Rose Harville Kraft

n December 31, 1998, Rose Kraft, managing editor of this journal and manager of the Scientific Publications Office, retired after 30 years of continuous service to Baylor University Medical Center. She has been with the Scientific Publications Office from its start in the mid-1980s and helped nurse the BUMC Proceedings through its difficult infancy to, as she says, its present “early adolescence.” With such loving care ensuring a strong start, it is certain that the journal will reach its full maturity. It seems appropriate that at the beginning of this new year of 1999, near the dawning of a new millennium, a few of Rose’s friends and colleagues offer her their best wishes for the beginning of her new life.

George J. Race, MD, PhD (founding editor, BUMC Proceedings):

The retirement of Rose Kraft as the managing editor of BUMC Proceedings and manager of Scientific Publications prompts me to recall some wonderful times in the development of the Proceedings.

Rose first came to Baylor in 1968 to work part-time in my office in the Department of Pathology. It was immediately obvious that she possessed great intelligence and office management skills. Our department had presented a paper and an exhibit in Washington, D.C., relating to the use of electron microscopy in surgical pathology diagnosis. David Miller, the medical editor of Harper & Row Publishers, saw this exhibit and suggested we prepare a book about this subject. That idea grew into Laboratory Medicine, a major textbook. Rose began helping me with Laboratory Medicine, a 4-volume, loose-leaf book containing 6000 pages and 2000 illustrations. She served as an editorial coordinator between more than 100 authors and Harper & Row and was totally involved with 13 subsequent revisions. Rose learned the fine art of scientific publishing and copyediting under the editorship of David Miller and Jean Woods of Harper & Row. With this additional training, Rose was absolutely superior, and our many departmental publications improved.

During this time, the Research Committee at Baylor was very active. Rose assisted in the writing of research grants and assisted the staff and residents in writing papers to be published in national journals. She had a special knack for gaining the confidence and support of authors, residents, and staff, both in the department and in the medical center. Her contributions are many.

In 1982, the Baylor Research Foundation (later renamed the Baylor Research Institute) was established with Boone Powell, Sr., as chairman. Mr. Powell was anxious to develop a research presence on campus that would be a magnet for attracting research funds and support. To this end, we gained space at 3812 Elm Street, and the Baylor Research Institute took over the function of monitoring all of BUMC’s research endeavors. The Research Institute has continued to prosper.

In 1986, the Scientific Publications Office was established within the Baylor Research Institute and has provided the editorial staff that began developing the journal. Rose has been the managing editor since the inception of the journal, and much of its success should be credited to the hard work, high professional standards, and experience provided by Rose and the talented staff she has attracted. Of equal importance is the support of busy and dedicated Baylor doctors who took the time to write and publish academic articles. Many of these doctors have served on our editorial board. My daily active participation ended in September 1989 when I retired after 30 years of service to Baylor. I continued, however, to volunteer as the editor of BUMC Proceedings and associate dean for Continuing Education. I am proud to have been involved with BUMC Proceedings and am proud of its many awards and of its staff.

In closing, I must say that the contributions Rose Kraft has made to Baylor Pathology, to the Baylor Research Institute, and to BUMC Proceedings are absolutely outstanding, and it will be a great loss when she is no longer on campus. Perhaps we can invite her back occasionally for consultation and to tap into her wealth of experience and knowledge.

Adrian E. Flatt, MD (George Truett James Orthopaedic Institute, BUMC):

I will miss you and your sage advice regarding the Proceedings. It has given me a lot of pleasure working with one so skilled, not only in the use of language, but also in the management of publishing. I once did a 10 years’ sentence as an editor of a scientific journal—where were you when I needed you?!

Sincere best wishes in your well-earned retirement—but beware, it ain’t for weaklings.

Maruf A. Razzuk, MD (Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgery, BUMC):

As we say good-bye to Rose, we will miss her smile, her warm reception, and the genuine advice that she always offered. The legacy that she leaves embodies the traditional human values of caring, nurturing, and guiding with compassion. Rose gave 30 great years of service to Baylor. She assisted Dr. George Race in the publication of his textbooks and led the BUMC Proceedings to numerous awards of excellence.

Many people strive for the spotlight regardless of the cost. Then there are a few like Rose, who shine in their own right, through devotion and dedication regardless of the sacrifice.

