1950s

Jack C. Westman (M.D. 1952, Residency 1959), professor emeritus of psychiatry at University of Wisconsin Medical School, received the American Psychiatric Association's 2001 McGavin Award for a Distinguished Career in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Since his retirement in 1996, Westman co-founded "Wisconsin Cares" to improve the lives of children by working with families to prevent abuse and neglect.

Paul Wolf (M.D. 1952) received a 2001 Barbara J. and Paul D. Saltman Distinguished Teaching Award for Non-Senate Members. Wolf is professor of pathology at the University of California, San Diego.

Frank Whitehouse Jr. (M.D. 1953), U-M associate professor emeritus of microbiology, is the author of "Here's to You, Maize and Blue," a march he composed to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Alumni Association of the U-M. The piece was recorded by the University of Michigan Marching Band and appears on their CD, The Spirit of Michigan. "Here's to You, Maize and Blue" was played at the emeritus dinner hosted by Dean Lichter at the Barton Hills Country Club in July, where guests sang along as accompaniment to the piano. Whitehouse himself was unable to attend, having left shortly before for the Verdi Festival in Verona and two days at La Scala in Milan.

1960s

Gary VanderArk, M.D. (Residency 1968), a neurosurgeon in Colorado, founded Doctors Care, an organization providing medical care to the uninsured in three counties, and also helped start the Colorado Coalition for the Medically Underserved, which will attempt to spread the program statewide. VanderArk was honored by the American Assoc-iation of Neurosurgeons with its 2001 Humanitarian of the Year Award for his efforts to help the medically underserved and for a lifetime of community work.

1970s

Alan M. Mindlin (M.D. 1971), an ophthalmologist in Pontiac, was re-elected as an alternate delegate to the American Medical Association. He will serve a two-year term on the 26-member Michigan Delegation to the AMA's House of Delegates, which sets policies on issues such as public health, health care delivery and medical ethics.

Laman Gray (Residency 1974) is part of a team of surgeons who performed the world's first self-contained, mechanical heart replacement at Jewish Hospital, University of Louisville. The titanium and plastic device, known as AbioCor, is designed to allow recipients to main-tain a productive life-style while wearing it. The landmark experimental operation has been covered extensively in the media since its occurrence on July 2.

Ben Carson (M.D. 1977) was listed in the second of a five-part series, "America's Best," in Time magazine which profiles America's highest achievers. Carson was noted for his exceptional skills in pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Medical Center. He has developed several new surgical techniques that greatly reduce the risks of hemispherectomies, a surgery that once frequently resulted in death. He is also known for performing the first successful separation of Siamese twins joined at the head in 1987.

1980s

Keith Black (M.D. 1981, Residency 1987) is the recipient of a 2001 Essence Award, which celebrates courage among African Americans forging new paths in their careers or personal endeavors. Black received the award for his leadership as director of the Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Black averages about 250 operations a year, and his reputation for excising malignant brain tumors draws patients from all over the world.

Lives Lived

James Bosma (M.D. 1941) died of heart failure at the University of Maryland Medical Center on June 22. He was 85. Bosma was considered a pioneer in research into the anatomy and physiology of swallowing, a topic he became interested in during the polio epidemic when many patients suffering from the disease could not take nutrition orally. He wrote numerous publications and was a founding editor of the medical journal Dysphagia, devoted to disorders of swallowing. In recent years he received the Distinguished Service Award from the American Speech-Language Hearing Association and was honored with a symposium at the biennial meeting of the American Association for Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine.

Ralph M. Gibson (Ph.D. 1959), professor emeritus of psychology in pediatrics and communicable diseases at the U-M Medical School, died on May 23 at Albert Einstein Hospital in New York after a long illness. He was 76. Gibson held many positions during his long career with the U-M Medical School. He established the first pediatric psychology section in a department of pediatrics in the country, became head of the pediatric psychology unit in 1965 and served as assistant dean for student affairs from 1976-83. A scholarship fund has been established in Gibson's name. Contributions may be made in his memory and sent to the U-M Health System Office of Medical Development and Alumni Relations, 301 E. Liberty St., Suite 300, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.

Theodore George Kabza (M.D. 1945) died at the Heartland Healthcare Center on June 22 at the age of 82. After graduating from the U-M, Kabza served his internship at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, then entered the U.S. Army Medical Corps. After returning to civilian life, he completed his residency in internal medicine at Henry Ford and the U-M Hospitals. He was an instructor in clinical medicine at the U-M and was on the staff of the Veterans Administration Hospital in Ann Arbor.

George Schools (Residency 1969), who pioneered the private practice of pulmonary medicine in Dallas, Texas, died March 17. Schools was on staff at Baylor University Medical Center, Presbyterian Hospital, Gaston Episcopal Hospital and Bristol General Hospital. He was president of the American Lung Association in 1987-88 and served on the board of directors from 1969-90.

Isaac "Ike" C. Thomas, III (M.D. 1988, Residency 1996) died of a heart attack on June 8 at 42. Thomas was assistant professor of anesthesiology and a clinician at the U-M and maintained staff privileges at the Veterans Administration Medical Center. He served as a captain in the United States Army Medical Corps from 1988-92, including three years as director of the outpatient clinic at Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Mt. Clemens.

William W. Wilkinson (M.D. 1951) died on July 19 at age 74 of colon cancer. Wilkinson worked with patients suffering from dementia and Alzheimer's disease as medical advisor for senior health care services at Beverly Hospital in California. As a student at the U-M Medical School, he was a member of the Galens Honorary Medical Society and president of his senior class. Wilkinson proposed the establishment of the Class of 1951 Medical Endowed Scholarship Fund which was recently awarded for the first time to a U-M medical student. Contributions may be made to the fund in his memory and sent to the U-M Health System Office of Medical Development and Alumni Relations, 301 E. Liberty St., Suite 300, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.