WEST VIRGINIA WONDER WOMEN
KIMBERLY BECHER Change Agent
Kimberly Becher moved eight times growing up in central West Virginia and switched schools 11 times. She watched her mom and stepdad work jobs they didn’t like and struggle to pay bills. She became a doctor so that she could live near where she grew up and still have a good job. Her reasons for being a doctor today are much different. Becher is a rural doctor working a large patient panel for Community Care of West Virginia in Clay County. She sees multiple generations of the same families—the whole family tree, in some cases. “There is nothing else here. No hospital. No specialists. And we have a lot of social determinants of health in this area,” she says. “We don’t have a grocery store. Some people don’t have access to clean drinking water. Some patients don’t have running water at all.” Becher’s efforts go way beyond the exam room. She writes grants after a full day in the clinic, in her spare time, to help patients keep the lights on. She hands out $50 vouchers that they can spend in a nearby store on food. And she’s always on the hunt for solutions. “We need a living wage, appropriate food subsidies, and change at the state level on a bigger scale,” she says. “I’m going to keep doing everything I can to remind everyone I can of those needs.” HLT
DOOLARIE SINGH-KNIGHTS Chosen to Give Back
MILDRED FIZER At the Helm of 4-H Out of work with her Marshall College elementary education degree, Culloden native Mildred Fizer
Doolarie Singh-Knights is not native to West Virginia, yet she embodies West Virginia pride. In 1998, she made the Mountain State home and, after earning her Ph.D., traveled back to Trinidad and Tobago to give back to the place where she was born. It wasn’t long before she returned to West Virginia University, in 2010, accepting a position as a professor of resource economics and management and as an extension specialist in agriculture and natural resources. Singh-Knights committed herself to rural
took a position in 1946 as a Cabell County 4-H agent. The work suited her and, in 1966, she became the first
development and agriculture. “I’ve had a lot of support and wonderful mentors who are responsible for me being here today. The people who thought I could make a valid contribution to the state, who invested in me, they deserve a wonderful shout out.” Although she attributes much of her success to teamwork, she continually invests in her community. “I’ve always felt I have been chosen as a person, in my career, to give back to West Virginia. It’s a wonderful place to live. We should recognize and appreciate this Appalachian heritage.” BM
woman in the nation to direct a state 4-H program. Many soon followed around the country, she says—they just needed someone to be the first. Fizer’s favorite part of 4-H was the camps, which she attended sometimes two or three weeks a summer. Her enthusiasm must have been infectious: State participation in 4-H increased from 35,000 to over 55,000 under her leadership. She served on national committees until she retired in 1978. Today a scholarship she established helps an outstanding 4-Her attend a camp each year. 4-H is just as important for young people today as it was in decades past, Fizer says, even as the population has become more urban. She believes it’s the organization’s emphasis on the child rather than on the animals raised or the other physical achievements that has kept the program relevant. Of her many recognitions, Fizer counts among the most meaningful a 1974 Distinguished Service Citation from the National Association of Extension Agents along with her inclusion in WVU’s Order of Vandalia in 1989 for service to the University. Fizer turns 100 in March 2021. “Some days it seems a little too long!” she jokes. “But I think it’s special, of course, that I’ve endured this long.” PK
LISA BELL Showing Up Lisa Bell was born and raised in Wayne and loves her
community. She began working with the West Virginia University Extension Service as an AmeriCorps Vista in 2006, joining the staff as a health educator two years later. Her compassion for others shines through in the work she does with Marie’s House, a female recovery program located in Wayne. Bell tried for five years to join the efforts at Marie’s, sure that her expertise could help. Nutrition counseling was finally incorporated in the house three years ago. The organization has made huge strides
with the female residents through its commitment to working all facets of substance use disorder, including how nutrition can have a positive impact on their future quality of life. Bell also helps the women grow their own healthy produce in the house garden. “It’s just been a beautiful, beautiful thing,” she says. “I get very emotional when I talk about the girls at Marie’s. These girls are scared to death. We do nine weeks of lessons, and by week two or three they start trusting you because you’re actually showing up for them. If it weren’t for this work, I wouldn’t feel the enormous sense of purpose that I do.” HLT
82 wvl • fall 2020
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online