Sigonella Navy Orthodontist Honored with International Virdimura Award

By Dr. Alberto Lunetta, NAS Sigonella Public Affairs

Few people probably know about Virdimura, a Jewish woman from Sicily during the Middle Ages who made history as the first licensed doctor in the world. However, she now shares a powerful connection to NAS Sigonella.

Virdimura stood up for a woman’s right to be a professional physician in a world where women were not allowed to practice as doctors. She was intelligent, skilled and very generous. She was trained by her husband who was a surgeon from Catania and eventually, in 1376, was granted the license to practice medicine throughout the state by the Sicilian royal court, therefore becoming the first ever licensed doctor in the world. Instead of working for the nobles as many of her male colleagues did, Virdimura decided to support disabled, poor and the needy people. In other words, she embodied women’s rights and emancipation as well as the qualities of a true generous volunteer. Today, her legacy lives on through the work of thousands of women who make a difference in many communities where access to healthcare is limited.

In 2013, Catania-based doctor, writer, poet and professor Cristina Tornali and her husband Ignazio Vecchio, a neurologist and professor of History of Medicine at the University of Catania, created the “International Virdimura Award” to honor healthcare professionals and philanthropists who have distinguished themselves through excellence, volunteering and contributions to intercultural education and the promotion of peace and equality among people of the world.

In particular, this award is aimed at promoting gender equality, social inclusion and the advancement of women in the fields of education, health and work while simultaneously fighting discrimination and social prejudice against people with disabilities and minorities. The award is also focused on raising awareness and tackling violence against women, especially by their partners or spouses.

The Virdimura award is sponsored by the following organizations: AIN, (Associazione Italiana per Neurodisabili (Italian Neurodisability Association), Centro Siciliano dell’Accademia di Storia dell’Arte Sanitaria (Sicilian Center of the Academy for the History of the Sanitary Art) and was patronized by the Italian Ministry of Education and University (MIUR) and the Società Italiana di Storia della Medicina e di Bioetica (Italian Society of the History of Medicine and Bioethics).

Over the years, other Virdimura Award recipients have included President of Malta Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca and other individuals who have promoted the values of solidarity, dialogue, peace and understanding among cultures in the Mediterranean area.

On July 22, Cmdr. Corinne Devin, a passionate and dedicated Sigonella Naval Hospital Navy orthodontist, was the recipient of this year’s Virdimura Award. The ceremony took place at the Mercure Hotel in Catania and was attended by a group of Catania University medical school students and local professionals from different sectors, including entrepreneurs, doctors, lawyers, magistrates and the honorary consuls of Greece and Azerbaijan.

In attendance on behalf of NAS Sigonella was a delegation from the Naval Hospital, led by Lt. Deanna Ciaccia, the Hospital COMREL representative, and a group of Marines and sailors from SPMAGTF-CR-AF 20.2 who were accompanied by Chaplain Mike Wise.

Tornali said the annual award ceremony showcases the outstanding achievements of inspirational women who, like Devin, work hard, give back to society and inspire and motivate other young women across the globe to pursue STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education and careers.

Devin, who will end her Sigonella tour in the fall, has made an impact on the relationship with the host nation during her service in Sicily by volunteering her time and talent and using her strengths as a compassionate communicator, public speaker and educator. Since 2018, she has volunteered with the NASSIG Public Affairs Office for many community service initiatives, including STEM presentations at Sicilian schools and environmental beach and park cleanups, which she conducted along with her hospital colleagues.

During her tour in Sicily, besides the multiple COMRELs that she has supported in the island, she also spent one week in Azrou, Morocco educating 100 children ages three to five as part of a Cross Cultural Solutions project. Every day, she prepared a lesson in which she taught the children a concept in English and then led a hands-on activity to help them learn it. The teachers, principal and children were excited to have her as a guest teacher since they hadn’t had any visiting professors for several months. “I was humbled by how quickly the children learned despite the cultural and language difference. In a world completely different than my own, no barrier could stop my ability to impact,” Devin said.

At the end of the ceremony, Devin expressed her sincere gratitude to the organizers and addressed the medical students by saying, “I believe that being well rounded in a multitude of areas can inspire, motivate and place the seed of determination into our youth and their peers.”

Devin was born overseas and lived in six different military bases while her father, Cmdr. (retired) Robert F. Devin, served in the Dental Corps. She comes from nine generations of a distinguished Naval family, and her father inspired her to pursue a career in the United States Navy. She deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2009 to Al Asad, Iraq and has enjoyed traveling to over 50 countries in Europe, Middle East and Asia.

While in residency she competed and won the title Ms. Texas. She went on to win Ms. United States 2012, Ms. Galaxy 2014, Ms. Earth 2018 and now Ms. International 2020. These titles have allowed her to get involved with local communities and speak at elementary schools where she mentored young girls and showed them that they can be and do anything- from beauty queen to Navy officer to orthodontist. She has continued to balance her two passions, serving as the keynote speaker at the STEM Conference to over 1,000 middle school girls for the Department of Defense in Japan.

Devin is the department head of dental specialties and the sole orthodontist at U.S. Naval Hospital Sigonella. She currently lives in Catania, Sicily, Italy and has a love for fitness, travel and pageantry.

During the ceremony, the Virdimura Award’s organizers also awarded SPMAGTF-CR-AF 20.2 Marines and sailors for the community relations volunteer events that they have been conducting in Sicily since the beginning of their deployment in the island.