CLEVELAND -- Northeast Ohio has a large medical community and an equally large non-profit and charitable community.

When you put the two together, good things are likely to happen, reported NewsChannel5's Bill Ringen.

For Mary Rock, caring for people has always come naturally. The Parma Heights resident is a critical care transport nurse for University Hospitals.

Rock has been on several thousand medical missions in both the ground ambulance and Medevac helicopter, but her most memorable mission wasn't her in northeast Ohio: It was in rural El Salvador.

"I always knew in the back of my mind I wanted to do something like this," Rock said.

Rock and 48 other volunteers went to El Salvador as part of a medical brigade sponsored by the Cleveland-based nonprofit MedWish.

"We collect usable medical supplies and equipment and redistribute those life saving items to recipients in developing countries all over the world," said MedWish executive director Tish Dahlby.

The group was made up of doctors, dentists, nurses, technicians and others from all walks of life.

Over the course of four days they saw more than 1,800 patients. It was the largest free health clinic ever to be held in that country.

Rock says the people of El Salvador were incredible.

"They come up to you, they hug you, they kiss you. They are wearing their best Sunday clothes. They say, 'The Americans are here to help us.' It is an amazing experience," Rock said. "To see it and to be a part of it is life changing. It will never go away in my heart, what it meant to these people."

MedWish International plans many more medical missions to developing countries worldwide and they continue to collect medical supplies equipment and donations.

For more information, go to MedWish.org