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vacation time to act as the “camp doctor” for the various
camps attended by his children and was also the unofficial
school doctor for his children’s private Christian school,
where he gifted the money he made back to the school.
“Dr. Ortiz has a generous heart and finds great joy in the
service he provides to others,” explains the NICU team.
make time to serve humanity outside of work.
Each year, Methodist Healthcare honors those
individuals who embody exemplary service through
their humanitarian efforts with a special
Graceann
Durr Humanitarian Award
. This award is given to
select employees, volunteers and physicians for their
dedicated spirit and genuine concern for the welfare
of others.
This year Methodist Healthcare is proud to announce
the following as recipients of the 2015 Graceann Durr
Humanitarian Award.
EMP L O Y E E R E C I P I E N T S
Ama Osei-Bonsu,
clinical lab-
oratory assistant, Methodist
Stone Oak Hospital, works
tirelessly to help the children
in a small village in Ghana,
West Africa. Her work has led
to the construction of four
dormitories, a fundraising
gala to raise much-needed
support, and the collection of
clothing and supplies to help these children. She also
helped one child get two surgeries to correct a severely
deformed foot.
Cindy Sullivan,
phar-
macy administrative assis-
tant, Methodist Hospital,
takes personal time with
her husband each year to
help ready the swine barn
for the annual San Anto-
nio Stock Show & Rodeo.
They live on the grounds for
3 weeks helping to take care
of up to 6,000 animals and
the teenagers who raise them. Her volunteer work
has helped the rodeo donate more than $148 million
to Texas youth through scholarships.
Linda Witte, RN,
sexual
assault forensic examiner,
Methodist Specia lt y and
Transplant Hospital, a cam-
pus of Methodist Hospital, is
described by her co-workers
as loving, kind, altruistic,
compassionate, energetic,
dedicated, peaceful and a per-
fect servant. Witte grew up in
rural East Africa, where her
parents served on medical missions. She continued
that work after she went to nursing school and works
internationally to provide team building and leader-
ship training with home-school teachers and rural
African missions.
GRACEANN DURR AWARD WINNERS
Methodist Healthcare recognizes
exemplary humanitarianism
VOLUNTEER REC I P I ENTS
Larry and Paulette Goodman,
Methodist Hospital, have been
members of the Blue Bird
Auxiliary for 24 years, sharing
their compassion and love with
all those they encounter. They
are also passionate about such
programs as the American Red
Cross, Habitat for Humanity,
the Witte Museum, the San
Antonio Botanical Gardens and many other worthy or-
ganizations. When asked what motivates them, they say,
“We have been blessed that it is a privilege to be able to
give back…that’s why God put us on this earth.”
D e b b i e W i l l i a m s ,
MetropolitanMethodist Hospital,
a campus of Methodist Hospital,
was instrumental in forming the
Pink Warriors Breast Cancer
Support Group. In less than a
year, this group has become one
of the largest, most active sup-
port groups in San Antonio. A
breast cancer survivor herself,
she organized a Christmas party
in 2014 for breast cancer survivors and their families and
continues to make a difference in the lives of all she meets.
PH Y S I C I AN R E C I P I E N T S
Daizha Gallo,
physician assis-
tant with Emcare, Metropolitan
Methodist Hospital, a campus
of Methodist Hospital, has
given up her Christmas holiday
for the past seven years to pro-
vide health care to the people
of Mexico, Central America
and South America. Since
2007, she and her family have
volunteered with T.I.M.E. for Christ Ministries, and this
past December, her group spent 9 days in Guatemala
assisting over 720 patients from three villages with a
myriad of ailments. These mission trips inspired her to
pursue a career in the medical field.
Amil Ortiz, MD,
Methodist
Children’s Hospital, a campus
of Methodist Hospital, is a
neonatologist in the Newborn
Intensive Care Unit (NICU). He
is described as a compassionate
physician with not only his pa-
tients and the staff in the NICU,
but also his tiny patients’ fami-
lies. He has also taken mission
trips with his church, used his
M
ethodist Healthcare is very proud of its mission:
Serving Humanity to Honor God
by providing exceptional and cost-effective health care accessible to all.
This mis-
sion guides our culture and sets the expectation of how our employees live their
lives, at work and on a personal level. Methodist Healthcare is proud to have many
employees who go beyond the compassion they provide while at work and still
A lifetime of service
M
ethodist Healthcare established the
Graceann Durr Humanitarian Awards in 2009,
named in memory of a long-serving and de-
voted Methodist Healthcare board member and the first
woman to lead the San Antonio Independent School
District. Throughout her life, Durr embraced the value
of the human spirit and the duty of each of us to work
diligently to improve others and ourselves.
This year’s award winners exemplify the traits Durr
found most valuable: kindness, happiness, thankfulness,
giving and integrity, and living a life of gentle morality.
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M e t h o d i s t H e a l t h c a r e