Stories of Hope

Jonathan first got into tinkering with cars with his dad, Lynn. The first car Jonathan fell in love with was a 1964 ½ Ford Mustang they restored together. Predating the first official 1965 model, it was a prototype that was rushed to market after its successful debut as the 1964 Indianapolis 500 pace car. That car led to several others, including one that almost killed Jonathan and led him to seek care at Mayo Clinic. Mayo Clinic is also why the White family was at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale in the first place.

Emergency departments can be chaotic. Nurses and doctors moving quickly to meet patient needs, the wheels of gurneys rolling along hard floors, and monitoring equipment beeping to draw the attention of care providers. It was there that Fatima Islam discovered something was missing from her career.

Dick Buell’s goal is simple and selfless: “To help as many people as I can.”

Dawn Botsford was sitting in a chair at the hair salon in the fall of 2011 when her hairdresser commented on a spot on the top of her head. It was bug season in North Dakota, so Dawn didn’t think much of it. “When I told my hairdresser that, she said, ‘I really think you need to get it checked out.’ She saved my life,” Dawn recalls.

Larry Connor will be one of four civilians from around the world to take part in the flight.

Larry Connor has participated in more than 1,000 hours of professional astronaut training, as well as Mayo Clinic instruction for the mission’s research component. That preparation, he feels, will contribute to a successful 10-day mission. In addition to the research materials, he's also bringing a few trinkets along with him to space on behalf of others.

Mayo Clinic has made important contributions to space medicine and research since the dawn of the U.S. space program, and prior to that with aeronautical research during World War II.  

Mayo Clinic experts are leading two lines of research that will be conducted during the trip and while the four astronauts of the Axiom Space flight are at the space station.  

Mayo Clinic’s groundbreaking research in cellular aging and cardiac adaptation is headed to space on the first-ever all-civilian private spaceflight to the International Space Station.   

Mayo Clinic's transformational vision inspires Dr. Varkey. The energetic focus on going beyond excellence and creating the next generation of health care shows up in Mayo Clinic's digital health efforts, platform opportunities and artificial intelligence innovations. After seven years away, Dr. Varkey appreciates Mayo remaining a patient-centered organization.