Hall’s firsthand experience blends with love of giving
Donna Hall and her husband, John, are very familiar with Vanderbilt.
John Hall, the retired chair and CEO of Kentucky-based Ashland Inc., graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1955. He was co-captain of the 1955 football team and named Academic All American. He has been a member of Vanderbilt’s Board of Trust since 1987 and served as chair of the board from 1995-1999.
But the Halls’ partnership with Vanderbilt became a bit more personal in 1998 when Donna Hall was diagnosed with breast cancer. They sought medical opinions about her treatment from the top cancer centers around the country. Even though they live in Lexington, Ky., she chose the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center for her care. “They saved my life,” she said. “Receiving excellent care was important, but feeling comfortable at the Cancer Center was a real plus. We decided to have my treatment at Vanderbilt where I could have both.”
After a year of treatment at Vanderbilt-Ingram from her oncologist David Johnson, M.D., and her surgeon Dan Beauchamp, M.D., which included chemotherapy and a lumpectomy, followed by more chemotherapy and radiation, Donna Hall’s cancer is gone, but she continues to see both doctors annually.
Her experience has made her want to give back. She has been a member of the Vanderbilt-Ingram Board of Overseers since 2005, and she and her husband have given $1.5 million to fund the Donna S. Hall Chair in Breast Cancer at Vanderbilt-Ingram. The chair will be used to recruit and retain an exceptional clinical director of the breast cancer program. A surgical oncologist with a national reputation will be targeted as the first recipient of the Hall chair.
“This gift is such a wonderful testament to the powerful relationship that develops between cancer survivors and their medical team,” said Jennifer Pietenpol, Ph.D., interim director of Vanderbilt-Ingram. “Donna greatly valued the care that Drs. Beauchamp and Johnson, and their colleagues, provided and was in a position to help enhance our breast cancer program and extend that care to even more women. Donna and John’s generosity and leadership will have a great impact for breast cancer patients now and in the years to come.”
Donna Hall said she is impressed with the care she and others receive at Vanderbilt-Ingram. “I received such wonderful treatment there. Everyone is treated equally, in a professional way, but with dignity and respect. It was remarkable to see that happening, and it made us want to give back to the Cancer Center. I hope the gift we are giving will help women in the future.”
Hall said her husband planned the gift in her honor. “I was really touched. I had no idea he was planning to do it. When I found out, I wanted both names on the chair, but he said ‘no, you are the one who has gone through the treatment experience. It should be your name,’” she said. “But the names aren’t really important. What’s important is giving this gift to help in research and treatment and, hopefully, to eventually find a cure.”
Hall said she values her time on the Cancer Center board, and is especially excited about Vanderbilt-Ingram’s $10 million capital campaign to fund expansion of the Henry-Joyce Cancer Clinic. Construction has already begun to improve research areas and dramatically expand the clinic, providing a more comfortable, healing environment for patients and their families.
“We really need this additional space,” she said. “We’ve run out of room, and we need better treatment areas and waiting room space. It’s such a stressful time (having cancer), and I have experience from two very different sides – as a board member and also as a patient.”
- NANCY HUMPHREY |
