Thomas J. Blocker Society Living Legends Gala To Honor Drs. David Satcher And Louis Sullivan

Thomas J. Blocker Society Living Legends Gala To Honor Drs. David Satcher And Louis Sullivan

On Friday, July 29, beginning at 6 PM with a VIP Reception and a Gala at 7:30 PM, The Intercontinental Buckhead Atlanta (3315 Peachtree Road, NE, Atlanta), will be the site for a night of elegance and celebration as guests and supporters come together to honor two powerhouses in the field of Healthcare, Dr. David Satcher and Dr. Louis Sullivan. This celebration, which proceeds the 2022 National Medical Association Annual (NMA) Convention in Atlanta, will honor these men for their outstanding contributions in Medicine, Medical Education, and Improving Diversity in Healthcare.

This Black-Tie Tribute Celebrating African American Achievement is one of the most anticipated affairs of the NMA Convention weekend and serves as a successful event supporting student scholarships and programming for the Thomas J. Blocker Society Foundation. Dean Thomas J. Blocker was a member of the Morehouse Office of Health Professions for over thirty years, and during this period he teamed with Dr. J.K. Haynes and Dr. Joyce Nottingham to increase the number of Morehouse Men pursuing careers in Healthcare and the Sciences. Dean Blocker was instrumental in positioning Morehouse College as the number one producer of African American males accepted in medical, dental and health professional schools. 

Over the years, Honorees Drs. Satcher and Sullivan have worked for change that would redefine the Healthcare landscape in the country. As Surgeon General of the United States, and Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Service, Dr. Satcher has the distinction of being the second person in history to concurrently serve in both positions, Surgeon General, 1991-2002 and Assistant Secretary 1998 – 2001. In 2002, Dr. Satcher served as Director of the National Center for Primary Care at Morehouse School of Medicine and in 2004, he was named interim president at Morehouse School of Medicine. Dr. Satcher has released reports on many topics, including tobacco and health, mental health, race and ethnicity, suicide prevention, and he made it a priority to attempt to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in the nation’s health care system. Dr. Satcher is the recipient of eighteen honorary degrees and numerous distinguished honors. Dr. Satcher is a 1963 graduate of Morehouse College and received his M.D., Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve in 1970.

Dr. Louis Sullivan is a policy leader, minority health advocate, author, physician, and educator. A graduate of Morehouse College in 1954 with a B.S. Degree in Biology, Dr. Sullivan enjoyed a stellar career at Boston University Medical Center where he founded the Boston University Hematology Service in 1967. In 1975, Dr. Sullivan returned to Morehouse to serve as Dean and Director of the Morehouse College Medical Education Program. The program later became The School of Medicine at Morehouse College in 1978. In 1989, Dr. Sullivan left Morehouse to accept an appointment from President George H.W. Bush as the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. He later returned to Morehouse in 1993 to serve as president and became president emeritus in 2002. In 2003, he was appointed chair of the advisory committee of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Dr. Sullivan has received more than seventy honorary degrees, including an honorary M.D. degree from the University of Pretoria in South Africa. He is the author of The Morehouse Mystique: Becoming a Doctor at the Nation’s Newest African American Medical School with MaryBeth Gasman. His autobiography, Breaking Ground: My Life in Medicine, with David Chanoff, won the NAACP Image Award for Literature in 2015. Blocker Society President Dr. Vandy Gaffney believes “this wondrous occasion will serve as a tremendous opportunity to salute the excellence of two trailblazers in medicine, expressing heartfelt thanks where thanks is due while assisting the next generation of minority health care professionals who will stand on the shoulders of living legends like Drs. Satcher and Sullivan. With an event like this, who wouldn’t want to be in attendance.”

The Thomas J. Blocker Society Foundation Thomas J. Blocker Society Foundation is the 501(c)3 non-profit financial and fundraising arm of the Thomas J. Blocker Society. The non-profit status allows TJB to obtain their goals of assisting the next generation of health care professionals through several fundraising endeavors including their capital campaign. Thomas J. Blocker Society is an incorporated collaboration of the Morehouse College National Alumni Association. The mission of The Thomas J. Block Society is to develop an alumni base and coordinate alumni efforts to support Morehouse’s production of excellent physicians, dentists, research scientists, pharmacists, and allied health.

For tickets https://thomasjblockersociety.com/event/living-legends-satcher-sullivan-gala/

Individual tickets are $200 and VIP tickets are $400.