Our Supporters

The Neurosurgical Oncology Section and Brain Tumor Surgery Program at the Yale Department of Neurosurgery is grateful to be supported by numerous donors whose contributions further our ability to promote excellence in patient care, research, and education. While we cannot list all of the donations we have been fortunate to receive, below is a list of donors who have contributed substantially, (over $100,000), to advancing the care of our patients, our pursuit of science and educating our own and others around the world.

Patients or potential donors can email Amairanai Pina for more information.

The Lovemark Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded by PGA Tour professional Jamie Lovemark and his wife, Tiva, with the purpose of offering financial support to patients with brain tumors. Jamie and Tiva came to recognize and appreciate the impact a brain tumor diagnosis can have on any patient and his/her family and formed the Lovemark Fund for Brain Tumor Patient Support. The Fund helps our patients financially, (like helping with mortgages or other types of expenses) while undergoing brain tumor treatment at the Yale Brain Tumor Center at Smilow Cancer Hospital or one of its affiliates. The Foundation’s yearly Lovemark ProAm Golf Event, held at the Hudson National Golf Course, a “bucket list” golf course, in Westchester, NY is a significant source of revenue for this fund. Since 2018, the Lovemark Foundation has generously donated their monies solely to the Yale Brain Tumor Center. Dr. Jennifer Moliterno serves as the Chair of the Lovemark Fund Committee and oversees reviewing applications and allocating funds.

In 2018, Dr. Susan Beris, a well-loved, Yale-trained Connecticut pediatrician was diagnosed with a brain tumor. She underwent a neurosurgery with an awake craniotomy performed by Dr. Jennifer Moliterno and later underwent additional treatment at the Yale Brain Tumor Center at Smilow Cancer Hospital. In response to her gratitude for the excellent care she received, she started the “Susan Beris, MD Fund for the Yale Brain Tumor Surgery Program.” “I am indebted to Yale as an institution; they have taken me full circle,” writes Dr. Beris. “I was the recipient of a tremendous medical education that led to a fulfilling career as a pediatrician. Most recently, as a patient, I have been a recipient of tremendous care from a spectacular team of caregivers and the technology that only a large academic medical center can provide.” This Fund is overseen by Dr. Jennifer Moliterno.

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The Connecticut Brain Tumor Alliance (CTBTA) provides brain tumor patient assistance funds for local Connecticut families through the Oncology Social Work Fund at Smilow Cancer Hospital. The support helps patients and their families meet necessary living expenses like household bills, groceries and childcare during a challenging diagnosis and treatment period. The CTBTA also provides funding for innovative brain tumor clinical research at the Yale Brain Tumor Center. Their support over the years has been invaluable in direct patient assistance and in moving vital research forward.

The Michael S. Voynick Lecture was established in 1997, by Ms. Irene Voynick, in honor of her nephew. This substantial endowment provides funding for a world-renowned physician-scientist with prominent expertise in the treatment and/or research of brain tumors to visit the Yale Brain Tumor Center. This is a prestigious honor of excellence bestowed upon the most elite members of Neuro- Oncology community. Selection has been overseen by Dr. Joseph Piepmeier since its inception, with a more recent direction led by Dr. Jennifer Moliterno.

The Voynick Visiting Fellowship was created to support visiting clinicians from international medical centers who study the evaluation and treatment of patients with brain tumors. The goal is for these visiting fellowships is to establish ongoing collaborative relationships between the Yale Section of Neurosurgical Oncology and other prestigious medical centers around the world with the goal of enhancing our knowledge about brain tumors and surgery.

The Thudichum Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship was established in 2005 by Irene Voynick in the Section of Neuro-Oncology in the Department of Neurosurgery at Yale. The Fund honors the 19th Century German medical practitioner and surgeon, Johann Ludwig Wilhelm Thudichum for his early work in identifying the chemical composition of the brain, and who is regarded as the foremost pioneer of neurochemistry. The funds support a PhD or MD/PhD for the study of brain tumors. This fund is overseen by Dr. Joseph Piepmeier.

The Cusano Family Fund for Brain Tumor Research was started in 2014 by a grateful patient and his family. Chris Cusano and his family organized an annual fundraiser for the Yale Brain Tumor Center to express their gratitude for the work of the doctors, nurses and researchers who work tirelessly in their quest to advance treatments and find the cure. All monies are donated to the Yale Brain Tumor Center to support clinical and laboratory research under the auspices of Dr. Joseph Piepmeier. A large focus of the research endeavors supported by this fund has focused on studying central neurocytomas, a rare type of brain tumor.

The Jerry Matteis Fund for Neuro-Oncology was established in 2012 by the Matteis family in honor of their beloved Jerry, who passed away from a brain tumor. This fund is dedicated to providing support for finding a cure for brain tumors and is overseen by Dr. Joseph Piepmeier.

In 2004, Tisa Kubek Stucliffe passed away at 32 years old from a brain tumor. The following year Tisa’s family, Jayne and Walter Kubek held their first fundraiser to support research in neuro-oncology at Yale. This annual event is held each September, and all net proceeds from the money raised are directed to brain tumor research at Yale.