THE CONNECTOR OF PEOPLE

Dr. Katherine Hill Calloway

Regional Assistant Dean, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine and Director for Clinical Development, Hospice Care WV

SUPERPOWER: Making friends

Dr. Katherine Hill Calloway was raised in a family that believed in service. Her grandfather was a doctor for a coal mine and did everything from rescuing miners to delivering babies. Calloway’s parents emphasized with their children the importance of helping others in the global community. She and her sister were encouraged to take part in service efforts around the world to gain perspective and introduce them to new cultures and people.

This is something Calloway has tried to instill within her own young family as well, even bringing her daughter with her on a recent trip to India, where she met the Dalai Lama. They had gone to meet with a friend of Calloway’s who runs Medical Diplomats International to see if they might be able to establish the kinds of infrastructure and relationships necessary to bring bigger groups of students over for longer periods of time. This is what Calloway does best: making friends and then helping those friends make other friends until their circle is a little bit bigger and everyone’s life is a little bit better.

Hospice came into Calloway’s life through a devastating personal loss, but the role it played in that experience left an impact on her, and she knew she wanted to devote her time and energy to the service. “My common theme has always been—and I know it sounds a little cliché, but it’s true in my heart—just service. Serving the underserved and finding resources for underserved communities or groups of people, or connecting them to existing resources so they can have improved access and care, improved infrastructure, and improved voice at the policy level with people who need to hear their voices.”

Calloway emphasizes that she does not want to speak for others but rather elevate their voices so they can articulate their experiences, needs, and desires for themselves. “I don’t like the phrase that we provide the voice for those who don’t have a voice. I think it’s much more empowering to say we try to find ways to give those people a way to be heard.”

This profile corrects inaccuracies in our Fall 2024 print edition.

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