VILLAGE PARTNERS INTERNATIONAL, INC.
TAMPA, FLORIDA

For as little as $10/month, you can continue the mission of helping others help themselves. Just hit the button below, and you will help continue the mission God has begun. Village Partners International is an organization of committed volunteers who partner, village to village, to help others help themselves. Since it's beginnings in 2007, it has helped develop community public health programs and educational programs in outlying areas of rural Uganda and Haiti and has partnered with Beth-El Mission, a community that supports migrant workers in Florida. VPI believes that empowering those in need with the tools to develop their own resourses improves sustainability and viability of projects that ultimately heal, nourish, and empower those who have such great need. Who We Are Village Partners International grew out of the mission work of people of faith from different churches beginning in rural Haiti in 1995. A young Haitian boy had fallen into a vat of boiling water and could only receive help in the United States. A medical team arranged for a UN helicopter to bring him to Tampa, Florida for treatment; his story was published in an international surgical journal. (Read more about this boy’s story Five years later, Martha Kawala, a young girl from the village of Papoli, Uganda was diagnosed with a life threatening cardiac condition. As this could not be treated in Africa, she walked 8 miles to an internet café to send Dr. Sylvia Campbell an email asking for help. Dr. Campbell helped arrange for the Rotary Club to provide transportation and the St. Joseph’s Hospital’s cardiac surgical team to provide surgery. Martha’s life was saved and changed. (Read more about Martha’s story . It was soon discovered that water was a more critical need if the village was to thrive, so a well was built. The AIDS epidemic has devastated a generation, leaving behind homes headed by orphans and widowed grandmothers. Housing for orphans and widows became an ongoing need that began to be addressed. The opportunity to serve grew to include the efforts of friends from a number of faith traditions. The merit of partnering an interfaith organization became clear, leading to the creation of Village Partners International which demonstrates how communities can be changed one person at a time. Village Partners International, a 501(c)(3), was created as a way to open the work that the church has begun to the broader community. The four major areas of focus are: Our Mission Mission Statement To partner with select impoverished world villages to help them help themselves. We are an inclusive interfaith community, sharing God’s love as Moses commands and sharing in the spirit of Jesus. We aspire to seek justice, love kindness and walk humbly with our God. VPI strongly believes that our role is to help those we partner with to reach sustainability and independence in their selected projects. We strongly believe that all mankind is entitled to access to basic healthcare services, regardless of age, sex, race, religion or legal status. For as little as $10/month, you can continue the mission of helping others help themselves. Just hit the button below, and you will help continue the mission God has begun. Village Partners International is an organization of committed volunteers who partner, village to village, to help others help themselves. Since it's beginnings in 2007, it has helped develop community public health programs and educational programs in outlying areas of rural Uganda and Haiti and has partnered with Beth-El Mission, a community that supports migrant workers in Florida. VPI believes that empowering those in need with the tools to develop their own resourses improves sustainability and viability of projects that ultimately heal, nourish, and empower those who have such great need. Sylvia serves as the President of the BOD of VPI. She was born in Orlando, Florida, and received a BS and MS from Emory University in Atlanta, Ga. Later she received her MD from the University of South Florida, and completed a General Surgery residency there. She currently is in private practice in Tampa. She has served on and currently is President of the Board of the Judeo-Christian Health Clinic, a free medical clinic in Tampa, has served on the Board of the Medical Benevolence Foundation of the Presbyterian Church, as an elder with the Presbyterian Church, and was involved in development of Trauma Care Systems and Injury Prevention in the state as well as nationally. She has served on the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors of the American College of Surgeons, and currently serves on the Advisory Council of Operation Giving Back of the American College of Surgeons. She has served on mission trips to Haiti and Uganda since 1996, and been involved in helping children travel to the US for life saving care. She is married to Bob Campbell and has 3 children, Chelsey, Meaghan and Ross. John serves as the Vice President of the Board of Directors of VPI. He was born in Tampa, Florida and attended Eckerd College in St. Petersburg as an undergraduate. He received his Theology degree and Doctorate in Ministry from Union Theological Seminary in Virginia, and was ordained a Presbyterian minister for PCUSA in July of 1983. He currently serves as the pastor of Palma Ceia Presbyterian Church in Tampa. He has been involved in the development and implementation of many programs in each community he has served in, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Judeo-Christian Health Clinic in Tampa. He has traveled to Haiti on medical mission trips since 1998, and has been an integral part of the work there. He is married to Emalee DeBevoise and has 3 children. Deirdre serves as the Treasurer for VPI. She has a degree in Accounting and an MBA in business from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University in Tallahassee, Florida. She previously owned an assisted living facility called “A Home of our Own”, and has worked with the Hillsborough County Medical Association. Currently she is employed by the Tampa Police Department. Her volunteer efforts include working with Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and Cornerstone Kids. She currently serves on the Vestry at St. James House of Prayer.