LSU Health Sciences Foundation Shreveport

Join us for the inaugural HBCU Gala hosted by the LSU Health Shreveport Office of Diversity Affairs!

Become a sponsor at lsuhsfoundation.org/hbcu-sponsorship.

HBCU Gala 2023 We are excited to announce the upcoming Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Gala to be held on November 10, 2023. Learn more about our program and…

Meet our next outstanding White Coat Scholar, Sophie DeOliveira, from the Class of 2027!

Sophie was born and raised in Baton Rouge and attended the University of Mississippi on a full scholarship, graduating magna cm laude with a B.S. in Biological Sciences and a minor in Chemistry. She received multiple awards and scholarships during her time in undergraduate education and was part of the University of Mississippi’s "Who’s Who" inductees. She was also a member of the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College, American Medical Students Association (AMSA), American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA), Gamma Beta Phi Society, Rho Lambda, and held leadership positions in Rebelthon, which raised money for Batson Children’s Hospital. Sophie is the first in her family to attend medical school.

Support future physicians like Sophie at lsuhsfoundation.org/wcsc.

Congratulations to the students of Clays for Camp Tiger on hosting another successful fundraiser for Camp Tiger Shreveport! Funds raised through this event will ensure Shreveport-Bossier children living with physical and cognitive challenges continue to enjoy a week-long day camp designed just for them.

Learn more and support Camp Tiger at lsuhsfoundation.org/camptiger.

We are excited to introduce our next White Coat Scholar from the Class of 2027, Ben Peco!

Ben grew up in Tickfaw, Louisiana, and attended Southeastern Louisiana University, where he completed bachelor’s degrees in Kinesiology and Integrative Biology with a minor in Chemistry. Ben was given the unique opportunity to volunteer with North Oaks Hospital’s Level II Shock Trauma Center, which allowed him to be involved with members of the healthcare team from many different departments. Ben has been very involved in activities for his community as a member of the American Red Cross. He is both a first-generation college student and a first-generation medical student.

Learn more about LSU Health Shreveport's White Coat Scholars at lsuhsfoundation.org/whitecoatscholars.

Clays for Camp Tiger has two opportunities for you to support this year's fundraiser, benefiting Camp Tiger Shreveport! On Wednesday, head on over to Twisted Root for a bite, then make your way to Kendra Scott for some shopping. Your support guarantees Camp Tiger continues to provide the best experience for children with physical and cognitive challenges for years to come!

You can always donate to Camp Tiger any time at lsuhsfoundation.org/camptiger.

What a great weekend with the Classes of 1993, 2003, and 2013!!

View all photos at lsuhsfoundation.org/photos-1993-2003-2013-reunion.

Congratulations, Dr. Zhai, on this well-deserved honor!

LSU Health Shreveport's Dr. Jim Zhai, Chair of Pathology & Translational Pathobiology, was elected as the President-Elect for the College of American Pathologists, the leading organization of board-certified pathologists. Please join us in congratulating him on this prestigious accomplishment!

"In 1993, I arrived in this country with only two suitcases and $166.00... Today, I am living the American Dream." Read more about Dr. Zhai here: www.lsuhs.edu/zhai-cap

If you've seen the Foundation staff sneaking around campus lately with a big check, that's because we've been surprising all our outstanding LSU Health Shreveport 2023 Employee Excellence Award winners!!

Thank you to Campus Federal for partnering with us to celebrate our winners!

Congratulations to these incredible employees who are raising the standard of excellence for LSUHS and our community. We look forward to celebrating you at the EEA dinner on November 9.

This year's winners are:
Bridget Hall - Feist-Weiller Cancer Center
Brooke McGaugh - Department of Family Medicine
Caitlin Garner - Internal Medicine/
Gastroenterology
Christina Dominique - Department of Neurosurgery
Dominique 'Dom' Griffin - Computer Services
Dr. Mary Ann Edens - Emergency Medicine
Jessica Paul - Clinical Trials Office
Madis George - School of Allied Health Professions
Trey Lankford - Medical & Strategic Communications
Ty Martinez - Pharmacology, Toxicology, & Neuroscience

View more photos at lsuhsfoundation.org/eea.

Congratulations, Dr. Bhuiyan!

