Dr. Jorge Corona walked up to Jerry Jones and handed him something unexpected: a copy of a prosthetic eye, cast with a distinctive red iris. The original was made for a Ukrainian sniper with the call sign “Terminator,” who refused to give up his military service despite losing his eye in combat. It happened after the Dallas Cowboys owner had announced a $1 million donation for reconstructive surgery in Ukraine. Now he was holding proof of exactly what that money was for.
The gift came at Becoming Whole, an Aug. 27 fundraiser held at The Star, the Cowboys’ headquarters in Frisco, Texas, honoring Dr. James Suen and supporting reconstructive care in Ukraine. Jones, who has known Suen for years, directed his donation to the joint efforts of three charitable organizations behind the event: Ed’s Friends Ukraine, LEAP Global Missions and the Christian Medical Association of Ukraine.
Ed Ma, who founded Ed’s Friends days after the full-scale invasion began, put the gift in terms of patients: “This support also means we can say ‘yes’ to more patients in Ukraine – people facing complex injuries who need not only surgery, but a chance to rebuild their lives and move forward.”
When Dr. Suen finished his speech, former President Bill Clinton appeared in a video message. “James Suen embodies, to me, everything America is about,” Clinton said, calling him “brilliant” and “one of the finest people I’ve ever known.” He added that Ukraine’s citizens “need and deserve our steadfast support until the fight is finished.”
The evening brought together the people behind a collaboration that has sent American medical teams to work alongside Ukrainian specialists. It began with an initial trip to Ukraine by Dr. Steve Orten and Ed Ma in 2022 and grew into a partnership among three organizations.
Michelle Hollander, founder of International Esperanza Project and a nonprofit leader with more than 24 years of experience, and Dr. Jorge Corona served as event chairs. Hollander, who is not affiliated with any of the three organizations behind the fundraiser, took on much of the work behind the gala.
From 2023 through 2025, Suen traveled to Ukraine on multiple medical missions, treating patients and sharing his expertise with Ukrainian physicians. On each mission, he took on some of the most complex cases of vascular malformations—one of his areas of specialization—while giving Ukrainian surgeons hands-on experience in the operating room. His lectures on the subject drew full auditoriums.
On the missions, the team began asking Suen’s patients a question: What do you have in common with former President Bill Clinton? They rarely guessed the answer: Dr. Suen. For an American audience, another name could be added to the question—country music star Charley Pride.
Education of Ukrainian medical professionals has been a central part of the missions from the beginning. Visiting surgeons operate with their local colleagues, sharing techniques and experience that can continue after the international teams leave. That effort has expanded to include nursing, with American nurses now teaching their counterparts as well.
Over the following years, the collaboration grew to include specialized missions in cleft lip and palate and craniofacial surgery, oculoplastic and facial reconstruction, and microsurgery, including free-flap procedures. Teams have worked in Lviv, Kyiv, Vinnytsia and Cherkasy, with plans to expand to additional cities and hospitals.
Significant support comes from MedCAD, founded by Nancy Hairston, which provides patient-specific implants, and Dr. John Sands, co-founder of AROMS and leader of the American reconstructive surgery team, who also gives Ukrainian physicians free access to the company’s software.
Rudolf “Rudi” Myhovych, CEO of the Christian Medical Association of Ukraine, said the funds will allow the program to grow significantly, with plans to triple the number of reconstructive missions and operations performed alongside international specialists and expand into six regions of Ukraine.
“For us, this support is first and foremost an investment in the capacity of Ukrainian reconstructive surgeons,” Myhovych said. “Because mentorship and training are at the heart of these missions.”
Photo: OchiMedia
By Tatyana Bessmertnaya
Disclosure: The author has documented medical missions in Ukraine involving these organizations since 2023 and serves as a volunteer director of Ed’s Friends Ukraine.
