Give My Poor Heart Ease

We came to The University of Virginia (UVA) within a year of each other nearly four decades ago: one (DN) to join the UVA basketball team during four of the best years of UVA basketball, and to earn 2 degrees, first in English and then in Sports Psychology; and the other (CT) to begin 7 years of training in general, vascular, thoracic, and cardiac surgery, which culminated with a faculty appointment in the UVA Department of Surgery, with part of the charge being to organize most of the Department's educational programs. Realizing that the education and training of medical students and surgical residents would require knowledge, skills, and understanding above and beyond the usual training of a resident in surgery, I (CT) started an informal, though enriching, attempt to find those on the grounds of the University who might share ideas and insights that could enhance the educational programs in the Department. This process embodied the vision of the founders of the University to create an "academical village."