Once an aircraft mechanic, Pete Edgar later soared across the medical field and eventually landed on teaching.
Edgar is in his first year as an assistant professor in the physician assistant program at Taylor University, but the medical field wasn’t always his specialty growing up.
Since his childhood, he was always interested in aviation.
“I felt like God called me into that to be a missionary pilot,” Edgar said. “So my undergrad training was in aviation and missions, and then I did aircraft maintenance for about 12 years, and I went to Liberia for a few months. That’s where I felt like God changed my perspective and my course and took me into the medical world.”
After working as an aircraft mechanic, Edgar went to work in Liberia for three months. One day, they found themselves in a remote small community. There, they stumbled upon a newly built clinic that needed more medical staff members.
Edgar later learned that, out of Liberia’s population of 3 to 4 million, there were only about 80 physicians in the country. Upon realizing this, Edgar felt God calling him to make a difference in the lives of the locals.
While transitioning from aviation to medicine, Edgar took around 50 credits of undergraduate prerequisites at a local college in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He then studied at the University of St. Francis physician assistant program for five years, eventually receiving his master’s degree.
“One of the reasons that I love medicine so much is – obviously there’s the answer that everyone gives that I love to help people, and that’s definitely true,” Edgar said. “But I also love to see the way that God created our bodies and the intricate design and just the beautiful whole package that God made our bodies to be.”
While Edgar’s desire to teach was much older than his pursuit of the medical field, he felt that the aviation field didn’t have many teaching careers available. Edgar saw himself as a people-person, and while he enjoyed being hands-on with aircraft, it didn’t give him much of a chance to work with others.
Edgar became a part of a Christian physician assistant program in Indiana. When COVID-19 began, the program was discontinued. Eventually, he heard that Taylor was starting the same kind of program and reached out.
“I got a hold of the administration and just wanted to basically share some of the pitfalls and things that I had seen and experienced in Christian education,” Edgar said. “It was in talking with the administration about my experience at the other university that kind of introduced me to Taylor and some of the great things that are happening here.”
Edgar hopes that Taylor’s physician assistant students also develop a love for God’s awe-inspiring creation. Though the program is currently going through an accreditation process, Edgar has enjoyed Taylor’s community and its emphasis on faith.
What excites Edgar about his opportunity to teach is that he and students will be able to talk about the human body and its dignity through a liberal arts lens of education.
“I’m excited to share that with the students, and to be able to talk freely about all those things in an environment that believes in God,” Edgar said.
Edgar’s message to students is that, whatever they are pursuing, they shouldn’t focus on what others are telling them to pursue or what’s going to make the most money. Rather, they should focus on what God wants them to do. Edgar followed this advice to get to where he felt called in teaching.
