Farewell to Dr. Ronald VERRIER

Dr. Ronal Verrier

On April 8, 2020, the Promotion Fritz G. Sam has been shaken to its core when the dreadful news came about Dr. Ronald Verrier admitted to ICU in critical conditions due to COVID-19.  Multiple groups gathered here and there to pray....expecting another miracle as it happened 6 years ago for this beloved colleague who became very sick while vacationing in the Bahamas.

Valedictorian of his class, Dr. Verrier had a brilliant mind to pair with his golden heart. He built a reputation for being passionate about medicine and excelled in his area of expertise: he was a trauma critical surgeon who practiced first in Cornell University Hospital in Manhattan after emigrating from Haiti over 20 years ago, then in St Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx.  There he was a core faculty and contributed to the education of hundreds of residents.  Many referred to him as the doctor with “gifted hands “.  He was so bright!  So talented!  And whoever got close to him realized quickly that surgery was just a stepping stone to reach out to others.  He was always present where needed as a friend, counselor, and companion.  A close friend who knew Ronald quite well described him as being “ a network by himself!”  He was so resourceful in helping anyone in the community.  An amazing storyteller, the center of attention in any gathering, he grew to become larger than life, which explained why everyone was stunned when the news came on the evening of this April 8, 2020, that Ronald had taken his last breath somewhere in a hospital in New York.

What terrible news that left his colleagues numb!  What a loss for his native country, Haiti!  What a void now in the scientific world!  We can’t even fathom what this means for his beloved wife and his children and all his relatives!  Ronald for so many was seen as a rock, a strong pillar, and a guiding voice.



Dr. Ronald Verrier will be sorely missed by his family and relatives, his Samist brothers and sisters - dear colleagues for the past 33 years since their graduation from the Hôpital de l’ Université d’Etat d’Haiti (HUEH). The medical community has lost a brilliant mind and humankind a golden heart.  

May his soul Rest In Peace.

Reposes en Paix Ronald. MC

Joël Hilaire, MD/Pastor/Poet &Author

Promotion Fritz G. Sam



Source: AMHE