Remembering Bill Horn: One man made a difference

By Nan Chase, special to the Democrat

Can one person really make a difference to society?

Yes! That’s the answer thousands of Watauga County residents would give, if the person in question were pediatrician Bill Horn. His community involvement, often behind the scenes and without any thought of personal recognition, raised the standard of living here through improvements in child welfare, public recreation, and environmental quality.

Horn, who died Dec. 3 after a long struggle with cancer, leaves behind a legacy of caring, joy, and tenacity. Family, friends, and professional colleagues recalled his unquenchable spirit of generosity in advance of a “celebration of life” planned for 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18, at Boone United Methodist Church

 “He was a spiritual person, always deeply involved, who saw God in nature and saw God in everything he did,” said one friend. “Bill was committed to making the world a better place for the people he came in contact with. He was one of the special people sent to us. He was a blessing for Watauga County and this area.”

Horn’s professional life at Northwest Children and Adolescents Clinic and at Watauga Medical Center spanned three decades as he helped rear a generation of Wataugans. Many families, in their anguish over a sick or injured child, were comforted as Horn dropped everything else to arrange special care or stay with them through a crisis. Meanwhile children getting routine care were treated with honesty and good humor.

Sarah Mayhew, former nurse at the clinic, commented, “I have often thought that if a saint truly walked the earth, that it was Bill Horn. He is at the same level as Mother Theresa in my book and I was really lucky to be a witness to the constant giving, healing, and even naivety he possessed. He never saw the bad in people.”

But Horn’s medical practice was just the beginning.

 “He just never gave up, no matter how tired he was,” said Gail Hawkinson, a director at New River Mental Health who served with Horn on the state-mandated Child Protection Team and Child Fatality Team. 

In the case of the Child Fatality Team, which investigates all childhood deaths not caused by illness to find solutions to systematic problems, Horn’s work helped to implement important safety measures like mandatory bicycle helmets, child car seats, graduated drivers licenses for young drivers, and smoke alarms for all rental properties.

 “His energy was just amazing,” Hawkinson said. “We would get an offer or request to apply for a grant but the deadline would be two weeks away, before the group would meet again. Bill would always say, ‘Let’s give it a try.’ He would work on it relentlessly. If it was something for kids he would go the extra mile for them. If we had a child who was not insured and needed care, we’d give Bill a call and he’d fit them in. He did a lot of work he never got paid for. What a public servant he has been for children.”

In recent years, Horn tried to improve recreational opportunities for young people, through the Watauga County Recreation Task Force, with the possible construction of a community recreation center as his goal. Although that effort has not been successful so far, Watauga County Commissioner Jim Deal said that Horn’s efforts were not in vain.

 “His ideas aren’t dead. They’re under consideration and constitute a significant part of the planning now for the Brookshire property,” Deal said. “His plans and ideas didn’t happen at that time several years ago, but I’m convinced that in the next few years they will come to pass.”

According to Deal, Horn’s desire for a new swim complex stemmed from health concerns. A new swimming pool built to modern standards would lower the level of chemicals required for maintenance. Soccer fields and walking trails would “get people out in nature.” A recreation center would give youth someplace besides parking lots to spend time together.

Health concerns also drove one of Horn’s most significant contributions to public welfare, when a cancer scare near Watauga County Christmas tree fields led to a revolution in the ways trees are grown.

Around 1989, Horn noticed a cancer cluster in the western part of the county; childhood leukemia was appearing at nine times the expected rate and all the cases appeared in a wide belt from Bethel to Creston, where Christmas trees were grown with heavy chemical applications. Horn and others theorized that runoff from pesticides and herbicides might be ending up in groundwater and wells. They called in state health experts to investigate, and while no conclusive link was found, local Christmas tree growers were willing to modify their practices to drastically lower the chemical dangers.

In the mid-1990s the case received attention in the Washington Post, National Wildlife magazine, and many Christmas tree industry publications. In Watauga County and beyond, farmers eliminated chemicals from the standard rotation or cut down on applications; they also let grass grow higher between trees. Growers found a new spirit of cooperation and were pleased to see birds and other wildlife return to the once chemical-laden fields.

 “Ducks, wild turkey, songbirds, foxes, rabbits, deer, raccoons and fish are flourishing again in the Christmas tree fields and in nearby streams and ponds,” the Post reported, “a sign of easing environmental pressures. And even though the Christmas tree farms never were proven to have caused the excess cancer cases, growers say they are pleased to be taking steps to improve ground water supplies downstream.”

Bill Horn’s spiritual quest led him to missionary work overseas through Boone United Methodist Church. Jim Deal recalled that on a trip they took to Guatemala along with their sons Tucker and Greg, the main task was to lay a block foundation for a rudamentary building. During a stop for soft drinks Horn met a group of physicians who were doing missionary medical work nearby; they lacked a pediatrician and Horn immediately agreed to accompany them the next day at a mobile clinic. Deal said it was a thrill for Horn to do two missions instead of just one.

Another one of Horn’s philanthropic qualities was his adamant belief in peaceful conflict resolution: He was very opposed and saddened by the destruction and loss of lives in the War in Iraq. He often shared his convictions with the community and family.

Horn’s wife, Mary, and children Julia, Greg and Pete shared special times with him.

 “He loved music, camping, cross-country skiing, hiking, Watauga Lake, canoeing, art, wood working, travel, family and friends, being a pediatrician, and learning,” Julia Horn said.

 “He was an amazing guy!”