Bringing Back the Arch of Old Main
Eric Kaldjian (left) and
his brother, Lauris, on graduation day in June, 1989. |
When Eric Kaldjian (M.D. 1989, Residency 1994) and his brother
Lauris (M.D. 1989), who is a year younger than he, received
their medical degrees from the University of Michigan Medical
School in 1989, they had both the future and the past on their
minds. Their tassels and gowns were symbols of the careers
they envisioned in medicine and science — Eric is now director
of pathobiology in worldwide preclinical safety at Parke-Davis
in Ann Arbor; Lauris is pursuing a doctorate in medical ethics
at Yale University.
The little yellow buttons (Beat the Ball!) they had attached
to their gowns pointed to an interest in the past. Specifically:
the past symbolized by Old Main, the main University hospital
in which generations of physicians like Eric and Lauris trained
from the years 1925-1986.
While they recognized that the outdated hospital had to go,
they wanted to save at least part of it, and most especially
the huge Albert Kahn-designed entry arch fronting on Observatory
Street. They were not alone: Richard Judge, M.D., a member of
the cardiology faculty, and Nicholas Steneck, Ph.D., a U-M history
professor, were part of the group leading the fight to save
the arch, carved from blocks of Indiana limestone.
Yellowed Ann Arbor News clippings saved by Eric at the time
chronicle the effort: (“U-M urged to save Old Main,”
“A last-minute appeal to save part of Old Main,” “Arch
of triumph wins reprieve,” “Entry arch will live on
as tribute.”)
Eric is very pleased that the Medical Center Alumni Society
is now asking alumni/ae to contribute gifts to support the reconstruction
of the arch in approximately the same place where it once stood.
The plan calls for a plaza to be constructed to support the
arch, and those who contribute gifts of $1,000 or more will
have their names permanently inscribed at the site.
For more information about making a gift, alumni/ae may call
the office of the Medical Center Alumni Society at 998-7705.
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