Hope in the Balance

How the caring spirit of Newfoundland was exported to a world in crisis.

Dr. Andrew Furey was enjoying some well-earned rest at home in St John’s when the TV news began reporting on the dreadful aftermath of an earthquake in Haiti. Dr. Furey, an orthopedic surgeon, spent a sleepless night. And he rose knowing that like many Newfoundlanders before him, he had heard a call for help and was bound to answer it.

Dr. Furey formed a team of three—including his wife, Dr. Allison Furey—for a volunteer mission to Port-au-Prince. The challenge when they arrived seemed overwhelming: a multitude of badly injured victims and horrendous working conditions. But they did not lose hope.

After returning from that first mission, Dr. Furey founded Team Broken Earth—a volunteer task force of physicians, nurses, and physiotherapists. The organization has never stopped growing, recruiting volunteers from all over Canada and providing aid and medical training in many countries.

Dr. Andrew Furey tells the story of Team Broken Earth’s founding and remarkable work with a vivid immediacy and raw honesty that will leave you awed and inspired. 

DR. ANDREW FUREY, an orthopedic trauma surgeon, was born and raised in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. Dr. Furey finds time to remain active in the local St. John’s community, attending and organizing charity events. He also does work with the Liberal Party of Canada, teaches at Memorial University, and raises three children with his wife, Allison, a pediatric emergency room doctor.