A Heritage of Intelligence, Perseverance, Beauty, and Luck:
Dr. Ahn’s appreciation for excellence through dedication and perseverance are deeply rooted in his remarkable family history. His father, a man of extraordinary courage, escaped North Korea as a teenager with his younger brother. In a dramatic escape, they rowed a boat across a river, all while being shot at by communist soldiers. Eventually making it to Seoul, his father became an exceptional student, earning admission to Seoul National University, often referred to as the “Harvard” of Korea. He graduated at the top of his class in medical school and met Dr. Ahn’s mother during his time at the hospital where she was a patient. She was a runner-up in the Miss Korea pageant and a television announcer, whose strength and resilience came from a harrowing past. Her father, a wealthy banker, was kidnapped multiple times by the Japanese during their occupation of Korea. Each time, a ransom was paid, but the final time, he was not returned. Also, tragically, her sister was kidnapped and presumably became a "comfort woman" for Japanese soldiers.
After starting a family, Dr. Ahn’s father completed his training in internal medicine, and the family moved to Uganda, where he could fulfill his lifelong dream of spending time as a village doctor. There, his boss was the infamous General Idi Amin, a leader notorious for his brutal regime. Despite this reputation, Dr. Ahn’s father formed a surprising friendship with the general, sharing banana wine, or “Urwagwa,” every Thursday night. His work as a village doctor was expansive—he delivered babies, cared for the sick, performed surgeries, and even completed unusual tasks for the general. One such task involved determining whether hundreds of candidates for the Ugandan army were fit for duty. In an incredibly resourceful move, Dr. Ahn’s father had the candidates trucked 10 miles from the village, made them run back, and then performed vision tests and checked if they had a functional shooting finger. His logic was that all the candidates really needed to do was run, see, and shoot and he had only one day to complete the task.
Dr. Ahn’s family’s experiences in Uganda were filled with extraordinary tales—his sister even had a pet cheetah, and his mother nearly met a tragic end when a herd of elephants almost ran her over. But life in Uganda took a heartbreaking turn when Dr. Ahn’s mother, pregnant with her second child, was involved in a rollover accident that caused her to lose the child. This traumatic event was a pivotal moment in Dr. Ahn’s life—had it not happened, he would never have been born as they were intent on having only two children. After this, the family moved back to Seoul, and just two months after Dr. Ahn was born, they relocated to Providence, Rhode Island, where Dr. Ahn’s father completed a second residency at Brown University.
Dr. Min Ahn grew up in Providence, attending Moses Brown School for 12 years. As a student, he excelled both academically and athletically, serving as co-captain of both the soccer and lacrosse teams. His academic achievements were outstanding, and he was admitted to Harvard University, where he would further cultivate the discipline, precision, and creativity that defines his career.
