who

“Every one of us can start changing headlines when we start reaching out our hands.”

-Ann Voskamp

Six feet and growing. Why the name? Well, I’m almost six feet tall, and “six feet and growing” has a much nicer ring to it than “five foot eleven and three-quarters of an inch and growing.” Even though I’m finished growing physically, I hope I never stop growing emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. I’m a thirty-something adult but still very much a kid on the inside. I have just as much curiosity about the world as I did when I was nine years old, and this curiosity has led me on some fun adventures. Well, okay. Let’s give some credit where credit is due: the GOOD LORD has opened up many cool opportunities over the years. I have to thank him, first and foremost.

My career is about as crazy as the sweater your great aunt knits you for Christmas: a splash of colors with loose threads poking out from every side. I have worked as an adult and pediatric emergency nurse, an inpatient pediatric nurse, a screening nurse, and a community health nurse. My favorite is pediatrics because in order to successfully work with children you have to be goofy, say silly things, and make fun of yourself often. I am fluent in English, Spanish, and (slowly) learning French. I’d rather explore the eccentric corners of this big, fat globe we occupy than do almost anything else.

Global health has always been a passion of mine. I’ve traveled to and/or worked in Southeast Asia, Central America, the Caribbean, Western & Eastern Europe, and around the continent of Africa.

I volunteered with Mercy Ships, a faith-based nonprofit from 2015 – 2017, in Madagascar and Benin as both a pediatric ward nurse and a screening nurse. The screening team is responsible for finding and selecting patients for surgery as well as coordinating the logistics of their stay on the ship.

In 2019, I obtained a Master’s in Public Health degree at the Harvard School of Public Health, concentrating in Global Health and Humanitarian Studies, Ethics, and Human Rights.

After working as a Grant Project Manager at Grand Valley State University for three years, I started with CURE International in 2022. In my role as the Director of Patient Flow & Access, I work with our eight children’s hospitals around the world to improve inefficiencies and clinical processes. I am both humbled and excited use my skills to bring health care to underserved children around the world.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope my stories resonate with you.

Kayla

“Not by might nor by power but by my Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty.

-Zechariah 4:6

Keeping the world quirky since 1990.

Conducting impact surveys with a patient in her home. Davao City, Philippines. (December 2023).