Mary Moore Free, PhD (house anthropologist, BUMC):

How does one adequately pay tribute to Rose Kraft who, after 30 years of active service to Baylor University Medical Center, is preparing to retire? Albeit it is quite simply impossible to do so sufficiently, I am honored to be included among those who were asked. The following is my attempt.

Rose, who is retiring from her present position as manager of the Scientific Publications Office and managing editor of the Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, is professionally and personally the consummate lady. With dignity and serenity, she gives professional direction to her staff, editors, and authors and her personal attention to her friends. I am in the fortunate situation to know of her possessing these admirable characteristics because I am the beneficiary of her editing skill and her friendship!

My initial contact with Rose came as a result of my late husband’s first heart attack. At that time, he was a member of the advisory board for the (then) Metabolic Center (now the Institute of Metabolic Disease) and, consequently, we received the Proceedings. During his course of cardiac rehabilitation under the direction of Walter Berman, MD, I recorded field notes. After several weeks of his rehabilitation, I realized that I had collected data that should be written up and published. Dr. Berman agreed. Because I had become familiar with BUMC’s scientific journal, I called the Scientific Publications Office to discuss the potential of publishing those data in the Proceedings. It was then that I met Rose.

Much time has passed and many changes have occurred since then, but Rose has remained the same. Professionally, she has generously performed her editing miracles on all of my manuscripts, thus making me look good for my other editors. (I wish she could perform her editing miracles on this piece.) Personally, she has generously given her time to me—rejoicing in my smooth waters and soothing my troubled ones.

I hope I let her retire!

Jesse E. Thompson, MD (former chief of Surgery and Vascular Surgery, BUMC):

It has been a genuine pleasure to work with Rose Kraft on articles for the Proceedings. She is very efficient, very professional, always pleasant, and most helpful as managing editor. In my experience, she has been easy to work with, but at the same time has always insisted on the highest standards of excellence that are reflected in the continued improvement in the Proceedings. I really hate to see Rose Kraft retire, although she deserves a rest after all of her hard work. She will be hard to replace, and we will all certainly miss her. I wish her all the best in her future activities and thank her for all she has done for me personally and for Baylor.

N. Y. Zachariah, PhD (editorial board, BUMC Proceedings):

When BUMC Proceedings was first published in 1988, it had humble beginnings, and just a few among the staff supported its continued publication. Although it was designed to promote and publicize the medical and scientific research and educational activities of Baylor and to be a vehicle of communication, among the staff it was acknowledged to have a very uncertain future—to say the least.

Rose Kraft, as the managing editor of BUMC Proceedings, made tireless efforts and took a personal interest to see this journal reach full maturity. She continued to strive for excellence, improving the format, presentation, and quality of each article published in BUMC Proceedings. In a short span of 12 years, BUMC Proceedings has won national recognition and medical journal awards.

Today, it is gratifying to note the support BUMC Proceedings receives from many individuals and institutions in the USA and from countries abroad. The editorial staff at the Scientific Publication Office, especially Beverly Peters, is to be commended for the fine support given to Rose in all her efforts.

I consider it my privilege to have worked with Rose and to have shared with her the history of BUMC Proceedings.

J. B. Howell, MD (Dermatology, BUMC):

The very best of good wishes to you in the next chapter of your life—retirement. Imagine, no more moving the office every few months. You have been a splendid managing editor for the Proceedings and, personally, a remarkable help in editing a few of my manuscripts for publication.

Your smile and radiant personality make any visit to your office a joy. You will be missed, but parting won’t be sweet sorrow! Remember, it’s better to be gone and not forgotten than to be forgotten and not gone. Thanks for a task well done.

George N. Peters, MD (executive director, UT Southwestern Center for Breast Care):

