Connecting in Kettering!

A lovely afternoon spent making new connections and catching up with old friends at our Alumni Gathering in Kettering, Ohio!

A special thank you to Peter `08 and Jennifer Bouz for hosting our afternoon.

We’re looking forward to continuing the connections with our Nashville-area alumni at our upcoming Alumni Gathering in Nashville, Tennessee, on October 20!

#llusmproud #llusmaa

Alumni Association staff enjoyed connecting with medical students at the 2026 Engagement Fair at the Wong Kerlee International Conference Center. The Fair was organized by the School of Medicine.

At the Fair students learned about the many ways the Alumni Association supports them throughout medical school, including financial assistance for student mission trips, professional residency portraits, away rotation scholarships, research and scholarly activity support.

The Engagement Fair also gave students an opportunity to connect with student members of special interest groups and other organizations across the School of Medicine.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by to say hello!

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The class of 2029 took a well-deserved pause after their recent exam to connect, discuss the challenging questions, and enjoy bagels and cookies provided by the Alumni Association.

These post-exam treats are one of our Alumni Association favorites, a way to give students a chance to unwind, support each other, and build community.

Wishing the class of 2029 all the best as they continue their medical education!

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We had a great time with our alumni and their families in Boise this past weekend! It was a wonderful evening of reconnecting, sharing memories, and spending time together.

A big thank-you to Joe ’87 and Desiree Verska for graciously hosting, and to Jon Kattenhorn ’74 for representing the Alumni Association.

We loved seeing everyone and bringing our alumni community together in the Boise, Idaho area.

Next stop: Kettering, Ohio! We’re looking forward to our next Alumni Gathering on September 26. If you’re in the area, we’d love to see you there! RSVP through the link in our bio.

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the terror attacks on September 11, 2001. Mark Bolton ’94, shares a personal reflection on a colleague whose life was lost aboard United Flight 93 that day.

“The USAF Reserve co-pilot serving on United Flight 93 that day, Major Lee Homer, was a comrade in my USAF Reserve squadron based at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

As you may recall, the flight crashed into a field in western Pennsylvania near the town of Shanksville. The field was a relatively short drive from my home in eastern Ohio at the time, so I was to become one of the first members of our Air Force squadron to visit the site a few days after the crash.

After arriving at the crash site, I stood behind the crime scene boundaries and watched a small group of federal investigators. These investigators were still marking objects as they walked through the plane’s debris field on that cold, clear fall day. I felt incredibly sad—and angry.

At the time Lee’s baby daughter, Laurel, was less than a year old, and his beautiful young wife, Melody, was now a widow. On that fateful day these ‘ordinary Americans’ were each presented with a choice—to be victims or to fight. They chose to fight.”

Photograph in the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

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September marks Hispanic Heritage Month, recognizing the contributions and presence of Hispanic and Latino American medical professionals.

“Hispanic Heritage Month is meaningful to me,” said Diana Alvarez (’27), “because it reminds me where I come from, and that my heritage is part of the foundation that brought me here.”

Diana is half Colombian and half Dominican. Her parents immigrated to the U.S. when they were in their twenties. Her earliest memories of medicine come from her father, whose dream was to become a physician. “From a young age, he shared his passion for medicine with me and that planted that seed in my heart.”

For Diana, medicine provides an opportunity to serve others and reflect Christ’s love through compassionate, whole-person care.

Her service with Fusion Homeless Ministry in San Bernardino is helping to define her path into medicine. Her experience working with the homeless “has profoundly shaped the physician I want to become,” she said. “I initially thought I was going to help others, but I quickly realized how much my unhoused friends have changed me. They have taught me to slow down, listen, build relationships, and see people as God sees them, as His precious children.”

The Paying It Forward Scholarship has also been an important part of her medical school journey, easing financial stress and connecting her with an alumnus who provides mentorship as she considers her future in medicine.

