They traded in their Fordham baseball and softball gloves for exam gloves. They took off their Fordham football helmets and donned protective masks. Instead of passing the ball, they hand out assists of a different nature. They run to danger instead of a finish line. They come from different sports but the one thing the former Fordham student-athletes have in common is that they are on the front lines of the COVID-19 outbreak. Doctors, nurses, policemen, EMT, firefighters, grocery store workers, they all are there when called upon, living out the Jesuit ideal of men and women for others.
 
Today we recognize former cross country/track and field Ram Dr. Erik Lawrence, GABELLI '10, a resident physician nearing the end of his first year in practice after graduating from Stony Brook's School of Medicine last year. He is currently a preliminary intern in internal medicine at NYU Winthrop who will be starting an advanced program in radiology at Northwell starting this July. 
 
When Lawrence graduated from Fordham ten years ago, the Manhasset, N.Y., native never could have imagined himself on the front lines of a global pandemic in his own backyard.
 
"NYU Winthrop Hospital has been one of the hardest hit in the New York region and I couldn't be prouder of the medical team I'm working with," said Lawrence. "Many of the principles that made me a competitive athlete at Fordham years ago have undoubtedly pushed me through the crisis we find ourselves in now."
 
Lawrence draws on the experience of being a member of a team to help him in his current profession.
 
"I would have to say being a team player is critical on the health care frontlines," said Lawrence. "In emergent and rapidly changing clinical scenarios everyone involved is expected perform at their highest level. At Fordham this mentality was seeded in me through countless practices and miles run throughout our three seasons of competition. As myself and my co-residents work tirelessly for our patients, I am reminded of the resilience and endurance my former teammates demonstrated. Undoubtedly these experiences continue to give me strength on my hardest days in the hospital."
 
"I feel the COVID-19 outbreak has challenged us all in unprecedented ways. It goes against our human nature to separate as we have and we all have battled with some degree of fear.  However, I have felt inspired by our ability to unify for a common good and I am confident our patience will pay off." 
 
Lawrence was a member of the cross country/track and field teams at Fordham from 2006-2010.