The Duke Children's Society Celebration
Celebrating generosity and leaders in pediatric philanthropy
The third-annual Duke Children’s Society Celebration was held on September 20, 2024 at Karsh Alumni and Visitors Center on Duke University campus. The Duke Children’s Society recognizes annual donors who give $2,500 or more cumulatively to any area at Duke Children’s. In the 2023-2024 fiscal year, Duke Children’s Society members contributed over $7M –47% of the total revenue raised through annual fundraising.
Over 110 attendees heard from Debbie Taylor, Acting Associate Vice Present of Duke Children's and Duke Cancer Institute Development, and Ann M. Reed, MD, chair of the department of pediatrics and physician-in-chief of Duke Children’s. These attendees were our first audience to meet our 2024-2025 Champion Patient Ambassadors.
During the event, guests participated in a special activity led by Susan Budziszewski and Holly Tugman, members of the Duke Children's Child Life team. The team is made up of 13 certified Child Life specialists who provide expert care to children based on their development, social, and emotional needs. They work on all four inpatient pediatric floors of Duke Central Tower, the four outpatient floors of the Children's Health Center, the sedation unit, radiology, and emergency department. They play a vital role in helping patients and families cope with the challenges of illness and hospitalization.
Budziszewski and Tugman led attendees in a "blood soup" exercise, which is used in the hematology-oncology unit. Additionally, Bianca Backus, a clinical nurse who works in pediatric oncology, explained the critical collaboration between Child Life and nursing.
In addition to the speakers and activities, two awards were presented during the event: the Duke Children's Hero Award and the Duke Children's Partner Award.
Award Recipients
DUKE CHILDREN’S HERO AWARD: GEORGE GRODY
The Duke Children’s Hero Award was established in 2018 to recognize and honor individuals who have shown an exceptional commitment to furthering the Duke Children’s mission of providing the best medical care to every child. The honoree or honorees must be advocates, supporters, partners, and friends of Duke Children’s who have devoted their own time and resources to help the patients, physicians, and staff at our hospitals and clinics.
The Duke Children’s Hero Award was presented to George Grody for his incredible support of Duke Children's and for his work with mentoring and encouraging Duke student-athletes to fundraise for Duke Children's.
DUKE CHILDREN’S PARTNER AWARD: DURHAM COSTCO
The Duke Children’s Partner Award is was inaugurated in 2023 to recognize and honor our corporate partners who have shown an exceptional commitment to furthering the Duke Children’s mission of providing the best medical care to every child. These organizations must be staunch advocates for Duke Children’s, aligning their social responsibility with our missions of world-class clinical care, pediatric research that saves lives, and provider education that will shape the pediatricians of tomorrow.
The Duke Children’s Partner Award was given to the Durham Costco in recognition of their incredible Children's Miracle Network Hospitals fundraising for Duke Children's.
PEDx Duke Children's
Later that day, Duke Children’s hosted its first-ever PEDx Duke Children's event. This TED-talk style event highlighted the work of two physician-scientists: Pinar Gumus Balikcioglu, MD, and Jennifer Cohen, MD.
See photos from the 2024 PEDx Duke Children's!
Watch the 2024 PEDx Duke Children's presentation!
Gumus's presentation, titled "Identifying Diabetes in Children Earlier: Ending the Disease Where It Starts" showcased how Duke physician-scientists are making significant strides in identifying, treating and preventing diabetes. Gumus's passion lies in finding solutions to help children and families through her research in predicting the progression of Type-2 diabetes in children and adolescents, as well as understanding the role of obesity in preventing complications from Type-1 diabetes as children develop.
Cohen's presentation, titled "Diagnosing and Treating Genetic Diseases Earlier," focused on helping families before disease even begins - before parents conceive and during pregnancy. Her aim is to diagnose genetic diseases prior to a baby’s arrival, enabling prenatal treatment before the baby is born.
PEDx was hosted by Jason Williams, MD, who moderated a post-presentation Q&A with Drs. Gumus and Cohen. In addition to the physician-scientists, several patient families took the stage to share their Duke Children's experience and how research is improving their lives.