GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — It’s not easy closing the chapter on a big part of life.
For Dr. Henry “Hank” W.B. Smith, III, that’s what a Friday night gathering at Moses Cone Hospital with around 100 family members, colleagues and patients is all about.
“You develop a family of people who you work with that you respect, and you develop this kinship with your patients,” Smith said. “It’s a sacred relationship.”
Smith is the first to admit his 37-year career in medicine was not originally part of the plan. Growing up in the segregated south in the 1950s and 1960s, Smith rarely felt seen or heard by doctors. He certainly didn’t think he could become one.
“In our town, only a few doctors would see Black patients,” Smith said. “Our doctor would see us, but it had to be at the end of the day after all the white patients had been seen.”
As the son of schoolteachers, Smith was hard working and smart. He attended Morehouse College in his home state of Georgia, and his world suddenly got a lot bigger.