married in 2009.

 

 

 

Andy and Deb Kramer

Andy and Deb Kramer joined Mexico Medical Missions in 2009.  They are presently based in the village of La Mesa, planting churches among the Tarahumara people of that region. They have a special interest in establishing literacy training centers in remote villages. They are also translating Bible teaching materials and scripture portions into the tribal language.  Deb and Andy have 4 children who live in the states.

 

 

 

Ivan and Jennifer Wang

Ivan and Jennifer Wang came to Hospital Misión Tarahumara in 2009. Ivan is a physician assistant, and works in our community health program as well as in the hospital. Jennifer home-schools their five children: Ellie, Joelle, Jackson, Ethan and Timmy. Joelle & Jackson were adopted from Liberia, West Africa. The Wangs come to Mexico Medical Missions from their home church in Rio Rancho, NM.

 

 

 

 

 

Jonathan and Marta Pinkham.

Jonathan and Marta Pinkham. Johnathan is a missionary sent by Little Flock Christian Fellowship in Harrison, Arkansas. Jonathan arrived in the Sierra in 2002 and serves as a lay health worker in some of the most remote areas of the region. He met Marta in the isolated Tarahumara village of Coyachique and eventually they were married. They have two children, John Moffet and Lillian. The family lives full time in the remote village of Coyachique.

 

 

 

Dr. Bruce Daugherty

Dr. Bruce Daugherty plans to join us in September of 2010. With 30 years experience as a general surgeon, he will fill the great need for a general surgeon at the hospital. We are excited to have him join us full time after coming to visit us on regular basis for a few years. He leaves behind a practice in Lake Tahoe.

 

 

 

 

 

Claudia Cervantes

Claudia Cervantes is a social worker by trade who worked alongside Dr. Berkeley during his service at Clínica Las Américas in Chihuahua City, and during health care outreaches in our area. Though based in Chihuahua City, she joined our work full time in an Administrative position in January 2010.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Maria Guadalupe Acosta Nava (Lupita)

Maria Guadalupe Acosta Nava (Lupita) is the teacher of the new school in the village of Chikué. She grew up in Charerachi, a village not far from the hospital. Lupita completed the eighth grade, and later came to work at our hospital on the cleaning staff. In the summer of 2009, she trained to be a village teacher through a new government program created to quickly train teachers for small rural schools. Lupita began the 2009-2010 school year with 6 children, and ended with 36! A triumph of Lupita’s success is that these children have a teacher who speaks their language, which is very rare in the Sierra.