Our people: History in aerospace

Buck Wilson is best known in Portales as a dentist for a half-century.

He spoke at Wednesday's Portales Rotary Club meeting on his time with the Brooks Air Force Base School of Aerospace Medicine, and spent time there while John Glenn trained.

Wilson was also a founding member of the Friends of Eastern Foundation and served as president from 1978 until 2002. He also served on the ENMU Board of Regents from 1979 to 1984 and on the New Mexico Commission for Higher Education from 1989 to 1995.

What's your idea of a perfect day?

Good weather, good friends, don't have to read about people getting killed. I like to hunt and fish, get out and about. I take my wife out. She gets a goat, that's fine. She doesn't, we had a good time anyway.

How did you meet your spouse?

This is my second wife. My first wife had breast cancer. She passed away after fighting very bravely. I was a bachelor for seven years. Roberta had worked for me for many years. She was an OBGYN nurse, very protective of women's health and delivered lots of babies. She's also my handholder, as I have cancer now. They're not going to be able to do anything about it. It's going to get me sooner or later, so I'm not going to wait around.

What would be your last meal?

A nice meal would be beef tips.

What accomplishment are you most proud of?

I thought I was a good dentist, and I'm proud of that. I've done a lot of things in research with the university. I was on the board of regents and was a (state commissioner for higher education).

Is there anything you collect?

I have built a lodge out of my house, about 2,500 square feet. I have trophies from hunting. It's a family gathering area, and we have plenty of room so we do cooking out there.

What's your favorite hunting story?

I spent a long time in Alaska. There's great fishing along the Kenai River. Best salmon river in the world. Halibut is the poor man's lobster, and we can catch plenty of those. I never have hunted too much. I like to fish, and they have beaucoup good fishing.

Favorite quote?

"Keep your feet on the ground" and "Remember the good, forget the bad."

If you could have a superpower, what would it be and why?

Healing. Non-surgical healing, particularly, and it's going to be possible. DNA and RNA are coming out where they can do things like people can do with Botox now. There's new stuff coming out. Nonsurgical healing will be there for us with burns soon. I'd like to be able to heal a cleft palate without the ugly part.

How would you like to be remembered?

My public service and just for being a good person overall.

- Compiled by Editor Kevin Wilson