Stories

For the late Jerry Dye Parker, the call to nursing began long before she put on the iconic white uniform. Her mother, Ida Mae Phillips Dye, graduated from UTMB SON in the early 1920s. Her father, Dr. Fulton Eugene Dye, was a 1924 UTMB medical school alumnus whose journey to medicine began after serving as a Navy medical corpsman in World War I.

This inaugural event not only celebrated the generosity of UTMB Health employees but also highlighted the vital role their contributions play in advancing the university's mission of education, research, patient care and innovation.

“Most often, I hear about the long-term outcomes of my patients through notes and cards, which is always deeply moving,” Dr. Fraser remarked. “But to experience it in person was uniquely humbling.”

During a recent conversation, Dr. Purgason spoke about her time at UTMB, her giving history and her leadership plans for the Development Board.

To honor The Sealy & Smith Foundation for its $11.8 million gift toward emergency medicine, UTMB names the new Sealy Department of Emergency Medicine.

Daniel “Tiny” Guidry (center) celebrates his roots with special events sponsored by his organization, Bon Temps Rouler (BTR) Cajun Throwdown. Not only does Guidry give back to his community, he also gives to UTMB through his BTR Caring for Kids Endowment.

“Thanks to the Campbell Professorship, I have been able to make significant progress in our efforts to advance the understanding and treatment of eye diseases." The professorship has enabled me to pursue cutting-edge research projects at the interface of biomedical imaging, bioengineering, and vision research aimed at identifying new diagnostic methods and therapies.”  - Massoud Motamedi, PhD, Charles H. and Mary Campbell Professor in Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences

Robert Zinn, whose family tragedy sparked a tradition of philanthropy, invests in the future of biomedical sciences at UTMB.

Dr. Brandon “Kit” Bredimus, whose time at UTMB prepared him to be an accomplished nursing executive, has made a commitment to establish a scholarship that empowers future nursing leaders. “I look back on my time at UTMB as transformative, helping me grow into who I am today,” Dr. Bredimus remarked. “The university definitely set me up for success.”

We posed the following questions to them about their careers and what UTMB means to them and why it was important that they give back.

Don and Jan Wagner shared a love that endures. Their generosity at UTMB, likewise, will live on at UTMB. Among the five endowments bearing the Wagners’ names at UTMB are scholarship awards that honor the couple’s shared roots in health care.