Name Thomas Jr | Role Author | |
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Books Medications and Mother's, Gridlock: Why Global Cooperati, On being a missionary, The Applied New Test, Don't let the goats eat the lo | ||
Dr. Thomas Hale, Jr (born October 10, 1937) is an American physician and author who is best known for his 25 years of missionary work in the Himalayan Mountains of Nepal. Self-described as "deeply Christian", Hale was driven to become a missionary due to his strong faith and devotion to God. Shortly after returning from his first trip, Hale began writing novels, some of which have received critical acclaim, about Christianity and life as a missionary. After his permanent settlement back in the United States, he served as a board member for both the International Nepal Fellowship (INF) North America and the MedSend organization. He continues to write and works with his wife as a lifelong advocate of missionary service.
Contents
- Early life
- Family
- Pre Nepal
- Missionary journey
- Common diseases and injuries treated
- After Nepal
- Written works
- References
Early life
Hale was born in New York state, where he grew up with aspirations of becoming a politician. As an adolescent, he attended the Phillips Academy boarding school in Andover, Massachusetts, where he experienced a spiritual epiphany that led him to believe God wanted him to become a medical missionary. In his search to find his missionary home, Hale stumbled upon a pamphlet that described the ongoing medical need in Nepal. After reading this brochure, he chose Nepal as his future missionary destination.
Family
Hale's father, Dr Thomas Hale, Sr, was a practicing surgeon before working in hospital administration. Hale met his wife, Dr. Cynthia Hale (not to be confused with the political activist of the same name), while they were attending Albany Medical College and they originally bonded over their shared belief in missionary service and religion. The couple married in 1959 and had two sons, Thomas III and Christopher, both of whom have pursued careers involving the spread of religion to other cultures.
Pre-Nepal
After graduating from Albany Medical College, Hale was trained in general surgery. He went on to work, with his wife, a pediatrician, at an army hospital for two years. While working there, the couple found an opening for medical missionaries in Kathmandu, Nepal, and began making arrangements to move their family. In preparation for the move, Hale collected supplies in the form of donations from his hospital and the Brooke Army Academy.
Missionary journey
Hale moved with Cynthia and his two children to Nepal, arriving in the capital city of Kathmandu on October 10, 1970. In Nepal, Hale was assigned to work in a small, newly constructed hospital in Amppipal, a tiny village in the Himalayas outside of Kathmandu. The Amppipal Community Hospital was built in 1969 by the United Mission to Nepal (UNM), the missionary organization that was responsible for placing the Hales.
The Amppipal Hospital provided medical services for an area approximately the size of Rhode Island, that included about half a million people. Throughout his years at the hospital, Hale acted as the head surgeon, while treating other general injuries and common diseases that faced the Nepalese people. Hale specifically oversaw several procedures that were unfamiliar to him. His most memorable surgeries were a cholecystectomy on a child experiencing an extreme case of gall badder inflammation and a hysterectomy on the wife of a local village leader.
Towards the end of his career in Nepal, Hale was appointed as medical director of the Amppipal Hospital. With his new position, Hale moved his family to Kathmandu before moving back to the United States.
Common diseases and injuries treated
After Nepal
In 1996, Hale permanently returned to the United States with his family. Following his return, Hale served as the president of the North America Board of the International Nepal Fellowship and as a board of reference member for the MedSend organization. With these two organizations, Hale work to provide opportunities for medical professionals to travel to other countries and contribute medical aid. Now in retirement, Hale continues to speak and write in order to advocate medical missionary service.
Written works
Hale is also known for his published works, which include:
Hale has also written two books in Nepali that provide commentary on both the New Testament and Old Testament of the Bible. These books have been further translated into 30 different languages, including Amharic, Malagasy, Marathi, Serbian, Sinhalese and Yoruba.