When Ben Chandler and Venita Lovelace (both Health Professions ’71) first met at UT Southwestern in 1968, they sat at opposite ends of the classroom. She preferred to sit in the front, “overeager” for knowledge, while he typically sat in the back, somewhat passively absorbing the teachings of UTSW’s then-nascent physical therapy program.

Among the inaugural class of 24 students earning bachelor’s degrees, the two seemed poised to lead different lives.

“Venita finally came to her senses and came back to sit with me,” Ben fondly remembered. “From there it was a series of conversations, and we became better friends as the program rolled along.”

Little did they know that UT Southwestern would play a pivotal role in their intertwined fates, leading to an enduring marriage and careers that would partner physical therapy with pediatrics.

“Neither of us anticipated what would happen, and we both entered UT Southwestern with plans to marry other people,” Venita said.

But soon after meeting each other, those plans flew out the window.

“Ben and I spent an Easter weekend together after wrapping up a research project, when everybody else was out of town,” Venita said. “After attending church with each other’s families, we just knew. The man I had been dating a long time was wonderful, but Ben made me laugh more.”

That connection – based on mutual respect, humor, and a familiarity that lends itself to finishing each other’s sentences – has thrived for over five decades. Both earned master’s degrees in pediatric physical therapy and blazed trails in a profession that previously hadn’t had a strong pediatric focus, except in cases related to polio.

All the while, the couple has carried forward the UT Southwestern mission to educate, discover, and heal through the legacy of their pioneering work as some of the earliest certified pediatric specialists in physical therapy and founding members of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Section on Pediatrics.

A perfect union

As new graduates, the Lovelace-Chandlers transformed their training into a career of service, leadership, and advocacy for children and families. Their journey reflects the lasting impact that empowers graduates to shape their fields and improve lives across communities.

After the couple married and had children of their own, Ben founded the Kid’s Spot, a private practice devoted exclusively to pediatrics. By the early 2000s, the practice had three locations in Arkansas, with 42 employees. Together, the couple wrote in-depth on starting a pediatric physical therapy practice, covering the development and sustainment of what is now a common focus area in pediatric medicine and child development.

“We had different approaches,” Venita said. “Ben was very focused on the clinical side, and I have always been focused on pedagogy. Together, we brought a holistic approach.”

Venita received her doctorate in academic administration and health education from Texas A&M University before becoming an educator for professional and post-professional physical therapy students and practitioners. Ben followed her to College Station, earning his Ph.D. in the same program.

Both credit UT Southwestern with making it all possible.

“My entire career was the result of my education at UT Southwestern, which allowed me to move quickly into graduate school and specialization,” Venita said. “Our faculty program director and our clinical education coordinator were exceptional in mentoring and modeling professional skills and behaviors. For the pediatrics content, they brought in an instructor from Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center in California. Bringing a prominent practitioner from California was unheard of at the time.”

Professionally, their careers spanned multiple locations, with Venita teaching advanced clinical practice courses in pediatrics for APTA while publishing articles on pediatrics and conducting numerous presentations and workshops. In 2003, she won an award for 30 years of service from the APTA. Several years later, she won the Outstanding Educator’s Award from APTA and has since been named an APTA Catherine Worthingham Fellow.

For more than two decades, Venita taught and served as Department Chair at the University of Central Arkansas before moving to Chapman University in California. She returned to Texas to become Associate Director in the School of Physical Therapy at Texas Woman’s University and then joined the faculty at the University of North Texas Health Science Center as Vice Chair and Professor of Physical Therapy, serving until 2014

Ties that bind

Medical education has changed dramatically since they graduated, Ben said.

The big difference now is that the profession is better able to support children born very prematurely or with severe genetic or musculoskeletal disorders.

“We have better technology for education and practice now,” Venita said. “For example, there is now wearable tech for scoliosis that can document how many times a day a child is getting the spine as erect as possible. Pain science, a focus at UT Southwestern, has also led to important interventions.”

Screening is another emphasis at UT Southwestern, and one that ultimately saved Venita’s life. The physical therapy program at UTSW was one of the first to show students how to conduct and teach breast self-exams to patients.

“After leaving UT Southwestern, I continued to do breast self-exams routinely and then found a tumor in 1996,” Venita said. “I had a cancer that was not considered survivable at the time – invasive lobular carcinoma – but I found it early and was able to survive.”

If the last 50 years are any indication, UT Southwestern has left a lasting legacy on the couple.

“We’ve had successful careers because of the excellent education we received there,” Ben said.

“Ben still says I teased him into pediatrics, knowing he would be good with babies,” Venita said. “UT Southwestern got us started in our personal and professional lives, which led to highly fulfilling careers and a great life together. For that, my husband and I are forever indebted!”