There is nothing more important to Rosa Collazo than the health and well-being of her son, Ian Cortez. Thanks to your support of medical interpretation services, Rosa is able to play an active role in Ian’s speech and occupational therapy.

Rosa is one of the primarily Spanish-speaking residents who make up nearly 30 percent of Lorain’s population. The Lorain community became a refuge for Spanish-speaking Americans when Hurricane Maria decimated Puerto Rico in 2017. Today, many of these residents receive health care from Mercy Health with help from El Centro, a Latino nonprofit advocacy organization serving greater Lorain County.

“We love living here,” Rosa says. “We are so appreciative of the Spanish language medical interpreters.”

Ian has been attending speech and occupational therapy at Mercy Health since 2022. Rosa has seen noticeable improvement in her son since.

“Ian has an appointment once a week with a therapist and John Vega, our medical interpreter. Ian has developed trust with John and so have I,” she says.

“I am in a way the client’s ‘ears’ so they understand, and at the same time I am their voice so they are understood,” John says.

John is thankful your gift helps him and other medical interpreters help patients access health care in his community.

“Thank you to everyone who donates to provide medical interpretation. A healthier community is a better community for everyone,” says John.