For decades, The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship (ASF) has supported emerging professionals in translating their idealism into effective action that addresses health disparities in the U.S. and Africa.

ASF's mission? To develop "Leaders in Service": individuals who are dedicated and skilled in addressing the health needs of underserved communities, and whose example influences and inspires others.

In 1940, ASF was founded in the United States to support Dr. Schweitzer's medical work in Africa during World War II. Since Dr. Schweitzer’s death in 1965, the Fellowship has continued to provide direct assistance to the Schweitzer Hospital in Lambaréné.

In 1979, the Fellowship -- under the leadership of Board Chair Emeritus Mark L. Wolf -- began sending senior U.S. medical students to work at the hospital. These Lambaréné Schweitzer Fellows work together with an international staff of Gabonese and expatriate professionals, providing skilled care through over 35,000 outpatient visits and more than 6,000 hospitalizations annually for patients from all parts of Gabon.

But Wolf and Lachlan Forrow, MD (a 1982 Lambaréné Schweitzer Fellow, and ASF's current president) soon realized that the same health disparities Fellows were traveling to Africa to address also exist in abundance here in the U.S. So in 1991, they launched ASF's U.S. Schweitzer Fellows Program.

Now, nearly 20 years later, ASF selects approximately 200 graduate students each year as U.S. Schweitzer Fellows. Over the course of a year, on top of their regular medical, nursing, or other health professional school responsibilities, each Schweitzer Fellow must develop and implement a service project of at least 200 hours with a direct and lasting impact on the health of local underserved communities. ASF now has 11 U.S. program sites, and Fellows have delivered more than 400,000 hours of high-impact service.

By creating and carrying out their Schweitzer service project at such a demanding time, Fellows emerge with a blueprint for making service to those in need an enduring part of their “regular life.” Upon completion of their initial year, they join an international alumni network of over 2,000 Schweitzer Fellows for Life—individuals skilled in, and committed to, meeting the health needs of underserved people throughout their careers as professionals. They are Dr. Schweitzer's living legacy.

Timeline

1913	Dr. Schweitzer and his wife, Hélène Bresslau, open the Schweitzer Hospital in Lambaréné, Gabon.
1915	Dr. Schweitzer develops his ethic of Reverence for Life .
1940	Dr. Schweitzer authorizes the formation of The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship® to support his medical work in Africa during World War II.
1956	Dr. Schweitzer broadens the mandate of The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship® to include promotion of Reverence for Life beyond the hospital in Lambaréné.
1979	The first Lambaréné Schweitzer Fellows spend three months at the Schweitzer Hospital in Africa.
1992	The first twelve U.S. Schweitzer Fellows are supported in year-long service projects in Boston.
1999	Over 125 U.S. Schweitzer Fellows are supported annually in seven states.
2004	The Fellows for Life Network grows to over 1,000.
2005	ASF celebrates the 100th anniversary of Albert Schweitzer?s decision to become a doctor and dedicate his life to service in Africa.
2006	Supported by a$1 Million multi-year grant from The Merk Company Foundation, ASF launches an expansion that aims to double the number of U.S. Programs to at least 12 by 2010.
2007	Bay Area and Greater Philadelphia Programs are launched.
2008	Los Angeles and New Orleans Programs are launched.
2009	Houston-Galveston Program launched.  ASF celebrates the 60th anniversary of Dr. Schweitzer's visit to the U.S.
2010	The Fellows for Life Network grows to over 2,000.
	ASF also participates as the U.S. Affiliate on the Schweitzer Hospital’s governing board, and in the AISL (Association Internationale pour l’oeuvre du Dr. Albert Schweitzer de Lambaréné - a collaborative international network of organizations committed to Dr. Schweitzer’s legacy). ASF is also involved in the Fobang Foundation in Cameroon (a humanitarian organization for science and health), and supports the Commission for the Spiritual Work of Albert Schweitzer in Gunsbach, France, which maintains Dr. Schweitzer’s original manuscripts, correspondence, and related materials.

To Learn More: Watch an informational video about the work of the Schweitzer Fellows, narrated by Dr. Timothy Johnson of ABC News, with introduction and music by Yo-Yo Ma.

Watch ASF video   9 mins.