We are excited to announce that Mohammad Alfrad Nobel Bhuiyan, PhD, has been named LSU Health Shreveport's first Director of Biostatistics and Computational Biology.
The use of artificial intelligence and computational programming is transforming the world around us and has had significant influence on how research is conducted and analyzed, creating the need for a position dedicated to this rapidly advancing field of science. In this role, Dr. Bhuiyan will be responsible for coordinating research activities related to biostatistics and computational biology across all three of our professional schools.
Dr. Bhuiyan has considerable experience as a biostatistician and researcher utilizing biostatistics and bioinformatics, with a bachelor's and master's degree in applied statistics, a master's degree in mathematical statistics, and a PhD in biostatistics.
Congratulations to Dr. Bhuiyan on this appointment!

Meet our next White Coat Scholar, Austin Hansen! 🥼

Austin grew up in Washington State near the confluence of the Clearwater and Snake Rivers with four brothers and one sister. Curious about all aspects of life, he pursued a diverse educational journey, beginning with his bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Utah and a master’s in Biomedical Sciences from Nova Southeastern University. Austin has consistently sought to make a positive impact on the lives of those around him, volunteering on a two-year service mission in the Philippines, in free clinics, and most recently at Camp Tiger at LSU Health Shreveport.

Learn more about Austin and the other Class of 2027 White Coat Scholars at lsuhsfoundation.org/whitecoatscholars.

Last week, we celebrated Hugo Cuellar, MD, PhD, MBA, DABR, FAHA, Chair of the LSU Health Shreveport Department of Radiology, as the holder of the Medical Center Clinics Endowed Professorship in Radiology.

This professorship was established to enhance the quality and reputation of the residency training program in the Department of Radiology LSUHS by recruiting outstanding residents and providing them with educational and research opportunities. The Medical Center Clinics was formed in 1968 by a group of 11 local physicians with the sole purpose of receiving and donating funds to support the resident training programs at what is now LSU Health Shreveport. Since its founding, the Medical Center Clinics has provided grants to various residency programs and has funded 9 professorships, one for each of the original residency programs represented by the group.

Dr. Cuellar serves as the Chair of Radiology at LSUHS and is a Professor of Neurosurgery, Neurology, and Radiology, Director of Neurointerventional Surgery, and Director of Neuroradiology. He is also Co-Director of the Ochsner LSU Health Thrombectomy Capable Stroke Center, which is 1 of only 10 American Heart Association Stroke Certified Thrombectomy Centers in the US.

His clinical interests include endovascular therapy in cerebral & spinal vascular malformations, brain aneurysms, stroke, brain, head, & neck tumors, as well as an interest in Percutaneous treatment of lumbago.

To learn more about the Medical Center Clinics Endowed Professorship in Radiology and Dr. Cuellar, visit lsuhsfoundation.org/2023/10/02/mcc-radiology-cuellar/.

We are excited to announce the LSU Health Shreveport Class of 2027 recipients of the White Coat Scholarships funded by our generous donors! Thank you to the many alumni, faculty, staff, parents, and community members who support these outstanding future physicians. LSUHS awarded 11 four-year scholarships to the most hard-working and dedicated incoming medical students this year.

Meet Riley Montgomery! Riley was born and raised in Lafayette, LA, and attended LSU, majoring in biology with a minor in psychology. She recently earned her Master’s in Medical Science at LSUHS, which solidified her decision to attend medical school here. Riley has dreamed of becoming a doctor since she can remember and will be the first physician in her family. Since moving to Shreveport, she has immersed herself in the community and has volunteered at many local organizations.

Learn more about the Class of 2027 White Coat Scholars at lsuhsfoundation.org/whitecoatscholars.

We hope you will join us on October 14 for the annual Clays for Camp Tiger! This event raises critical funds for Camp Tiger Shreveport - the annual community service project for LSU Health Shreveport medical students that provides a free week-long day camp for children with physical and cognitive challenges.

Learn more and sign up at lsuhsfoundation.org/claysforct.

Fundraiser for Camp Tiger set next month SHREVEPORT, La. -- Medical students are raising money for Camp Tiger.

Thank you to everyone who joined us on Sunday for The Marion Lecture: What the Humanities Can Teach Us About Humanism & Medicine! We were honored to have so many LSU Health Shreveport faculty and students in attendance, along with many community members.

Thank you, Dr. Marion, for your wisdom and insight into this important topic for not only our future healthcare providers but our current ones.

Thank you to the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra for the beautiful performance accompanying Dr. Marion's lecture.

Don't forget that on Monday, September 25, at 9 am, nominations will close for the 2023 Employee Excellence Awards! Nominate a deserving LSU Health Shreveport employee today at lsuhsfoundation.org/eea.

