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David Palmer  I was born in Bemidji, MN in 1946. I grew up in Blackduck where my father was the sole family physician for 35 years and who inspired me to become a doctor. I graduated from the U of M with a BS and MD degrees in 1967 and 1971. After internship (UCLA) I served in rheumatology in LA for 2 years. I then started a 4 year residency in orthopedics at the VA and U of M hospitals. Thereafter I became the first orthopedic surgeon in Stillwater and cofounded St. Croix Orthopedics (SCO) with my fellow resident Dr. Robert Meisterling in 1977. SCO grew to 15 practitioners and merged with Twin City Orthopedics in 2015. During my career I worked at Lakeview, Shrine Hospital, Gillette, and several outlying hospitals. As an Associate Clinical Professor I instructed U of M residents in surgical techniques. I have given many lectures and published several papers for peer-reviewed journals in my career.
I joined Rotary in 1984 and I was sponsored by Irv Neff. I was inspired by the motto “Service Above Self” and was fascinated by the global impact of Rotary. While Rotary president I attempted to learn the Tango (unsuccessfully) at the International Rotary Convention in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2000. My favorite Rotary project was our funding of Mark Jacobson’s surgical suite at the Selian Hospital in Arusha, Tanzania. I was fortunate to work many years there as a medical missionary. I also volunteered through Orthopedics Overseas in Bhutan and Afghanistan. I remain in this club for its outstanding fellowship and camaraderie.
My avocational interests include travel, reading, bird photography, hunting and fishing and when younger skiing (downhill and heliskiing)
I am supported in my Rotary life by my dear wife Marilyn. We have two daughters (Jennifer and Carrie) and four grandchildren.
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