Haitian teen gets wish: to meet President Bush - 02/28/2007 - MiamiHerald.com

A Haitian girl who received life-saving surgery at Jackson Memorial Hospital will meet President Bush today in Washington.

BY EVAN S. BENN AND TRENTON DANIEL

ebenn@MiamiHerald.com

Almost two years after Miami doctors removed a life-threatening tumor from her face, Haitian teenager Dahana Stephanie David will have a chance to thank one of the people she credits for saving her life.

Dahana, 17, will meet President Bush today at the White House.

She doesn't speak English, but she learned the words to God Bless America, which she plans to sing to Bush. She also learned to say ``I love you, President.''

''It's a beautiful country because you have hospitals and doctors and you don't have suffering,'' Dahana said, speaking in Creole Tuesday night.

Dahana wants to thank Bush for leading a country where she was able to regain a normal life.

She came here from Haiti in June 2005 through the help of charitable Broward County twin sisters Ginette and Gina Eugene.

The Eugene sisters, both nurses, raised money for Dahana's care along with the International Kids Fund, a charity program that helps find medical treatment for critically ill children from other countries.

They are the same sisters who helped find treatment for Marlie Casseus, another Haitian teen who came to Miami to have a 16-pound tumor removed from her face last year. The melon-size mass took away Marlie's ability to speak and nearly choked and blinded her.

The International Kids Fund, the Eugene twins and Jackson Memorial Hospital surgeon Dr. Jesus Gomez helped Marlie, now 15, resume a more normal life.

Gomez also performed a nine-hour surgery to remove the three-pound tumor from Dahana's face at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

At the time, Dahana thanked him with a note that said, ``I love you, Jesus.''

The surgery brightened Dahana's life almost immediately. She used to be self-conscious, covering her face in front of strangers and hiding in closets.

Now, she smiles. She describes herself as pretty, and she talks about a modeling career.

''I want to be a model because I want to represent Haiti,'' said Dahana, a resident of the northern seaside Haitian town of Port-de-Paix.

Because her tumor could have killed her, Dahana was able to request a wish through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, said Maria Luisa Chea, executive director of the International Kids Fund.

''Most kids want to go to Disney or get a new computer, but Dahana wanted to meet the president,'' Chea said.