When HMS Dean George Q. Daley, AB ’82, MD ’91, PhD, delivered his State of the School Address in September 2025, he did not shy away from the School’s challenges. He described how federal actions had abruptly terminated HMS’s active federal research grants and underscored the need for new, non-federal funding sources. Amid this uncertainty, Daley expressed resolve: “The current crisis will not be our undoing, and through it all I remain optimistic about our future prospects. I am confident that we will find ways to thrive.”
Members of the Class of 1971 took that charge to heart. As they prepared for their 55th Reunion, they used Daley’s remarks as the centerpiece of their fundraising outreach, emphasizing the importance of alumni support in sustaining HMS’s mission.
“Our 55th Reunion year coincided with the stance taken by the federal government to dramatically curtail funding for research and education,” says Magruder “Craig” Donaldson, AB ’66, MD ’71, Reunion Committee fundraising vice chair and a member of the Dean’s Council, HMS’s leadership annual giving society. “It was clear that the School would need as much moral and practical support as could be mustered to weather the uncertainties, and our Reunion Committee reinforced the importance of this message during the run-up to the 55th.”
Donaldson made an unrestricted gift, providing flexible support that helps HMS remain nimble as it adapts to evolving financial realities. Reunion Committee co-chairs Cynthia N. Kettyle, MD ’71, and William “Bill” M. Kettyle, MD ’71, both members of the Dean’s Council and the Federman Loyalty Circle, which honors alumni who have made consecutive annual gifts of any size for five years or more, directed their support to REACH Scholarships. These four-year, need-based awards reduce the loan burden for students who demonstrate Resilience, Excellence, Achievement, Compassion, and a commitment to Helping the underserved.
Donaldson says classmates were motivated not only by current events but also by a deep sense of connection to the School and to one another. “The Class of 1971 has maintained its cohesion based upon the life-changing shared experiences during our time at medical school,” he says. “The afterglow of memories, as well as ongoing inspiration, renewal, and connection, forms a big part of each of us. We trust that our support for HMS will help pave the way for those following us.”
Classmate Peter Kenny, MD ’71, and his wife, Donna, strengthened their commitment to HMS by creating a second deferred charitable gift annuity. This planned gift provides the couple with regular payments for life, with the remaining funds ultimately benefiting HMS through discretionary support to the dean. The Kennys are members of the Dean’s Council, the Federman Loyalty Circle, and the Ezekiel Hersey Council, HMS’s legacy giving society. They say they were inspired by the School’s steadfast role as a beacon of open inquiry and truth and by a desire to help ensure that future students and trainees can continue to thrive on the Quad.
For members of the Class of 1996, celebrating their 30th Reunion was as much about gratitude as it was about giving back.
Reunion Committee co-chairs Scott M. Wasserman, MD ’97 (Class of 1996), and Patricia L. Yun, MD ’96, set an ambitious participation goal, urging classmates to pay it forward by contributing in honor of their milestone year.
“Giving to HMS is one way we can all contribute to the future of medicine,” Wasserman says. “Recognizing that everyone’s circumstances are different, we challenged all our classmates to contribute $30 for our 30th. While larger contributions are always welcome, participation is the important part.”
Wasserman and Yun, both members of the Dean’s Council and the Federman Loyalty Circle, made unrestricted gifts, which enable the School to respond quickly to urgent priorities and emerging opportunities. In their outreach, they focused on shared memories and the transformative impact of their education. “We really stressed how much we appreciated our classmates and our time together at HMS,” Wasserman says. “Our classmates’ different experiences and backgrounds contributed to a rich melting pot that challenged us to be better people and doctors. For that, we are grateful, and we want others to be able to have that experience. Giving back is a great way to pay it forward.”
David J. Brown, MD ’97 (Class of 1996), reinforced this call to give back by making a stretch gift—a contribution that goes beyond what a donor might typically give. Both a Reunion Committee member and an Alumni Council representative, Brown used the class listserv to share stories and underscore the urgency of supporting HMS now. “I shared with my classmates the additional financial challenges HMS is facing at this time, including executive orders, research funding uncertainty, and targeted legislation,” says Brown, who designated his gift as unrestricted and is a Dean’s Council member.
Reunion Committee member Thomas J. Wang, AB ’92, MD ’96, and his wife, Linda Wang, AB ’94, MBA ’98, both Dean’s Council members, made a gift to establish the Thomas J. and Linda Wang Endowed Fund for Innovation in the Program in Medical Education. This endowed fund will support innovative, curriculum-embedded projects within HMS’s Program in Medical Education, ensuring that future students benefit from cutting-edge approaches to teaching and learning, including the integration of digital technologies such as artificial intelligence.
“Celebrating my 30th Reunion this year, it’s natural to look back,” says Thomas Wang. “HMS gave me and my classmates tremendous opportunities, and my time there had a huge impact on my career. Linda and I are enthusiastic about giving back and helping future generations of students derive the same benefit.”
The Class of 1962’s endowed scholarship fund serves as both a memorial to beloved classmates and a lasting testament to the class’s friendships and accomplishments—a legacy that will support students in perpetuity.
A little more than a decade ago, after the mantle of Class Agent passed from Robert C. “Bob” Moellering Jr., MD ’62 (who died in February 2014), to Roger E. Meyer, MD ’62, Meyer proposed that the Class of 1962 recognize Moellering’s professional contributions to medicine and his personal impact in nurturing HMS students in their clinical, research, and leadership aspirations. “By the time of our 55th Reunion in 2017, we had raised the funds necessary to establish an endowed scholarship at HMS to honor Bob and other deceased members of our class,” says classmate Gerald Keusch, MD ’63 (Class of 1962), a Federman Loyalty Circle member. “It was the perfect way to recognize the accomplishments of Bob and of our classmates and support future generations of students struggling to finance their medical education.”
As the cost of attendance increased, HMS raised the minimum funding level required to establish an endowed scholarship to $500,000. Although the Class of 1962 was grandfathered in at its original, lower funding level, its members chose to rise to the challenge.
“Roger, Ken (Kenneth McIntosh, AB ’58, MD ’62, a Dean’s Council member), Henry (Henry Vaillant, AB ’58, MD ’62, SM ’69, a member of both the Dean’s Council and the Federman Loyalty Circle), and I decided to continue to drive fundraising in order to reach the new threshold,” Keusch explains. “Roger took the lead in communicating the importance of this goal to our classmates in his periodic letters and personal outreach, sustaining their engagement and willingness to continue contributing to the fund until, earlier this year, we reached our target.”
This milestone is especially meaningful given Meyer’s passing on May 11 at the age of 88. “Ken, Henry, and I are proud to have worked closely with Roger to help achieve his vision of a lasting tribute to Bob Moellering, which now also stands as a tribute to Roger Meyer, to his clinical, research, and leadership accomplishments in academic medicine, and to his personal qualities of caring, integrity, and purpose.”
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