As Diana reflects on the meaning of Hispanic Heritage Month, she hopes the next generation will remember the sacrifices and courage of those who came before them, and carry that same perseverance forward.

Her dream is to become a physician who brings compassion and presence into each patient encounter, while continuing to serve communities that are often overlooked.

#llusmaa #FutureAlum #HispanicHeritageMonth

As we celebrate Women in Medicine Month we would like to highlight one our alumni, Vanessa Miller ’96. Miller is the only full-time OB-GYN specialist at Guam Seventh-day Adventist Clinic in Tamuning, where she provides care on one of the most remote inhabited islands in the world.

For women facing high-risk pregnancies or cancer, Guam’s geographic isolation makes access to specialized care challenging. Even with the availability of temporary relief, “The clinic’s capacity is much more than one permanent OB-GYN physician can provide,” she said. In addition to a full schedule, at least one patient each week requires complex gynecologic care.

Working in Guam Adventist Clinic, Miller has experienced some of the greatest fulfillment of her career. She also appreciates the island’s beauty, which reminds her of her childhood home in the Bahamas.

Miller’s service extends far beyond Guam. She has practiced women’s health medicine in the U.S. and the Bahamas, and has served on medical mission trips to Indonesia, Kenya, and Mexico. She also sponsored 20 refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to attend a Seventh-day Adventist secondary school in Rwanda.

Her dream is to one day establish a lifestyle center offering disease prevention and treatment, continuing Christ’s healing ministry through education and compassionate care.

In this photo, Miller is filming a segment on HPV prevention for a local education campaign at the Clinic’s Women’s Health Offices.

#llusmaa #womeninmedicine

Miller pauses atop Fort Soledad, a historic site overlooking the village of Humatak (Umatac) and the bay where Magellan landed on Guam.

Vanessa Miller ’96, is the only full-time OB-GYN specialist at Guam Seventh-Day Adventist clinic in Tamuning.

September is Women in Medicine Month when the leadership and lasting contributions of women physicians are honored. One of the School of Medicine’s earliest women graduates, Olive Smith, class of 1915 forged a remarkable medical career.

Smith was a member of the College of Medical Evangelists’ (now Loma Linda University) second graduating class. She became Loma Linda University’s first physician alumni to serve the Seventh-day Adventist Church in an overseas mission appointment. She traveled to Chuharkana, India (now Pakistan), where she was assigned to care for women and children. When the hospital director left on furlough, Smith was entrusted with leadership of the entire medical facility.

She later served in Bangalore and Vellore, India, before retiring and returning to Loma Linda. She lived on Prospect Avenue until her death on April 28, 1946.

Recently, a personal connection to Smith found its way to the Alumni Association.

At an estate sale, Michael Boyko SD’75, assistant professor of oral and maxillofacial surgery at the School of Dentistry, discovered a piece of ephemera that caught his attention: a diploma bearing the original wax seal of the College of Medical Evangelists, now Loma Linda University.

The diploma had belonged to Olive Smith. As Boyko examined the document, he was fascinated by the signatures of Drs. Newton Evans, Edward Risley, John Burden, and Alfred Shryock, whose names would later be honored on buildings across the Loma Linda campus.

Boyko acquired the diploma, and more than 100 years after it was awarded to Smith, it was donated to the Alumni Association.

One additional detail stands out: the diploma measures 18 inches wide by 14 inches tall, making it far too large to fit in a modern diploma holder.

#llusmaa #womeninmedicine

On August 12, at 8:30 p.m. local time, a group of alumni, spouses, family, and friends experienced the total solar eclipse off the coast of the island of Mallorca, Spain.

The idea for the journey began with a conversation during the Alumni Association’s lifetime experience trip to Norway in 2024. During the cruise, a few alumni from the class of ’86 began talking about traveling together to witness the eclipse. The class organized the cruise and spread the word through email, mail, and during 2025 and 2026 class reunions.

