Team Member Stories
Life savers
Team Member Stories | Doctor Stories
Gilda McKinney
Leading with a servant’s heart
Gilda McKinney was living in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina hit. She had evacuated the city but returned to a destroyed home and neighborhood. It became one of many challenges that enabled her to help others through trying times of their own.
Bernie Buckles
The healing power of a hot meal
Dedicated volunteer Bernie Buckles can be found at the Hospice House every Monday, Wednesday and Friday without fail, pulling 12-hour shifts. He arrives by 5 a.m. and begins his day by preparing breakfast – his famous biscuits and gravy – for everyone.
Wanda Butte
A song in her heart
Wanda Butte has always loved to sing. From her preschool days in Church Hill, TN, to family gatherings and gospel and bluegrass songfests with her husband, Ernie, she relishes every note. But it just takes one song, she believes, to truly touch a life.
Doctor Stories
Dr. Roy Deel
From coal miner to small town doctor
“I was a coal miner like lot of other people here,” says Dr. Roy Deel. He became an EMT at the mines to save his job when layoffs were predicted. When the mines finally closed, he started down the path to become a registered nurse and, eventually, a physician.
Dr. Seth Allen Brown
Saving lives in the pediatric ER
Music or medicine? That was the difficult career path decision Dr. Seth Brown says he faced when he was in high school enjoying life as the band drum major and trumpet player. Then, while he was on a run with the ambulance service in the Explorer program, his future path was clear.
Dr. Hetal Brahmbhatt
Caring for patients with compassion and faith
“Throughout my childhood, I heard my mother say that helping others, especially those who are in pain, is the greatest thing you can do,” says Dr. Hetal Brahmbhatt. “That is what I wanted to do, and why I became a doctor.”
Dr. Saad Al-Khatib
Taking care of patients in times of crisis
“I see people in their greatest need, those in absolute crisis, and it’s rewarding to be able to take care of them and prevent them from dying,” says Dr. Saad Al-Khatib of his work at Franklin Woods Community Hospital’s emergency room.