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Fred S. Wright, MD

Fred Smith Wright, MD (1937—2023), Professor Emeritus of Medicine at Yale, who devoted his life to science, first as a researcher and later as an administrator, died at home on Nov. 5 after a long illness. Fred was born in St. Louis and grew up in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin. He received his undergraduate and medical degrees at the University of Michigan, where he was a member of the varsity diving team until he discovered that the twice-daily practices negatively impacted his grade in organic chemistry. Fred trained as a resident in internal medicine at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore and as a postdoctoral investigator in kidney physiology at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. In 1968, he arrived in New Haven as an instructor in physiology at Yale School of Medicine and remained here for essentially the rest of his life, retiring at the age of 86.

At Yale, he held a joint appointment in physiology and internal medicine, focusing his research on the structure and function of the kidney. In 1977, Fred moved his lab to the campus of the VA Connecticut Healthcare System in West Haven, and in 1983, he became Associate Chief of Staff for Research. As an administrator, he selflessly oversaw and supported the careers of many investigators, including Ph.D. basic scientists and physician-scientist trainees, many of whom went on to successful and prominent careers. During his many years of service, his work was supported by awards from the NIH, the American Heart Association, and the Veterans Health Association. After his death, a two-year career development award for junior researchers in the Veterans Integrated Service Network was renamed in his honor.

Fred was a careful and thoughtful man, usually serious in demeanor, but he harbored a wry sense of humor enjoyed by those who knew him well. He revered science, loved his family, and cared deeply about his home—a pre-Civil War house whose history he meticulously investigated (ever the researcher) after his retirement and whose lawn he mowed for over 50 years with the same precision that marked his scientific career.

He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Carol; his daughter, Catherine; his granddaughter, Alice; and his sister, Nancy Wright Lund.

Services will be private. Donations can be made in his memory to the Guilford Land Trust or Connecticut Hospice.