Former Kansas
Masonic Foundation Board Member Mark Morris, Jr., was dedicated to
helping others and making a difference in his community. His death in
2007 was not from cancer, but he saw the effect it had on those around
him. On April 9th his family honored his legacy as a veterinary
researcher, businessman, Mason, and family man to help in the fight
against cancer.
The Morris Family Foundation has given $2 million
to the Partnership for Life Campaign to establish the Mark and Bette
Morris Family Chair in Cancer Prevention. The gift will support a
physician scientist, specializing in breast cancer prevention, at the
University of Kansas Cancer Center.
For
Bette Morris, giving to the cancer center was an easy decision. Bette
said her husband was passionate about helping the University of Kansas
Cancer Center become a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated
Comprehensive Cancer Center because he knew how much it would benefit
the community.
“My family and I are so pleased to be able
to not only support the Kansas Masons and their work for the KU Cancer
Center, but to continue to build the outstanding breast cancer
prevention programs that Dr. Carol Fabian has pioneered at KU,” Morris
said.
The Kansas Masonic Foundation made this gift
possible, in support of the Kansas Masonic Cancer Research Institute
and the University of Kansas Cancer Center. The gift was presented at a
ceremony at the Kansas Masonic Cancer Research Institute (KMCRI) in
Kansas City.
“We are grateful to the Morris Family
Foundation for their foresight and generosity in providing a solid
footing for our Breast Cancer Prevention program,” said Roy Jensen,
M.D., director of the KMCRI and the KU Cancer Center. “This generous
gift will further accelerate the discovery and development of new ways
to prevent this devastating disease.”
KMF President Jeff Sowder representing the
Foundation accepted the gift from the family saying, “Mark Morris was
an outstanding man, a Kansas Mason and a six year board member for the
Kansas Masonic Foundation. It was Mark’s belief that the greatest
contribution he could make to charitable causes was to grow their
endowments, enabling others to fulfill the mission. And, that is what
he did for the Kansas Masonic Foundation. Mark supported our mission
and was passionate about seeing the KU Cancer Center achieve
NCI-designation.”
Jeff continued saying that Mark’s work
ethic guided his career as a leading veterinary researcher and made him
a successful businessman as the developer of Science Diet pet foods. He
told the crowd at the ceremony including KMF Board Member Craig
Stallwitz and Executive Director Mark Nelson that Mark left behind a
true legacy which will never be forgotten.
The Mark and Bette Morris Family Chair in
Cancer Prevention is the sixth endowed professorship established
through the work of KMF.
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