WHO WE ARE
THE IMPORTANCE OF DONATION: THE REOPENING OF SAN SEBASTIAN HOSPITAL
Hi! My name is Marcia Pontes, and I want to share something truly important with you today.
I‘m managing the campaign helping to raise funds to reopen the San Sebastian Hospital, a place that, for over 50 years, gave life and hope to thousands of mothers, newborns, and families.
This hospital wasn’t just a building — it was a sanctuary, where love and life began every single day.
It was founded and led by Dr. Ronaldo Nóbrega de Pontes, my dad, a devoted obstetrician who dedicated his entire life to helping women give birth with dignity, safety, and care.
After his passing, the hospital was closed.
And now, the entire neighborhood around it has no medical support — no hospital, no maternity care, no place to go in an emergency. Mothers in labor have to travel long distances. People with pain or complications have no access to urgent treatment.
But we can change that.
We can honor Dr. Ronaldo’s legacy and rebuild this beautiful hospital, returning life-saving care to an entire community.
Your donation will help us:
- Rebuild the delivery rooms and patient areas
- Buy essential medical equipment
- Hire a team of loving, skilled professionals
- And most of all, save lives — every single day.
If you’ve ever loved, ever been born, or watched someone fight for their health — then you understand the value of this cause. 
Please, click the link and donate now.
Let’s bring San Sebastian Hospital back to life, and let’s do it together — because every life matters.
Every donation is a heartbeat of hope.
Your gift can mean life-saving care for a mother in need or a newborn in distress.
When you donate, you’re not just giving money — you’re giving love, dignity, and a future.
In places where medical care is scarce, your generosity becomes a lifeline.
Together, we can bring health, healing, and humanity to those who need it most.
Thank you, from my heart to yours. 
This fundraising campaign to reopen the San Sebastian hospital is being led by Marcia Pontes and managed by GoFundme.com
San Sebastian Hospital is a family-driven nonprofit built on compassion and responsibility. For over 50 years, we’ve served the most vulnerable — and now, with your help, we’re ready to do it again.
THE MEANING OF THIS CHARITY CAMPAIGN - DONATE TODAY TO HELP THOSE IN NEED OF MEDICAL CARE!
This is more than a campaign.
This is a movement of love.
For over 50 years,
San Sebastian Hospital was a place of safety…
A place of life…
A place of healing.
But today,
its doors are closed.
Its halls are silent.
Its people… are waiting.
We cannot accept this.
Together,
we can bring it back to life.
Your donation will help us purchase:
- Incubators for fragile newborns
- Fetal monitors to protect mothers
- Delivery beds for safe births
- Neonatal ventilators
- Emergency equipment
- Pediatric tools for young lives
These are not just machines…
They are lifelines.
They are hope.
With your help,
we will reopen the maternity ward.
We will reactivate the ER.
We will bring care to those who need it most.
Because no mother should give birth in fear.
Because every child deserves a safe beginning.
Because every life matters.
This is a campaign of love.
And with love,
we will rebuild San Sebastian Hospital.
👉 Donate now.
🫶 Be the reason a baby breathes.
✨ Help us reopen the doors…
and save lives.
OUR FOUNDER, A LEGACY OF COMPASSION
DOCTOR RONALDO NÓBREGA DE PONTES,
A LIFE DEDICATED TO
POPULAR MEDICAL CARE Graduating in medicine from UFC in 1979, he specialized in gynecology/obstetrics. He worked as a doctor for nearly forty years in several hospitals in Fortaleza and at the San Sebastian Hospital, which he joined shortly after graduating. Over the decades, he was the head of the team, later the director, and finally the owner of the hospital in 2005. In 2010, responding to the specifications of the health department and to provide better care to the population, he decided to renovate the entire building and undertake new construction, using his own capital and without relying on bank investments or BNDS funds. He partnered with some colleagues in hospital administration and carried out an architectural project aimed at better serving the population of the Henrique Jorge neighborhood, where he was well-known as a doctor and obstetric surgeon. Every day, he received patients from various hospitals in the city, who, lacking bed space, found care at the San Sebastian Hospital and were often immediately operated on. He would call the team to perform the surgeries, taking turns with them in 24-hour shifts. In the case of pregnant women, they gave birth on the same day, avoiding long waits, whether through the SUS (public healthcare system), to which the hospital provided services throughout his career, or through private care, where an affordable fee was charged for patients, without relying on insurance or long waits for treatment.
