David-Paul Cavazos is a reader. He enjoys different genres that can transport him away for hours at a time. Just as characters in his books, Cavazos has taken a leap of faith and finds himself in Iola.
That leap has landed Cavazos in the position of director of imaging at Allen County Hospital.
The son of a career Army officer, Cavazos spent a lot of time growing up in far-flung parts of the world. From as far away as Germany to as close as Fort Leavenworth.
“I had a lot of different experiences that I enjoyed when I was younger,” Cavazos said. “But by the time I got to high school, I was ready to stick in one place.”
Cavazos was firmly planted in the Kansas City area. After graduation, Cavazos didn’t know what he wanted to do with himself. He went to Northwest Missouri State University for a while before deciding to change routes and go into X-ray technology in preparation for a career in nuclear medicine, first at Penn Valley Community College before finishing at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. It was something he thought long and hard about.
“I want to help people,” Cavazos said. “I thought radiology would be a good way to help people but not have to deal with the crazy schedule that doctors and nurses deal with.”
After technical school Cavazos did his clinical trials at Truman Memorial Hospital in the K.C. area. That led him to a seven-year stint as part of the staff at North Kansas City Hospital.
An attempt at working at a smaller private company that did imaging for different hospitals didn’t work out. A calculated chance had turned sour.
“I went to work for a guy and his brother,” Cavazos said. “I enjoyed the work but these two guys were those kinds of people that when they lost interest they would sell the business. So I got laid off for a year.”
During that time, Cavazos contemplated several different possibilities including going back to school for further education. That didn’t happen after his phone rang from an employment agency he was a client of.
“I got a call out of the blue,” Cavazos recalled. “They told me about Allen County Hospital. I came down and interviewed and then went through a waiting period when they changed the CEO here.”
Since getting to Iola, life has been an adjustment. Then dealing wiht the move to southeast Kansas which has been a gradual and, at times, stressful experience.
“I spent the first few weeks living in a hotel during the week and then going back to Kansas City on the weekends,” Cavazos explained. “We wanted to wait until after the school year to move and so that process has been a stressful period.”
Having finally settled into a home in the area, the father of three, Faith, 9, Isaac 6 and Abram, 14 months, is looking forward to evenings spent as a family again. Though one of his children is from an earlier marriage, so he’ll spend time getting back to Kansas City on a regular basis.
He and his wife, Laura have started to take in the community as well. Iola has made a positive impression thus far on Cavazos.
“I think it’s a great little community,” Cavazos said. “You go to other towns like Iola and main street is boarded up. Here on the square there are shops and restaurants open for business. I think it’s a great testament to the people here. Organizations like Thrive Allen County have also impressed me with the way they help the community.”
