The Joy of Helping Others

T

he founder of two nonprofit humanitarian aid organizations, Barry Byer, M.D. ’69, has dedicated his career to improving lives and serving as a role model for social responsibility.

Born to Ukrainian immigrants, he grew up in a family devoted to community service. He always knew he wanted to become a physician, which combined his passions for science and helping others. At the Miller School, he received an education that he said paved the way for him to successfully pursue his dream.

“My clinical training was excellent,” Dr. Byer said. “I had wonderful mentors who reinforced the importance of compassionate medicine and community outreach.”

The Miller School is also where Dr. Byer met Sharyn, his wife of 48 years, who was a music student at UM and who passed away in 2021.

Ultimately, Dr. Byer practiced family medicine in Virginia for nearly 40 years and was chief of the Department of Family Practice at Virginia Hospital Center for most of that time. Before retiring in 2012, he enjoyed treating patients of all ages.

Early in his career, a medical mission trip to Russia transformed Dr. Byer’s life and work.

“They were washing and reusing surgical gloves and gauze and lacked medical supplies and equipment,” Dr. Byer said. “Their needs were enormous, and I couldn’t just walk away.”

Ultimately, that experience led him to start Crosslink (later acquired by Brother’s Brother Foundation), a nonprofit humanitarian aid organization that provided medical mission teams and hospitals with medical supplies and equipment for third-world countries.

Dr. Byer’s commitment to helping the underserved subsequently grew. After Hurricane Mitch devasted Honduras in 1998, he formed a 39-member disaster response team that led to his founding of the Virginia Hospital Center Medical Brigade (VHCMB), a nonprofit humanitarian organization that provides sustainable interventions and health care solutions to underserved families.

Since that time, Dr. Byer has annually led multiple teams of health care professionals to Honduras, making life-changing impacts in areas of desperate need.

“By establishing and supporting three clinics in remote mountain areas, we are providing Honduran health care workers with the tools they need to improve the quality of life of the villagers,” Dr. Byer said.

To help future physicians learn the value of giving back, he has also been a regular donor to the John K. Robinson Medical Scholarship fund.

Dr. Byer has received numerous recognitions and awards for his mission work, including the Miller School Alumni Association’s 2009 Anastasia Award, which honors alumni who exemplify the professionalism, humanity and citizenship that brings distinction to themselves and the Miller School.

Now, as VHCMB’s director of operations in Houston, Dr. Byer continues to help others by orchestrating aid efforts from Texas.

To support the John K. Robinson Medical Scholarship, click here.