Drew Lectureship
established for pioneering cardiologist
May 15, 2007
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Donald W. Drew, M.D. |
NORFOLK—An endowed lectureship to
honor the late Donald W. Drew, M.D., a pioneering cardiologist and
teacher who championed the creation of EVMS, has been established by a
gift from his family.
A native Bostonian and graduate of
Tufts University School of Medicine, Drew has been synonymous with
cardiology training since he came to Norfolk General Hospital in 1960,
where he helped run the hospital’s residency training program. When
local physicians and civic leaders began discussing the notion of
launching a new medical school, Drew became an enthusiastic booster.
“Don Drew was a gifted teacher and
superb physician,” recalled Dean and Provost Gerald J. Pepe, Ph.D. “His
excitement about creating a medical school in Norfolk was infectious.”
Drew passed away in August 2001 at 79
years old.
The Donald W. Drew Lectureship was
endowed with a gift from his wife, Barbara Drew, and his sons, Donald W.
Drew, Jr., a Virginia Beach businessman, and Peter A. Drew, M.D., a
Florida physician.
“I can’t think of anything that Don
would consider more important than this,” said Barbara Drew. “Don was
always a champion of medical education, and especially of EVMS.”
Barbara Drew met her husband at the
Eastern Maine General Hospital in Bangor, where Donald Drew was
completing his residency in internal medicine and Barbara was completing
her B.S. in nursing.
After finishing his residency, Drew was
drawn immediately to medical education. He moved to New York, where he
rose to be chief of cardiology at the Veterans Administration hospital
in Albany and taught at Albany Medical College.
After six years in Albany, the prospect
of teaching residents lured him to Norfolk General.
But nothing captivated him more than
the notion of launching a medical school. Drew became part of a cadre of
local leaders who lobbied for the creation of the school. In 1975, Drew
joined the fledgling medical school and helped build its cardiology
program.
Even after his retirement from EVMS in
1995, Drew continued to tutor students. He also returned to EVMS to
teach classes.
Throughout his 20-year tenure at EVMS,
Drew and his wife stood out as generous benefactors. They made a number
of contributions, including a major gift to the Edward E. Brickell
Medical Sciences Library.
The Drew family also reaped some of the
benefit of having a medical school in Hampton Roads. Drew’s son Peter
graduated in 1984 from the school his father helped to build. Peter Drew
now works as a pathologist at the University of Florida in Gainesville.
“This endowed lectureship will not only
help improve education, it will serve as a fitting memorial to a man who
was so important to making EVMS what it is today,” said Pepe.
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