ADVANCEMENT IMPACT A LIFE OF SERVICE

Dr. John Erpenbach Graduate Fellowship

Honors UT Alumnus

A new graduate fellowship in the College of Social Work honors the memory of Dr. John Erpenbach (B.S. ’72; M.D. ’75), a physician and advocate for the treatment of substance abuse disorders.

The fellowship was endowed by John’s wife, Natasha Erpenbach. It is designated for master’s level students with an interest in the treatment of substance abuse in a clinical setting. “John served on the board of Cornerstone of Recovery for over 20 years,” Natasha said. “We wanted to honor his dedication to the field of recovery.”

John received his undergraduate degree from UT in 1972 and went on to get his medical degree at UT Memphis in 1975. He was a flight surgeon for the 82nd Airborne Division and continued to serve in the National Guard until his retirement as Colonel in 2003.

Having completed his medical residency in anesthesiology at Vanderbilt in 1984, he later changed specialties and completed a residency in family practice at UT in 1998. He held clinical and academic positions at Vanderbilt University Hospital, UT Medical Center, and was on staff at Park West and East Tennessee Children’s Hospital. He finished his medical career at the Veterans’ Administration Outpatient Clinic in Knoxville.

John’s friendship with Bill Hood, founder of Cornerstone of Recovery, led to his long association with the treatment center. He served as a consultant, instructor and physician on call and was a tireless advocate for those facing the challenges of addiction. “Cornerstone’s success was partly due to John’s unwavering support for the mission of helping those seeking recovery from their battle with addiction,” said Steve McGrew, former CEO of Cornerstone.

“John’s life was about service,” Natasha said. “He was the most selfless person I have ever met.” The couple met through Natasha’s work with Friendship Force, an organization which promotes cultural understanding through personal contact. Natasha, a native of Kyrgystan, was serving as a translator for a group of visiting Americans which included John’s parents. Later, she accompanied a group from her country to Knoxville, where John was their guide for a tour of the UT Medical Center. The couple married in 1993 and have a daughter, Sasha.

“My father was serious and meticulous, but he had a wonderful sense of humor,” Sasha said. “You could always tell when he was winding up for a joke. He was a great teacher who believed that every experience could be a learning experience. He wanted me to know how to be on my own and build and fix things. He taught me to rewire light fixtures and how to use tools and how to encounter things in the world. He loved travel and taught me to use maps and to navigate. There was no challenge too great, no problem he couldn’t solve.”

Sasha, a graduate of the University of Mary Washington, will receive a master’s degree in Museum Studies from George Washington University in May. She believes the John Erpenbach Graduate Fellowship would mean a great deal to her father. “He received scholarships at UT and was always proud of me when I received one,” she said. “He was a great proponent of education, and he would want to be associated with a fellowship that provides positive change in the world. It’s a way of making sure that his legacy lives on.”