About Zachary 

What’s your current role or area of work?

• Fourth year medical student

​Who is someone you admire?

• My wife is who I admire the most; she is a first-grade teacher, and her work is extremely difficult and undervalued.

What’s one book, film or podcast that has shaped your perspective?

• When Breath Becomes Air

What inspired you to be part of TEDxKU?

• My lived experience with cancer was life-altering—not just because of the illness, but because of what it revealed about the deep inequities in rural healthcare. That journey inspired me to be part of TEDxKU, because I believe stories like mine need to be heard. Sharing my pain is not just about healing—it's about sparking change. If my voice can help illuminate the barriers rural patients face, and move even one person to action, then it’s worth telling. TEDxKU is a platform for ideas that matter, and this one is personal.