BLESSINGS

GRATEFUL COUPLE GIVES GENEROUSLY IN THE NAME OF ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI

When a young wife and mother in Houston began experiencing pain and fatigue, hair loss, fever, lesions and other symptoms, she felt confused and overwhelmed. She had a newborn, a special needs 2-year-old and a mom recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. “I didn’t want to be a burden to my husband or family, and I had people who needed me,” says the woman who asked to remain anonymous. “I felt ashamed of my failing body. Talking to my husband and doctors was hard, and I swam in that darkness alone for a while. When I was finally diagnosed with lupus 12 years ago, I know my husband was scared and confused, too. Autoimmune diseases are not as straightforward and easy to explain like, for instance, cancer or heart disease.” Nearly a decade after his wife’s diagnosis, the husband was invited to a friend’s home to hear a talk by Dr. David P. Huston, the W. Bryan Trammell Jr. Family Presidential Distinguished Chair in Allergy and Immunology. He was so impressed with Dr. Huston’s plan for a collaborative Immunology Center that — in honor of his wife — he and some of his family members joined together to match funding from another generous supporter to create the St. Francis of Assisi Centennial Chair in Immunology at Houston Methodist.

“Hearing Dr. Huston’s vision and his testimony made me believe this was a God wink,” the husband says. “Here is something that affects someone who means everything to me, and here is a group of people putting all the experience in the world behind it.” After Dr. Huston’s fortuitous talk, the husband was eager to share his wife’s case with Dr. Huston and get the immunologist’s advice. The family’s beloved internist, Dr. Robert Jackson, the C. Richard Stasney, M.D. Distinguished Chair in Performing Arts Medicine, made the introduction. Dr. Huston talked with the couple for two hours, going through every test result from the wife’s records. Since that time, rheumatologist Dr. Richard Rubin was added to the wife’s care team.

At the Houston Methodist Immunology Center, the clinicians are intimately familiar with autoimmune diseases and work together to find the best solutions for each patient. Exceptional patient care for this family — going back to the husband’s grandparents — created a deep, enduring relationship with Houston Methodist. As the couple considered what to name the endowed chair, the wife recalls words she posted over her mirror to read during the darkest days of lupus. It was a prayer her grandmother helped her memorize as a child: the Prayer of St. Francis. “It calls us to have deep-rooted compassion and to be light in darkness,” she says. “We believe the center will bring hope to those who are struggling and shine light on these mysterious diseases. In four or five years, we believe the Immunology Center will be the leader in autoimmune advances, treatment and research. We are humbled to be part of this.” The wife says she believes lupus has given her more gifts than it has taken away. “Living through those dark, lonely times taught me an empathy and perspective that made me a better wife, mother and friend. When I found doctors who could see me — really see me — it was a game changer. I know this Immunology Center will do the same for others.”