From her childhood in New York City, to the turbulence of campus rebellion (at Vassar, of all places) in the 60s, to becoming the first Black female orthopedic surgeon in the United States, Claudia Thomas' life is an inspiration to all Black Americans, to all women, and in the end, to all people. As she writes in her prologue to God Spare Life:
My life can be perceived as a series of three major storms. As a young adult, I rode out the squalls of my coming of age as a college student in the 1960s. [see how she became part of the history of Vassar College ]
... While trapped in the jaws of a demonic hurricane, [the Category 5 Hurricane Hugo on the island of St. Thomas in 1989] I clung to the arms of a sofa and prayed repeatedly, 'God spare life! ...'
... But as awful as Hugo was, it could not match the storm of the desperate illness that threatened my very life ... kidney disease so severe, only a transplant or dialysis would save my life.
How did she survive, indeed thrive and achieve great things, in the face of such hardship. Read her inspiring story.
In this short video, Claudia Thomas reads the chapter "Daisy's Watch" from her autobiography God Spare Life:
