Joining two men with insatiable appetites for knowledge and with variant but unique connections to Phillips Community for a cordial visit over coffee and banana bread was an honor and an education.
Arnold “Arne” Anderson, was the founder, first Medical Director and CEO of Children”'s Hospital from 1967, before it opened in 1973 and until 1987 and the founder of the Teenage Medical Center. Â The Dr. Arnold S. Anderson and Rusk P. Anderson Education Center at Children”'s-Mpls is named for him and his wife.
Arne Anderson, 96, is a voracious reader so we had loaned a copy of “Wendell Phillips Liberty”'s Hero” by Professor James B. Stewart to Arne. He appreciated learning about Wendell and was surprised to learn Phillips”' own goals and hard work were similar to that for which he had worked all his life.
The next best thing was to have Arne and Jim meet and talk. The discussion spanned several topics including healthcare. Arne commented that the major players of healthcare need to be guided by a common mission. When asked to state that mission in one paragraph or one sentence, Arne responded without hesitation, in one word: SERVE!
Neighbors old enough will remember that he served as administrator while insisting that 50% of his time was serving as a pediatrician in neighbor schools and churches.