Gwen Grant Mellon

Gwen Grant Mellon

• Gwen Grant Mellon (July 22, 1911 - November 29, 2000) was an American medical missionary.

Medical missionary to Haiti

• She was a medical missionary and the founder and administrator of Hospital Albert Schweitzer Haiti in Deschapelles, Haiti.

Early career

• As a single mother she worked as a horse riding instructor on a dude ranch in Arizona.

Marriage

• While working at the ranch, she met neighboring rancher William Larimer Mellon Jr., heir to the Mellon fortune.

Medical education

• Shortly after their marriage in 1946, the couple decided to emulate the work of Dr. Albert Schweitzer in an underdeveloped country and enrolled at Tulane University.
• William Larimer Mellon Jr. subsequently received his medical degree, while Gwen received hers in tropical medicine from Tulane.

75 bed hospital in Haiti

• She planned, built and paid for the construction of the 75-bed hospital in Haiti, using the couple's personal fortune.
• She worked there as a medical missionary from its opening in 1956 until her death.

Honors

She was honored with the first Elizabeth Blackwell.

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