TMA Foundation SOLUTIONS Newsletter Fall 2019

Last fall, generous donors like you fueled our Endowment for Innovation campaign to reach the goal of $1.25M in record time. Not long afterward, a benevolent donor established a new fund to support medical student scholarships and grants to TMA medical student chapters. BOTH funds have enabled TMAF to “move to the next level” by supporting NEW Family of Medicine programs that help Texans lead healthier lives, as highlighted in this Fall edition of SOLUTIONS (made possible thanks to joint underwriting from Frost and TMA Insurance Trust – thank you). Please help us continue to think BIG as we seize the opportunities that your generosity affords us to create a Healthy Now and a Healthy Future for more Texans. Thank you!

Yours in good health,

Susan M. Pike, MD
President, TMA Foundation 

TMAF’s 2020 gala – themed The Art of Medicine - recognizes Fort Worth for its vibrant art scene and honors the individualized way physicians provide care and treatment to each patient. The décor will be bright and artistic. Dress is “pop art” cocktail attire. Tickets and tables for the May 1, 2020 event are on sale now. Join these confirmed sponsors, along with friends and colleagues, for an enjoyable respite from meetings featuring cocktails, seated dinner, live music, auction and more.

Another turning point for TMAF is the development of a new digital display in the TMA building lobby, created in cooperation with TMA, TMA Alliance, TMA Insurance Trust and TMLT. The searchable display will recognize the collaborative leadership among these organizations that has created a unique and powerful force for supporting physicians, their patients and all Texans in the quest for improved health.

Featured will be presidents and board members of each organization, TMAF Major Donors and founding Endowment for Innovation Campaign donors – plus stories of shared achievements. The display will be unveiled on Friday, Jan. 24, 2020 at the TMA building in conjunction with TMA Winter Conference. Be sure to see this compelling story of leadership in the New Year!

TMAF stands out among other large state medical association foundations with its funding of large-scale, community-based outreach programs that rely on the volunteer spirit of TMA and TMA Alliance members to implement. You can amplify this work by making a year-end gift to TMAF, perhaps as a Holiday Tribute that shares your gratitude for a friend, colleague or family member or remembers the passing of someone important in your life. TMAF will send your honoree a beautiful holiday card with a message that you’ve made a gift in their name. Make your gift online by Dec. 16, by email to Marilyn[dot]Anderson[at]texmed[dot]org or call TMAF staff at (800) 880-1300, ext 1466.

You can schedule the next amazing traveling TMA traveling exhibit, “Courage and Determination: Pioneering African American Physicians in Texas Banner Series” thanks to a grant from TMAF that makes this three-panel display possible. For more information or to reserve, email Claire[dot]Duncan[at]texmed[dot]org or call (800) 880- 1300, ext. 1544, or (512) 370-1544.

Also, more than $49,000 in recently approved health improvement grants from TMAF will impact thousands of Texans. County medical society, alliance and medical student members will carry out this work with business and community collaborators. A new TMAF fund established by Roberto J. Bayardo, MD, enabled a record number of student chapter grants to be awarded.

Scholarships to nursing students in Travis and Harris counties will increase from $6,500 to $10,000 starting in 2020, thanks to the generosity of the TMAF Hispanic Nursing Scholarship Trust Fund of Dr. Roberto J. and Agniela (Annie) M. Bayardo (pictured). To learn more about TMAF's Family of Funds and starting your own fund at TMAF, contact TMAF executive director, Lisa Stark Walsh, at Lisa[dot]Walsh[at]texmed[dot]org or call (800) 880-1300, ext 1666.

The Texas Medical Association Foundation (TMAF) recently elected Houston and Austin-area physicians and a Fort Worth civic leader as its new officers to lead the foundation’s board for the next two years.

Susan M. Pike, MD, a plastic and cosmetic surgeon based in Round Rock, was elected president and previously served as TMAF vice president.

Michael E. Speer, MD, a neonatologist in Houston, was elected vice president. He is a past TMA president and just completed a two-year term as the foundation’s treasurer and chair of its Finance Committee.

Angela Donahue of Fort Worth was elected secretary. She currently serves as an advisor on the TMA Alliance’s (TMAA’s) Board of Directors and is a TMAA past president.

Gregory R. Johnson, MD, a hospitalist and family physician in Houston, was elected treasurer. In addition he was appointed chair of the TMAF Finance Committee.

Shannon Hancher-Hodges, MD, a Houston anesthesiologist, was elected executive committee member-at-large and will serve a one-year term. She serves on the TMA Foundation’s Board of Trustees as a representative of the TMA Young Physician Section. 

Many of us had a science teacher who went the extra mile to make chemistry or biology exciting and engaging. Consider nominating an outstanding elementary, middle or high school science teacher for the TMA Ernest and Sarah Butler Awards for Excellence in Science Teaching. Nominations will be accepted through Dec. 3. Top winners and their schools receive cash awards, which are made possible by a TMA endowment established through the generosity of Dr. and Mrs. Ernest C. Butler.