Carter hails UW's shy hero Foege

Thursday, March 9, 2006

Carter hails UW's shy hero Foege
New building named for health leader is dedicated

Former President Carter, keynote speaker yesterday for the dedication of a new biomedical research building on the University of Washington campus, said one reason he came to Seattle was to make sure his "friend and mentor" Dr. Bill Foege did not this time escape public recognition.

"You may not know him," Carter told at least 800 people gathered in a large tent outside the still-under-construction William H. Foege Building west of the UW Medical Center.

Carter noted a few of the "self-effacing" 1961 UW med school graduate's accomplishments: devising the global strategy that led to the eradication of smallpox in the late 1970s; leading a groundbreaking international effort to improve childhood survival in poor countries; serving as chief of the federal Centers for Disease Control during his presidency.

Not counting his own father, the former president said two men have done the most to shape his life and beliefs. One, Carter said, was Adm. Hyman Rickover, a distinguished naval officer.

"The other one is Bill Foege," he said. Carter said Foege (pronounced "fay-ghee") has been one of the most influential advocates and consensus builders in all of international health -- often working out of the spotlight but achieving goals that have certainly saved millions of lives over the years.

"We turned to Bill Foege early in the history of our foundation," said Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates, who also spoke yesterday.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which has made matters of global health its primary philanthropic target, gave $70 million to the UW to build the Foege building.

With the rain pelting and wind buffeting the large tent, Gates also credited Foege -- a former medical missionary who grew up in Eastern Washington -- with playing a leading role in helping the philanthropy craft its original mission and strategy.

But just as the former smallpox warrior took the podium to reluctantly accept the accolades, he was saved from having to fully endure the celebration when a wind gust picked up the circus-size tent. Secret Service agents rushed toward Carter.

Foege's talk was halted as UW officials announced the event would be moved inside the new building, which could only hold a few hundred people. Many left at that point.

The building will be the new home of the UW departments of genome sciences and bioengineering. "There is something better than science," read an event notice that quoted Foege outside the crammed lecture hall. "That is science with a moral compass, science that contributes to social equity, science in the service of humanity."

More headlines and info from University District.