I was on the telephone with Heather Cavalli when suddenly her eight year- old daughter Cesca (pronounced CHes-ka) burst into the room. It was mid-afternoon, and Cesca just came home from school. Her first words were, “Where’s my horseshoe crab, mommy?”  Heather said to me, “She is just like my mom.” No wonder, her daughter carries the same name as her grandmother, Cesca. But, little Cesca will have some pretty large shoes to fill, if she is proven to be a clone of her grandmother. In fact, senior Cesca was quite the expert on shoes, and many other matters. She was also a medical pioneer whose interest in the natural world extended far beyond horseshoe crabs. She devoted her life to the saving of human lives, including her own, devastated by an incurable blood disease.

Francesca Morosani was born in 1944, and she grew up on a farm in Litchfield, Ct. which is a small, snowy town in Northwest Connecticut. The town still looks as though it is from another era – the green is surrounded by small buildings and shops which could have been there for decades, if not for centuries. The courthouse is quite the relic of the past. Its simple old granite exterior certainly doesn’t suggest to outsiders that this is really a seat of great law and justice, and those seats inside are wooden and uncomfortable. I know. I have sat there for hours in the past as a weather consultant for cases ranging from slips and falls to collapsing trees upon cars and tents. But it is a beautiful town that many rich and famous from New York City seek out as an ideal spot for a country home.

Francesca grew up on a farm which her father acquired and expanded soon after he emigrated from Europe. The elder Morosani was a ski instructor in addition to being a farmer, and he met his wife while giving some ski instructions at the old Wanamaker department store in New York. Both had been married previously, but they fell in love and truly lived happily ever after on the farm in Litchfield. They had five children and brought two more into the clan from their former marriages. Francesca, who acquired the name Cesca, might have become the favorite of her parents. Her personality was unusual, and a close friend, and sister-in-law Polly Morosani, described her as an “omnivore,” someone devouring every aspect of life. On the subject of unusual, Cesca’s mother can’t be overlooked. She actually had a “healing center” on the farm, and although her spiritual nature was not completely embraced by Cesca, at least one other sibling did seem to follow in mom’s path. Cesca was home-schooled. Her mother never thought that the schools were adequate for her children, but the education on the mostly dairy farm must have been as good as any. Francesca went on to Smith College, and then Barnard, where she began to prepare for a professional career in social services.

While in college, she met the love of her life, Jim Thompson, and soon after, she became Francesca M. Thompson. Both her husband’s father and grandfather were physicians, and her father-in-law was a very prominent surgeon in New York City. Cesca loved and respected him, and he became a role model who helped shape her life.

Although Cesca initially chose a career in social services, her main focus during the early years of marriage was raising her two children, Heather and   James, who was called “J.” But soon after her youngest child, J, was born she began to wonder if she, too, could pursue a career in medicine and become a prominent physician, just like her father-in-law. Those decisions are never easy to make, and even during the 1970s, many wives stayed at home with their young children – that was still the norm. But Cesca explained to her children that financial pressures were part of her decision, too, and she wanted to be able to provide for the very best education. Cesca’s husband was successful in the advertising field, but she felt additional income was needed to pay those future college tuition bills.

At first, Cesca returned to undergraduate school so that she might take the required courses for medical school. That seemed to be no problem. Then, at the age of 29, with young children at home, along with a very understanding husband and a great housekeeper, Cesca entered medical school. In a few short years, she became Dr. Francesca Thompson, orthopedic surgeon, an expert in ankle and foot care. Several years later, by the time her daughter was a senior in high school, and “J” was a freshman, Dr.Thompson had become a partner in a flourishing New York medical practice. She was presenting papers on orthopedics throughout the country, began to operate on prominent sports figures, and even managed to pay off her own educational bills. Cesca loved sports – she was a runner, quite the skier, and she acquired a great love of baseball, especially the Mets. She and her partners became team surgeons for the Mets. Life seemed to be very good for the Thompson family. Cesca worked very hard at being among the best foot and ankle specialists, but there were also those trips to their country home in Litchfield, or the family vacation homes in Vermont and Italy. The homes were owned by the entire Morosani clan. Skiing was always a major part of those vacations. Cesca especially enjoyed the professional conferences for the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society – they were held in Vail. There was plenty of time for professional work at those conferences, and still time for skiing. And when in the city, Cesca and Jim enjoyed being with their many friends, or going to the opera and ballet – taking Italian and piano lessons. But then, in 1986, life quickly changed for the Thompson family, and Cesca found herself on a frightening path that would define her life in ways never imaginable. Dr. Francesca Thompson was to become a symbol of great strength and courage which offered hope to the thousands dealing with an incurable cancer. Cesca was to become a pioneer, although a very sick cancer patient, too.