April 23, 2016
Dr. Joseph J. Box ’51 goes back to school at age 92
By Vicki-Ann Downing
When 92-year-old Dr. Joseph J. Box ’51 traveled to Guatemala for a service trip earlier this year, he brought an extra carry-on bag for his homework.
For one week, Box provided dental care to more than 100 patients in four villages near San Lucas Tolimán in the Guatemalan highlands. In his spare time, he re-read Beowulf and studied for Perspectives on Western Civilization, a course he is taking through Providence College’s School of Continuing Education (SCE).
“I like Beowulf,” said Box. “It’s a great story.”
Box missed out on studying Western civilization his first time at PC. The Development of Western Civilization Program wasn’t established until 1971, two decades after he graduated with a biology degree. By then, Box had already completed dental school at the University of St. Louis, married, and started a dental practice in his home in Pawtucket, R.I.
Through the years, he has enjoyed many roles. He was a jazz musician who played clarinet and saxophone in the Big Bands, and a Navy veteran who served with the Marines in the Pacific during World War II. He was chief dental surgeon with the Rhode Island Air National Guard and received the Meritorious Service Ribbon when he retired as lieutenant colonel. As president of his local Sons of Italy lodge, he instituted a history lecture series and a lively morra tournament highlighting the ancient Italian hand game.
But most of all, Box has been a lifelong learner.
A regular at the Books on the Square store in Providence, he has read at least one biography of every U.S. president. When he moved on to the biographies of the Roman emperors, he discovered that he lacked context in which to “piece things together.” The SCE had the answer: three courses in Western civilization for adult learners that match the curriculum required for undergraduate students.
Box took his first course in the Fall 2015 semester and enrolled in the second in January. The classes meet in the evenings, once a week, for 2 ½ hours.
Box has been back to the classroom before. When he was 75, his wife, Janice, a registered nurse, noticed a newspaper story about doctors and dentists being sought to provide care to Maya Indians in Guatemala. She thought they should take part. Box took courses in Spanish to prepare.
They went to Guatemala twice a year for 13 years until 2008, when her illness kept them at home. She died in 2014.
Box’s trip to Guatemala in January was his first visit in eight years. He was welcomed with open arms by friends who call him José Caja — literally, “Joe Box.”
“We got a great deal done,” said Box, who traveled by pickup truck to remote villages, saw an average of 25 patients a day, and performed about 130 extractions. “I reunited with friends who it was very good to see again.”
The dental clinic that Box and his colleagues helped to establish years ago in San Lucas Tolimán is going strong, with trained local clinicians treating patients daily.
The father of four children and the grandfather of five, Box stays in shape by riding a stationary bike for at least 40 minutes a day, lifting weights to strengthen his upper body and core, and playing Luminosity brain games on his computer. A couple of days a week, he provides dental exams in Rhode Island nursing homes.
As for his course work, he enjoys it. He finds the classes “intense” and, because of all he’s learned, looks forward to visiting Rome again.
“This time, when I visit the Forum, I will know who was doing what and where,” said Box.
Box is an inspiration, agreed SCE Dean Dr. Janet L. Castleman.
“We’ve been thrilled to have him join our learning community,” Castleman said. “He’s a living example that learning is a lifelong commitment and opportunity. He’s a wonderful role model for all of us.”
