CMC | Friends come to visit

Friends come to Visit

Throughout its history, Christian Medical College, Vellore has continued to welcome those who have supported and shaped its mission. Donors, well-wishers, and family members of the institution’s earliest physicians regularly return to witness, firsthand, the continuing impact of the work they helped build. This page serves as an ongoing record of these visits, documenting the delegations, individuals, and longstanding friends of CMC who have travelled to Vellore, including participants in on-campus Round Table gatherings and representatives of Friends of Vellore chapters based in Germany, Canada, and the United States.

2025: Across Borders, a Shared Hope

Daryl and Wendy, long-standing supporters of CMC Vellore from the South Australian Branch of the Australian Friends of Vellore, attended the inauguration of the Hybrid Vascular Operating Theatre at the Ranipet Campus on 29th January 2025. The communications team met them for a brief conversation following the event.

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Daryl & Wendy photo to be added

“We’ve been supporting this project for quite a while, so to actually stand inside this operating theatre now, it’s pretty special,” Dr. Daryl began. “Dr. Prabhu had a clear vision for what this Hybrid Vascular Operating Theatre could be. We knew from day one that it wasn’t just about building something high-tech. It was about benefiting patients by reducing pain, making surgeries faster, cutting down infection rates, reducing the length of hospital stays, and improving patient care.”
They recalled that some in the Australian medical community were unsure at first. “A few felt it might be too ambitious for the setting here,” Wendy recalled. “But we believed in Dr. Prabhu’s project and CMC Vellore. With the right support, we knew it could happen, and it would make a real difference.”
“Our role wasn’t huge, mostly advocating for this high-tech project, and donating funds when we could,” Wendy added. “But it meant something to us. It was about being part of something we truly believed in.”
The Australian Board of Friends of Vellore eventually embraced the project and committed significant funds, culminating in the completion of the operating theatre. “Yes, it’s a major medical upgrade,” Dr. Daryl said, “and it also shows what can happen when people come together across borders for a shared purpose. We were privileged to be here to witness the opening of the Theatre and to enjoy it with our Vellore colleagues. We thank God for CMC Vellore’s vision and faithfulness in developing this major step forward in state-of-the-art surgical services in India.”

The state-of-the-art Hybrid Vascular Operating Theatre was inaugurated at the Ranipet Campus on 29th January 2025.

2023: Round Table

Round Table gatherings at CMC Vellore bring together friends, supporters, alumni, and members of the CMC family to share experiences, reflect on the institution’s journey, and strengthen longstanding relationships.

Dr. Vikram Mathews, Director, CMC Vellore, welcomed the gathering

These informal yet meaningful interactions provide an opportunity to hear from those connected with CMC, learn about its ongoing work, and explore ways in which its m

2020: early year trip

Global travel shut down soon after, but not before the Board Chair of Friends of Vellore (FOV) US made an early-year trip to Vellore. He later shared his reflections on the visit.

2019: Visitors in January

Friends from Germany arrived during Pongal, the Tamil Nadu harvest festival.

They travelled to the tribal region of Jawadhi, where the Community Health department runs an outreach program.
Dr. Peter Albrecht, chairperson of Friends of Vellore (Germany), presented a prize to the young winner of a Pongal competition.

A family returns for the Scudder bicentenary

Members of Ida Scudder’s extended family, including grand-nieces, grand-nephews, and their children, visited to mark the 200th anniversary of the Scudder family’s medical work at Ranipet.

Cynthia Scudder Sherman, Ida’s grand-niece, recalled a faint but treasured memory of meeting Ida as a small child. This was her third visit to CMC, after trips in 1993 and for the 2000 centenary, and this time she brought her own children to see the impact firsthand.
Reid Sherman reflected on how much CMC has grown across his visits. He praised the dedication of staff who could earn more elsewhere but choose to stay for the mission, and remarked that “the USA could learn a lot from the way things are done in Vellore.”
Terry Sherman, visiting for the first time, spoke about walking through the wards, seeing patients helped, and visiting the Jawadhi hills, calling it “something we’re going to keep with us for the rest of our lives.”

2019: Visitors in March

William, Douglas, and Val Virgin, from the Vellore Ludhiana Committee of Canada, visited.

They arrived from sub-zero Canadian temperatures into a Vellore already in the mid-thirties.
They toured CMC’s upcoming hospital campus at Kannigapuram.
Val, a former nurse, and Bill, a pastor and counsellor, also visited RUHSA, the Rural Unit for Health and Social Affairs.

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2023

Round Table

2020

**Board Chair of FOV US shares thoughts about visit to Vellore early this year**

2019

Our visitors in January

In January, during the time of the State harvest festival – Pongal, our Friends from Germany had come to visit.

The pictures featured here were taken during their trip to the tribal region of Jawadhi where the Community Health department runs an outreach program.

Dr. Peter Albrecht, chairperson of Friends of Vellore (Germany) handing over a prize to the young winner of a competition, held as part of Pongal celebrations.

Members of Ida Scudder’s extended family – some of her grand-nieces and nephews and their children – visited us this year, on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the starting of the medical work at Ranipet by the Scudder family. Among them was Ida’s grand niece, Cynthia Scudder Sherman.

“My great aunt was Ida Sophia Scudder. I remember meeting her when I was very small. She was in the United States raising money and I walked out onto this back porch with the sun touching the white hair of this woman. That was the only thing that I remember, and that’s very special.”
“I have been to Vellore several times and I am so impressed with what has been happening to benefit the local Indian people. I’ve brought my children so they can see for themselves. Reid has been here several times. Terry, this is his first time. “

“It’s always such a privilege to come here. This is my third visit. I was here in 1993…in 2000, for the centenary of Ida’s founding of the hospital and college, and now in 2019.
And each time we come, we’re more amazed at how CMC has grown, the number of people who are served. Today, we’ve been out with the RUHSA program. We were out with CHAD the other day, going off into the villages and seeing the Christian service here, of service to the last and the least, the poorest of the poor but also, giving them the same quality of service as someone who can pay a lot of money.
It’s also been amazing to see the dedication of the staff, the faculty at all levels… and how they could earn more money working somewhere else and yet the CMC philosophy of service is so strong. And everyone plays a part in that.
So, it’s wonderful to see… the USA could learn a lot from the way things are done in Vellore.”
– Reid Sherman

“For my sister and I, it’s our first time here. Having grown up, knowing about Scudders…knowing Jake and many others at the retreat on Shelter Island where they used to vacation, it’s just a dream come true to see it in the flesh.
To walk through the wards, see the people being helped, and know the love of God that’s being given through these amazing doctors who are so impressive. And the outreach into the Jawadhi hills, for instance… just incredible.
It’s something we’re going to keep with us for the rest of our lives.”
– Terry Sherman

Our visitors in March

William, Douglas and Val Virgin from the Vellore Ludhiana Committee of Canada.
Our Canadian Friends came from sub-zero temperatures to a Vellore that was steadily on its way up from the mid-thirties. The pic on the left shows them at CMC’s upcoming hospital campus at Kannigapuram.

Val, who had worked as a nurse and Bill, a pastor and counsellor, on their visit to RUHSA, the Rural Unit for Health and Social Affairs.