Gifts support children and breast cancer care

Humble Roots and a Big Heart

ven though she never had children of her own, young people always held a special place in Rose Zimmerman’s heart. And two years after her death, she continues to contribute to their well-being. A gift of $230,000, which represents the closing of her estate, has been given to the Department of Pediatrics to fund continuing programs at the Mailman Center for Child Development.

A gift of $230,000 also has been given to the University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center to be used for a breast cancer tumor bank at the Braman Family Breast Cancer Institute.

The story of Rose Zimmerman’s life is a testament to hard-working people of modest means who still find a way to give something back. Rose and her brother Irving were raised solely by their mother in New York City. Unable to afford college, the siblings worked as clerks for the city while living at home and supporting their mother until her death. Since neither ever married, they retired together to South Florida in 1981. A few years later Irving died and left his money to Rose. While handling his estate and organizing her own, she revealed her longtime interest in the well-being of children to her attorney, Joel Weiss. He arranged a visit to the Mailman Center and Zimmerman quickly became a fast friend and benefactor.

“Beginning with that first visit she received so much enjoyment and pleasure from spending time with the children at the Mailman Center,” remembers Weiss. “She was a courageous, fun-loving lady.”

Including her latest donation, Zimmerman has given almost $700,000 to the University of Miami School of Medicine for children and cancer research. Among her philanthropic accomplishments: She personally underwrote the cost to print Pediatric Quick Reference Cards used by the Critical Care Trauma Team; she enabled the purchase of an automated karotyping system for the cytogenetics lab; and, she is considered the “first founder” of the UM Children’s Council.

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Honoring Tradition

cott Jaben, M.D. ’77, has fond memories of his student days at the School of Medicine, and he wants to make sure future medical students have the same positive experience. He and his wife, Hillary, have established a new endowment at the school, with the proceeds funding a distinguished speaker for the annual Freshman Pinning Ceremony.

The ceremony, one of the most important events for first-year medical students, is their official welcome to the University of Miami School of Medicine and to the profession of medicine. It is similar to the “white coat ceremony” held at other academic medical institutions. Traditionally, the freshmen are pinned by fourth-year students and alumni of the School of Medicine. If a student’s relative happens to be an alumnus, he or she can request that the family member do the honors.

“Hillary and I were most interested in enriching the lives of the medical students at UM,” says Jaben. “We remember our time in Miami so fondly, and we both agreed that a speaker series for the medical students would be a terrific way to make a lasting contribution to the School of Medicine.”

After receiving his medical degree, Jaben served as chief resident and completed a fellowship at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. He’s now in private practice as an ophthalmologist at Charlotte Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Associates in North Carolina.

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