{"id":19334,"date":"2014-02-24T10:51:52","date_gmt":"2014-02-24T15:51:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=19334"},"modified":"2014-06-11T14:27:27","modified_gmt":"2014-06-11T18:27:27","slug":"novel-writing-surgeon-harry-kraus-82-resettles-in-virginia-after-years-of-practicing-medicine-in-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2014\/novel-writing-surgeon-harry-kraus-82-resettles-in-virginia-after-years-of-practicing-medicine-in-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"Novel-writing surgeon Harry Kraus ’82 resettles in Virginia after years of practicing medicine in Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Dr. Harry Kraus decided to take a mission trip, he had no idea he was about to change his family\u2019s life forever.<\/p>\n

He called Samaritan\u2019s Purse, an organization run by Franklin Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham. \u201cI told them I had three weeks off, and wanted to take my son on a medical trip to provide services,\u201d he recalls. \u201cThey sent us to Kenya.\u201d<\/p>\n

Something happened during that short trip: Dr. Kraus\u2019 eyes were opened to the tremendous and growing need in Africa. And after just two weeks, his son looked at him and said, \u2018Dad, tell Mom to pack her bags.\u2019 Dr. Kraus remembers thinking at the time, \u201cThat\u2019ll go over big: I come home after three weeks and tell my wife we ought to move to Africa?\u201d<\/p>\n

They had a comfortable life; he was in private practice as a general surgeon in Harrisonburg; they had three healthy boys. But the entire family supported the idea, and when his practice offered him a year\u2019s sabbatical, they moved to Kenya.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe never intended to stay for the better part of a decade,\u201d Dr. Kraus says, \u201cbut after the first year, we loved it. The boys liked their school, they were making friends, and enjoyed riding their motorcycles out to chase zebra and giraffes. They\u2019d sleep under the stars, and shoot their own food with blowguns. It was an adventure.\u201d They signed on for another three years \u2013 and after a short break, another three.<\/p>\n

And of course, the need everywhere was so great. Dr. Kraus was treating more and more Muslim refugees who came seeking care, and the more he interacted with them, the more they urged him to visit their country. He went to a Muslim country in North Africa to teach in a medical school, and ended up organizing a number of trips both to teach and to operate. Once Al Shabaab withdrew from the capital city, he began going there. \u201cI never dreamed I\u2019d be making rounds accompanied by soldiers with automatic weapons,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

He remembers discussing these visits with his wife Kris, talking about the risks of going into one of the world\u2019s most dangerous cities. \u201cI once asked her what she\u2019d say if I were killed going there at such a dangerous time,\u201d he recalls. \u201cShe told me she\u2019d say that I died doing what I was passionate about. Then I knew I could go. I knew she was OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

That kind of strength comes from one place in the Kraus family: their Christian beliefs. \u201cWe were motivated by faith,\u201d Dr. Kraus says. \u201cJesus made some strong statements about loving your neighbor. We felt like we were asked to go love these people, so that\u2019s what we did.\u201d<\/p>\n

As they were contemplating the decision, the Krauses turned to the Bible. \u201cWe found this verse in Galatians,\u201d Dr. Kraus remembers: \u201c\u2018As you have opportunity to do good, do it.\u2019 For us it was just as simple as that.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2013, when their youngest son was getting ready to go to college in the States, the Krauses knew it was time to return home. Dr. Kraus had been in contact with the new Riverside Doctors Hospital in Williamsburg, and was invited to join the medical team. He\u2019s been on staff since September.<\/p>\n

Despite settling in, and maintaining a busy surgical schedule, he still finds time to work on another of his passions: he\u2019s the best-selling author of several Christian-inspired novels \u2013 he calls them \u2018contemporary drama with a realistic medical stripe\u2019 \u2013 and several works of non-fiction. \u201cGod\u2019s grace is a theme that runs through all of my writing,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

And clearly through his life, as well.<\/p>\n

Courtesy of the\u00a0winter 2014 Hampton Roads <\/a>Physcian<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Dr. Harry Kraus decided to take a mission trip, he had no idea he was about to change his family\u2019s life forever. 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