How 9/11 changed one AdventHealth leader's path and put him face-to-face with Saddam Hussein

At 22, Gordon Wesley, vice president of the AdventHealth Heart, Lung and Vascular Institute, was living the typical college student life, studying pre-medicine while working two jobs at Best Buy and as a nightclub bouncer in Detroit to make ends meet. Then, a pivotal moment in the nation’s history would change his life trajectory – 9/11.

“I couldn’t shake those horrific images of the Twin Towers crumbling into dust and debris in the streets of New York. It’s seared in my mind,” Wesley said.

Emotionally moved by the sacrifices made on that day and the days thereafter, he enlisted in the Army a month later, putting his pre-medicine college career and personal life on hold.

Five years after that he would find himself deployed to Baghdad and face-to-face with Saddam Hussein - even taking care of him.

“We were all anxious, yet eager to prove our training led us to be chosen for a top secret, high-profile assignment. I felt extremely proud to be part of that moment in history,” Wesley said.

Wesley was squad leader for all medical ancillary services and soldiers. His unit took care of Hussein who was staying at a nearby facility and was brought in to have a check-up, which included an exam and chest x-ray. His unit also provided medical assistance to local villagers and oversaw medical operations for U.S. military, military allies, foreign nationals, contractors, enemy combatants, and even K-9s at Camp South Victory.

“You never really had any downtime,” recalls Wesley. “My nights were filled providing security at the Al Faw Palace in Baghdad, which served as the headquarters of the multi-national forces in Iraq."

The overnight security details were challenging because they were in addition to full-time medical duties during the day.

“It taught me to look out for each team member, provide assurance, and pay attention to the details,“ Wesley said. “These are all traits I still use in my job to this day.”

After a total overseas deployment time of 15 months, Wesley returned to U.S. soil with an honorable discharge in January 2008 and immediately went back into the civilian workforce with the education and on-the-job training earned in the Army as a radiology technologist. He joined AdventHealth in 2019 as the executive director of the Cardiovascular Institute and in June 2021 became vice president and leader of Heart, Lung and Vascular Institute.

Within one year of designing and executing growth strategies at AdventHealth, Wesley surpassed the main competition in Central Florida in overall cardiovascular market share in spring 2023.

“During my military service, I learned to overcome and succeed in the most difficult situations, and I credit those learned traits for serving me in leadership,” Wesley said.

Wesley says he believes in paying it forward and often takes time to support others through mentoring, and often donates his time beyond his job to ensure his mentees grow and become successful. Several of those mentees have been military veterans employed at the AdventHealth Central Florida Division. Currently, the division has over 2,500 veterans employed at hospitals and ERs across four counties.