Howard Wright’s volunteering experiences in Latin America date back to the summer before he arrived at Washington State University as a first-year student. His eagerness to lend a hand and to broaden his horizons as a young man took him to Guatemala.
Guatemala and its people stayed with him long after he returned to the rolling hills of the Palouse. After earning his degree from WSU in 1976, Wright continued to support public health endeavors in the region, ranging from immunization efforts to curbing the spread of zoonotic diseases, which disseminate between animals and humans.
Later this month, the vice-chair of the WSU Board of Regents will receive an honorary doctorate from the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala and deliver its commencement address to graduating students.
Wright’s longstanding commitment to the people of Guatemala and his eagerness to jump in and, at times literally get his hands dirty, was instrumental in forging a lasting partnership between WSU’s Allen School for Global Health and UVG.
“There was this tremendous opportunity to bring two great institutions together,” said Wright, adding that he is honored by the recognition from UVG. “The Allen School has always captivated me, especially their efforts to understand and prevent the spread of zoonotic diseases.”
Dr. Guy Palmer, who recently retired as the founding director of the Allen School for Global Health, forged a friendship with Wright doing public health outreach. It began with a trip centered on providing dental healthcare. While it wasn’t exactly Palmer’s expertise, he accepted Wright’s invitation to serve as an advisor and translator.
During that trip, Palmer saw Wright, an accomplished entrepreneur and business executive, putting in 14-16 hour days, as he helped to organize and provide logistical support.
“It’s obvious Howard could have written a large check and never bothered to go down there, but that’s not who he is,” Palmer said. “He wants to be involved, and he is passionate about this work.”
Another trip saw Wright bolster his reputation as someone willing to put in the work. Palmer recalled an experience where the two traveled to a remote village in northern Guatemala to survey the work being done by UVG and WSU.
“Because a lot of men have to leave the country to find work, many responsibilities fall on the women of these communities,” Palmer explained. “And so, Howard sees these women chopping wood, and he goes over to them and asks if he can chop the wood for them. The way they were laughing, seeing Howard chopping wood, it looked like they thought it was the most hilarious thing they had ever seen.”
The two began talking about ways to build a relationship between WSU’s Allen School and UVG. That collaboration grew considerable over the past decade, with WSU now having a permanent faculty member in Guatemala, Brooke Ramay, an associate professor and member of the Allen School. Ramay also mentors Guatemalan students and leads WSU’s side of a research program giving native undergraduates research opportunities.
Much of the work has focused on combating antibiotic resistance through improving sanitary conditions and water quality. There’s also been significant effort to combat the spread of diseases between animals that are pivotal to the lives of rural Guatemalans and their caretakers.
The sustained commitment to improving the lives and communities across the world that Palmer saw in Wright is exactly what Wright saw in Palmer.
Last year, Wright and his wife Katherine Janeway did something to recognize Palmer’s significant contributions to improving health around the world, establishing the Dr. Guy Palmer Fund in Global Health at WSU.
“It was something small that I could do to honor someone I respect so much who has done so much for WSU and the world with his work on behalf of the Allen school.”
Wright also supports the next generation of global health researchers through the Wright Grant Scholars program. The endowment provides scholarships to students interested in addressing antimicrobial resistance in Guatemala.
Both men will be traveling to Guatemala later this month for UVG’s fall commencement.
“I was sure they were mistaken when they got in touch and told me I was going to be honored,” Wright said. “I’m so honored and privileged to receive this honor and to address the graduating class of students who will go on to do extraordinary things in the country.”
