<p>It is a time-honored tradition in medicine and public health to recognize and honor individuals and teams for their original discoveries in basic, clinical, and population science research or for a sustained commitment to patient care and teaching. In following that tradition, <em>Ethnicity & Disease</em> pays special tribute to Elijah B. Saunders, MD, FACC, FACP, FAHA, FASH for his life-long commitment to patient care, teaching, community service, and most importantly, for his tireless efforts in taking many first steps to advance health equity for medically underserved communities in the United States and worldwide.<sup>1</sup><sup>, </sup><sup>2</sup> </p>