Eula Hall was an Appalachian activist and healthcare pioneer who founded the Mud Creek Clinic in Grethel in Floyd County, Kentucky.
15 Facts About Eula Hall
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Eula Hall briefly worked in a World War II canning factory in Ontario, New York, at the age of fifteen, but was sent back to Kentucky on charges of 'inciting a labor riot' concerned with poor working conditions.
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Eula Hall rose to prominence as an activist as a member of the local 979 community group and the Eastern Kentucky Welfare Rights Organization.
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Eula Hall created the Mud Creek Water District and served as president of the Kentucky Black Lung Association.
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In 1973, Eula Hall opened the doors to The Mud Creek Clinic in Mud Creek, Kentucky, for the uninsured and the under-insured.
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Eula Hall attended one of the early MCHR meetings in 1971, where she met Elinor Graham, one of the first doctors at the Mud Creek Clinic.
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Eula Hall converted the three bedrooms into six exam rooms and the rest of the house into waiting rooms and offices.
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Eula Hall would spend half the night delivering medication to patients who had been at the clinic that day.
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Eula Hall had the telephone company place a telephone on the tree so that patients could call the clinic.
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Eula Hall then had two used trailers joined to use as a temporary clinic.
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Eula Hall called a public meeting and more than 400 people showed up and pledged their support.
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People gave money and items to be raffled off at auction, Eula Hall organized a two-day radiothon that raised $17,000 and multiple chicken-and-dumpling dinners that earned $1,300 apiece.
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Eula Hall has received numerous awards for her advocacy work, including honorary doctorates from Berea College - Berea, Kentucky; Midway College - Midway, Kentucky; Pikeville College - Pikeville, Kentucky and Trinity College - Hartford, Connecticut.
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Eula Hall was honored at Berea College alongside the Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
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Eula Hall has received personal letters from President George Bush, Senator Mitch McConnell, and Representative Hal Rogers, among other notables who have recognized the amazing work and the ongoing effort Hall has devoted to the health and well-being of eastern Kentucky.