Dedicated to Discovery

On the afternoon of April 23, the U-M celebrated the completion of the Brehm Tower, a 230,000-square-foot, eight-story building expanding the W.K. Kellogg Eye Center and adding the new Brehm Center for Diabetes Research. The facility increases the Health System’s capacity for eye care, research and education, and unites diabetes researchers as they accelerate the search for a cure and prevention of diabetes.

The new building houses seven eye care clinics with new suites for refractive surgery and cosmetic surgery. On the upper floors, the Brehm Center for Diabetes Research and labs for vision scientists will foster discoveries in both ophthalmology and diabetes.

Made possible by part of an exceptional leadership gift from William and Delores Brehm, of McLean, Virginia, in 2004, the building also serves as the main laboratory component of the U-M Comprehensive Diabetes Center. The gift was motivated by the couple’s desire to find a cure for type 1 diabetes, which Delores Brehm has coped with for 60 years. Bill Brehm is chairman emeritus of SRA International, Inc.

The Kellogg expansion effort, a priority in the University’s recent Michigan Difference fundraising campaign, benefited from the generosity of many loyal Kellogg supporters; the following individuals and foundations made leadership gifts that fueled the success of the expansion campaign.

Robert W. Browne, D.D.S., and his wife, Lynn, from Ada, Michigan, were early, strong supporters of the campaign with the hope that vision research will benefit their children’s and grandchildren’s generations. Browne serves as CEO of Trust Investment Management Corp.

Founded by Detroit industrialist William Carls in 1961, the Carls Foundation’s goal is to better the lives of children. The foundation’s gift supports Kellogg’s Pediatric Ophthalmology Clinic.

John F. Daly, former CEO of Hoover Universal and vice chairman of Johnson Controls, served on the Community Advisory Board that guided early expansion planning as well as supported the Kellogg addition. The reception area in the new Retina Clinic is named in honor of Daly and his wife, Casilda. John Daly died in 2001, Casilda in 2009.

The Edward T. and Ellen K. Dryer Charitable Foundation of Detroit honored its founders’ passion for learning and belief in hard work with its support of Kellogg. Edward, a banker, and Ellen, an advertising pioneer, died within months of each other in 2001; Edward Dryer had gone blind in the middle of his career.

Ruth Tuttle Freeman’s bequest gift was motivated by a desire to advance the cure and treatment of blinding eye diseases. Originally from Lansing, Tuttle and her sister were two of only 12 women in the U-M Law School Class of 1930, comprised of 225 students.

Bartley R. Frueh, M.D. (Residency 1970), and his wife, Cheryl, honored his parents with the Lloyd and Virginia Frueh Research Professorship in Eye Plastics and Orbital Surgery. Frueh, who died in February, served on the U-M Medical School faculty for more than 30 years and founded the Oculoplastics and Orbital Surgery Service.

Ida Lucy Iacobucci, C.O., made a bequest gift to establish a professorship at Kellogg. A groundbreaking orthoptist, Iacobucci has trained more than 300 residents and orthoptic students in her half-century on the Medical School faculty. Richard and Jane Manoogian provided critical support to the expansion project early in its development. The Manoogians hope their gift will help the search for a cure for age-related macular degeneration. Richard Manoogian is executive chairman of Masco Corp.

Mary U. and Edwin E. Meader, who died in 2008 and 2007 respectively, were longtime, generous supporters of the Kellogg Eye Center’s research programs and the expansion project. The main lobby is named in honor of Mary Meader, whose birth name was Rachel Mary Upjohn.

Leonard G. Miller, of Orchard Lake, Michigan, supported expansion construction as well as a significant investment in microscopy that will help diabetes and vision researchers. The Comprehensive Ophthalmology Clinic and the Microscopy Suite are named in his honor.

Edward and Dorothy Mosimann, of Saint Joseph, Michigan, funded research as well as the creation of a laboratory focused on the genetics of eye development and disease through a generous bequest.

