BY PASHA FARMANARA | Team Last Responders, a nonprofit charity organization made up of N.Y.U. alumni, will be driving an ambulance to offer assistance. But it’s going to be quite a long trip: all the way from New York City to South America, in fact. At the end of the journey, in Bolivia, they will donate the ambulance — loaded with medical supplies — to a local charity, Esperança.
The team plans to begin the journey on Dec. 22, and has estimated that the entire trip will take about three months.
This is the team’s third trip. The past two have both been a part of a larger organization in the U.K., the first ending in Mongolia, and the second ending in Mali. This will be the first time the Last Responders have organized a trip on their own.
“There was no infrastructure in place; it was harder to establish the destination and partners,” said Stephen Jan, the group’s founder. “Last time was an umbrella organization. This time there is no umbrella to help organize and help. We have to build our own story, decide on who to reach out to and promote the story ourselves, rather than ride on an existing event.”
The lack of any organization gave the group free rein when it came to where to go, and which charities to donate to. With the freedom comes a lot of work to do, and contacts to establish.
The group knew that there might not be a charity right at the southern tip of South America in need of a ambulance, so the group reached out to the entire continent.
“There was one organization, [Esperança] which was very enthusiastic about our project and had a relationship with another organization we were with in Africa,” Jan said. “It was pretty close to where we were going, and Bolivia, compared to the other countries is much poorer, so it seemed like a good fit.”
Although based in Bolivia, Esperança also has programs in Phoenix, Arizona. It was a fitting charity for the initiative to help due to its early roots in medical transportation.
This is Jan’s third trip as a Last Responder and, through it, he is hoping to raise awareness about the program.
On the other hand, another team member member, Ken Sin, is embarking on the trip out of a sense of personal adventure.
“For me, I don’t think I will have another chance to take part on one of these trips,” Sin said. “It’s a good window for me to do something like this.”
The group is in the process of planning a launch party on Dec. 20. Information can be found on their Facebook page, https://facebook.com/lastresponders, or on their Web site https://lastresponders.org.
