Doctor Martin Salia, Who Died of Ebola Hailed as Hero

Dr. Martin Salia didn’t get into the medical profession to get rich, and even though he was a permanent US resident, he chose to work in his native Sierra Leone because the need for surgeons there was so great. Although his medical colleagues were worried when he returned there to treat Ebola patients, they said the decision was consistent with his character.The 44-year-old surgeon was remembered Saturday at his funeral Mass as a selfless and heroic advocate for medical care for the less fortunate. Salia died of Ebola on Nov. 17 after being flown to a hospital in Nebraska, in the advanced stages of the  virus. He became the second person to die in the United States after contracting Ebola in West Africa, where it has killed nearly 7,000 people. Ron Klain, the White House Ebola response coordinator, read a personal note of condolence from President Obama to Salia’s family. “The greatest heroes are people who choose to face danger, who voluntarily put themselves at risk to help others,” Klain said.