I have been a family physician in Maine for more than 40 years. Several days ago, I successfully treated a patient, who was in cardiac arrest, using an automatic external defibrillator (AED). It made me think of the origins of this important medical device and its inventor, Dr. Bernard Lown.

Dr. Lown was a Jewish Lithuanian refugee, who settled with his family in Lewiston at age 14 in 1935. Lown attended Lewiston High School and the University of Maine, and subsequently became one of the top cardiology researchers in the world. Collaborating with another immigrant refugee, Barouh Berkovits, Lown developed the defibrillator in 1961, which revolutionized the treatment of sudden cardiac arrest.

I also thought of Yvon Chouinard, another famous Lewiston native whose father was French Canadian, who started the company Patagonia. Immigrants have made and continue to make essential contributions that affect the world.

Current Lewiston resident immigrants will also enrich the state of Maine and our country. Let’s stand up now and defend them against the forces of hate and exclusion. 

Peter Millard
Belfast