Dr. Paul Legg always knew he wanted to be a surgeon. He was drawn to orthopedics because he likes fixing things. 

But his passion for volunteering comes from somewhere even deeper. His faith moves him to help others. 

“With orthopedics, we’re typically not working with folks who are sick—we’re trying to improve quality of life,” Dr. Legg said. “We want to help them feel better so that they can work, exercise, and be comfortable doing everyday things without being in pain.”

Dr. Legg started volunteering at West Virginia Health Right soon after he moved to Charleston. One of the surgeons at Dr. Legg’s practice was volunteering with WV Health Right, but planning to retire. So, he asked Dr. Legg to take his place. 

Since then, Dr. Legg has spent dozens of hours every month providing his medical expertise for free. He’s lessened the pain felt by countless patients, including Shirley Whittington. 

When Shirley first visited WV Health Right, nearly two decades ago, she was a single mom, sometimes working up to three jobs to provide for her children. Her arthritis was so painful that she couldn’t stand long enough to put on makeup before work. 

Dr. Legg eventually replaced both of Shirley’s knees, changing her life forever. Now 75 and a proud grandmother, Shirley can still go for walks, play with her grandchildren, and take them to-and-from school, all without severe pain. 

WV Health Right, and Dr. Legg, served as a lifeline for Shirley during her time of need.

The oldest and largest clinic of its kind in West Virginia, WV Health Right has spent over four decades providing free, often life-changing healthcare to low-income, underinsured West Virginians. That makes the organization a critical part of our community’s safety net, Dr. Legg says. 

“There’s always people who fall through the cracks. They don’t have a physician, or they can’t get to one,” he mused. “But they can come here, and WV Health Right assists them with everything: not just medical care, but dental care, lab work, medicine, and helping them get coverage.”

Providing so many different services to the nearly 43,500 West Virginians that visit WV Health Right annually would be impossible without volunteers like Dr. Legg. But when asked why he thought he was chosen as volunteer of the year, Dr. Legg’s response was characteristically humble. 

“I’ve just tried, for a long time, to come and take good care of patients,” Dr. Legg said. “I suppose that’s why. I just want people to know that when they come here, we want to take good care of them.” 

WV Health Right thanks Dr. Legg for his nearly 15 years of dedicated service and is honored to celebrate him as our 2023 Volunteer of the Year.