Recipients are chosen based on their dedication, excellence in attitude, skills, and work ethic. Each recipient will receive a $500 award, a beautiful acrylic award, and recognition at the EEA dinner on November 9 at the East Ridge Country Club.

We look forward to hosting The Marion Lecture: What the Humanities Can Teach Us About Humanism and Medicine featuring the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra on Sunday, September 24.

This event is free and open to the public, however, we ask that you pre-register at lsuhsfoundation.org/marion, so we can best prepare.

🌟STAFF SPOTLIGHT🌟 Today, we would like to recognize our Director of Donor Relations & Events, Katie Bursley! Katie is instrumental in the success of our annual fundraiser, An Evening for Healers, as well as many different events throughout the year. Fresh off concluding another spectacular Healers event, Katie has hit the ground running again to plan Employee Excellence Awards, investitures, a lectureship, and many other events for the Foundation.

Katie, you are an incredible asset to our team and we are so proud of all you do!

We were honored to hold the formal investiture ceremony for Terry Lairmore, MD, FACS, as the inaugural holder of the Donnie and Gail Juneau Endowed Chair in Surgical Oncology. Dr. Lairmore serves as the Division Chief of Surgical Oncology at LSU Health Shreveport.

We were pleased to have Gail Juneau (pictured third from the left), her daughter Andrea J. Mason, and Andrea's husband, Scott, with us for this special honor. Donnie and Gail Juneau established this endowed chair to express their gratitude to LSU Health Shreveport for the outstanding care of Donnie. Donnie passed away in 2017, but thanks to the liver transplant he received at LSU Health Shreveport, Mr. Juneau enjoyed 15 additional years with his family and friends.

Dr. Lairmore is the son-in-law of the late Dr. John McDonald, the former Chair of Surgery and the inaugural Chancellor of LSU Health Shreveport. We were also pleased to have Dr. Lairmore's wife and Dr. McDonald's daughter, Karen M. Lairmore (pictured second from right), and their daughter, Ashley, with us today.

Dr. Lairmore's current research focuses on the molecular genetics of endocrine tumors and the role of the tumor suppressor genes in cholangiocarcinoma and liver fibrosis. He is nationally and internationally recognized for his clinical expertise in endocrine surgery and surgical oncology, has served on the Executive Council of the Association for Academic Surgery, and has been Vice President of the American Association of Endocrine Surgeons.

To learn more about this investiture ceremony and view photos visit lsuhsfoundation.org/2023/09/12/juneauinvestiture/.

We are excited to share that the full photo album from the 2023 An Evening for Healers is available at lsuhsfoundation.org/healers! Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate our community's first responders and healthcare professionals.

For the first time in Healers history, we crowd-funded for needed equipment at Ochsner LSU Health's trauma center. Thanks to the generosity of those in attendance, we raised the $25,000 needed to purchase an ICU Temperature Regulator Device that will greatly assist the care team in maintaining comatose patients' body temperatures. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this life-saving technology!

It's time to nominate a deserving LSU Health Shreveport employee for an Employee Excellence Award!

We are proud to partner with Campus Federal and LSUHS in recognizing employees who are raising the standard of excellence for our institution and community.

Recipients are chosen based on their dedication, excellence in attitude, skills, and work ethic. Each recipient will receive a $500 award, a beautiful acrylic award, and recognition at the EEA dinner on November 9 at the East Ridge Country Club.

Nominations will close at 9 AM on Monday, September 25.
Nominate here: lsuhsfoundation.org/eea

Evie Hilburn was enjoying a fun night with her friends when she suffered an accident that would change her life forever. Pafford Air One flew Evie to Ochsner LSU Health where the trauma team quickly went to work. The next 26 days were a rollercoaster, but Evie's team of healers, and Evie, never gave up.

Thank you to Evie and her family for joining us at An Evening for Healers last week.

2023 Evening for Healers - Evie Hilburn

Imagine waking up tomorrow and you cannot hear anything. This is what Lynette Moye experienced in 2020 after fighting a case of meningitis. Thankfully, she was referred to a highly specialized team at Ochsner LSU Health, whose expertise gave Lynette her quality of life back through restored hearing.

Thank you, Lynette, for sharing your story of determination and perseverance. We were honored to have you and your family with us last week at An Evening for Healers.

2023 Evening for Healers - Lynette Moye

Kerrington Jones's story is not our typical An Evening for Healers story - it is a story of loss. But her story needs to be told. We were honored that Kerrington's mother, Shanna, entrusted us to share her story as it shines a light on the mental health crisis so many of our teens face. Thank you for your strength and bravery.

