Last week, MWU hosted the annual Ward Perrin Clinical Refresher Course & CCOM Class Reunions at The Westin in Lombard, IL. This annual event provides a continuing medical education program mixed with several special events and the reunions for the classes ending in '3 and '8.

Because the course was held in the western suburbs, we had the opportunity to welcome the alumni to our campus in Downers Grove. Since all CCOM graduates prior to 1988 attended school in Hyde Park, many had never visited our beautiful campus. The educational program featured an OMM refresher course in our OMM lab, and many participants took the time to walk around campus to see our facilities and talk with our students. On Thursday evening, we honored one of the living legends of osteopathic medicine, Dr. Robert Kappler, with the OSTEE Award (for Outstanding Service to Teaching and Educational Excellence). Dr. Kappler was the long-time chair of CCOM's OMM Department and a 1958 graduate. He has helped to train many generations of students and inititiated the very successful OMM fellows program. He is beloved by all who know him, and he was very humble in receiving this prestigious award. The Hyde Atrium in Alumni Hall was filled with alumni, faculty, staff, and students who were on hand to congratulate him for this award.

On Friday, the CCOM Alumni Association Board of Governors held their annual meeting. This group of alumni volunteers is truly committed to helping our current students, both as mentors and in providing resources to help their education. They are also focused on increasing the membership of the alumni association and representing the nearly 8,000 CCOM alumni throughout the country. At their annual awards luncheon, they honored Dr. Peter Ajluni '69, immediate past president of the American Osteopathic Association; Dr. Andrew Lovy '62; Dr. Carl Pesta '63; Dr. Douglas Vanator, '63; and faculty member Dr. Thomas Glonek. All of these recipients spoke about their pride in being alumni and/or faculty at CCOM. The McCord and Hecker Scholarships were also presented to students in attendance.

Saturday night saw the class reunions, with classes from 1943 to 1993 represented. The biggest turnout was the 25-year reunion class of 1983. A presentation showed yearbook images from "back in the day," and alumni enjoyed seeing the evolution of their hair styles and fashion sense. What remained the same is the sense of family they all had. Alumni who hadn't seen each other for years greeted their classmates and friends with warm hugs and fond remembrances. Following dinner, the Class of 1958 was inducted into the Gold Medallion Club as 50-year graduates of the College. They spoke of how they have seen the profession and the college change over the years and their continued pride in being CCOM alumni. A live band helped keep the party going well into the night, as the alumni celebrated each other and their memories of medical school.

As a staff member, it is an honor for me to be able to work with all of the CCOM alumni and to be a part of their celebrations. They truly appreciate the value of family, which has always been such a critical part of their experience at CCOM. They took care of each other in school and now trust each other to take care of their families and friends as physicians. The bonding memories of sharing tank in gross lab or managing patients as third-year externs at the Hyde Park Clinic are things they will never forget. MWU's proud reputation today is largely due to the success and accomplishments of these alumni, and we appreciate the legacy with which they have entrusted us to continue for many generations to come.