Every Little Bit Helps BY DWAIN HEBDA | PHOTOGRAPHY BY JASON MASTERS P


eople often ask Barry and Marge Slayton why they’ve been so invested in Ozarks Healthcare through the years. Marge has served on the hospital board, and the couple


are regulars at fundraising events, digging into their own pockets in support of the hospital’s work. Every time such questions come up, Marge has a ready


answer — the cause is personal. “My sister and her husband moved to West Plains, and


she took a job over at the hospital in the physical therapy department,” Marge said. “She was very involved, loved peo- ple and loved what she did and people loved her. She was here only for a few years before she died in 2002, but she made such an impact with all of the people at that hospital. “And what really did it for me was seeing how com- passionate they were toward her in return. When you have cancer, it’s tough. She did chemo. She did radia- tion. She had surgery. It was just amazing the number of people that helped her; I could name lots of different situations where people were so kind to her from the hospital. After that I thought, ‘They were so good to my sister, I want to give back.’” What started as simple financial support turned into


Marge being moved to join the hospital’s board of di- rectors. During the course of 12 years, five of them as chairman, a capital campaign launched that resulted in the expansion of the hospital’s Cancer Treatment Center. Given her sister’s story, that project would have been in- tensely personal for Marge anyway, but with what had come after that, it was even more so. “Barry and I donated to the Cancer Treatment Center,


of course, never thinking we would have to use it,” Marge said. “In 2013, Barry retires, I was getting ready to retire in 2015. Well, he came down with cancer. We never thought we’d need that facility the way we did. You just never know how things are going to work out.” “I actually took my chemo and my radiation there,” said


Barry who battled breast cancer. “I was over there pretty regular for about a year.” Barry’s treatments, which ended shortly before the new


Cancer Treatment Center was completed, drove home the imperative of providing a better experience for cancer patients. “Being in there and taking chemo, we’re sitting closer


than you and I are sitting,” he said. “No privacy. You just kind of visited with people. You could tell that the place re- ally needed an upgrade. After experiencing that, it was easy to get behind it financially, especially knowing not everyone could donate in the way we’ve been blessed enough to.” For Marge, having a spouse in cancer treatment gave


her yet another perspective of the hospital’s operations, one that informed her leadership of the board. To this day, even though Barry has a clean bill of health and her board term has ended, the memory of that time pushes her to increase donations to the hospital, whenever given the chance. Everyone has something to give, she says, and it all counts. “There are many ways people can contribute,” she said.


“I personally know of people who could not write a check, but they give of their time. They volunteer at the hospital, or they help in some small way to raise money. The differ- ent events that the Foundation has, they’ll purchase things off the auction. Now, that’s just a small amount, but maybe that’s all they can do. It still helps.” Marge said among the myriad ways people can partici-


pate in the mission of the hospital is planned giving, which is leaving money, stocks or property in one’s will to a group or organization. Planned giving is easy to set up and en- sures a person’s assets are distributed according to their wishes after their death. “It’s really important for everybody to understand how


important the healthcare system is to this area,” Marge said. “Sickness is a bad thing, and it’s nice to have a beau- tiful facility, dedicated, knowledgeable doctors and nurs- es and a caring staff and administration. Donations help make that happen. Giving to the hospital is giving back to the community.” For more information about planned giving or other


ways to support the mission of the hospital, please contact the Ozarks Healthcare Foundation at (417) 853-5200.


SUMMER 2022 | INSIGHT | 35


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44