COM Outlook Winter 2019

40 | DR. KIRAN C. PATEL COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE It’s not often that an osteopathic physician can lay claim to winning two prestigious awards for distinctly different fields within a span of less than four months. But that’s exactly what happened to 1990 alumnus Jeffrey S. Grove, D.O., FACOFP. On February 24, 2018, Grove, a practicing physi- cian at Suncoast Family Medical Associates in Largo, Florida, received the Florida Osteopathic Medical Association’s Distinguished Service Award—the highest honor the organization can bestow upon an individual. On June 10, Grove won the highest honor in the Broadway theater world—a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical for his role as a producer of Once on This Island . Grove, who hails from Paxton, Illinois, never dreamed he would become a Tony Award-winning producer, even though his love of musical theater stretches back many years. “My earliest memory of musical theater was traveling to Chicago with my grandmother and my family to see John Davidson star in the musical Oklahoma ,” he said. “My interest in theater grew from there. Later, I would play one of the lead roles in our middle school operetta. These experi- ences were the foundations that helped me quickly say yes to the chance to be a Broadway producer.” His official entrée into the Broadway community occurred in 2012, when a combination of life-changing events altered the course of his future and led him on a path to new personal and professional happiness. After years of suppressing his homosexual inclinations, the devoted father of two decided to embrace who he really was. That brave revelation led Grove to rekindle his affinity for musical theater thanks to his longtime friendship with fellow 1990 KPCOM alumnus Michael Jackowitz, D.O., CPT, who had been Grove’s Jeffrey Grove 1990 Alumnus Wins Tony Award BY SCOTT COLTON, B.A., APR ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT ALUMNI Spotlight