From the deck of a cruise ship, the group watched the moon cover the sun, revealing its luminous corona against a darkened sky. “It was breathtaking to witness the total solar eclipse,” said Marilene Wang ’86. “It was an unforgettable experience.”

Twenty-nine alumni experienced the eclipse together: 20 classmates from the class of ’86, six from the class of ‘84, two from the class of ’74, and one from the class of ’91, along with spouses, family members, and friends.

Eclipse notes: The path of the solar eclipse totality crossed northern Spain. A partial eclipse was visible across parts of the U.S. and Canada, much of Europe, and northwestern Africa. The eclipse was Spain’s first total solar eclipse since 1905. It was the first total eclipse visible from central and western Europe since 1999.

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A new library is opening doors to opportunity for hundreds of children in a rural Maasai village in Tanzania, made possible by Briana Greene ’23.

Through her nonprofit, Hearts 2 Hands, Greene created Lendikinya Children’s Library in Monduli, Tanzania. The library is an educational center for more than 800 students at the local primary school and for families in the community.

At the library there are spaces to read, study, create, explore science and music, and access computers and the internet. More than 4,000 pounds of books were collected through donations and traveled 8,000 miles from the United States to fill its shelves.

The library, which opened its doors on July 17, is a daily resource for the community, with a permanent librarian.

Hearts 2 Hands is a partner mission organization of the Alumni Association To learn more about Hearts 2 Hands, tap the link in our bio.

Read more in the Summer 2026 ALUMNI JOURNAL.

#llusmaa #llusmproud #Hearts2Hands

Loma Linda University medical student Stephen Dwumfour ’26, co-founded AI-HEAL (Artificial Intelligence for Health, Education, Advocacy, and Leadership), a university-wide club.

Since its creation in April, 2025, AI-HEAL membership has grown to more than 100 students from Loma Linda’s schools who are collaborating to discuss and learn more about the place AI can have in healthcare.

With mentorship from Christopher G. Wilson, PhD-FAC, and Fred Armstrong, education technology services director of learning innovation, AI-HEAL has organized numerous educational and networking events, including Artificial Intelligence for Health, Education, Advocacy and Leadership seminars; The Fall 2025 AI Symposium; faculty presentations and panel discussions; interactive workshops; and educational sessions on emerging AI technologies.

Read the full story in the Summer 2026 ALUMNI JOURNAL. Link in bio.

#AlumniJournal #LLUSMAA

The Alumni Association staff greatly appreciates our 23 summer volunteers, who collectively contributed 409 hours. Volunteers scanned photos and slides, updated almost all the alumni profiles with graduation photos, and did many other helpful tasks. Thank you, summer volunteers.

Clarence S. Ing ’31, an anesthesiologist, and Isabel Ing ‘50, who specialized in family medicine, are remembered for an aviation first.

On August 26, 1959, during a flight from London to New York, they delivered twins. The event was significant as it showed that babies could be safely delivered in flight, knowledge helpful to future medical evacuations and for in-flight medical care. Dr. Clarence Ing entered medical school just 14 years after the world’s first commercial flight.

In-flight births are rare. A study published in the Journal of Travel Medicine reports that fewer than one infant a year was born in-flight during the 89 years from 1929 to 2018.

The photo of the Pan American Airways pilot and stewardesses who were on the flight is from Dr. Ing’s personal photo collection.

Source: “Here and There With Alumni,” ALUMNI JOURNAL, October 1959, Vol. 30, No. 10.

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Hygge (who-guh) noun • Danish

Creating a warm atmosphere and enjoying good things in life with good people.

Ted Hamilton ‘73-A, president, treated the Alumni Association employees to a staff appreciation getaway in Solvang, California, to thank them for the work they do. The time together provided the opportunity to connect and get to know each other better.

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It’s always a privilege to see a new class receive their white coats and begin their medical school journey. We are excited to support the class of 2030 as students and as future alumni. Welcome to Loma Linda University!

