Big, burly, ferociously committed and said to resemble an “American football coach more than a health worker,” Todd Shea is a surprising contradiction of a man who still seems to belong in rural northwest Pakistan.

Beloved by the locals since his arrival in 2005, Todd’s good-natured persistence underlies his belief that in spite of floods or earthquakes, health care for Pakistanis in rural parts of the country is an attainable goal.

Much like today, in 2005, another natural disaster in Pakistan was making the headlines. That’s when Todd Shea, went to help earthquake victims in Pakistan and ended up staying. Now Todd and his U.S.-based nonprofit, Sustainable Healthcare Initiatives Now Empowering (SHINE) is in the region again assisting flood victims in Charsadda Children’s Hospital in rural Pakistan.