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May 17, 2015 (Bronx
NY) The Women’s Division of Albert Einstein College of
Medicine hosted its 62nd Annual Spirit of
Achievement Luncheon on Tuesday, May 17th at the
Rainbow Room in Manhattan. The event honors individuals who
have made outstanding contributions to the arts and
sciences, medicine, business, government and philanthropy.
This year’s honorees were Clive Davis, legendary
record producer and music industry executive;
Sharmila Makhija, M.D., M.B.A., ., a leading
expert in cancer prevention and gynecologic cancers and
chair of obstetrics & gynecology and women’s health at
Einstein and Montefiore Health System; and Danielle
Weisberg and Carly Zakin, co-founders and CEO’s
of theSkimm, a news and information e-newsletter for
young women professionals. Ruth L. Gottesman, Ed.D.,
chair emerita of the Einstein Board of Overseers and
professor emerita of pediatrics, received the
Lizette H. Sarnoff Award for Volunteer Service, the Women’s
Division’s highest honor. The Luncheon benefited cancer
research at Einstein and Montefiore.
TODAY show
correspondent Jill Martin, a past Spirit honoree,
served as emcee. Carol Roaman, president of the
Einstein Women’s Division, and executive board members
Mindy Feinberg, Jackie Harris and Andrea Stark
were the luncheon co-chairs. Ms. Roaman, who lost her
daughter to ovarian cancer, expressed her admiration for
researchers at Einstein, noting that the Women’s Division
has raised more than $2.5 million for Einstein cancer
research since she became involved in 2012. Ms. Harris and
Ms. Feinberg thanked the committee and the event’s many
sponsors. Ms. Stark commented that, “All of our lives have
been touched by cancer, in one way or another. That’s why it
is imperative to help Einstein scientists continue their
cutting-edge cancer research and support Montefiore’s
commitment to world-class medical care.” Paraphrasing
Montefiore Health System’s new tagline, she noted that,
“Einstein-Montefiore really are Doing More!”
Dr. Steven M.
Safyer, president and chief executive officer of
Montefiore Medicine, presented Dr. Makhija with her Spirit
award. In her remarks, Dr. Makhija highlighted the
importance of women’s health issues and Montefiore’s
outreach to women in underserved communities who are in need
of quality health care. She showed a compelling video
focusing on how Einstein is training the next generation of
highly skilled and compassionate ob/gyn physicians.
Ms. Martin then
presented Spirit awards to Ms. Zakin and Ms. Weisberg. The
media entrepreneurs spoke about how technology is changing
the way we receive news as well as the importance of
philanthropy and ways in which the next generation of
leaders is embracing it.
Allen M. Spiegel,
M.D., Einstein’s Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz
Dean, presented Ruth L. Gottesman, Ed.D., with
the Lizette H. Sarnoff Award for Volunteer Service. Dr.
Gottesman gave an impassioned speech touching on her life’s
work at Einstein and Montefiore-Einstein’s
Children's
Evaluation and Rehabilitation Center (CERC),
which
provides comprehensive family-centered, community-based care
to young people (and some adults) with severe developmental
disorders such as autism spectrum disorders, learning
disabilities, ADHD, cerebral palsy and other neuromuscular
disorders, spina bifida and hearing problems.
The program ended
with a moving tribute to Clive Davis. Dr. Safyer lauded Mr.
Davis’s longtime support of AIDS/HIV research and how, in
the epidemic’s early days, he galvanized the music
establishment to recognize the impact HIV was having not
only in the arts but in underserved communities worldwide.
In his acceptance speech, Mr. Davis stressed the importance
of Einstein’s dedication to
innovative biomedical investigation and to the development
of ethical and compassionate physicians.
Drawing on personal and family experiences, he praised
Einstein-Montefiore’s major research centers in AIDS,
aging, intellectual and developmental disorders, diabetes,
cancer, clinical and translational research and liver
disease, and their efforts to advance the prevention and
treatment of the world’s most devastating health problems.
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