#llusmaa #lomalinda #medicalschool #whitecoatceremony

It was wonderful to reconnect with alumni as their children, our future alumni, begin their own medical journeys at LLUSM.

We were grateful to have School of Medicine Dean Dr. Thomas and Dean of Student Affairs Dr. Lopez join us for the social.

The class of 2030 started orientation this week and we welcomed them with icebreakers, games, and food.

This welcome picnic is a long-held tradition that makes students feel at home.

#llusmaa #llumed #medicalschool

Linda Hyder Ferry ’79-B pioneered research at Loma Linda Veterans Affairs Medical Center (LLVA) that led to Bupropion HCl (Zyban ®) becoming the first FDA-approved, non-nicotine medication for tobacco treatment (1997).

Instead of pursuing nicotine replacement treatment options, Hyder Ferry conceived that targeting neurotransmitters responsible for nicotine dependence could reduce nicotine cravings and withdrawal symptoms. Her approach to address the neurobiology of brain addiction transformed tobacco treatment research concepts that continue to benefit millions of tobacco users worldwide.

In recognition of her contribution, the World Health Organization presented her with the Tobacco Control Medal Award (1999). Loma Linda University (LLU) awarded her a Centennial Vanguard Award in Research for her landmark contributions to preventive medicine (2006), and in 2011, she was named an Honored Alumni by the Alumni Association.

She provided tobacco dependence treatment to over 18,000 veterans at LLVA before retiring in 2024. With the LLU School of Public Health (SPH) faculty, she was awarded a grant from National Institutes of Health’s Fogarty International Center that advanced tobacco control research capacity and legislation to reduce tobacco use in Cambodia and Laos (2001).

She said, “When I completed MPH training at LLUSPH in 1987, I felt compelled to direct my public health and preventive medicine career to address a major public health problem. I was intrigued when I learned that tobacco is the most preventable cause of death and disease, and I dreamed I could make a difference. Because I was treating veterans with the highest U.S. smoking rate, tobacco addiction became a mission field of my career. I was driven by the Holy Spirit in my search to find a solution to the powerful nicotine addiction…Unexpected doors opened repeatedly, allowing my pursuit of truth to discover the power of bupropion (Zyban) that uniquely stabilizes brain chemistry, reducing nicotine craving and withdrawal symptoms. I was rewarded the most by the look of gratitude in the eyes of my veterans when they were freed from the power of tobacco. My license plate is ZYBAN MD.”

Linda Hyd

We are proud to introduce this year’s Paying It Forward Scholarship recipients!

Made possible through the generosity of our alumni, this scholarship provides financial support and meaningful mentorship from alumni to the next generation of physicians.

Thank you to our alumni for your continued generosity and commitment to paying it forward. Your support is changing lives and making a lasting impact.

To learn more about the scholarship and sign up to become a mentor, tap the link in our bio.

World War II was raging when this D-Day photo of troops disembarking from the USS Samuel Chase onto Omaha Beach was taken by chief photographer’s mate Robert F. Sargent. At that very time, perhaps the youngest class in the history of the School of Medicine was preparing to enroll. It was 1944, a major year in World War II, with D-Day and the Normandy Invasion on June 6 among many major military campaigns.

Less than a month later, 54 students with an average age of just 19 years began medical school at the College of Medical Evangelists (now Loma Linda University). Nicknamed the “preemies,” many of them had graduated from high school just two years earlier. Some had left high school halfway into their senior year, awarded “Victory” diplomas to help meet the U.S. wartime need for physicians.

Facing a July 1, 1944, deadline to enroll in medical school or be drafted, they had completed their pre-med studies, facing heavy course loads and summer sessions. The admissions committee at Loma Linda made this possible, creating a plan so they could enroll
just one day before the deadline. Many went on to serve their country as commissioned military physicians.

Main photo, in the public domain, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons; it is part of the records of the U.S. Coast Guard.

Second photo: Freshman medical school class (1944), courtesy of LLU Del E. Webb Memorial Library, Archives and Special Collections.

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