UMRA OMAR

The founding member and secretary of Safari Doctors, Umra Omar, is changing lives by providing medical services for those living in and around Kenya’s Lamu area. The CNN hero works with Kenya’s Ministry of Health, and various partners, to provide much needed services to remote communities.

Once a month, the Safari Doctors crew sail during high tide and visit various communities in the coastal area to provide dental, optometry, gynecological and other services. Immunizations, maternal healthcare, communicable diseases treatment and access to clean water are some of the priorities that the organization focuses on.

Omar attended high school in Nairobi and later studied Neuroscience and Psychology at Oberlin College in the U.S, before pursuing a master's degree in Social Justice in Intercultural Relations. She worked for a few years in Washington D.C before deciding to go back to the Kenyan coast where she was born.

For not allowing the challenges of geography and resources to get in the way of starting a meaningful organization, Omar is an inspiration and an asset to her community.

—JO