I still remember the first time I met Rose. I had to have an article ready for publication in a surgical journal, and, as usual, I was under the gun—and the article required a substantial amount of revision. I was referred to Rose, and as you would imagine in such a situation, I was quite anxious and nervous, and I knew I was not going to have things done by the deadline. Rose sat me down and patiently explained to me what needed to be done and assured me that we would meet the deadline. The only request she made was that in the future she would like to be involved in the process at an earlier stage. I had taken the manuscript to Rose in the morning. By 2 o’clock, I had a phone call from her that it was ready to go. From then on, whenever I had a request for journal publications or book chapters, Rose handled the final preparation of the manuscripts. Throughout the years, she has been an influence that has placed oil on the choppy waters, has always calmed me down, and truly has helped and taught me how to prepare better publications. Rose is always patient. If she thinks a correction needs to be made, I do it without hesitation. With my recent move from Baylor to Southwestern Medical School, I have had an increase in the number of my publications. When it came time for me to prepare some very critical publications, there was no question that Rose would be involved in the final preparation. She has been consistent, she has been efficient, and she has always been right. Each time we would meet, she would still ask me if I could have my publications in earlier. I will sorely miss her as an advisor and as a teacher. I wish her the best in her retirement. With her years of dedicated work, Rose can honestly say that she has made a difference.

Beverly A. Peters, MA (editorial staff, BUMC Proceedings):

When I nervously phoned Rose Kraft in 1987 to inquire about a job opening in the Scientific Publications Office, I had no idea that the conversation would mark the beginning of a professional and personal relationship that has lasted a dozen years and will continue, I hope, into the new millennium. At the time, I was completing a master’s degree in biomedical communications at UT Southwestern and was eager to apply my newly acquired computer skills. The desktop publishing revolution was in full swing, and Rose’s vision of harnessing that technology to produce Baylor’s new journal was exciting. She and I, along with the other staff members through the years, have worked on every issue of the Proceedings; this one is the 45th.

Others have written eloquently about Rose’s skill as an editor; her ability to hone a rough manuscript into a polished gem is unsurpassed. However, Rose’s skill in dealing with people is equally impressive. As a manager, she is fair, supportive, generous, and, above all, kind. She has been not only a mentor, but also a friend to her employees and has shared in their joys and sorrows with empathy and compassion. She has shouldered the burden of tremendous responsibility with grace and humor, and no one could have fought harder than she has for the office, the staff, and the journal. And while many people recognize the significance of her myriad contributions to Baylor, only those closest to Rose comprehend the full measure of her personal sacrifice.

Rose has said that she wants the Proceedings to be her legacy, but her legacy will extend far beyond the journal’s printed pages. It will endure in the many people she has trained, the friendships she has forged, and the standards of excellence she has set. No one deserves a long, healthy, and happy retirement more than Rose, and I wish her all the best.

Michael A. E. Ramsay, MD (associate editor, BUMC Proceedings):

We never realize how good we have had it until the time comes to lose a good thing. Rose Kraft, managing editor of the BUMC Proceedings since its inception, retires, leaving a premier Texas medical journal that is focused on gaining national and international recognition. Rose has lived, breathed, and nurtured the journal, resulting in its well-deserved reputation for quality. Each year the Proceedings has outperformed the previous year. Circulation has increased, national awards have been won, and the journal has become instrumental in promoting the clinical and scientific research programs at Baylor. The advances in clinical practice in the health care system are reflected in the many reports published. Rose has developed a world-class support team that has also assisted physicians with manuscript preparation and poster presentations.

Rose will be missed. Her attention to detail, her conscientiousness, her editing skill, and her pride in a superb publication will be irreplaceable. However, her legacy will go on as the journal develops as an integral part of the Institute for Quality at Baylor. The future of the journal is bright, and the manuscripts continue to be submitted in increasing numbers, publicizing the quality of medicine practiced and research conducted in the Baylor Health Care System. Through Rose’s expert management, the journal has found a place in medical libraries and in the homes of the physicians and the “Friends of Baylor.”

Rose—a tough job well done—we will miss you! Thank you for the legacy of excellence that you will leave with us.

William C. Roberts, MD (editor in chief, BUMC Proceedings):

I first met Rose Kraft 6 years ago but really began getting to know her 4 years ago when I became involved with the journal. Rose is a lover of the English language, a lover of the BUMC Proceedings, and a lover of Baylor. Rose was with the journal from its beginning in 1988, and she has put her all into every one of the 45 issues. I have dealt with managing editors for 35 years, the last 16 on a near-daily basis as editor of The American Journal of Cardiology. Rose is the best managing editor, copy editor, and manager of an editorial office I have encountered. She pleasantly permeates all those who work with her with her standards, and her standards are the highest I have ever encountered. Rose, we will do our best not to let your standards slack once you start your retirement. That will be difficult without you around, but we would all be guilty if we did not make a strenuous effort on a daily basis to live up to the standards that you have established. You will be sorely missed.