What does it take to be successful in life? In my opinion, it takes hard work, perseverance and passion. That is something I have learned from the hardest working man that I know, my Dad.
My father, Dr. Raymond Singer, is a cardiothoracic surgeon at the Lehigh Valley Health Network. After 25 years in practice, he recently reached the milestone of performing his 7,000th heart and lung operation. He holds a number of leadership positions at the hospital and has been recognized for many achievements both in his field and in service to our community.
What most people don’t know is that my Dad came from a very humble background. His parents owned a tavern in North Philadelphia and worked their entire lives to give my father the opportunities that they never had during their childhood. My grandparents survived the Great Depression and World War II and dedicated their lives to providing for their children. My father often said that the driving force behind his own work ethic is that he would never want to let his parents down for all they sacrificed for him.
After four years of college, four years of medical school and eight years of surgical residency, my father continues to put in over 100 hours a week at work, often staying up all night performing emergency surgeries. I honestly don’t know how he does it. On a routine day, he wakes up at 5 AM for morning rounds on his patients and countless early morning meetings. It is not uncommon for him to then perform two open heart procedures, followed by more rounds, more meetings, phone calls and emails late into the evening.
As a heart surgeon, he is never truly “off.” My dad is always on-call for his patients day and night. He even gives them his personal cell phone number, so that they can call him directly with any concerns. There have been many times where my parents would take separate cars to the same event because they never knew when my father was going to get called away. Many years ago, my Dad asked my younger sister, Julia, what she wanted to be when she grew up. She answered that she wanted to be “a patient!”
My Dad, taken off guard, asked, “Why?”
Julia replied, “If I were a patient, I would get to see my Daddy more.” As Julia and I grew up, we realized that, though we had to share him with those 7,000 patients, the relationship with our Dad was indeed special and remains so to this day.
I often wonder how to thank him for all that he has done for me throughout my life. He has always been there for me and somehow, through his own life’s experiences, he always gave me the most thoughtful advice. I believe in the end, the best way to thank my Dad will be, someday, to give that same love, advice, and guidance to my own children. Until then, let me just say to my father, thank you and I love you, Dad! Happy 60th Birthday, Raymond!