Name: Dr. David Wang
Occupation: Cardiologist
Achievement: Dr. Wang joined the staff of Mid-Atlantic Cardiovascular Associates’ Ellicott City office. Wang’s appointment allows the clinic to extend its hours and broaden its scope for patient care. Wang, a University of Maryland School of Medicine graduate, is specialty trained in echocardiography and nuclear cardiology.
Name: Aldemore Turgeon
Occupation: Retired
Home: Eldersburg
Achievement: Turgeon, 87, has been named Baltimore County Public Library’s Volunteer or the Year after volunteering at the Arbutus library once a week for the last 21 years, donating more than 4,300 hours of his time. Even though he no longer lives in Baltimore County, Turgeon loyally makes the trip from Eldersburg to Arbutus, and library employees said his efforts make their days happier and more productive. “Even those of us who do not work directly with Mr. Turgeon are affected by his positive ‘can do’ attitude and bright spirit,” employees said.
“I am humbled by this distinction and dedicate the award to the families caring for youths’ special health care needs, whose empowered voices inspire my work.”
Name: Mel Bellin, Ph.D
Occupation: Assistant Professor, University of Maryland School of Social Work
Achievement: Bellin recently received the Association of University Centers on Disabilities Young Professional Award. She was honored for her integrated program of research in spina bifida and family-centered care.
The award is presented to professionals in the disabilities field who have demonstrated dedication and commitment to people with developmental disabilities through their work as a bridge between the academic sector and the community.
‘These studies will provide the first comprehensive evaluation of the epigenetics of schizophrenia and allow for unprecedented integration of genetic and environmental information about schizophrenia.’
Name: Dr. Andrew Feinberg
Occupation: Professor of medicine and director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Epigenetics in the Institute of Basic Biomedical Sciences
Achievement: Feinberg is leading a team of researchers at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and four other academic medical centers that have been awarded a $9.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Mental Health to map the inherited changes that occur outside a cell’s DNA sequence in people with schizophrenia. These so-called epigenetic marks can be affected by the environment, and an understanding of the epigenome can provide clues to the genetic predispositions for the disease.
