University of Virginia Medical Alumni Association

Today's Then and Now features Jomar Aryee, MD '20! 🧡💙

For the past year, Dr. Aryee has been an orthopaedic sports medicine fellow at UCLA, serving as assistant team physician for a number of their collegiate sports teams at UCLA as well as for both the LA Sparks and LA Lakers. He’ll be starting practice this fall with OrthoVirginia in Fairfax.

He is seen here with his classmates Bijan Morhsedi, MD '20, and Roy Bliley, MD '20 on the steps of the Old Medical School Building at UVA and, more recently, standing midcourt at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

His advice:
"If you think of the patient first, you'll rarely be in the wrong."

Thanks for helping us celebrate the UVA Medicine community!

MD alumni from the Classes of 1962, 1967, 1972, 1977, 1982, 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002 and 2007: Mark your calendar! Your next reunion is coming up April 23-25, 2027, and it will be here before you know it. Don't miss the chance to celebrate your milestone reunion with your classmates in Charlottesville.

Registration will open in February 2027, but you can book your hotel now. Learn more online:

https://www.uvamedalum.org/reunion/

(Seen here: Class of 1992 alumni at the 2022 Medical School Reunion Weekend)

Thanks to Karen Haunss-Sapinski, MD '94, for sharing her "Then and Now" photos with us! She's seen here graduating in 1994 and practicing as an otolaryngologist today in Long Island, NY.

Her advice:

"Always follow your gut instinct and always strive to give 100%."

Thanks for helping us celebrate the UVA Medicine community! 🧡💙

Today's Then and Now features Joey Michel, MD '23! 🧡💙

Dr. Michel currently serves as chief resident of the Brown Pediatrics Residency Program. He is seen here with his parents: first, at the 2019 White Coat Ceremony and, more recently, on June 30 of this year celebrating the completion of his residency program at Brown. His dad, Rob Michel, MD '87, Res '91, is also a UVA School of Medicine alum.

Dr. Michel's advice:

"Medicine is a long, arduous path that asks a lot of you so that you can be the best physician for your patients. You need to prioritize the things that fill your cup outside of your work so that you can show up as your whole self. For me in residency that was seeing concerts, staying active, and spending time with friends locally or on a quick weekend trip to see UVA SOM classmates and others. Lastly, pick a specialty where the empathy comes easy, medicine keeps you on your toes, and the hardest parts are ones you see as challenges, not obstacles."

Thanks for helping us celebrate the UVA Medicine community!

Hoo's ready for a reunion? We can't wait to welcome back the Classes of 2011, 2016, and 2021 for their milestone reunions during Fall Alumni Weekend, September 18-20. 🧡💙

Registration will open in August, but be sure to make your hotel accommodations now if you haven't already. You can find our hotel blocks and the weekend's agenda online:

https://www.uvamedalum.org/events/2026-fall-alumni-weekend/

We're back with another "Then and Now" alumni spotlight.

Today, we're featuring Tovia Smith, MD '06. Dr. Smith practices female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery (urogynecology) in Richmond, Va. She is seen here graduating in 2006 and today.

Her advice:
"Keep in touch with your classmates. Mine are still teaching me valuable lessons and giving me great laughs when needed!"

Thanks for helping us celebrate the UVA Medicine community!
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Help us recognize outstanding UVA School of Medicine alumni, former trainees, and faculty whose achievements are advancing medicine and improving lives.

Our 2026 Awards include the Walter Reed Distinguished Achievement Award, Distinguished Achievement Award in Biomedical Sciences, MD Early Achievement Award, Early Achievement Award in Biomedical Sciences, Humanitarian Award, and 1819 Alumni Society Award.

Nominations are due by July 31.

Find award criteria and submit a nomination online:

https://www.uvamedalum.org/awards

Congratulations to Marietta Kocher, MD '26, who won this diploma frame from the MAA for updating her contact information after graduating from the UVA School of Medicine in May. She is now an OBGYN resident at Rutgers Cooperman Barnabas.

Keeping your contact information current with the UVA Medical Alumni Association means we can let you know about news and events of interest to you, including class reunions. If you’re an alum and need to update your contact, you can do so online.

https://www.uvamedalum.org/update-contact-info/

Recognize these smiling faces? They're graduates from the Class of 2016! This fall, their class will join with the Classes of 2011 and 2021 to celebrate milestone reunions at Fall Alumni Weekend, September 18-20! Save the date now and make plans to attend. 🧡💙

Learn more about this and other upcoming events online:

https://www.uvamedalum.org/events/

We have more first week of residency pics to share!

* Andrea Colon-Perez, MD'26, is all smiles working with some of her co-interns in the psychiatry resident room at Maine Medical Center.
* Sean Crites, MD '26, is a family medicine resident at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, NC. He's seen here in the clinic pharmacist’s office at Elizabeth Family Medicine.
* Ryan Mulligan, MD'26, is a UVA pathology resident, along with alum Erin Saunders, MD'25. They're seen here meeting up after a day of looking at lymph node biopsies (Erin) and frozen sections from the ORs (Ryan).

It's such an exciting (and busy) time, and we're grateful to all of the Class of 2026 grads who have sent in photos. Thank you! 🧡💙