I spent August 24 and 25 at the University of Tennessee (UT) campus in Memphis to attend the dedication of its new pharmacy building. At the invitation of Dean Dick Gourley, I addressed several hundred students during the Dean’s Hour on August 24. In the evening, I had the pleasure of joining Dick at a donor appreciation dinner held in the lobby of the new building.

During the building dedication the next day, I had the privilege and honor of representing APhA in providing keynote remarks to a group that included UT’s president and health sciences chancellor, mayors and state senators, and Baeteena Black from the Tennessee Pharmacists Association (TPA). APhA has benefited from the leadership of many UT grads and staff, including Dick Gourley, Tim Tucker, Valerie Prince, L.B. Brown, Baeteena Black of TPA, Tom Sharp, Grover Bowles, and others. At the end of my talk, I also presented Dean Gourley with a 12-inch by 12-inch, 12-lb granite paver, which was engraved several years ago as an example for APhA to use in promoting to prospective donors the opportunity to support a paver in our East Terrace. Dick and UT were very supportive of APhA’s fundraising for our own building. I presented the paver to UT as a tangible link between our two organizations.