Renaissance Couple: Client Spotlight on Keith Burridge and Pat Saling
We appreciate Keith Burridge and Pat Salingthe wide variety of backgrounds, experiences, talents and interests of our clients and thought it would be fun to share their stories with others. We hope you enjoy our “Client Spotlight” feature!
Keith and Pat have had outstanding careers as world-class scientists, but both also possess the distinction of being accomplished artists.
Keith was born in England and earned his PhD in molecular biology from the prestigious Cambridge University where he studied with current and future Nobel laureates. His life’s work has been devoted to deciphering intricate structures of cells that permit cancer to metastasize, a mission that continues to this day.
Pat was earning her doctorate in cell physiology at the University of Pennsylvania when she met Keith. Her field of research is the fertilization of eggs at the molecular level. They were married in 1978 and discovered the Triangle during a honeymoon trip to the Outer Banks. In 1981 when a professorship came open for Keith at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, they jumped at the chance to move south. Pat was then hired as a professor at Duke in both the Ob/Gyn and Cell Biology Departments where she worked for 25 years until retirement not long ago.
Like Leonardo da Vinci, their impressive scientific accomplishments are complemented by their artistic endeavors. Keith chose language as his medium, and is a published playwright. His most recent work, “The First Woman President”, debuted this spring. This one woman, one act play tells the true story of how Edith Wilson secretly ran the country from 1919 to 1921 when her husband, Woodrow Wilson, was debilitated from a stroke. A reading of the play was held at the Carrboro Arts Center in February 2016. Click here to see a video of this riveting performance.
Pat, by contrast, works in three dimensions as a ceramic artist. She transforms clay into exquisite objects which are both functional and decorative. Their rich, colorful and multi-layered glazes are her signature statement. Pat has exhibited her works at the Frank Gallery in Chapel Hill as well as other local galleries.
It’s been our good fortune to have this talented couple as both friends and clients for almost 20 years!
Bonnie Mole is Client Service and Communications Manager at Townsend Asset Management Corp. Email: Bonnie@AssetMgr.com