The Dr. Eugene Kent Borchart Memorial Award in Chemistry Fund was established in 2022 by Kate (Kathleen) Yvonne Wallace in memory of her father, Eugene Kent Borchart, to recognize outstanding graduating seniors in Chemistry.
Eugene Kent Borchart was born in 1932 in Des Plaines, Illinois. A lifelong academic who was passionate about the study of the sciences, Eugene attended Maine East High School, graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1955 with a degree in chemistry, and received his degree in medicine from the University of Illinois Chicago in 1959.
Eugene was a devoted physician, practicing radiology for over five decades at Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, Illinois before retiring in 1998 to spend more time with his family. He was a voracious reader, a talented artist and a self-taught musician—Eugene was at his finest playing Chopin's famous Prelude in C Minor on the piano and performing various classical tunes on his harmonica. He was extremely supportive of Chicago's abundant art scene, but especially the opera. A contemplative man, in his later years, he discovered a manner of self-expression through poetry, devoting many of these rhythmic compositions to his wife, close friends, and family.
Eugene sought to live each day with purpose and intrigue. A man of great character with the highest level of integrity, Eugene was very proud of his support for the “underdog”. He was consummately generous with all that he possessed—his wealth, his time, his knowledge, and above all, his enormous and gentle heart. He had a passion for the human condition.
Never wavering in his attempt to make the world a better place for the marginalized in society, Eugene reminded all of us that kindness begins where necessity ends.