Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 479

Table 1. The Dollar children
Child

Status

Current
age

Lauren

Biological

32

Staff attorney, juvenile defense,
Georgetown Law

Stephanie Biological

30

Special education teacher and
newlywed

Diane

Biological

27

Commercial helicopter pilot

Gabby

Adopted

27

Recently moved into her own home
with assistants (due to her cerebral
palsy)

Jon

Adopted

25

Administrator at George Washington
Medical School

Hugo

Adopted

27

Cook in a fast food restaurant in San
Antonio

Tony

Adopted

25

Truck driver; single, with a 3-year-old
son, Allen

Mesfin

Foster

32

Perfusionist at the Texas Heart Institute

Todd

Foster

40

Vice president of a hospital in Colorado

Tesh

Foster

22

Senior film major at Savannah College of
Art and Design

Figure 3. Rick Hodes, MD (right) with Allen Dollar.

a

b

Figure 4. Mesfin: (a) age 15 and (a) now, with Dr. Jim Kauten.

Figure 5. The Dollar family.

a

b

Figure 6. (a) Diane with her helicopter. (b) Todd Coe with baseball star son, Toby.
October 2017

Present activities

condition, but later developed endocarditis and returned to
Atlanta for a mechanical mitral valve procedure. Since follow-up
care for this procedure, such as anticoagulant monitoring, was
not available in his area, the Dollars took him in as a foster child.
While caring for Mesﬁn, friends at church told them about
Todd, a 19-year-old boy with serious drug issues who needed
a safe place to stay. He became another foster son and was able
to quit the drug habit.
Tesh, one of Mesﬁn's 13 siblings from Ethiopia, was living
with Dr. Hodes and had expressed serious ambitions of becoming a ﬁlmmaker. The Dollars became his foster parents as well
and enrolled him in the Savannah College of Art and Design.
The 10 Dollar children continue to do well (Table 1, Figures 5
and 6).
Dr. Hodes had rented a home in Addis Ababa, where he
looked after 10 children, aged 12 to 18, most of whom had serious medical issues that he was attending to. He was running out
of funds to keep the house going, so Allen and Shelly founded
a nonproﬁt organization to help care for the children (www.
makingthegrade.info). The organization focuses on education
and has evolved into the support of 60 children in seven homes
(each with an adult home manager) in four cities throughout
Ethiopia. The children and young adults, aged 5 to 25, are sponsored through grade school and college, and one has gone to
graduate school. The Dollars provide all housing, food, tuition,
books, and transportation, in addition to helping with job placement after completion of school. Shelly is in daily contact with
the children and their house managers via e-mail and Skype.
The estimated cost per year of supporting an Ethiopian child
is $1200 to $3000.

Cardiologist with a big heart: the Allen and Shelly Dollar saga

479

http://www.makingthegrade.info http://www.makingthegrade.info

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017

No label
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - No label
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - Cover2
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 393
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 394
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 395
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 396
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 397
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 398
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 399
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 400
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 401
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 402
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 403
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 404
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 405
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 406
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 407
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 408
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 409
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 410
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 411
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 412
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 413
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 414
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 415
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 416
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 417
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 418
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 419
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 420
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 421
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 422
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 423
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 424
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 425
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 426
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 427
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 428
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 429
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 430
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 431
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 432
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 433
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 434
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 435
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 436
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 437
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 438
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 439
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 440
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 441
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 442
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 443
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 444
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 445
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 446
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 447
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 448
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 449
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 450
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 451
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 452
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 453
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 454
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 455
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 456
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 457
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 458
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 459
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 460
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 461
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 462
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 463
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 464
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 465
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 466
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 467
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 468
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 469
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 470
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 471
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 472
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 473
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 474
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 475
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 476
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 477
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 478
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 479
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 480
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 481
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 482
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 483
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 484
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 485
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 486
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 487
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 488
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 489
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 490
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 491
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - 492
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - Cover3
Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings October 2017 - Cover4
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/30-4
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/30-3
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/30-2
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/30-1
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/29-4
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/29-3
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/29-2
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/29-1
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/bapr/28-04
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/bapr/28-3
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/bapr/28-2
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/bapr/28-1
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/bapr/27-4
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/bapr/27-3
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com