Richard Van Praagh (’47) | NTCI Foundation

This past summer, Ron Wakelin, Co-chair of the North Toronto Foundation, received a delightful letter from Dr. Richard Van Praagh (’47), Harvard Professor Emeritus, Harvard Medical School that was written on letterhead from Boston Children’s Hospital. The following excerpts are from Dr. Van Praagh’s correspondence.

I graduated from NTCI in 1947 (I’m 88 now). I was fortunate enough to be accepted into the University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine. I graduated in 1954 with an MD degree. Then followed 10 years of postgraduate work. I fell in love with pediatrics and then with pediatric cardiology…

After 10 years of postgraduate work, [in October 1965] I was invited to join the staff of Boston Children’s Hospital where I have worked ever since as a pediatric cardiologist, pathologist and embryologist. I have written more than 310 scientific papers, published a video series, edited a book on congenital-heart disease and have just finished writing a medical book, The Diagnostic and Surgical Pathology of Congenital Heart Disease. I have also written a book for the general, non-medical reader, Survival: A New Approach from the Life Sciences to the Major Problem of Our Time…

Returning to NTCI, I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to NTCI for the excellence of its teaching. I remember Betty Bealey (English), Hal Brown (Athletics), Bob Gladish (Athletics) and “Bud” Page (Latin). A great crew; a wonderful beginning…

NTCI was an important part of my foundation… This is one graduate’s THANK YOU to NTCI.