Harold “Red” and Marian Poling, from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, supported construction as well as research at Kellogg. Poling is retired chairman and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Company. The third floor lobby is named in their honor.

B.H. Raven made a generous commitment to macular degeneration research at the W.K. Kellogg Eye Center. Raven, who grew up in Michigan, enjoys investing in organizations and causes that benefit others with the goal of helping future generations.

The Ravitz Foundation, a Southfield, Michigan-based philanthropic organization with interests in health care and cancer research, was founded by Detroit businessman Edward Ravitz shortly before his death in 1999. The foundation established the Ravitz Foundation Professorship in Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences.

The Elmer and Sylvia Sramek Charitable Foundation funded Gladiator, a state-of-the-art system of databases in the Kellogg Eye Center that enables researchers to manage and search a large amount of information from patient histories and genetic studies.

Helmut F. Stern, an Ann Arbor businessman and philanthropist, played a leadership role in the Kellogg Eye Center’s expansion by chairing the Community Advisory Board and providing crucial support for the capital project, research, and education. The Kellogg Eye Center garden will be named in his honor.

Robert M. and Ellen A. Thompson of Plymouth, Michigan, founded the Thompson Foundation after selling the Thompson-McCully Company, Michigan’s largest asphalt paving company. The foundation’s support benefits research and construction. The Vision Research Conference Center is named in honor of the Thompsons.

The Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation generously supported Kellogg’s Ophthalmic Imaging Center. Both Harry and Margaret Towsley were graduates of the University of Michigan, and Harry Towsley (M.D. 1931, Residency 1934) served as a professor of pediatrics and chairman of the postgraduate medicine department.

Laurie G. and Timothy Wadhams, of Ann Arbor, honored Harold Falls (M.D. 1936, Residency 1939), a U-M faculty member known as a founder of medical and ophthalmic genetics, with their construction support. Tim Wadhams, president and CEO of Masco Corp., is grateful for Falls’ care when Wadhams was a child.

Michael A. Wainstock, M.D., of Farmington Hills, Michigan, was a national pioneer in the use of ultrasound technology. He led the ultrasound unit within the U-M Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences for close to 25 years, and is establishing a professorship through a bequest. — MARGARETANN CROSS AND RICK KRUPINSKI

Professorships Recently Inaugurated

The life and career of Larry Soderquist were celebrated April 22 with the inauguration of the Larry D. Soderquist Professorship. Established through the generosity of U-M benefactors Bill and Dee Brehm, the professorship serves as a memorial to Soderquist, the brother of Dee Brehm. Celebrated during a week in which the Brehm Tower and expansion of the W.K. Kellogg Eye Center were dedicated, the professorship is intended to support, advance and accelerate medical research related to type 1 diabetes. The first Soderquist Professor is Ernesto Bernal-Mizrachi, M.D., an associate professor of internal medicine.

To forge a lasting legacy for Robert H. and Eva M. Moyad on behalf of the patients who have benefited from their care and service to the community, Phil F. Jenkins and Robert M. and Ellen A. Thompson jointly endowed the Dr. Robert H. and Eva M. Moyad Research Professorship in Urology. Jenkins and the Thompsons are longtime benefactors of medicine at Michigan — they also have supported the Moyads’ son, Mark Moyad, M.D., and his work in complementary and alternative medicine — and are grateful for the care and friendship of Robert Moyad. Associate Professor of Urology Cheryl T. Lee, M.D., was installed as the first Moyad Professor in a June 5 ceremony.

Professor of Surgery and Neurosurgery Steven R. Buchman, M.D., was installed June 10 to the M. Haskell Newman Collegiate Professorship in Plastic Surgery. Established through gifts, pledges and resources from the Department of Surgery, the professorship recognizes the achievements of Newman and focuses on the discipline of pediatric plastic surgery in the areas of research, clinical application and teaching. During the course of his career, Newman, a professor emeritus of surgery, has gained a national reputation for his expertise in the areas of craniofacial and cleft lip/palate surgery, adult maxillofacial surgery and aesthetic surgery. — KB