Anyone who knows me knows that I spent a semester in Kenya. SFS Kenya was one of the most formative experiences of my life and it comes up in conversation more than I’d like to admit. My wife and our four wonderful children have heard all of my SFS stories, but they never cease to inspire wonder in them, and even in me as I re-tell the tales.

After SFS, I completed my undergrad, went on to medical school, orthopedic surgery residency and a sports medicine fellowship. We settled in the Bay Area, and each time I look out at the golden hills of California, I’m reminded of the Kenyan savannah and the magic of that semester abroad…and a smile runs across my face.

Favorite SFS Memory: SFS Kenya was a very special place. Everyone had chosen to be there for their own reason; no one was present by accident. The professors, the interns and the students wanted to learn about the savannah, the wildlife and the people, and how we could sustain all three legs of this important ecological stool.

Also, there was adventure around every corner: monkeys ransacking our huts, a “controlled” burn demonstration resisting said control, game drives, an oryx deciding to charge at you in your crazy creek chair for no reason, tented expeditions, figuring out how to figure out the latest challenge with your research project…it was exhilarating; it was beautiful; it was eye-opening and it was life-changing. I returned home with more questions than I had when I arrived, but I met incredible people, made remarkable friends, and learned more that semester than any other.