Dr. Augustus White III Shares Twenty Real-Life Tales of Resilience and Hope in “Overcoming”
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In this episode 236, we visit with Dr. Augustus White III, author of “Overcoming: Lessons in Triumphing over Adversity and the Power of Our Common Humanity,” a collection of real-life profiles of men and women united by the theme of overcoming adversity.
After the collective trauma America experienced during the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. White, whose been called “the Jackie Robinson of orthopedics,” was motivated to introduce us to everyday individuals whose grit, determination, and resilience serve as inspiration to make it to the other side of this crisis.
Arne Duncan, former Secretary of Education under President Barack Obama, had this to say about the book, “In Overcoming, Dr. Gus White has fashioned a timely and terrific treatment of the human condition and instructive roadmap for negotiating one of the most perilous periods in American history. A prescription of hope for an ailing nation beset by racial and ethnic disharmony and a pandemic that has struck us at our most vulnerable core. An inspiring journey certain to lift spirits and help us all to overcome.”
Connect With the Author
About the Author:
AUGUSTUS WHITE III has been called “the Jackie Robinson of orthopedics.” He was the first African-American medical student at Stanford, the first black surgical resident at Yale, the first black professor of surgery at Yale, and the first black chief of service at a Harvard teaching hospital. He is professor of orthopedics and medical education at Harvard Medical School and Professor Emeritus in the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology.
Dr. White has pioneered the movement in U.S. and Canadian medical schools for culturally competent care and is a leading voice in the medical community’s ongoing efforts to address the significant disparities in health and healthcare suffered by African Americans and other minorities. Among his many awards is the William W. Tipton Jr. MD Leadership Award for his work as an educator, mentor and champion of diversity initiatives.
Additional Endorsements
“Overcoming is a book about optimism and courage. The writing is plain and direct. It is also evocative. This book will move you and reinforce your will to overcome and even benefit from life’s most severe challenges.”
—Louis Sullivan, former Health and Human Services Secretary
“Overcoming is a beautiful and deeply moving book that reminds us of our common humanity and of the reservoir of resilience that resides in all of us. I love the fact that the reader learns about so many strategies to survive and even grow from the many stresses, traumas and tragedies that we will face at some point in our life, and that we learn these strategies through the eyes and actions of everyday heroes. To me, Overcoming is a true gift that inspires the reader to rise up to their best self and join the human family so that we together can confront, overcome and grow from the challenges that life presents us.”
—Dr. Steven Southwick, bestselling author of Resilience: The Science of Mastering Life’s Greatest Challenges
“In this latest book, Dr. White reminds us of our shared values through portraits of 20 exemplary individuals who have overcome extreme physical, mental, economic, and social hardships, and against all odds have succeeded, without abandoning hope and their faith in human solidarity. This book is an ode to humanity, and could not be more timely. It reminds us that what unites us as human beings is more enduring than what divides us.”
—Vartan Gregorian, president of the Carnegie Corporation
“Resilience is a popular term today and it has become ever more important as world crises deepen with no end in sight. Reading about these heroic struggles, our backs straighten, our confidence in the future is reborn and our self-pity melts away. We can all feel buoyed by these profiles in determination.”
—Ruth Simmons, president of Prairie View A&M University
“Dr. Augustus White presents us with inspiring and invaluable stories of resilience at a time when resilience has never mattered more. Triumphing over adversity, he forcefully reminds us, is a team sport. His book offers powerful illustrations of an essential truth: ‘No one makes it alone.’”
—Drew Gilpin Faust, former president of Harvard University
“This new book from Dr. Gus White is most timely. Natural and man-made traumas assault us as individuals and communities. Into this reality, renowned surgeon. This exceptional book tells the stories of how individuals face the challenges of debilitating illness and other life crises, and how these challenges reveal the primary elements of our essential human resilience and ability to overcome the hard challenges we all inevitably face in our lives.”
—Dr. Gregory Fricchione, Associate Chief of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital
“Dr. Augustus White has taken the stories of 20 individuals and woven them into a compelling book focusing on resilience and the common strain that comes from humankind when we think beyond ourselves and contribute to the goodness that can be found in our daily lives. For me, these stories gave me both a sense of hope and a belief in the future of humankind.”
—Gordon Gee, former president of Ohio State University
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