One of Dr. Fleegler’s projects aimed to create a system connecting families seen in the emergency department and other locations with community-based resources. The project, which launched in 2003 under the name, The Online Advocate, became known as HelpSteps in 2014 when it served as the main referral system for the Boston Public Health Commission. It was adopted in 2017 by the United Way/Mass2-1-1 and is used by more than 500,000 people annually across the state of Massachusetts.

Early in her career, Dr. Donohue helped build the project’s database, and Dr. Fleegler recalled her work as meticulous and essential. “It is an arduous, somewhat thankless, task. It is hard. Kendall turned out to be a master,” he said.

Dr. Fleegler continued to guide Dr. Donohue as she progressed in her career. He encouraged her to seek out grants, tasked her with learning new tools, and supported her taking ownership of projects. He was a sounding board for her career decisions, from residency applications to research directions.

For Dr. Donohue, one of the most influential aspects of Dr. Fleegler’s mentorship is his approach to teaching, even in clinical practice. She recalled an early ED shift when a young child presented with croup. Rather than offering a quick explanation in a busy emergency department, Dr. Fleegler sat down with the family, drew diagrams, and carefully walked them through what they could expect.

“He’s the best teacher. He will give the best education to a friend, a neighbor, a patient, and a research mentee. It’s something that I have been lucky to see in all those different spaces,” Dr. Donohue said.

Dr. Donohue described Dr. Fleegler as someone who treats nearly every question as an opportunity to help, whether the topic is research topics, career planning, or even daily life outside of medicine.

“If I ask him, ‘Should I be investing in my retirement fund?’ I will get a thoughtful 10 minutes on the pros and cons, what he did, what he didn’t do, what he thinks I should do,” she said.

This year’s fellowship match brought their shared history full circle. Dr. Donohue matched into pediatric emergency medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital — the same fellowship Dr. Fleegler completed earlier in his career.

“It feels like a perfect finish to a story and start of a career. I feel like I already have so much backing to support me,” Dr. Donohue said.