SRW Accomplishments

HANDYMAN HAEFER

By Sylvia Boomsma

"I just fix stuff."

That's how Gary Haefer modestly describes the role he has played for Sharing Resources Worldwide. But anyone who has traveled with him — or depended on the equipment he has repaired, found, purchased, or donated — knows his contribution reaches far beyond fixing things.

Gary, owner of Midwest Biomedical and Scientific Services, Inc., has spent nearly 30 years working with laboratory equipment and medical machinery in hospitals, nursing homes, and clinics. A married father of four, he travels often for work, yet he has still made time to join SRW medical mission teams in Honduras at least five times. When he is home in Madison, he continues to help behind the scenes, refurbishing equipment and making sure needed machines are ready for hospitals and clinics that need them most.

"Whatever they need," Gary says, "I'll buy it, donate it, find it. It only takes a little bit of my time or money. And the rewards are a hundredfold what I give."

Gary first learned about SRW through Marge Abegglen, RN, who managed the operating rooms at Beaver Dam Community Hospital, one of his accounts at the time. His first trip took him and Marge to Siguatepeque, Honduras, where a new hospital was expected to be ready for an incoming medical team. Instead, they arrived to find a building still under construction — no doors or windows, no plumbing, no electricity, and water on the floor.

"We were shocked at how unready everything was," Gary recalls. Heavy operating tables had arrived, but there were no trucks or lifts to move them. Gary recruited local help, worked through the obstacles, and kept reassuring Marge they would get it done. One week later, the medical team was on site performing surgeries.

That calm, can-do spirit has become Gary's trademark. Over the years, he has helped solve power failures, equipment problems, and unexpected challenges — including helping put out a wildfire behind the hospital and joining local crews to set telephone poles. "I do everything," he says. "Whatever they want me to do."

For Gary, the work is practical, personal, and deeply rewarding. "You've got to go down there with an open mind," he says. "Be ready for anything. You can lose power at any time, and you've got to improvise." He credits SRW's medical teams for their flexibility and heart, and he is quick to deflect praise. "At first, I went as a favor, but when you see the results firsthand, you want to help. I'm glad to be a part of it. I see the kids and the smiles on their faces. The team does so much more than I do. I just fix stuff."

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