For nearly a half century, Dr. John C. “Chris” Hawk III and Dr. Stanley Wilson have been pillars of care at Roper St. Francis Healthcare’s downtown Charleston hospital. Now the longest-serving member of medical staff, Dr. Hawk III joined in 1978. Still practicing as a general surgeon, Dr. Wilson followed in 1982. Together, they’ve defined the spirit of care at Roper Hospital, a culture they believe will carry forward as the hospital prepares to relocate to North Charleston.
Through decades of leadership, service and friendship, Dr. Hawk III and Dr. Wilson have not only cared for patients but helped shape the very identity of Roper Hospital. Their legacy, like the hospital, is moving forward. And though the hospital’s address will change, the compassion, faith and excellence they have embodied will remain at the heart of Roper St. Francis Healthcare. The ongoing construction project for the future Roper Hospital campus is set to be completed in 2029 as part of key Roper St. Francis Healthcare 2030 Strategic Plan initiatives to address future clinical needs, modernize technology and optimize the system’s footprint in the Lowcountry.
“Their lifelong commitment to the organization and their patients is unbelievable,” said Vice President and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Mitch Siegan. “The way they’ve handled taking care of our sickest and most complex patients by helping them navigate challenges with grace, they treat that responsibility as if it’s a privilege. I’ve modeled my own career after that.”
Their connection runs deeper than one between colleagues. They were family before they became partners, and their paths in medicine have been intertwined ever since. Dr. Wilson married Dr. Hawk III’s sister, Penny, before the two began practicing together. Both men worked alongside Dr. Hawk III’s father, the late Dr. John C Hawk Jr., one of the first head and neck surgeons in South Carolina.
The three physicians were nicknamed “Big Hawk, Little Hawk and Hawk-in-Law” by one of Roper Hospital’s OR nurses, Dr. Wilson recalled. Though Dr. Wilson and Dr. Hawk III trained at different institutions, they both were deeply inspired by and carried forward Dr. Hawk Jr.’s deeply personal approach to medicine.
“We paid attention to our patients,” Dr. Hawk III explained. “It was instilled in us by my father to be very hands-on, and that’s been something important to us in maintaining the best quality of care.”
Both physicians have left an enduring legacy–one deeply inspired by Dr. Hawk Jr.–having served as Presidents of the Medical Society of South Carolina and receiving some of Roper St. Francis Healthcare’s highest honors, including the Foundation’s Physician Champion Award and the St. Luke Lifetime Physician Achievement Award.
Generations of care
Dr. Hawk Jr.’s influence stretched far beyond the operating room. He was active in the American Medical Association and widely admired for how he communicated with patients and their loved ones in their hardest moments.
He would write heartfelt letters to the families of his patients who passed away.
“He really embraced his relationships with patients and their loved ones,” Dr. Wilson said. “I can remember those family members returning to the hospital years later, clutching those letters that meant so much to them.”
Following in his father’s footsteps, Dr. Hawk III dedicated himself not only to his patients but also to leadership. He served on numerous hospital committees committed to upholding Roper St. Francis Healthcare’s standard of excellence, and he held leadership roles at both the state and local levels. He served as president of the South Carolina Medical Association and the American Cancer Society, was a delegate to the American Medical Association, and still found time to teach Sunday school for 30 years and serve as an elder at First Scots Presbyterian Church.
“The good news is that Roper Hospital remains an excellent place to practice and to be a patient,” Dr. Hawk III said. “We provide excellent service for our patients. I see that continuing as we move forward, even through this big transition.”
The Hawk family’s ties to Roper St. Francis Healthcare now span three generations. Though none of Dr. Hawk III’s four children initially set their sights on medicine, two eventually joined the profession.
His daughter, Dr. Anne LeClercq, who began her career in Washington before being encouraged to attend medical school, now practices as a dermatologist. His son, Dr. James Hawk, taught English in South America before discovering an interest in medicine while volunteering at a free clinic. He now serves as a hospitalist and medical director of the system’s Hospitalist Services. The father-son duo works together at Roper Hospital. Dr. Hawk III takes pride in hearing about the excellent care his son provides, he said.
Mentorship has been another rewarding chapter in Dr. Hawk III’s later career. He mentors two younger colleagues who sought his guidance and finds the experience deeply fulfilling.
Dr. Wilson’s family has also carried forward a commitment to medicine. His daughter, Dr. Sara Wilson, is a board-certified general surgeon with Roper St. Francis Physician Partners General Surgery, and his other daughter, Nancy Wilson, is a credential specialist with the medical staff office.
“My father’s example of compassionate, skilled care was certainly a major inspiration for me,” Dr. Sara Wilson said. “It has been amazing to get to work with and learn from him.”
A legacy of leadership
Like Dr. Hawk III, Dr. Wilson has spent more than four decades shaping the culture of Roper St. Francis Healthcare. In addition to caring for patients, he has held numerous leadership roles, including chairman of the department of surgery at Roper Hospital, medical director of bloodless medicine, president of the medical staff and vice president for medical affairs. He was also a driving force in Roper Hospital’s cancer program beginning in 1990.
