Vardaman Moore Buckalew, Jr., MD
March 19, 1933 - July 17, 2022
Vardaman Moore Buckalew, Jr., MD passed away at his home in Winston-Salem on July 17, 2022. Known to his friends and colleagues as Vardy, Buck or Dr. B, he was the consummate Southern Gentleman. Throughout a long career practicing and teaching medicine, he received many distinctions and awards which he accepted with humility. He was kind, patient and a good listener—qualities which made him a wonderful doctor, friend, father and husband.
Vardy was born to Vardaman Moore Buckalew, Sr. and Mary Locke Buckalew on March 19, 1933, in Mobile, Alabama. He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Medical school, residency, and a renal fellowship followed, all at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
The year 1962 was a watershed year for Vardy; in Philadelphia, he completed his residency and he met and married his wife of 60 years, Sherry Shoop Buckalew. He then entered the Navy as a medical officer at the Naval Hospital in Newport, R.I., where Sherry and Vardy welcomed their first child, Douglas, in 1964. They returned to Philadelphia where Vardy completed a three-year renal fellowship program and welcomed two more sons, Edward Callaway Buckalew in 1965 and Jeffrey Forbes Buckalew in 1966.
Vardy served Wake Forest University and the School of Medicine for 38 years in the Departments of Internal Medicine and Physiology. He served as chief of the Section on Nephrology for 26 of those years, and four years as chief of Professional Services at the Medical Center. He also served the community as a volunteer in various leadership roles and was a generous benefactor to many charities. His interests went beyond his passion for medicine; he was a WWII buff, an opera and classical music lover, a wine connoisseur, golf enthusiast and a Carolina basketball fan. Most recently his favorite activity was his Wednesday golf game.
Vardy is preceded in death by his son, Jeffery, Jeff's wife Corinne and their two children, Jackson and Meriwether, and by his son, Douglas. He is survived by his wife Sherry, son Edward (Lisa), his brother Gregg (Mary Martin), and four grandchildren, Nicholas, Emelia, Ian and Amy, whom he loved dearly.
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