On to our main event, John Lyons introduced our guest speaker, Dr. Gary Kish. Dr. Kish is a Board-Certified Orthopaedic surgeon, a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons since 1972, and a retired USAF Medical Corps Major. He opened his private practice in Portsmouth in 1973.
 
 
Dr. Kish has provided medical and surgical services to war refugees and combatants in Pakistan, and in Hungary and Romania following the fall of the Berlin Wall. He is the co-director of the Portsmouth Orthopaedic International Fellowship and is a visiting lecturer at the University of Debrecen Medical School in Hungary. Most notably, he was instrumental in the introduction of modern total knee replacement surgery.
 
Dr. Kish has an indirect connection to Rotary. His older brother is a long-time Rotarian and a member of the Bristol, Ct., club.
 
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Dr. Kish has been offering his services to refugees located in Hungary. Hungary shares an 85-mile border with Ukraine so the number of refugees crossing the border, more than 1,000,000 at the time of this writing, is overwhelming. There are now more than 10,000,000 refugees that have left Ukraine.
 
Dr. Kish’s connection to Hungary began in 1996 when a group of Hungarian surgeons visited Portsmouth. They were here to explain a new surgical technique developed by Dr. Laszlo Hangody in 1983. The procedure, called mosaicplasty, involves taking healthy tissue from non-weight-bearing sections of the knee and transferring it to the damaged areas.
 
Through this connection, Dr. Kish made trips to Hungary over many years to teach and provide surgical services. He has joined forces with surgeons there, helping those in need due to the war. Dr. Laszlo Hangody and his wife, Dr. Andrea Fizzere, have since created and run a foundation in Hungary to provide surgical services. Following a Zoom meeting in March 2022, Dr. Kish has joined this effort.
 
The foundation uses all donations to provide food, medicine, clothes, diapers, and outpatient clinical services to individuals located in the Transcarpathian section of Ukraine. Hungarians heavily occupy this area.
 
To date, the Russians in Ukraine have destroyed more than 300 hospitals and more than 300 schools. The foundation offers vital services to those affected by these events.
 
Dr. Kish considers Ukraine’s President Zelensky to be a modern-day Churchill. Hungary’s president, Victor Orban, once was thought of as a hero for throwing Russia out of Hungary. He now plays both sides.
 
 
President Zelensky’s olive green t-shirts inspired Dr. Kish to make similar shirts with the Hungarian military insignia printed thereon. For the low, low price of $25, you can own one of these shirts. All the proceeds go to the Hungarian foundation.
 
Up next, questions. Question 1—do you think Ukraine can win? Yes, real good chance. Before HIMARS, the Ukrainians were losing 200 soldiers per day. Now, they lose about 30/day.
Question 2—Victor Orban was friendly to immigrants. Is that still so? No.
 
Question 3—not a question, but a recommendation. Dave Underhill informed Dr. Kish that Rotary has raised $15,000,000 for Ukraine. He may want to reach out to Rotarians in Ukraine to advance efforts through the foundation.
 
In appreciation of his time, President Joannie gave Dr. Kish a Rotary hat and informed him he was stepping on her toes as a clothier.
 
Guest Conrad Braun won the whopping $31 50/50 and gave it to Dr. Kish for the foundation. Well done! And to add further to his generosity, he agreed to pay $100 per t-shirt for a number of shirts.
 
And with that, President Joannie rang the bell and bid us farewell.
 
Until next time . . ..
 
Respectfully submitted, Mark Lorusso
Photos by Sara Treacy
      
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