Doctor Rewarded For Years Of Giving

by Kevin Burton

   Prepare your heart and mind for some good news, today from the medical profession.

   The Good News Network is good medicine itself. We can’t deny or ignore completely the chaos around us, but we can rejoice when our fellow humans go above and beyond to help.

   We have two stories today. The first is written by GNN reporter Nathan Frederick, and tells of a doctor whose years of generosity came flowing back to him:

   “Dr. Z never required a copay.”

    “Michael Zollicoffer, known to his patients as Dr. Z, spent the last four decades serving the residents of Baltimore’s poorest neighborhoods—and the family physician never turned anyone away, even if they couldn’t afford to pay.

   “Forget that dollar bill,” the 66-year-old told CBS News.  “I’m going to see you no matter what. You walk in that door, you will be seen. You bring your grandma with you, I’ll see her, too.”

   “Dr. Zollicoffer built goodwill in his Maryland community instead of a massive bank account, a practice that may have looked misguided a few months ago when suddenly the doctor became the patient—diagnosed with a double dose of cancers, one renal and one rectal.”
   To make matters worse, he discovered that his own insurance had lapsed due to a policy complication with Medicare. His treatment was suddenly going to cost about $150,000,” Frederick wrote.

   “As the news trickled out to all those patients Dr. Z had helped over the years, one of his high school friends, Michael Haynie, started a GoFundMe campaign online.”

   “Before long, all the gratitude and all the goodwill Dr. Z. had nurtured over many decades became a groundswell of support. More than 3,400 people came to his rescue, donating over $280,000 to take care of the selfless doctor in his time of need.”

   “Zollicoffer’s story also caught the attention of Maryland Congressman Kweisi Mfume. Mfume rose to the front of the House floor to insert a written statement about Zollicoffer’s legacy into the Congressional Record, preserving a testimonial of Dr. Z’s grace within U.S. history.”

   “Mister Speaker, you would be hard-pressed to find another individual with as much passion for healing and love for his community as Dr. Michael Zollicoffer,” Mfume read aloud. “For his kindness, his selflessness, and his God-given abilities, Dr. Z has been a pillar of the Baltimore community for decades. His cancer prognoses are positive and, God willing, he’ll be practicing in our City for years to come.”

   “Zollicoffer’s insurance has since been restored and he’s continuing to see patients regularly. Most of all, he’s grateful.”

   “I’m going to say something that may seem crazy as heck,” Zollicoffer said. “I’m thankful that I got cancer, because I am the happiest man on the planet, no matter what the outcome.”

   “This is what you’re about! We are about giving: I can’t make it without them, nor can they make it without me.”

   The second Good News Network story is about medical staff getting together to honor a patient who was a danger of missing out on a significant rite of passage”

   “Her graduation from Boswell High School was only hours away—yet she was about to miss one of life’s most memorable moments.”

   “Laura Wiley’s kidney had become infected and the illness soon turned into severe sepsis, and she had to be admitted to the hospital in Fort Worth, Texas, on the night before her senior graduation.”

   “The timing was terrible.”

   “I was saying, ‘Why couldn’t this have happened a week or two ago?” Laura recalled in an interview with WFAA-TV in Dallas.

   “As news about the teen missing out on a major milestone spread throughout the buildings at both the high school and the hospital, doctors, nurses, and school officials worked together to create their own graduation ceremony—right inside Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital.”

   “Hospital staff hustled alongside Laura’s mom to decorate a lounge area with tablecloths and stars, and signs that said “Congrats Grad” and “Class of 2025.” Everywhere you looked, there was blue and gold, the school colors of Boswell High.”

   “The space had been completely transformed. It was ready for a graduation—one that would totally take her by surprise.”

   “Laura was told she could view the graduation on a livestream from her hospital bed, so she got dressed up in her cap and gown (complete with a Hello Kitty design on the top of her cap depicting the pink cat holding a diploma).”

   “The 17-year-old watched as her classmates walked to the stage and then they announced her name.”

   “Hospital staffers had gathered to form a reception line in the lounge, as Laura was pushed along in a wheelchair amid the sound of cheers and applause echoing all around her. “

   “The school’s assistant principal provided another surprise, after she’d driven to the hospital to present a diploma to Ms. Wiley, who rose from her chair to accept it.”

   “I was just completely surprised, especially when I saw my assistant principal there,” Laura told WFAA News. “I just started sobbing.”

   “Afterward, she took photos with everyone, capturing all the same memories of a more traditional graduation. People filled her guest book with notes of congratulations and well-wishes for her future.”

   “It wasn’t the graduation Laura was expecting, but she told the WFAA news reporter that, in the end, it was perfect.

   “I think I would not have changed anything.”

   “After her health issues were treated and Wiley was discharged one day later, she may have gained one more lesson on that last day of high school.”

   “Life is unpredictable. But you’ll often find people willing to help you out along the way.”

   “I’m just blown away,” Wiley’s mother Brandie said. “Graduation is just so special. From the very first day of school, you imagine that moment. It’s the end of a journey. We both cried a lot of tears over it.”