WVU FOUNDATION
A West Virginia University faculty member’s $50,000 gift to support the new William A. Neal Museum of the Health Sciences celebrates the life and legacy of its namesake.
Dr. Larry Rhodes and his wife, Terry, made their gift in memory of Neal, a pioneering pediatric cardiologist who died Jan. 1, 2021, at the age of 80. Over more than 40 years at WVU, Neal cared for thousands of patients, trained countless medical students and residents, helped lead the development of WVU Medicine Children’s and founded the nation’s largest youth-based heart disease research initiative.
Neal also led efforts to establish the museum, which opened in late October near the historic Pylons sculptures on WVU’s Health Sciences Campus.
“In addition to being a great physician, educator, leader and historian, Bill was a true friend to all he met,” said Rhodes, assistant dean for health sciences programs at WVU’s Beckley Campus, executive director of rural programs for the Health Sciences Center and James H. Walker, MD Chair of Pediatric Cardiology at the School of Medicine. “He cared deeply about the children of our state and their families. He was my role model for over three decades and my personal goal is to someday be half the West Virginian that he was. We know that the William A. Neal Museum of the Health Sciences was a work of love for him and are certain that if it was not for his dedication to the school of medicine, the university and the state, it would not be here. We are honored to be able to help maintain his legacy.”
The William A. Neal Museum of the Health Sciences showcases the history of health care in West Virginia and Appalachia, and documents the impact of WVU’s schools of medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, nursing and public health over the course of 150 years on the region, across the U.S. and around the world.
The museum includes health-related artifacts, rare manuscripts and other holdings from the West Virginia and Regional History Center at WVU Libraries, and other items provided by faculty, alumni and friends of the university. The space also includes a multimedia theater.
“We are so grateful to Larry and Terry Rhodes for their very generous support of the William A. Neal Museum of the Health Sciences,” Dr. Clay Marsh, WVU Health Sciences chancellor and executive dean, said. “Not only does this gift help preserve and share the rich history of health and medical care in our state and region, but it also honors Bill Neal’s memory and his tireless contributions and legacy in establishing the museum. Bill would be honored and humbled by this gift, and we are so appreciative of Larry and Terry’s thoughtfulness.”
A Huntington native, Neal earned his medical degree at WVU in 1966. He returned to WVU after completing military