After starting the renovation of the building in January 2011, it was under reconstruction for two years, and began receiving patients in 2013. However, it was not reopened due to the deteriorating health of Dr. Ronaldo’s brother, Dr. Roberto Nóbrega de Pontes, who was part of the administrative team, followed by Dr. Ronaldo’s own health decline, which required him to step back for medical treatment and prevented the reopening of the building. After these treatments, Dr. Ronaldo did not return to active practice and passed away in 2015.
His legacy lives on through every child he helped bring into the world and every life he touched.
Help us honor his mission by bringing San Sebastian Hospital back to life.
Your donation makes this possible.
THE NEED FOR REOPENING
The hospital has remained closed to this day. It is maintained and cared for by the family. The population constantly demands that the building be reopened to meet the medical needs of the neighborhood. Since the hospital has always provided popular care, it is natural that its continuation should have the character of a public clinic, in order to once again meet the growing demand of the neighborhood, which is increasingly underserved in the region.
THE HUMANIZATION OF CARE AT THE SAN SEBASTIAN HOSPITAL DOMINATED THE NEIGHBORHOOD FOR 50 YEARS. THE STORY DEMANDS CONTINUITY.
Dr. Ronaldo Nóbrega de Pontes dedicated his life to a simple but powerful mission: that no patient would ever leave without care.
Whether it was a pregnant woman in need of emergency surgery or a family with no financial means, his answer was always the same — yes, we will help.
He understood the urgency and pain behind every face that walked through the doors of San Sebastian Hospital. With deep compassion and unshakable respect, he offered fast, fair, and dignified care to all who sought it.
Over the course of his extraordinary career, he became known by thousands across the region — not only as a doctor, but as a symbol of hope. He delivered more than 38,000 babies, bringing life into the world with love and purpose.
As he often said:
“Medicine is an act of love, courage, and above all, a resistance against the corrosive and addictive force of a financial system. Medicine is urgent — it cannot wait for tomorrow. Health must be lived today.”His legacy lives on through every child he delivered, every life he saved, and every family he embraced in their time of need.
“Healthcare is a right — not a privilege.”
For over five decades, San Sebastian Hospital stood as a beacon of care and compassion. Though a private institution, its doors were always open to patients from the public health system (SUS), embracing every life in need without hesitation.
This inclusive mission, led with heart and courage by Dr. Ronaldo Nóbrega de Pontes and his devoted team, transformed the hospital into a place of healing, hope, and human dignity.
Today, we carry forward that legacy. We believe this story is far from over.
With your support, we can bring the hospital back to life — restoring its vital services and renewing its promise to care for all, especially the most vulnerable.
Help us write the next chapter of this powerful story. One where no one is left behind.
THE HISTORY OF THE HOSPITAL NEEDS TO CONTINUE TO HELP THOSE IN NEED!
Explore the photos above to witness the transformation of San Sebastian Hospital — from its original 1970s structure to the modern facility completed in 2013.
The new construction was designed to better serve the community and significantly expand patient capacity. Today, the hospital offers 120 beds, with the potential to increase to over 300 through the expansion of the first floor in the existing building.
In the top three photos, you can see the original architecture from the 1970s.
In the final image, observe the modern structure completed in 2013 — a testament to the vision of growth and service.This visual journey highlights not only the hospital’s evolution, but the urgent need for its reopening as a vital maternity and healthcare center for the people of Fortaleza, Ceará, and all of northeastern Brazil.
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OUR CONTACT
SAN SEBASTIAN HOSPITAL – LOCATION
Rua Maceio 1350 Henrique Jorge, Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil CEP 60521-105
CONTACT EMAIL
contact@hospitalsansebastian.com
DONATE EMAIL
donate@sansebastianhospital.org
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