Acceptance of the 2015 Henry Baldwin Ward Medal: My Journey in Parasitology, and with Parasitologists

It is a great honor to receive the Henry Baldwin Ward Medal. First and foremost I thank my former Ph.D. advisor, Dr. Bruce Christensen, for nominating me for this award, my colleagues that wrote supporting letters, and the H. B. Ward Medal committee for selecting me as this year’s recipient. Science is not done in isolation, so before I recount my journey in parasitology, I thank all the people that helped shape who I am. If I were to name them all we would be here a long time, but suffice it to say the list includes my former lab mates at the University of WisconsinMadison and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, my students and colleagues at Vanderbilt University, and of course, my family. It is indeed a tremendous honor to receive this award. For many years I have had a strong connection to the American Society of Parasitologists (ASP). I have been attending this meeting since I was a graduate student. I have always enjoyed presenting my work here and have benefited greatly from learning about the work of other fellow parasitologists. I have served in multiple ASP committees, and I am currently a proud member of Council. I have also had significant and formative interactions with several H. B. Ward Medal recipients, ASP Presidents, and other members of this Society. In many ways, these individuals have been a driving force in my continued development as a scientist and as a person. As is customary in H. B. Ward medal acceptance speeches, I will now recount my journey through a career in science. I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico in 1974—the son of George and Josefina Hillyer. My father was, and continues to be, a professor at the University of Puerto Rico, where among other things he investigates the biology of the trematodes Schistosoma mansoni and Fasciola hepatica. Living with a parasitologist from the time of birth—in essence parasitizing a parasitologist—meant that I was continuously exposed to science. As a kid I would visit his lab and I was always impressed by all the large equipment and all the people walking around wearing lab coats. Interacting with members of my dad’s lab was also a treat, and I remember the fun holiday parties with lots of food and drink, some of which I was not allowed to imbibe. In my dad’s lab I always enjoyed looking at the fish tanks filled with the snails used for trematode infections. One day my dad brought home some of those snails to put in my fish tank to control the growth of algae. When he dropped those snails into my tank I remember him saying, ‘‘Don’t worry, they are not infected.’’ Science seemed like a lot of fun, and thus, together with the fact that I lived in a house surrounded by nature—a residence that my son, Owen, calls the jungle house— my interest in biology began. As I grew up I saw my father’s laboratory flourish, and at the 1982 ASP meeting, held in Toronto, Canada, he was awarded the H. B. Ward Medal (Hillyer, 1983). I did not attend the meeting, but as an 8-year-old I remember the excitement in the house when my father brought home the bronze medal. As I moved through elementary, junior high, and high school, I participated in several science projects, some in my dad’s lab and some in his colleague’s labs. During these times I also had the opportunity to travel—as a family—to scientific meetings. I vividly remember when in 1991— between my junior and senior years in high school—I attended the ASP meeting held in Madison, Wisconsin. The main reason for the trip was that I wanted to visit the University of WisconsinMadison and the University of Chicago, as I was getting ready to apply to college. Little did I know that at this meeting I would be interacting with the person that 8 years later would become my Ph.D. advisor. Altogether, these experiences inspired my curiosity in the life sciences and cemented my desire to pursue biology. At the time, however, my desire was to become a veterinarian and not a scientist. In 1992, after graduating from High School, I enrolled at the University of Chicago. I was set to major in Biology with the hopes of later attending Veterinary School. However, my didactic coursework at the University of Chicago, and especially my involvement investigating the genetics of Drosophila melanogaster in the laboratory of Dr. Martin Kreitman, altered my long-term goals and I decided to pursue a career in research instead. Thus, DOI: 10.1645/15-871