Sometimes it is easier to do difficult things when you use the “buddy system.” For the husband and wife team of Don and Lori Cupples, losing weight and recovering from gastric bypass surgery was much easier because they did it together at the same time. The two live in Chandler and are patients of Dr.…

Ivan Leon has always been a helper, someone who facilitates communication and bridges gaps. First it was through his job as an EMS dispatcher, then manager of the EMS dispatch center. More recently he moved into a human resources role and joined the UT Health East Texas Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council, where he feels…

Summer Patterson remembers all too well being a patient in the hospital, bored with nothing to do while she recovered from four eye surgeries before her 10th birthday. The Whitehouse ISD sixth grader didn’t want other kids to face the same situation, so she used her Girl Scout service project to devise a solution. For…

Mary Urieta, orthopedic clinic supervisor at UT Health Tyler, still remembers how being in the hospital made her feel when she was 8 years old. While many kids that age might feel scared, Urieta remembers the hospital as a place where she and her parents felt accepted and valued, like they belonged. Urieta’s family emigrated…

A distance of more than 300 miles didn’t stop a proud grandmother from spreading love to newborns at UT Health Tyler. Nancy Savinelli said her own six grandchildren serve as her inspiration for making the crocheted baby blankets she donates to different baby organizations, including the UT Health Tyler Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. “Children are…