Folkman Grant to Fund Teed Recovery Efforts at Maryhaven
Dr. Judah Folkman
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Born in 1933, Dr. Judah Folkman was first inspired to become a surgeon at the age of seven, when he accompanied his rabbi father visiting sick members of his congregation in the hospital. Almost 70 years later, his efforts on behalf of healing and restoration are continuing to have a lasting impact on the lives of Ohioans. The Columbus Jewish Foundation is pleased to announce the approval of a $10,000 grant from the Judah Folkman Medical Research & Education Endowment Fund to help support Maryhaven, Central Ohio's oldest and most comprehensive healthcare facility specializing in treatment for people with alcohol and drug dependencies. The grant is given in support of Maryhaven’s “A Healthier Tomorrow for Our Children” Capital Campaign, for an Adolescent Medical Office to assess adolescents before admission and provide continuity of medical services. Columbus Jewish Foundation Board member Dr. Bruce Meyer chairs the Folkman Fund grants committee. “This new medical office will allow for medical assessments and care for 240 teens each year”, remarked Dr. Meyer. “Maryhaven does such important work in our community. The Columbus Jewish Foundation is pleased to be a part of the good work Maryhaven provides each day.” Serving with Dr. Meyer on the Folkman Fund Committee are Drs. Claire Wolfe and Howard Levin. Maryhaven offers a full range of services for people with addictive illnesses. Its President and Chief Executive Officer, Paul Coleman, commented: “The gift will continue Dr. Folkman’s legacy of healing by helping 240 children each year restore their lives when those lives have been interrupted by addictive and mental illness.” Folkman graduated cum laude from The Ohio State University in 1953. He continued his education at Harvard Medical School, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1957. Folkman began his surgical residency at the Massachusetts General Hospital and served as chief resident in surgery from 1964-1965. As a student, Folkman co-authored papers describing a new method of hepatectomy for liver cancer and developed the first atrio-ventricular implantable pacemaker for which he received the Boylston Medical Prize, Soma Weiss Award and Borden Undergraduate Award in Medicine. While serving as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy from 1960-1962, Folkman and a colleague at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MD, first reported the use of silicone rubber implantable polymers for the sustained release of drugs. Their findings became the basis for development of Norplant, the contraceptive used internationally, and initiated the field of controlled release technology. At this time, Folkman also began growing tumors in isolated perfused organs, which led to the idea that tumors are angiogenesis-dependent. Folkman is the author of 389 original peer-reviewed papers and 106 book chapters and monographs. He also holds honorary degrees from fifteen universities and is the recipient of numerous national and international awards. He has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society and the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. In addition to his distinguished accomplishments in research, Folkman has served as a surgeon and teacher. A Bexley native, Dr. Folkman was honored at the Columbus Jewish Foundation’s 1998 Annual Meeting. The event’s proceeds were used to establish the fund bearing his name. Folkman is the son of the late Jerome Folkman, who was Temple Israel’s rabbi from 1947 to 1973. Previous Folkman Fund grants have been made to the Mt. Carmel Health Foundation, Hadassah’s “Check it Out” breast health awareness program for teens, the Transverse Myelitis Association, and the American Cancer Society of Franklin County. The Columbus Jewish Foundation is dedicated to building permanent community resources to secure the stability and continuity of Jewish life in Columbus and abroad. To find out more information, please contact Larry Shuman, Director of Marketing at the Columbus Jewish Foundation at 614-338-2365 or e-mail lshuman@tcjf.org.
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