Reina Galjour left her job in an El Paso, Texas, clinic to move to a village with no running water and no toilets.
In February 2010, Galjour, a certified professional midwife and Orange County native, left the clinic she worked at for more than six years to move to Haiti, where she teaches midwifery to local women with the nonprofit organization Midwives for Haiti.
She recently returned to North Carolina to raise funds for the organization, which provides services and trains Haitian women in prenatal care in an effort to reduce maternal and infant deaths.
“Training Haitian midwives is really a huge step toward reducing maternal death,” Galjour said.
The fundraiser, which will include music and dancing, will start at 4 p.m. Saturday at Carr Mill Mall in Carrboro.
Galjour will show videos, present a slideshow and share stories of her time in Haiti.
The event will raise money for both Midwives for Haiti and Galjour’s own efforts to help impoverished Haitians, though no donation is required to attend.
Galjour said after the event, she plans to return to Haiti for at least another year.
Galjour’s work in Haiti has taken the native of Saxapahaw, a town just outside of Carrboro, far from home.