HSC Champions

(Pictured above) Francisco González-Scarano, M.D., dean of the Long School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs (right), presents Susan R. Oppenheimer (center) with a plaque of appreciation for her dedicated support. Oppenheimer’s son, David, and his wife, Harriet, are pictured left.

Every donor makes a difference. The following are just a few of the many gifts that enable the university to make lives better in San Antonio, South Texas and the world.

• A gift of $100,000 from Susan R. Oppenheimer was received to establish The Jesse H. and Susan R. Oppenheimer Multi-Investigator Pilot Research Award at the Cancer Therapy & Research Center (CTRC) at the UT Health Science Center San Antonio. This new award will advance cancer care and research by broadening collaboration among researchers focused on the causes, prevention, detection and treatment of cancer. It will also position the CTRC well to compete for national funding. In 1991, Mrs. Oppenheimer and her late husband, Jesse, established The Jesse H. and Susan R. Oppenheimer Fellowship in New Anticancer Drug Development at the CTRC. Over the years, they have donated more than $400,000 to this fellowship which supports an outstanding researcher each year who is dedicated to advancing new drug treatments that benefit cancer patients worldwide. In January 2011, Yesid Alvarado, M.D., was named the new Oppenheimer Fellow. Dr. Alvarado’s research focused on developing new treatment strategies for patients diagnosed with advanced oncologic and hematologic malignancies, for whom there are little or no treatment options available.

James L. Holly, M.D.

• A gift of $250,000 from James L. Holly, M.D., his wife, Carolyn, and the Southeast Texas Medical Associates (SETMA), will establish the Dr. and Mrs. James L. Holly Distinguished Professorship in the Long School of Medicine at the UT Health Science Center. The endowment will support a faculty member who will lead and personify a model of patient-centered primary care and education through UT Health San Antonio, the clinical practice of the Long School of Medicine at the Health Science Center. It also will promote interdepartmental and interdisciplinary education, collaboration and practice-model development between the departments of Internal Medicine, Family and Community Medicine, Pediatrics and the School of Nursing’s advanced practice programs. Dr. Holly is a 1973 alumnus of the Long School of Medicine and a founding member of SETMA, an organization dedicated to providing quality and cost-effective health care to patients in Southeast Texas through multi-specialty, patient-centered clinics.

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  Sherill Lynn Allen

  A gift of $10,000 was received from Don Allen of Corinth, Texas, in loving memory of his wife, Sherill Lynn, to establish The Sherill Lynn Allen Memorial for Ovarian Cancer Research at the CTRC. Another $50,000 gift has already been committed to add to this endowment. These funds will support research, early detection and treatment of ovarian cancer. Sherill Lynn battled ovarian cancer for more than 11 years. Her husband, Don, spoke of her strength and determination. “She survived by never giving up and by taking advantage of every treatment option she could find,” he said. “Her participation in clinical trials at the CTRC added years to her life before she died at the age of 64. I am so grateful for every single additional day that we shared together!”

President Henrich (left) visits with retired faculty member Robert Hutchinson, M.D.

• UT Health Science Center President William L. Henrich, M.D., MACP, presented Robert Hutchinson, M.D., with a signed copy of the university’s history book “The Crown Jewel.” Dr. Hutchinson visited with Dr. Henrich this past spring to provide support for the president’s vision and goals. Dr. Hutchinson and his wife, Louise Box-Hutchinson, M.D., are both retired faculty members of the Long School of Medicine. The Hutchinsons are steadfast supporters of the Health Science Center. In 1996 they established the Dr. Robert and Dr. Louise Hutchinson Endowment Fund for Basic Research in Orthopaedic Surgery in the Long School of Medicine.

• A gift of $10,000 from the Long School of Medicine Alumni Association, in honor of the founding faculty of the Long School of Medicine, was presented this past spring to Francisco González-Scarano, M.D., dean of the Long School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs. Valerie Pronio-Stelluto, M.D., a 1990 graduate and president of the Alumni Association board said: “Through this gift, we hope to keep alive our founding fathers’ legacy of transforming medical students through education.” The funds will support educational enrichment for students in the areas of Fall research, clinical training and community service.