Celebrating 21,960 years of employee service

It was a party atmosphere as more than 1,600 UTMB employees were celebrated for reaching important milestones in their careers during the annual Employee Service Day ceremony on April 13 at Levin Hall.

Collectively, the employees represented 21,960 years of service to UTMB and its mission. Special service pins were presented in five-year increments, with 50 years being the longest tenure honored at the ceremony. In addition, 628 GEM card recipients were recognized for “Going the Extra Mile” in their daily activities.

Decades of Dedication

UTMB President David Callender took the stage to personally recognize two employees from the Department of Pediatrics who have been at UTMB for 45 and 50 years.

Dr. Randall Goldblum, who is the director of the Child Health Research Center and the Children’s Asthma Program, has been at UTMB since1972 and is highly regarded for his expertise in biochemistry and molecular biology—particularly the study and treatment of immunodeficiency diseases in children.

“Dr. Goldblum has helped countless patients and their families with complex medical issues, teaching children with asthma and related disorders how to care for themselves, thus changing the disease process dramatically,” said Callender. “He has been a well-respected professor here at UTMB, passing along his medical knowledge and expertise to untold numbers of medical students and residents who have benefited from his examples of patient care and his love for research.”

Dr. Sally Robinson, a clinical professor of Pediatrics, has been a devoted educational leader and noted physician at UTMB for 50 years. As part of the Children’s Special Services team, Robinson treats children with special health care needs such as chronic physical or mental conditions.

“An externship at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Scotland in the 1960s, which was facilitated by UTMB President Truman Blocker himself, helped cement Dr. Robinson’s resolve to become a pediatrician,” said Callender. “Over the past five decades, she has improved the lives of patients and their families while teaching the next generation of health care providers how to provide compassionate and competent care.”

Videos about Goldblum’s and Robinson’s tenure at UTMB, along with comments from their colleagues, drew smiles and laughs from the audience—one lighthearted clip even showed a roomful of Robinson’s colleagues all wearing her trademark hairstyle, a bun.

The Highest Degree of Professionalism

Christy Taylor Bray, assistant director for Research Training and Development, received the 2016 Nicholas and Katherine Leone Award for Administrative Excellence at the Employee Service Day celebration.

The award recognizes a manager or supervisor at UTMB who displays the highest degree of professionalism, with a monetary prize of$7,500: $2,500 for the winning manager and $5,000 for developing and training in his or her department. Employee Advisory Council members reviewed and scored a total of 34 nominations.

Callender presented the award to Taylor Bray, who has worked in research administration at UTMB for 13 years and is described by others as someone who leads by example, encourages her employees and looks for ways to improve processes in everything she does.

“This is great! I’m ecstatic!” said Taylor Bray, who was also nominated last year. “I’m so excited to use the money for professional development in our department. My staff in Research Education is amazing and they make my job easy. I couldn’t do it without them.”

The Leone Award, established in 1971, is made possible through an endowment from Dr. Nicholas Leone, a former commanding officer and director of the Public Health Service Hospital in Galveston, and his wife, Katherine.

To watch the Employee Service Day video, go to http://hr.utmb.ed/tod/serviceday.