Dr. Leonard A. Laisang

Leonard Augustinus Laisang was born August 17th 1972 . Leo, as he is fondly known, is from a Chinese family who lives in Singkawang, a city about an hour away from Bethesda. Having known about Jesus since he was little, he learned to rely on God's help when he went away to school in Jakarta at the age of 12. By God's help too, he was accepted in one of Indonesia's best high schools, SMAK 1, in Jakarta.

Jesus for Leo, however, was just a god who helped in time of troubles. He hadn't yet made the connection between the suffering of Christ at calvary and God's grace and mercy toward human beings, including himself. When he was 18, he heard 2 sermons at 2 different churches that told about Christ, the Lord who died for the sins of the world. It finally dawned on him that he was a sinner and Jesus actually died for his sins when He was hung on that tree. He repented and received Jesus Christ as his Savior. As his faith grew stronger he decided that he wanted to serve Christ through his career.

Before he graduated from high school, he watched a TV show that talked about poor, malnourished children in Indonesia . He decided, then, that he wanted to be able to help people to be healthy and well. In 1991, he applied and was accepted at Padjajaran University Medical School in Bandung. Upon graduation in 1998, he applied to Bethesda Mission Hospital and was accepted. Now that he was a doctor, he would finally be able to help those malnourished children through his work at Bethesda, a hospital whose services and works he had heard about since he was a little boy growing up in nearby Singkawang.

Leo stayed for 4 years at Bethesda, treating patients and telling them about the Lord who had died and risen for their sins. During that time, he felt that God was calling him to stay long-term. In order to do so, he would need to have a specialty. In 2002, he applied to Bethesda specialty training sponsorship program. In 2003, he was accepted for general surgical residency at Indonesia University, one of Indonesia's finest universities. It was a real miracle that he was accepted since he was a Christian and Chinese, a 'double' minority in Indonesia, the largest Muslim nation in the world. Most of the students in public universities like this are local Muslim students who have personal connections at the university. God is awesome!

On March 18th, 2006, Leo was married to Irene Hintanputung. Leo and Irene, who is also a doctor, met while serving at Bethesda. When Leo finishes his studies they hope to return to Bethesda and serve there until the Lord tells them otherwise. They pray that they will be able to serve the Lord through their expertise in accordance with the mission and vision statement of the hospital.