Today, Dr. Wilson continues to perform surgery and serves as Chief Medical Officer and Associate Vice President of Roper St. Francis Healthcare — roles that keep him closely engaged with both patient care and the organization’s strategic direction.
He has held leadership positions far beyond the hospital, serving as president of the South Carolina Chapter of the American College of Surgeons. Outside of medicine, he has served as an elder and longtime choir member at Mount Pleasant Presbyterian Church.
His dedication to Roper Hospital deepened in 2016, when he experienced life as a patient following a devastating car accident that left him unable to walk for months.
Dr. Wilson spent about six months recovering, beginning with several weeks in acute care at Roper Hospital, then moving to Roper Rehabilitation Hospital for intensive physical therapy. He praised the rehabilitation team’s impact on his recovery. The exceptional care and therapy transformed his ability to function and regain independence, he said.
“When I finally arrived at Roper Hospital in an ambulance, and rolled down the hall, I had tears in my eyes to be here—to be in a place that I trusted and felt good about,” Dr. Wilson recalled.
Dr. Wilson credits the skilled and compassionate teams at Roper Hospital for their crucial role in his recovery. The personalized attention and teamwork he witnessed reinforced the value of comprehensive care that goes beyond surgical intervention.
“Being a patient is hard. Most doctors aren’t patient, and most patients have to be patient,” Dr. Wilson reflected. It gave him a whole new appreciation for what his patients go through every day.
Through it all, Dr. Wilson has remained grounded. “A patient is much more than their disease,” he said. “It’s a privilege to be able to do more than just operate. Providing great care is so much more than that.”
Defining moments
The two doctors have stood steady through some of Roper Hospital’s most defining moments. Dr. Wilson vividly remembers Hurricane Hugo in 1989, when the eye of the storm passed through Charleston.
During the eye of the storm, Dr. Hawk III recalled medical staff performing a cesarean section at Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital.
“The doors were bending and starting to break,” he said. It was a harrowing moment that underscored the storm’s sheer power and the urgency of their work.
Dr. Wilson recalled evacuating with his family, but like many doctors, he underestimated the danger beforehand.
The day before Hurricane Hugo hit, Dr. Wilson performed an open gallbladder surgery while hospital staff scrambled to move patients into the halls as floodwaters poured in. The experience showed him firsthand how severely the storm disrupted patient care.
He added that Roper Hospital made it through the storm thanks to outstanding teamwork and dedication. Two men from the engineering department kept the hospital running by hand-cranking fuel into the generator for more than 24 hours, Dr. Wilson recalled.
“Without them, we would have lost power and air,” he said. “It showed me that every teammate matters. When you’re younger, you sometimes think you’re the most important person on the totem pole, but over time, you realize it takes everyone—no matter their role—for a hospital to succeed.”
The COVID-19 pandemic brought another test of courage and resilience.
Dr. Wilson remembers how fear and uncertainty defined the early days of the pandemic, with each day bringing more questions than answers. “None of us in healthcare knew for sure how to prevent it. There was a long time when we couldn’t even test all our patients. In some ways, it was our worst time, and in some ways, it was our best,” he said.
After his retirement from clinical surgery in 2020, Dr. Hawk III joined the palliative care program. When the pandemic hit, he immediately realized how isolated patients must have been feeling during strict hospital protocols that prevented visitors and contact. He brought the concern to leadership and asked to serve as that connection between patients and their loved ones. He then became a patient liaison, calling families and updating them on their loved ones’ conditions.
“As an oncologic surgeon who has had a lot of difficult conversations throughout his career, he saw that patients needed connection,” Dr. Siegan said. “So, he volunteered to be the one to foster that.”
He was recognized as a Healthcare Hero for his compassion and creativity, which brought much-needed comfort at a time when everyone’s emotions were spread thin. Dr. Hawk III also helped lead training for the three-year Serious Illness Conversation project, which worked to normalize the expectation that clinicians should have serious illness conversations with patients.
Carrying the culture forward
As the hospital prepares to relocate to North Charleston, both physicians are confident that Roper St. Francis Healthcare’s mission of healing all people with compassion, faith and excellence will endure at the future Roper Hospital campus.
The spirit and culture of the Medical Society of South Carolina dates to 1789, with both Roper Hospital and Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital opening in the middle of the next century.
“Both hospitals focused on the needs of the community through service and with patients as our primary focus,” Dr. Wilson said. “I think it’s important that we mentor that culture to younger generations because it’s one worth preserving.”
Dr. Hawk III echoed the hope for the future.
“We’re going to be at the center of the transportation of the community as opposed to being on the fringe,” he said. “And I think that’s going to be a big opportunity for us to continue our legacy of care where it’s needed most.”
Story by communications intern Sophia Raad.