The UCLA Department of Neurosurgery received a $1 million commitment from the Henry & Jessica Chen Foundation to support the work of Dr. Daniel C. Lu, associate professor of neurosurgery and director of the UCLA Neuromotor Recovery and Rehabilitation Center. The Chens’ contribution will help advance research on spinal cord injury and paralysis-related disorders and will enable Dr. Lu to develop and test potential groundbreaking therapies in larger patient groups.
The Susan De Boismilon Revocable Trust has contributed a total of $1.4 million to three programs at UCLA. Facilitated by Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center Board of Advisors member Rebecca Rothstein, the gifts will provide $750,000 to establish the Susan De Boismilon Fund for Cleft and Craniofacial Surgery in the UCLA Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, under the direction of Dr. Reza Jarrahy (FEL ’06); $300,000 to support the growth of the UCLA Health People-Animal Connection, UCLA’s animal-assisted therapy program that offers companionship and warmth to ill children and adults; and in partnership with Teen Cancer America, $350,000 to benefit the UCLA Adolescent and Young Adult Program.
The Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation has made a contribution of $5 million to establish two endowed chairs — one in human genetics and one in precision clinical genomics. The gift directed to human genetics will fund the educational and research activities of a distinguished faculty member, talented graduate students and postdoctoral fellows and the development of new computational methods. The contribution benefiting precision clinical genomics will support the efforts of an esteemed faculty member in spearheading advancements in UCLA’s precision diagnostics service and the new clinical division of genetics and genomics within the UCLA Institute for Precision Health and the UCLA Department of Human Genetics.
Dr. Howard Murad and his wife Loralee Knotts-Murad have made a gift to advance the mission of the Simms/Mann-UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology. This contribution aligns with their goals to provide integrative health and wellness services and a diverse range of psychosocial, spiritual and health programs to patients and families faced with a cancer diagnosis. Dr. Murad, an associate clinical professor of medicine/dermatology in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, has dedicated himself to years of research on all aspects of modern wellness. The gift serves as an investment in the future of integrative, whole-person oncology care that fills the gap when medicine alone is not enough.
The Brain Tumor Center at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA received a $400,000 grant from the PHASE ONE Foundation to support the work of Dr. Linda Liau (RES ’97, FEL ’98, PhD ’99), chair of the UCLA Department of Neurosurgery and the W. Eugene Stern Chair in Neurosurgery, and Dr. Timothy Cloughesy (RES ’91, FEL ’92), director of the UCLA Neuro-Oncology Program. The funding will help change the face and fate of brain cancer by advancing dendritic cell vaccine research and clinical studies. In 2017, the UCLA Brain Tumor Center and the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center were designated a Specialized Program of Research Excellence by the National Cancer Institute—one of only six brain cancer programs in the nation to receive this prestigious recognition.
Jack and Maggy Simon.
Photo: Courtesy of the Simon family.
Maggy and Jack Simon have made a testamentary gift to support the UCLA Department of Urology. The legacy gift will facilitate collaborations in training and research that lead to innovations that enhance patient care.
Dr. Daniel Wallace and his wife Janice.
Photo: Courtesy of Lupus LA.
Janice and Dr. Daniel Wallace (FEL ’79) have made a gift of $100,000 to benefit the Fern Wallace Foundation Research and Enrichment Fund that Dr. Wallace recently established in memory of his mother Fern, who was an enthusiastic supporter of UCLA as a student during World War II. She received a master’s degree in the 1970s and ran the gift shop at the Hammer Museum when it first opened. Dr. Wallace is passionate about training the next generation of rheumatologists, and he and his wife established the Fern Wallace Fund to support research and educational opportunities for fellows and junior faculty in the UCLA Division of Rheumatology. For the past 37 years, Dr. Wallace has served as a volunteer faculty member at UCLA.
Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) has continued its support of UCLA Health Operation Mend with a $2 million contribution to benefit the Operation Mend surgical program. The gift will increase opportunities for post-9/11 U.S. service members to undergo surgery that improves their lives, such as the operation for Army veteran Michael Carrasquillo, who survived several gunshot wounds and an explosion while deployed in Afghanistan more than a decade ago. “Operation Mend doctors operated on my left hand and wrist, and it was life-changing. I couldn’t really use that hand before; now it is much more functional,” he said.
For more information, contact Health Sciences Development at: 310-206-6484
