Legacy Series: Art Jones Host: Steve Noblett

The story of Lawndale began with a group of high school students, a football coach leading a bible study, and a 4th year medical student. That football coach was Wayne Gordon. And that medical student was Art Jones. Art went on to help found Lawndale Christian Health Center, which started out as a clinic that charged just $5 a visit and that worked out of what had previously been a burned out Cadillac dealership.

It's an amazing story, and it continues to unfold. Art went on to do his residency in internal medicine and then a cardiology fellowship. And Lawndale Christian Health Center has grown to become a model and a mentor for scores of Christian health centers around the country. It's the largest employer and one of the biggest economic engines in the west-side of Chicago. Art is now a consultant with Health Management Associates and he continues to work for systemic change in health care on a macro level.

He was kind enough to meet with me recently in Lawndale Christian Health Center's original building. We talked about the LCHC's story, about the influence that CCHF has had on his life and on the development of the health center. He shared his insights on the need for leaders to redesign the way we think about health care delivery.

Christian ministry is not at odds with providing the best care possible for our patients and to do it in a financially sustainable way. Art said it makes total sense to do the right thing, to make our decisions based on what we know is right, best for our patients, and to recognize that we have patients who have never passed through our doors and may never pass through our doors. It's easy to understand why Art has been such an inspiration and mentor for so many Christ centered health centers and their leaders.

For more than 25 years, Art's leadership at Lawndale Christian Health Center maintained a balance of faith and innovation. My prayer is that we will take up Art's Challenge to rethink and redesign health care access in ways that meet the needs of our patients.

If this resonates with your heart, then come to the next CCHF conference and meet others who are willing to be thought leaders and innovators in delivering whole person care that serves even the most vulnerable in ways that reflect the compassion and the justice of God.

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CCHFTalk is a production of Christian Community Health Fellowship.

CCHF's Mission: The mission of Christian Community Health Fellowship is to encourage, engage and equip Christians to live out the gospel through healthcare among the poor and marginalized.

CCHF's Vision: We envision a movement of God's people who choose daily to promote healing in marginalized communities in the name of Jesus.

To learn more about Christian Community Health Fellowship (CCHF) and how you can get involved please visit our website at CCHF.org. If you see medicine as more than a career choice - as a calling to serve Christ – then these are your people. Yearly we host the CCHF Conference where hundreds of individuals and organizations join together to network, learn, and worship. Visit https://www.cchfconference.org/ for full schedule, details, & to register!

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