For the first time in the 12-year history of An Evening for Healers, we recognized a team of Caregivers who lost a patient. So many of our doctors, nurses, first responders, and other healthcare providers know the difficulty of losing a patient but continue to do their jobs with such compassion and care that the loved ones that remain will never forget the impact they made.

Please be advised that this story contains a loss due to su***de.

2023 Evening for Healers - Kerrington

We are still celebrating the incredible heroes and healers we honored last week at An Evening for Healers! Thank you to Shanna, Lynette, and Evie for sharing your stories with us. Visit lsuhsfoundation.org/healers to see their stories and view more photos from the event.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the 12th annual An Evening for Healers last night! More than 1,000 people came together to celebrate heroes, healing, and hope.

We look forward to sharing more photos in the coming days, but in the meantime please join us in thanking this incredible team of healers and heroes! We are so grateful for the compassion and expertise you provide for your patients and their families every day.

If you'd like to make a gift in honor of our 2023 healers and heroes, please visit lsuhsfoundation.org/healersgift.

Tonight, we will gather with our friends and supporters to celebrate heroes, healing, and hope at An Evening for Healers. We extend our deepest gratitude to Ochsner Health for their continued support and partnership as our presenting sponsor.

We look forward to sharing the stories of patients whose lives were saved thanks to their incredible team of healers!

lsuhsfoundation.org/healers.

Thank you to CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System for supporting An Evening for Healers as our Welcome Reception Underwriter. Thank you for partnering with us to ensure all our guests enjoy this special evening while maximizing funds raised to support LSU Health Shreveport.

We look forward to seeing everyone on Thursday! Learn more at lsuhsfoundation.org/healers.

Thank you to Dr. and Mrs. Lacy H. Williams for supporting An Evening for Healers as our Healer Honorees Underwriter. Their generosity ensures that more than 50 first responders, physicians, nurses, and allied health professionals enjoy this special evening free of charge, as they are honored for their life-saving work. We are grateful for the Williams' partnership in honoring these dedicated healers!

In just 3 days we will celebrate heroes, healing, and hope! Learn more at lsuhsfoundation.org/healers.

Thank you to Dr. Dani Zoorob for supporting An Evening for Healers as a Dean Sponsor! Dr. Zoorob serves as Professor and Chairman of the LSU Health Shreveport Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology. We are grateful for Dr. Zoorob's generosity and leadership!

Learn more about An Evening for Healers at lsuhsfoundation.org/healers.

Thank you Willis-Knighton Health System, for your partnership and support as a Dean Sponsor at An Evening for Healers. We look forward to celebrating the inspirational stories of heroes, healing, and hope with an outstanding group of dedicated partners and supporters on Thursday, August 31.

Learn more at lsuhsfoundation.org/healers.

Thank you Metro Aviation for supporting An Evening for Healers as a Dean Sponsor! We are grateful for your partnership in ensuring LSU Health Shreveport remains at the forefront of healing, learning, and discovering.

Less than 1 week until we gather to celebrate heroes, healing, and hope! Learn more at lsuhfoundation.org/healers.

Thank you, 318 Forum Magazine, for highlighting An Evening for Healers! We look forward to this very special event next Thursday, August 31, where we will gather to celebrate heroes, healing, and hope while raising critical funds for LSU Health Shreveport.

Thank you to Liz and David Means for supporting An Evening for Healers as a Dean Sponsor! Mr. and Mrs. Means are also our event chairs this year, and we are grateful for their generosity and support in making this event so special!

We are just 1 week away from this inspiring evening! There is still time to become a sponsor. Learn more at lsuhsfoundation.org/healers.

Thank you to Dr. David Guzick and Dr. Donna Giles for supporting An Evening for Healers as a Dean Sponsor! Dr. Guzick serves as Chancellor of LSU Health Shreveport, and we look forward to welcoming him to his first An Evening for Healers, where he will share his vision for our academic health center. We are grateful for his leadership and generosity!

Learn more at lsuhsfoundation.org/healers.

Thank you to this generous group of underwriters for supporting An Evening for Healers! Our event underwriters allow us to maximize every dollar raised for LSU Health Shreveport, and we are grateful for their continued partnership.

Thank you to Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry for providing the custom medals for our Healers Honorees, Dr. Peggy and Mr. David Murphy for underwriting the event invitation, and Brentwood Hospital for underwriting the event program.

We look forward to celebrating heroes, healing, and hope on August 31. Learn more at lsuhsfoundation.org/healers.