Looking Up

One person I look up to is Joseph E. Murray. He was a surgeon who performed the first human organ transplant in 1954. He transplanted a kidney from a healthy man to his identical twin brother.  He also completed the first successful transplant to a nonidentical patient in 1959. He attended college and the College of the Holy Cross and went on to attend Harvard Medical School, where he graduated in 1943. He enlisted in the Army Medical Corps in 1944 where he gained experience using skin grafts on burned soldiers. This experience is what led him to explore organ transplantation. I look up to him because he was a pioneer in this new type of medicine. At the time, many people in his profession discouraged him and even told him he was trying to play God. He blazed his own trail and made the world a better place by believing in the work he was doing. I also look up to him because he was strong in his Catholic faith and vigilantly navigated the fine lines between science and the church. He even advised the Vatican on current science issues.

            Most of his career dealt with plastic surgery, but not the kind that may come to mind. He treated patients with physical deformities or those that had been in accidents. He used his knowledge and love for helping people to bring about a major change in the world of medicine. I hope to make a difference in the world just as he did.

Dean , Cornelia. "Joseph E. Murray, Transplant Doctor and Nobel Prize Winner, Dies at 93." New York Times 27 11 2012, New York edition B12. Web. 24 Feb.

2013.

You may recognize another role model of mine from catching glimpses of her on “Good Morning America” while you get ready for the day. Robin Roberts is a news anchor for the show where she has worked since 1995 and she became co-anchor in 2005. This woman is so inspirational to me because of her optimism and fortitude. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in June of 2005 and fought a very public battle. Through chemotherapy and radiation she continued working as much as possible and always had a smile on her face. She looked at her ailment with a positive attitude and used the publicity to raise awareness for others in the same situation. She beat her breast cancer and encouraged countless people along the way. Now, five years after ending her fight with breast cancer she is battling another illness, MDS (myelodysplastic syndrome), which attacks a person’s bone marrow and blood. She just came back to Good Morning America after a six month leave of absence to undergo intense chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant from her sister. She has used this recent bump in the road to encourage people to sign up to be blood marrow donors. She has as beautiful a smile as ever and is using the struggles God has placed in her life to help others and not become discouraged.  

Roberts, Robin. "Robin Roberts: I'm Going to Beat This." Good Morning America. ABC News, 11 Jun 2013. Web. 25 Feb 2013. <http://abcnews.go.com/Health/robin-roberts-myelodysplastic-syndrome-diagnosis-beat/story?id=16540293>.

"Robin Roberts' Biography." Good Morning America. ABC News, n.d. Web. 25 Feb 2013. <http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/robin-roberts-biography/story?id=128237&page=2>.

The last person I look up to is Jodi Picoult. Picoult is an author and her last seven books have hit number one on The New York Times best seller list. She studied at Princeton then went on to pursue a master’s degree in education at Harvard. She has written twenty-one novels, of which I have read at least nine. She writes about issues in life no one wants to live with and almost always manages to involve the courtroom or medicine. Of the books I have had the opportunity to read, she has explored the issues of suicide, the family dynamics of a child with cancer, a supposed prophet on death row, a school shooting, a child with a debilitating disease, a pregnant Amish teenager, and a father living on life support. In every single one of her books, she challenges her readers to look at these issues from a variety of viewpoints and clearly illustrates that there are always grey areas. I look up to her because she has a talent that allows her to touch a person with only her words, that is something I have always aimed to achieve. She is a talented author and one that has inspired me through her writing.

"About Jodi Picoult." Jodi Picoult. Jodi Picoult, n.d. Web. 25 Feb 2013. <http://www.jodipicoult.com/JodiPicoult.html