When Dr. Jonathan Stallkamp says he’d follow his wife, Dr. Christine Stallkamp, anywhere, he means that literally.
The two started dating in 1997, while in medical school at Thomas Jefferson University. They did a “couples match” for their residencies, landing in Chicago and marrying in 2001. Residencies are stress-riddled and exhausting—not exactly the formula for those carefree newlywed years.
Afterward, the Stallkamps decided to go on an adventure, applying for jobs in places they wouldn’t go to otherwise. Jonathan was excited to land a job in Hawaii, but Christine had an offer in Alaska, so he traded the beach for snow and went north with her. At the conclusion of their eight-month contracts, they traveled around the world for six months. “In medicine, it’s a big taboo to take time off,” Christine says. “But we did a lot of soul searching during that trip. We had conversations about our futures and where we wanted to live and work.”
They decided on the Main Line, where Jonathan was raised. Since they arrived in 2005, the Stallkamps have had two children and forged two busy careers. Jonathan is a hospitalist and vice president of medical affairs at Riddle Hospital. Christine is the medical director of Main Line Health’s urgent-care services. The two are 50-50 co-parents, sharing responsibilities and making career sacrifices for their kids and one another.
Would Jonathan have it any other way? “Chrissie’s ambition is partially what attracted me to her,” he says. “I wanted to be married to someone who was engaging and understood my work and could share it with me—and she has.”
