The Best Breast

Some of life’s most interesting and rewarding opportunities to learn and improve are the result of other people’s commitment and their willingness to share. 

Jean Keene was that kind of person.  Jean, known to nature lovers and photographers worldwide as the “Eagle Lady”, was born in Minnesota, grew up on a dairy farm in Minnesota, and first worked as a rodeo trick rider.  Following a riding injury, she worked as a professional truck driver hauling cattle, and in 1977, drove a motor home from Minnesota to Alaska.  She parked her motor home near  the end of the Homer Spit in Homer, Alaska, and worked as a foreman in a fish processing plant.

Soon after arriving in Homer, Jean noticed bald eagles on the beach of Kachemak Bay adjacent to the Homer Spit Campground.  Having fed songbirds for years, Jean began bringing fish parts from the processing facility, and began feeding bald eagles near her motor home.  For three decades, Jean fed up to 200 eagles daily an estimated 500 lbs. of fish daily during the late winter and early spring until the eagles departed with the influx of tourists to the area.

Jean’s eagle feeding was not without controversy.  Some environmentalists felt that eagles were harmed as a result of their proximity to people.  Some believed that other bird populations in the area suffered as a result of the eagles, and others including some Homer residents, claimed that the eagles caused car accidents, and even were a threat to their small animal pets.  Although many of these claims were undocumented, the Homer City Council ultimately passed an ordinance banning the feeding of eagles within the city limits, but granted Jean rights to continue feeding until 2010.  Jean passed away in her house adjacent to her motor home on January 13, 2009  with her eagles nearby.  The house and her truck were funded largely by donations from a group of photographers who Jean had befriended and who made frequent pilgrimages to photograph the eagles.

Read more about Jean’s life and her challenges here.

How does Jean Keene’s story relate to us?  Beginning during  my teenage years, I developed an avid interest in photography.  Due to a lack of financial resources, my photography equipment was extremely limited during my medical school, residency, and early years in practice, but my interest in visual images has grown progressively.   My love of all things outdoors and critters of all kinds that live there made wildlife photography something I couldn’t do without.  Fortunately, I am blessed with a wife and daughter who share my love of animals, and support my indulgences.

When I learned that Jean had passed away, and knew of her story, I made a short notice trip to Homer to have one last chance to photograph one of the world’s largest concentrations of bald eagles.  The images in this video of Homer, the Homer Spit, the Grewingk Glacier directly across Kachemak Bay (visible from Homer), and the eagles were taken over a two day period that I’ll never forget.  I have worked diligently for many years to improve my photographic skills, helped by many committed photographers who despite their own priorities, were willing to spend time to share their knowledge to help me learn.

The opportunity to see and photograph these magnificent birds in a close up and personal setting would likely have never happened were it not for Jean Keene.  Despite any objections by groups or individuals (in my opinion often based on unproved or self-serving motives that I nevertheless respect), I am grateful to Jean and those who have supported her for this unique opportunity.  For many years, I have photographed eagles in the wild, and despite my best efforts, I have never been able to be close enough to fully appreciate the beauty of bald eagles and the magnificent mechanics of their flight.  As I sat on the beach in 20 degree weather with a 25 knot howling wind and blowing snow photographing the eagles on the Homer spit, it occurred to me that the things I respect most about Jean are things that Terrye and I believe in strongly–commitment, sharing, and facing challenges head on in order to advance.

Like Jean–we don’t focus on objectors and detractors.  Our focus is all about patients.  Every priority begins with our patients–assuring every patient the best opportunity for knowledge, good decisions, the most state-of-the-art surgery, the most rapid and carefree recovery, and the least risk of reoperations or risks to their tissue in the future.  An unblinking commitment to those priorities, regardless of the challenges, has enabled us to deliver a completely redefined experience for breast augmentation patients.  Our track record is open for comparison to any other surgeon worldwide.

We are committed to continually develop new techniques to deliver better for patients, and committed to sharing what we’ve learned and developed with our colleagues for the benefit of all patients.  We have published and shared scientifically verified, peer reviewed data and processes in the most respected professional journal in our specialty, and have demonstrated unequivocally that specific processes of patient education, tissue based implant selection, and surgical techniques can routinely deliver out to dinner augmentation, 24-hour recovery, and the lowest  reoperation rates ever published from an FDA PMA study–objectors and detractors persist.

Challenges are unavoidable, but they not distract us from patient priorities.  We have and will continue to deal aggressively with challenges to assure what’s best for patients.  Commitment, sharing, and dealing with challenges is what has enabled us to deliver an unparalleled level of recovery and outcomes for our patients.  The same approach enabled Jean Keene to realize her priorities and provide a path for others, like me, to learn and grow.

Rest in peace, Jean.  Many of us will think of you every time they see an eagle.  It’s not about the naysayers; it’s about the eagles.