Richard “Dick” Talbot
Blacksburg Rotary Club

Dick Talbot was president of our Rotary Club during 1993-1994 year and was a charter member.

Dick earned a D.V.M. from Kansas State University in 1958 and a Ph.D. from Iowa State University.  He was the chairman of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and the director of the Institute for Comparative Medicine at the University of Georgia.  His last position at the University was Dean.  Dick was a consultant to the National Institutes of Health, the Bureau of Health Manpower, the FDA, the USDA, and the Hazleton Laboratories Corp.  He also served on the National Academy of Sciences and The National Research Council Committee on Veterinary Medical Sciences.

Dick was the founding dean of the Virginia/Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech and national figure in the field of veterinary medicine. 

Shortly after stepping down from his position as president in our club, Dick met an untimely death in an airplane crash near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1994.
Jeffrey Douglas, communications director of the vet school, was hired by Talbot in 1983 and witnessed Talbot's passion and drive for the college's success.  He said, “Dick was a man of vision and resolve ... he would set his mind to something and could not be deterred.  He played a giant role in the founding of the school.”
Franklyn Moreno, a member and past president of our club, remembers Talbot's strength and guidance as president.  “Dick exemplified our motto: Service above self.  He was really a directive force in Rotary, helping us keep focused on the tasks at hand.”

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