Doctors have relied on the study of the human anatomy since the practice of medicine first began. People who bequeath their remains to the University of Central Florida College of Medicine help our students and others learn to become future healers.
The Willed-Body Program allows Florida residents 18 and older to make a difference in a medical student’s education. Regulated by the Anatomical Board of the State of Florida, the program helps individuals donate their bodies for the training of physicians, dentists, physician assistants and other health workers.
Jennifer J. Mark, MA, BSHS, LE, LFD
Director, Anatomical Facilities
6850 Lake Nona Blvd
Orlando, FL 32827
Phone: 407.266.1142
Fax: 407.266.1194
Email: anatomicalboard@ucf.edu
Willed-Body Program
I thank you for considering making this generous gift to the UCF College of Medicine Willed-Body Program. In my over 15 years as a medical educator and researcher, I have seen first-hand the positive impact body donation has had on our students and our community. Your gift gives medical students the knowledge needed to practice medicine and to understand their patient’s body in a way no other training can. It creates more competent and compassionate physicians that make our world healthier and happier. The educational benefit goes well beyond what they learn in medical school. Through our outreach and research efforts, I have seen these gifts help practicing clinicians improve their skills and allow surgeons to develop new techniques with better outcomes.
I have also witnessed the impact these gifts have had on the character of our students. For many, it is their first encounter with human mortality and the experience helps them appreciate sacrifice and humanity while fostering respect, empathy, and generosity. Students often express to me how grateful they are for the gift and how they are moved to strive harder, not only in their studies, but as people. The depth and breadth of your gift can truly not be understated.
On behalf of the UCF student body, faculty, and community, I wish to express our appreciation.
Jeffrey H. Plochocki, Ph.D.
Director of the UCF College of Medicine Willed-Body Program
More Information
Orlando
University of Central Florida College of Medicine
Health Sciences Campus at Lake Nona
6850 Lake Nona Blvd
Orlando, FL 32827
(ph.) 407-266-1142
(fax) 407-266-1194
anatomicalboard@ucf.edu
Gainesville
University of Florida College of Medicine
1600 SW Archer Rd, Room CG-96
PO Box 100235
Gainesville, FL 32610-0235
(ph.) 352-392-3588
(fax) 352-392-3940
anatbd.acb.med.ufl.edu
anatbd@dean.med.ufl.edu
Miami
University of Miami School of Medicine
Department of Cell Biology and Anatomy
PO Box 016960 (R-124)
Miami, FL 33101-6960
(ph.) 305-243-6691
(fax) 305-545-7166
sofab.med.miami.edu
dhoodiman@med.miami.edu
Planned Giving
At the UCF College of Medicine, we are committed to leading the way in advancing medical knowledge and patient care solutions. When you include a gift to the UCF College of Medicine in your estate plan, you help us produce the next generation of innovative and insightful health care leaders. Whether you would like to put your donation to work today or support our mission after your lifetime, we can help you find a charitable plan that fits your needs and makes a lasting difference in the future of health care. The choices involve vehicles such as charitable trusts, gift annuities, the sale of property, and other advanced estate planning concepts.A planned gift incorporates philanthropy with estate and financial planning to benefit both you and COM. Planned gifts include life income gifts, retained life estate gifts, life insurance, retirement gifts, outright gifts of assets, and bequests. For more information on how to support the mission and work of the Anatomy Lab or the UCF College of Medicine please contact comdevelopment@ucf.edu or call us at 407.266.1040.
Silent Teachers
Some of our greatest teachers were once among the living, going to work, making a living, raising a family, and not really thinking about all that we would learn from them.
The greatest teachers we could ever ask for shared lives of happiness, memories, pain and sadness with many. They may have raised a family and enjoyed grandchildren. They may have traveled to exotic places around the world. They may have shared personal feelings and love with those close to them. They may have had a career that was successful and rewarding. They may have spent time volunteering to help others in need.
The greatest teachers we could ever ask for never knew us, yet they had the courage and willingness to be there for us even during the end of their lives. They shared with us all we could ever ask for, and we were eager to learn all there was to know.
We never knew the details of their lives, but as we learned from them, we began to understand what may have been going on inside of them toward their life’s end. We wondered at the time of their death whether they were in pain, with their family, or alone.
The greatest teachers we could ever ask for were individuals we never met yet now we know everything about them. They will be forever with us, still teaching and reminding us every step of the way. They were more than textbooks, notes, lectures or presentations. They were among the greatest people we will have ever met.
We thank every one of them for the greatest gift one could ever give. We were not given the cause of their death. Instead, we had to present a clinical pathology conference to our peers and faculty, demonstrating everything we learned about them, including our opinion about their cause of death and their quality of life around the time of their death.
Later, our class held a memorial to our greatest teachers to honor them, say goodbye, but most of all to say thank you.