StaffFrom the President
Brooks A. Keel (BS ’78, PhD ’82)
When you have the honor of being president of both of your alma maters at the same time — and in your hometown — it’s not only humbling; it provides a lot of opportunity for reflection. It’s hard for me to drive through town without feeling like I’ve come full circle in the best possible way.
Driving up Walton Way, for instance, I’ll pass Richmond Academy and the old Tubman Junior High School, where I spent so much time growing up. And it’s the same going up Wrightsboro Road. I see Monte Sano Elementary School, where I spent the first seven years of school, and the old St. Joseph’s Hospital, where I was not only born but where I eventually worked in the clinical lab that got me into the field of clinical research. And if I keep going, I pass by Daniel Field, where I spent many happy hours as a young man.
Growing up, my best friend got his private pilot’s license, and the two of us would fly Piper Cubs out of the historic airfield, taxiing past those magnificent hangar doors that will now serve as the backdrop for this year’s President’s Gala.
Talk about full circle.
This year’s Gala will benefit the Children’s Hospital of Georgia, and could there be a more worthy recipient?
Other than our longstanding and important relationship with the Children’s Miracle Network, we’ve never really had a major fundraiser for the Children’s Hospital of Georgia in its more than 20-year history, and I’m excited that our yearly black-tie event will help us continue to provide expert care for children of all ages.
Children’s, of course, is the only health care facility in the area dedicated exclusively to children. It has the area’s only Level 1 Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, the region’s only dedicated 16-bed pediatric emergency room and it is home to the area’s only Pediatric Cancer and Blood Disorder Clinic.
It’s tough to overestimate its importance to the children and families of the region or our dedication to its mission.
I hope to see you at the big hangar at Daniel Field on Oct. 26.
1970s
Paulette Harris (BA ’71, MEd ’74, Ed.S ’95) was awarded a 2019 literacy grant from the honor society of Phi Kappa Phi.
Dr. John Hemmer (MD ’71) had his artwork featured at Brenau’s eighth annual President’s Summer Arts Series.
Dr. Michael Shlaer (MD ’73) published a guest opinion column in The Augusta Chronicle concerning potential cancer partnerships in the Augusta area.
Dr. Jean Sumner (BSN ’73), dean of the Mercer University School of Medicine, was chosen as the May commencement speaker for both Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and Georgia Military College.
Dr. Robert Grant (MD ’74) celebrated his retirement from Savannah-based SouthCoast Health after 45 years of dedicated service.
Dr. Bill Davenport (PhD ’76) was appointed the interim dean of the School of Dental Medicine for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Dr. Thomas W. Kendall (MD ’76) delivered the memorial address at the 54th Annual Confederate Memorial Day celebration in Greenville, South Carolina.
Dr. Frederick B. Epstein (MD ’79) was named the distinguished senior reviewer by the Annals of Emergency Medicine.
1980s
Dr. W. Timothy Scharle (MD ’80), affiliated with the St. Luke’s University Health Network, opened a new location for his practice.
Dr. David Kraebber (MD ’81) was invited to be named visiting professor and annual Millie Berg Memorial Lecturer at the Mayo Clinic Department of Urology.
Cheryl Dukes (BS ’82) was the recipient of the 2019 A.R. Johnson yearbook dedication.
Dr. Bo Edwards (MD ’84) recently joined the pediatrics staff at Colquitt Regional.
Dr. Joel A. Rosenfeld (MD ’85) was named one of Atlanta magazine’s “Top Doctors”.
Dr. Steven Stallings (DMD ’86) was named the chief dental informatics officer for the Bureau for Medicine and Surgery for the U.S. Navy.
Dr. Roosevelt Allen, Jr. (MD ’87) was named one of Atlanta magazine’s “Top Doctors”.
Ron Courson (PT ’89), senior associate athletic director for sports medicine at the Univeristy of Georgia, was inducted into the Georgia Athletic Trainers Association Hall of Fame.
