Robert Aaronson, M67 and Susan Aaronson

"A mecca of medicine,” is how Dr. Robert Aaronson, M67 describes Boston as he experienced it during his years at Tufts University School of Medicine and as a young physician at Boston City Hospital (now Boston Medical Center). In 2015, Aaronson and his wife, Susan, established a charitable remainder trust to provide future support for Tufts and create an additional income stream for themselves during retirement. His motivations were simple: “There’s my absolute love for Tufts. I can give something back for all it’s given to me and my family. And I know exactly what I’m accomplishing: training great doctors.”

Among his own teachers was Dr. Jane F. Desforges, M45, a renowned hematologist whom Aaronson calls “the best professor I’ve ever run across [and] an incredible individual.” After training, Aaronson returned to his home state of Connecticut where he practiced Gastroenterology and taught at Yale Medical School. Patient care and teaching are an essential combination, he believes, for the practice of “living medicine.”

Aaronson’s greatest avocations in retirement are his studies of Eastern European history, and the regional cuisines of Italy. He and his wife were thrilled to attend the Class of 1967’s 50th Reunion earlier this year. Their gift has deepened their connection to TUSM, and they hope to do more: “I’m not through giving,” he says.