The Wayne State University School of Medicine will host its annual Golden Gala at 6 p.m. Oct. 12 at the MGM Grand Detroit Hotel.
This year's black-tie event is themed "Solid Gold '60s," and will feature a reception with a plated dinner, an award ceremony and afterglow. Popular party band Fifty Amp Fuse will provide the evening's entertainment, performing hits of the late 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s.
Tickets are $225 for one or $200 each for two or more. For more information and to RSVP to the event, visit gala.med.wayne.edu or call 313-577-3114.
(Click here photos from last year's gala).
The event will honor individuals who have contributed to the school's legacy and celebrate the generosity of donors whose support has helped WSU maintain its distinction as one of the most respected medical schools in the nation. Monies raised will support medical school scholarships and student-related activities.
The School of Medicine will honor five leaders in the fields of medicine, science and the business community with its Ambassador, Trailblazer and Distinguished Service awards. Southeast Michigan Regional Transit Authority Director Paul Hillegonds; WSU School of Medicine Board of Visitors member and Lumigen Inc. founder A. Paul Schaap, Ph.D; School of Medicine alumnus and NASA astronaut Jerry Linenger, M.D. M.S.S.M., M.P.H., Ph.D.; Professor of surgery and critical care physician Robert Wilson, M.D.; and Professor of surgery and physiology Allen Silbergleit, M.D., Ph.D., are this year's award honorees, and will be profiled in a video presentation produced by Cynthia Canty, an Emmy-winning television reporter and anchor, Detroit radio personality and host of "Stateside with Cynthia Canty," on Michigan Radio 91.7-FM.
About the honorees
Paul Schaap, Ph.D., will receive the Ambassador Award for 30 years of service and philanthropic support to WSU. Dr. Schaap is a retired chemistry professor and founder of Lumigen Inc., which he established in 1987. His research focused on the study of dioxetanes - chemical compounds that produce light - and have evolved into compounds used worldwide to diagnose AIDS, cancer, hepatitis and other diseases. He remains involved with WSU as a member of the Board of Visitors of the School of Medicine and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. He also serves on the board of the Wayne State Foundation and the Steering Committee of the Mott Center. He is a member of the Detroit Merit Charter Academy Board of Directors. He is a resident of Grosse Pointe Park.
Jerry M. Linenger, M.D., M.S.S.M., M.P.H, Ph.D., USN Capt. (ret.), will receive the Trailblazer Award, a fitting tribute for the 1981 School of Medicine graduate who traveled into space as an astronaut on space shuttle missions and as a member of the scientific team that lived aboard the international MIR space station for more than 130 days. Dr. Linenger is one of the school's most recognizable alumni and carried a Wayne State University School of Medicine flag with him on the MIR mission. Dr. Linenger was born and raised in Eastpointe, and is a resident of Suttons Bay in northern Michigan.
Robert F. Wilson, M.D., also will receive the Trailblazer Award, in recognition of pioneering trauma and critical care medicine. Dr. Wilson was awarded the Master of Critical Care Medicine title by the Society of Critical Medicine and has held numerous leadership positions at WSU and the Detroit Medical Center, as well as with numerous local, state and national organizations. He was a founding member of the Society of Critical Care Medicine and has served as a governor and president of the American College of Surgeons. Dr. Wilson continues to advance the quality of future surgeons as a dedicated educator and mentor. He is a resident of Bloomfield Hills.
Allen Silbergleit, M.D., Ph.D., will receive the Distinguished Service Award, honoring the School of Medicine professor of Surgery and Physiology's devotion to medical students and residents, a deep knowledge in the fields of basic science, medicine and surgery and a rare gift for skillful teaching. He was a founding member of the Oakland Health Education Program, later renamed the Southeast Michigan Center for Medical Education, and served as program director of the surgical residency at St. Joseph Mercy Oakland Hospital in Pontiac for 40 years. Dr. Silbergleit has developed new surgical techniques now referenced in medical textbooks and led local, regional and national surgical and medical education organizations. He joined the Wayne State University School of Medicine faculty in 1962. He is a resident of Huntington Woods.
Paul Hillegonds will receive the Distinguished Service Award: Community, for his dedication to bettering the lives of Michigan residents. He is senior vice president of Corporate Affairs at DTE Energy, overseeing the company's governmental relations efforts, external and internal communications. He also is responsible for overseeing the company's regulatory affairs, and environmental management and resources organizations. Hillegonds served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 1979 to 1996, and as president of Detroit Renaissance, a non-profit, civic group for economic development and public policy issues, from 1997 to 2005. He serves on several boards, including the Southeast Michigan Regional Transit Authority, Children's Leadership Council of Michigan, Detroit Regional Chamber Foundation and the Michigan Chapter of the Nature Conservancy. He is a resident of Plymouth.