A heartfelt gift from father to son
By Alex Branch
Each of the six stethoscopes that William Thomas Jr., DO, has sponsored for first-year medical students at the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine are special to him.
But a stethoscope he funded this year has extra meaning to the 1982 TCOM graduate.
His son, Andrew Thomas, was a recipient of the Littmann Cardiology IV stethoscope that Dr. Thomas sponsored through a gift to the UNTHSC Foundation. All 230 students in the Class of 2022 received stethoscopes thanks to the generosity of donors.
“My father also was an osteopathic physician, and now my son is on a path to become the third generation of osteopathic physicians in our family,” Dr. Thomas said. “I’m very proud and excited for him to carry on the torch.”
Alumni and community members can sponsor a stethoscope for a student through a gift of $250 — or make an even bigger impact by sponsoring more than one student with gifts of $500, $750, $1,000 or more. The stethoscopes’ tubing is inscribed with the student’s name and the bell can be inscribed with the sponsor’s name or a few words of inspiration.
Any money that is left over supports student scholarships.
First stethoscopes are deeply meaningful to medical students. They use their stethoscopes throughout their medical education and many continue to use them during their professional practice.
Dr. Thomas has practiced family medicine in Burleson for 35 years. He not only supports the stethoscope sponsorship program but has also contributed to the renovation of Alumni Plaza, the Annual Alumni and Friends Crawfish Boil and student scholarships at UNTHSC.
“Osteopathic medicine has given so much to me,” he said. “It’s very rewarding for me to be able give back something to the future generation of osteopathic physicians.”
Students who receive stethoscopes write thank you notes to their stethoscopes sponsors. Reading them is one of the many things Dr. Thomas enjoys about the program.
“These students are at the beginning of their medical journey,” Dr. Thomas said. “They are full of hope for the future and the stethoscope is something that they can carry throughout their career.”
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