Six-year-old Clara Conard plays the violin with the help of an assistive device designed by the Fab Lab at Independence Community College.
The bow sweeps across the strings of the violin and the sound of the music floats across the room. But this isn’t just any violinist. It is a girl originally from China who is missing one hand. She’s using an innovative and unique type of device with a prosthesis to play the violin, and she lives in rural Kansas.
Last week we met Shawn and Gayly Conard. Shawn is a family doctor at Minneola District Hospital, south of Dodge City.
“If you’re looking for fame and fortune, you may not find it. But if you’re looking for a place to serve, you can definitely find it here.” Those words of wisdom might apply to many places and types of careers, but in this case, it refers to a family physician who is serving rural Kansas and beyond.
Hospital in Minneola, Kansas.
Shawn Conard is a family doctor at Minneola District Hospital in Minneola, Kansas. Minneola is a rural community in Clark County, south of Dodge City.
Shawn grew up in Hays and went to K-State. He got involved with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship where he went on a mission trip with a young woman named Gayly. Their relationship flourished and the two were wed.
Shawn attended medical school at KUMC and became part of a pilot program for Primary Care in which he was placed in McPherson with Dr. Thomas. He then “matched” at Via Christi Family Medicine where they taught full scope family practice including obstetrics.
Ron Wilson, director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University writes Kansas Profile. The weekly posts highlight individuals or companies in rural Kansas who are making a difference to their community and state.
The Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development is a public / private partnership between Kansas State University and the Huck Boyd Foundation. The mission of the institute is to help rural people help themselves. Learn more at www.huckboydinstitute.org.
