This year marked the 23rd anniversary of UTMB’s Earth Day celebration. It also marked the first time Ken Steblein wasn’t in charge of putting it all together.
“It’s a little weird, I have to admit,” said Steblein, who first started the annual event in 1992 with only a couple of tables in the main hallway of the John Sealy Towers.
Steblein is known for leading UTMB’s recycling and energy conservation initiatives and has helped the institution become nationally recognized for its efforts. But he’s had to take a time-out from his tireless work since a stage 4 lung cancer diagnosis in October 2014.
“I’m actually the luckiest man in the world,” said Steblein. “The cancer was found by accident. I had volunteered to be part of a research project here at UTMB and part of the study included a chest scan. When the results came in, it showed an almond-sized spot on my lung. Two weeks later, I found out it was cancer. Luckily it hadn’t spread to my brain and I could still undergo treatment.”
Sixteen chemo treatments and 35 radiation treatments later, Steblein attended the May 1 Earth Day celebration in the Moody 
Medical Library plaza, where he was honored for his commitment to sustainable initiatives and Earth Day.
Neal Cooper, UTMB’s sustainability director, presented a glass plaque to Ken and recalled how UTMB’s Earth Day celebrations have grown from a small event encouraging employees to pick up litter as they walked across campus, to an outdoor celebration with 30 suppliers, a leadership committee of 23 people, corporate contributors and over 100 volunteers from across campus.
“We would like to take a moment to express our sincere appreciation to the man who started it all,” said Cooper. “Ken’s passion for the environment and sustainable living is unmatched. On behalf of UTMB and the Office of Sustainability, thank you for your hard work, your dedication and commitment to making all of this a reality.”
Steblein appreciated the recognition and opportunity to visit with friends whom he hadn’t seen since he started treatment. Besides the annual Earth Day celebration, he said his biggest accomplishment was winning the Texas Environmental Excellence Award in 2005.
“We’re a model university for the state of Texas and others when it comes to resource conservation initiatives,” said Steblein. “In the past few years, we’ve repeatedly ranked in the top three for paper and cardboard recycling among school of higher education nation-wide. We’re continuing to look for new ways to conserve energy and spread awareness.”
Steblein says he’s feeling well and has been recovering at home, growing vegetables in his garden and spending time outside. He hopes to get the “all-clear” from his doctor to return to work soon and continue UTMB’s green initiatives.
Earth Day Celebration 2015: Plug in to the Power of Green
The theme for 2015 was “Plug in to the Power of Green.” Ashtyn Hall from Dickinson High School won first place in UTMB’s Earth Day art contest and her drawing was featured on this year’s Earth Day t-shirt.
Cheryl Sadro, executive vice president and chief business and finance officer, served as keynote speaker, and group fitness activities, tree seeding giveaways, green exhibitors, music, food and endless sunshine filled the afternoon.
The always popular “Recycle in Style” fashion show attracted big crowds, as UTMB employees paraded down a red-carpet 
“runway” and showcased outfits made out of recycled materials, while Trish Wooten, compliance training manager and emcee for the event, gave a detailed description of how each costume was made.
UTMB’s Engineering Services Department was also recognized for its commitment to reducing energy consumption through the LED retrofit lighting program. To date, ES Program Director Chris Robbian and his team have retrofitted 288 parking lot fixtures with LED lighting, replaced 2,270 parking garages fixtures with LED lighting and installed close to 40,000 LED tube lamps in UTMB facilities. The standard four-foot LED tube lamp consumes about half the power of an equivalent fluorescent lamp and LED parking lot retrofit lighting consumes 14-30 percent of the power of traditional fixtures. This represents a total energy savings in excess of 5.7 million KWh/year – that’s enough to power 523 homes for an entire year. The project has also saved UTMB about $422,500. Way to go, Engineering Services!