A non-profit, student-run organization consisting of a group of dedicated volunteers that come together from all different walks of life to assist with a common goal: providing free health services and health education to the people of Rancho Escondido (RE) and Colonia Margarita Moran (CMM)
Where it all began
In 2012, UCLA Flying Samaritans began making service trips to Tijuana, Mexico. Students and health professionals travelled to the community of Margarita Moran, which in the previous rainy season, had been ravaged by flooding. After seven years of learning, growth and consistent service, UCLA Flying Samaritans began the work of expanding their efforts and establishing a larger more permanent clinic. With the support and outstanding effort of many of our members and donors, UCLA Flying Samaritans opened a four-portable clinic in August of 2018. Complete with a main clinic unit, pharmacy, dental care unit and health education classroom.
Ever since our initial involvement, Flying Samaritans at UCLA has committed to see lasting changes in these communities. We are dedicated to long term involvement to promote public health and preventative medicine, empower the people of CMM and RE to take charge of their medical health, increase access to healthcare, and—one that we find vastly important—build a lasting relationship with CMM and RE.
Our Mission
Our Flying Samaritans chapter at UCLA serves the rural communities of Rancho Escondido and Colonia Margarita Moran. Our program takes a unique approach to healthcare by promoting public health awareness and preventive medicine. We work to enable the people of these communities to take their health into their own hands and make healthy lifestyle choices for themselves and their families by giving them the tools, knowledge, and skills to do so. By making regular monthly trips to Rancho Escondido and Colonia Margarita Moran, we hope to vastly increase the community’s access to medical care and establish a solid relationship with the residents, encouraging them to make regular monthly checkups a part of a healthy lifestyle.