"Working in the family dry cleaning business as young children in eastern Kentucky, the Horn sisters learned the value of work and service early in life. "Pressing other people's clothes in the middle of July without air conditioning - talk about inspiring you to get an education!" said Claria Horn Shadwick, the successful attorney at Frost Brown Todd. "Mom instilled a work ethic in us you don't always see today," said Nancy Horn, the pharmacist and owner of Corner Drug in Winchester. While Claria and Nancy are leaders and role models for today's young women, it's Leslie Horn - the dentist, mother of four, and now medical missionary - that is applying the lessons they learned as children and rallying a community to make a difference.
"I'm just a typical hillbilly," Leslie said with the humor and grace one finds in many people from eastern Kentucky, yet many of her experiences are extraordinary. While Leslie excelled in school growing up, she also had health problems that required open-heart surgery twice. The experience gave her an appreciation for the health care field and introduced her to another female role model, Dr. Jacqueline Noonan, a pediatric cardiologist affiliated with the University of Kentucky. "She was a big influence in my life," Leslie said.
Noonan started practicing medicine in the mid-1950s - a time when few women entered the field, and in a specialty that was very new. "You can't help but be a role model in a situation like that," she said. Early in her career, Noonan noticed several children with a particular heart condition that also shared other distinct physical features - downward slanting eyes, slight build, and so on. No one in the medical field had documented these observations before. Noonan's groundbreaking work eventually led to universal recognition of the health condition now known as Noonan Syndrome. While Leslie didn't have Noonan Syndrome herself, she built a strong and lasting relationship with Noonan. Noonan's distinguished record and interest in Leslie's progress left a lasting impression and helped Leslie choose a career. Leslie quickly points out that heart patients must have their teeth checked before surgery to prevent infection.
Earlier this year, Leslie found that her calendar was open for spring break since her children would be away. She remembered receiving a letter from a UK dental student asking for a donation to La Cima World Missions. La Cima is an organization founded by local dentist Dr. David Sperow that takes medical professionals to Honduras on one- or two-week trips to provide free care in the remote villages there. Leslie decided to take her commitment a step further and to join the group heading to Honduras.
La Cima translates roughly to "the mountain top," and it was immediately clear to Leslie that the trip would live up to its name. "The landscape was so much like eastern Kentucky," she says. "That's what you see down there. It's uncanny. I thought I was home."
On her trip, Leslie cared for a young lady named Dunia Caballero. She was sixteen years old, but looked like she was nine. She had a serious heart condition and needed surgery. "Dunia is a sweetheart of a little girl," said Sperow. "She loves to take care of the babies in her village." Caballero's condition, however, prevents her from going to school. She had heart surgery when she was nine, but needed another procedure. Without the proper care, her condition would only get worse.
After Leslie arrived home, she asked Sperow for an update on Caballero, and the news was not good. The medical facilities in Honduras leave much to be desired, and the girl had been moved to a facility that was poor by even third-world standards. Without top-quality cardiac care - the care one would find in a place like St. Joseph's Hospital in Lexington - Caballero's outlook was bleak.
Instinctively, Leslie began an effort to bring Caballero to Lexington, but immediately realized she'd need considerable help to achieve such a complex, bureaucratic and expensive task. So she did what comes naturally to Kentuckians - she reached out to family and friends. "If Leslie sets her mind to something, you can bet your last dollar she will get it accomplished," said her sister Claria.
Within days, Central Kentucky's business community was working with missionaries here and in Honduras to bring Caballero to town. Claria and her colleagues at Frost Brown Todd were generating the paperwork for a medical visa. Nancy's resources were brought to bear to provide post-operative medications. Dr. Robert Salley, a top local cardiothoracic surgeon, volunteered his services, as did Dr. Hank Salyer of Lexington's Dentistry for Children. Leslie then went about recruiting a bank to collect donations, an accountant to keep track of them, and a hospital.
"When we were contacted by Frost Brown Todd and Dr. Horn, we readily volunteered our services," said Steve Kelly, executive vice president of marketing and sales of Central Bank. Anyone can donate to "The Dunia Project" at any Central Bank branch.
"All businesses need ways to give back," said Bill Farmer of HTI Tax Service, La Cima's accountant for three years. Farmer keeps track of the financial records and provides proof of the organization's tax-exempt status.
"There is a huge heart for outreach on international trips here, even with our strong commitment to Appalachia," said Beth Llewellyn, vice president of mission integration at Saint Joseph's HealthCare. Saint Joseph will provide its facilities free of charge.
With all the pieces in place, Leslie started arranging for Caballero's travel and the procedure to be performed sometime around Labor Day. In the process, Leslie received the girl's medical records, and in reviewing them, she learned something that brought the experience full circle.
Caballero has Noonan Syndrome, the condition that Leslie's friend and mentor Noonan first documented in children a few decades ago.
Once Caballero gets her treatment, she has a much better chance of going to school and being a role model for young girls - and boys - in her home. "I don't know if there's a purpose in her life, or if it's bringing everyone together like this," said Leslie. "But I know we're doing the right thing."
Donations to "The Dunia Project" can be made at any Central Bank branch or by visiting www.lacimaworldmissions.org on the Internet.
David Wescott is a Lexington-based Senior Associate for APCO Worldwide, a global public affairs firm headquartered in Washington, D.C.