1990s
Dr. Anthony Evans (MD ’90, PhD ’90) was named medical director of gynecologic oncology at the Breast & GYN Cancer Pavilion for Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Dr. John Farley (MD ’91) was named the “Favorite Family Doctor” in the Birmingham Parent 2019 Family Favorites Awards.
Linda A. Kolmar (BS ’92) was named the 2019 Outstanding Alumnus for Physician Assistants by Augusta University’s College of Allied Health Sciences.
The Rev. Da’Henri Thurmond Sr. (BS ’92) was elected to the Carver Financial Corp. board of directors.
Patrick “Kelly” Farr, Jr. (BBA ’96) was named director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget by Gov. Brian Kemp and was also elected vice chairman for the Georgia Ports Authority.
2000s
Dr. James Craig (MD ’01) and his practice, Craig Wellness and Recovery, announced new confidential addiction treatments for patients.
Dr. Stephen King (MD ’01) hosted an arthritis information event with AdventHealth Gordon at the Gordon County Senior Citizens Center.
Dr. Ben Levy (MD ’02) was named to the LUNGevity scientific advisory board.
AARobert Galop (MBA ’03) was promoted to the position of chief marketing officer for IntelePeer.
Carey Anne Cushman (BS ’04, MEd ’06, EdS ’07) graduated from GeAorgia Southern University with a DAoctor ofA Education in curriculum studies with a concentration in teacher leadership.
Dr. Brian K. Stansfield (MD ’04) was elected president of the Southern Society for Pediatric Research.
Dr. Rituparna Das (MD ’06) joined Barton Health’s new neurology office in South Lake Tahoe, California.
Dr. Kyle Hammond (MD ’07) was named head team physician for the Atlanta Falcons.
Dr. Jack Shern (MD ’07) was selected a Lasker Clinical Research Scholar by the National Institutes oAf Health.
Dr. Anita Shetty (MD ’07) joined the team at Dermatology Affiliates.
Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford (MD ’07) was elected vice chair of the American Medical Association’s Minority Affairs Section at the 2019 MAS annual meeting.
Karen Gordon (BA ’09) was appointed to the board of directors of the Augusta, Georgia, Land Bank Authority.
2010s
Jake Amos (BA ’10) was named the head coach for the men’s golf program at East Tennessee State University.
Lyston Skerritt (BA ’10) was appointed director of community, youth, and sport services by the Ministry of Education, Youth Affairs, Sports and Ecclesiastes Services in Montserrat in the Leeward Islands.
Dr. Anthony Didato (DMD ’11) was named a director of Medori CDB.
Henrik Norlander (BBA ’11) won the 2019 Wichita Open at Crestview Country Club after winning a five-man playoff.
Dr. Will Whitmire (MD ’11) joined the team at SouthEast Eye Specialists.
Dr. Jason Holt (EdS ’13, EdD ’18) was nominated for Principal of the Year by Aiken County, South Carolina and was named the new principal for Aiken High School.
Jacob Jones (MBA ’14) was named president of Tipperary Sales, a furniture dealer.
Sabina Khoja (BA ’15) was nominated for Woman of the Year by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Augusta, Georgia, chapter.
Ashley Salsedo (BBA ’15) joined the team at BiggsKofford in the audit and accounting department.
Dr. ZoAnna (Zoey) Scheinfeld (DMD ’15) announced her engagement to Martin (Marty) Bock.
Monica Martinez-Canty (BS ’16) joined the Augusta Sports Council as an events coordinator.
Dr. Alex Culberson (DMD ’16) joined Classic City Orthodontics in Athens, Georgia.
Dr. Hardy Gray (DMD ’16) joined the team at Advanced Dental Care in Valdosta, Georgia.
Broc Everett (BBA ’16) won the Dakotas Tour’s Bluffs South Dakota Open for his first professional golf tournament victory.
Deane Williams signed a professional contract with the Keflavík Icelandic Basketball Club.
Ms. Alexis Lane (BBA ’19) obtained a corporate position with Chick-fil-A.
