"I love the life I get to lead, " says Mr. Klipper, 60, who supervises a training program for chaplains at Stamford Hospital in Connecticut and works with patients himself.

WSJ: Sometimes, Second Careers Are a Leap of Faith

Diagnosed with brain cancer at a relatively young age, she saw Mr. Klipper when she came to the hospital for chemotherapy and other treatments, including a particularly painful procedure in which doctors administered radiation after clamping her head in a vise.

WSJ: Sometimes, Second Careers Are a Leap of Faith