AND
FOR
GIVING FROM
THE HEART
Years ago, transplant patients on the waiting list for organs had to remain hospitalized. John L. Hern spent his time, more than eight months, getting to know his fellow patients. As a result, he became determined to help ease their financial burden. Today, his daughter and her husband quietly carry the torch.
John L. Hern understood hard times. He grew up in a small rural Kansas town just after the Great Depression, worked his way up from the oil fields, and ultimately created a successful oil and gas business. He cherished the idea of chasing a dream, and he happily supported friends, employees and acquaintances with promising business plans of their own. Because of a virus suffered years earlier, Hern required a heart transplant in 1996. During a 252-day hospital stay awaiting a suitable organ, he befriended others on the transplant waiting lists – learning that many could not afford the costs associated with such serious treatment. Hern was moved by this, and made clear his intentions to find a way to help. Despite a successful transplant, he died less than one year later after anti-rejection medications failed.
Honoring his wishes, his only daughter, Paula Hern, and her husband, Tom Barbour, established the JLH Foundation in his name. Initially, the foundation provided financial assistance for heart transplant patients and their families. Since its inception, the JLH Foundation has continued to honor Hern’s generous spirit, expanding its gift to support all organ transplant patients. Through a partnership with the Houston Astros, the foundation also promotes awareness of the critical need for more organ donors. Most recently, the JLH Foundation made a lead gift to fund the construction of Nora’s Home, a comfortable house near the Texas Medical Center that promises to offer 3,000 room nights per year for traveling transplant patients and their families.
PAULA HERN AND TOM BARBOUR
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The Methodist Hospital Foundation