After graduating from EMU with a biology degree in 1976, Leland Ropp went straight to medical school, on to residency and then a 25-year career as a pediatric emergency physician in the Detroit area. (Dealing with frightened parents in the ER was often harder than dealing with their sick children, he reports.)
He’s always treasured the opportunities he had as an undergrad to step outside that medical trajectory.
“EMU allowed me a chance to explore at lot of things,” says Ropp, who most recently practiced in Dearborn, Michigan, and retired two years ago.
After finishing his core science classes, Ropp enjoyed the chance to study sculpture and painting. He also stayed with a French Mennonite family while studying European history and culture on a Euro Term.
Ropp, who has supported EMU since he graduated, says the university’s peace and justice programs also inspire him to continue giving.
He also supports his church – Shalom Community Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan – and Mennonite-affiliated agencies like Mennonite Central Committee and Mennonite Economic Development Associates.
The church’s emphasis on giving surrounded Ropp as he grew up in Minnesota and Iowa. This, he says, helped form his commitment to support worthy causes “whole-heartedly” – as did, more specifically, the teaching from Luke 12:48: to whom much is given, much is expected.