As a child, I grew up just a few miles south of Kennett Square, the mushroom capital of the world. This fact was never lost on my father who would often say, “don’t be a mushroom.” By that, he meant: don’t sit in the dark and be fed manure your whole life, just to get canned at the end of it all.

I learned a lot from my father who grew up on a dirt floor in Turkey. His story demonstrated how lucky I was to be born and raised in America: the land of freedom, opportunity, and justice for all. It was he and my mother who taught me that America was the shining city on the hill and that through hard work, perseverance, and a little bit of luck, I could achieve my own version of the American Dream.

After graduating from medical and business school in Philadelphia, I operated on thousands of patients and invented a tool to fix heart valves that has saved many lives while cutting medical costs. And, as a television host, I focused on empowering individuals to take control of their own health and pursue their dreams.