Together, William W. Johnston, MD’59, and Charles R. West have a more than half a century of combined service to Duke University. To be in their presence is to be regaled by one astonishing and often hilarious story after another. And yet they say their most recent undertaking—establishing an estate gift that will endow a […]

Imagine scuba diving 25 miles off the coast of Belize. The ocean floor is 3,000 feet below. In the vast blue sea, a skinny boat line is all that tethers you to humanity. Suddenly, you sense thousands of tiny ocean creatures surrounding you, but you can’t see them. A 9-foot shark approaches from the abyss. […]