2019–20 Recipient of the Allyn Gollub PhD '62 Prosthetic and Orthotics Scholarship
This scholarship has been a great motivator for me, and has made me realize that, once I am stable in my career, I want to give back to the world. I have a dream to go back to my home country of Colombia, operate a small business fabricating prosthetics for those who cannot afford them, and show them a new life.
Being able to attend UHart and pursue this degree in Prosthetics and Orthotics has made me grow as a human and nurture the compassion I have towards my patients—to help them gain control of their lives and aid them in their fights to walk again. Seeing what they go through, this does not feel like work to me. It is so rewarding to know that I can help bring hope back into their lives. This is what this scholarship has meant to me and I want to thank the donors for this gift.
During my undergraduate years, [my classmates and I] would hold philanthropy events to raise money for programs. I then signed up to volunteer internationally—my heart opened up to a volunteer experience in Ecuador, through a group called Range of Motion Project, where we had 27 patients. UHart has a similar program, Dreaming and Working Together. Only two students are selected to go each year and I was one of them. We were planning a trip to Peru where we would be assisting 112 patients with prosthetics, and being bilingual, I would have been able to help with translations. I was so excited, preparing and getting everything ready for the trip, but then we had to cancel due to the pandemic.
If I am able to return to the University of Hartford and if I am once again selected to be a clinic volunteer in Peru, I would be very grateful. I have grown so much in the months I spent many hours prepping individual components for each and every patient. My attachment to each person who will be receiving a leg or an arm or both has also grown. I would really want to see each person's face and smile as they get control back of their life.
Arredondo earned his MS in Orthotics and Prosthetics from the University of Hartford's College of Education, Nursing and Health Professions in May 2020. HIs plans to volunteer in Peru were unfortunately cancelled due to the pandemic. He is currently in New York, NY completing an orthotics residency at the Hanger Clinic, working with patients needing a range of orthotics from spinal devices to foot inserts. Next year, he will working on a one-year residency in prosthetics.