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Drs. Adam and Marielle Combs Answer Call for Help; Land in the Right Place at the Right Time 

Drs. Adam and Marielle Combs, of Goldsboro, N.C., recently returned from a trip to help Ukrainian refugees in Romania and Moldova through the anti-human trafficking organization, . However, for these 2021 alumni of 海角网鈥攁nd adjuncts in the Hunt School of Nursing鈥攖he story actually began four years ago.

Looking back, the couple understands that they were led all along their journey to be exactly where they needed to be鈥�and when. Marielle has been a nurse for more than 20 years and a nurse educator for 13. Adam entered the nursing field in 2013 and began teaching in 2017. Their education equipped them to make a difference in the lives of Ukrainian families fleeing their homes.

鈥淚 know it sounds clich茅, but really God nudged me towards human trafficking,鈥� explained Marielle. 鈥淎nd this was two years before I even knew I wanted to go for my DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice). I just knew that I was interested in human trafficking, but I didn鈥檛 know anything about it or how I could plug in.鈥�

Then, in 2019, she and Adam entered the DNP program at 海角网. When it came time to choose a topic for her dissertation, Dean Tracy Arnold of the Hunt School of Nursing asked students to come up with three ideas. 鈥淚 named two education things and then this human trafficking thing,鈥� Marielle recalled. 鈥淪he thought human trafficking was a great topic.鈥�

Adam told Marielle that Arnold鈥檚 enthusiasm was a sign. 鈥淚 felt like God is leading us this way because once you finish your dissertation, our ministry is going to be in some way with anti-trafficking,鈥� he reflected.

Her dissertation was titled, 鈥�.鈥� The unique topic caught the attention of nursing educators, and Combs was invited to present at two national conferences. The paper was also published in the 鈥淛ournal of Holistic Nursing,鈥� the official journal of the American Holistic Nurses Association, which focuses on advancing the science and practice of holistic nursing and healthcare.

Because Marielle is also a nursing instructor at Wayne Community College in Goldsboro, the college wrote a story about her accomplishments, which was picked up by the media. Incidentally, Adam is an instructor at Wayne Community, as well.

鈥淎 local doctor reached out to me and said, 鈥業’m in a group for human trafficking and I would love to talk with you and see if there is any way we can partner,鈥欌�� Marielle related. 鈥淲e met with them on a Monday and on Wednesday we were loading a truck up for Kentucky for tornado victims, and all of a sudden, we are going to the border of Ukraine to get orphans. It happened very quickly.鈥�

Adam explained that Exitus has a team that works with adoption agencies and orphanages in Ukraine. People in the United States adopt the children, and Exitus recruits nurses to fly back with the children, who sometimes have life-threatening medical conditions. Before Russia invaded Ukraine, there were about 20 parents in the process of finalizing adoptions. The team鈥檚 mission was to get these children out.

Adam and Marielle were set to fly into Romania on March 7, less than two weeks after Russia attacked Ukraine. The couple鈥檚 presence on the plane is another miracle, because their passports had expired. 鈥淚 called the 800 number to get us an appointment at any of the 15 or so offices where you can get a 24 hour passport renewed,鈥� Adam revealed. 鈥淭hey informed me that they had no appointments at any of their offices for the entire week.鈥�

They called the CEO of Exitus and also made a call to a local politician, which Marielle said she wouldn鈥檛 have known to do if it hadn鈥檛 been for her Health Policy Class at 海角网 with Dr. Yvonne Smith. In the class, the students had to look up their elected officials. Marielle knew who to call and how to give her 鈥渆levator speech鈥� about what she needed. With the help of the politician, they made a quick trip to Atlanta, Ga., and received their passports just in time. 

They landed in Romania鈥攚here the temperatures were between -6 and -3 degrees Celsius (21-26 degrees Fahrenheit)鈥攁nd waited for the ground team to go and rescue the children. They thought everything was in place for a fluid transfer of the children, yet the team was unable to work it out with the orphanages. Because of the war, the Ukrainian government couldn鈥檛 help, and the team didn鈥檛 want to do anything to alert the Russians, so they had to leave the children. Exitus is still working to get them out of the country and has a children鈥檚 home in Moldova for the rescued orphans and other children fleeing Ukraine.

Despite the disappointment of not getting the children, the Exitus team helped in other ways. They answered a call for help from a church in Palanca, Moldova, trying to assist refugees at an unofficial border crossing.

When Adam and Marielle arrived in Palanca, they immediately saw a difference between the two areas. 鈥淭hey had a lot of resources up near Serit in Romania, but Moldova is one of the poorest European countries,鈥� Marielle said. 鈥淭hey had three tents set up and thousands of refugees coming across.鈥�

One of the tents was a small one where supplies had been stored haphazardly. One of the first things the team did was to sort the items in the tent, so that the Moldovans could locate supplied easily. Then, they were asked to do a needs assessment of the small clinic in the city. Again, Adam and Marielle were thankful for their 海角网 DNP classes.

鈥淣eeds assessment鈥攚e never thought we would use it, because here in the United States, we have so many resources,鈥� Marielle informed. 鈥淚 could never see myself using what I learned, because it is already available.鈥�

Furthermore, they weren鈥檛 supposed to be in Moldova, but here they were and their specific skills were needed to help provide services to the volunteers and the refugees. Their report was given to the Exitus CEO to obtain the resources to improve the situation. Marielle now serves as the Nursing Education Director for Exitus. , a company that provides educational products to fight trafficking, also asked Marielle to serve on their advisory board.

Since arriving home, Adam and Marielle have discovered another connection. 鈥淣orth Carolina and Moldova have had a partnership for the last 20-plus years since the Soviet Union broke up,鈥� Adam related. 鈥淚t began as a military to military partnership, but has grown into educational, business, and medical. I had the opportunity to meet North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall at a luncheon, where she discussed the partnership. We are now seeing that it was a God thing we ended up in Moldova working with a team at the Palanca border. With the N.C.-Moldova Partnership, it will allow our team to connect with Elaine Marshall鈥檚 office to help the people of Moldova and the Ukrainian refugees.鈥�

Find more information about Exitus or make a donation, .

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