Outstanding Commitment

Tom Lowder, Charles Collat, and Anne and Mike Warren Support Neurology Research

Tom Lowder and Ray Watts

The UAB Department of Neurology has made great strides in the area of memory disorders thanks to the leadership of Ray Watts, M.D., chair of the department. Backing this research is something several generous donors, including Tom Lowder, Charles Collat, and Anne and Mike Warren, consider of utmost importance.

Tom Lowder, chairman and CEO of Colonial Properties Trust, has made significant gifts to the Memory Disorders Research Program in the Department of Neurology to support laboratory and clinical research in memory and cognitive disorders with the ultimate goal of developing new treatments. The funds also will help UAB recruit researchers and other physician-scientists who are pursuing leading-edge scientific studies aimed at unraveling the causes of dementia and developing new treatments. In addition, funding has been provided to support the work of Ling Li, Ph.D., and others in the UAB Center for Aging related to the study of statins in dementia/Alzheimer’s disease. Also, the philanthropic funds helped with the recruitment and support of a research nurse manager to help coordinate memory-disorder clinical research projects and programs that are studying new treatments.

Lowder and his wife, Jarman, have previously established the Jarman F. Lowder Endowed Scholarship in Nursing through the Thomas H. and Jarman F. Lowder Foundation and offered the lead gift to establish the Albert F. LoBuglio Endowed Chair for Translational Research in the School of Medicine. Lowder has hosted two of the past three Memory Disorders Community Awareness and Fundraising Dinners along with Watts and the Department of Neurology. He co-hosted the last one with Charles Collat.

Charles Collat

Collat, chairman emeritus of Mayer Electric Supply Company, Inc., also has made a generous contribution to the Department of Neurology to assist in the recruitment of the director of the Division of Memory Disorders and Behavioral Neurology. The director will focus on promoting education, uncovering the causes of age-related memory disorders, and developing appropriate therapeutic interventions to aid patients and families afflicted with neurological illnesses. A portion of the funds will be used to create the Patsy W. and Charles A. Collat Endowed Professorship in Neuroscience, which will support ongoing research into age-related memory disorders performed at UAB. The director will be known initially as the Patsy W. and Charles A. Collat Scholar in Neuroscience until the professorship is fully funded.

Charles Collat, along with his wife, Patsy, created the first endowed academic chair in industrial distribution in the School of Business, named in honor of Mrs. Collat’s father, the late Mr. Ben S. Weil. The program is now named the Charles and Patsy Collat Industrial Distribution Program to honor their further contributions. They also gave the lead gift for the Charles A. and Patsy W. Collat Endowed Chair in Neurosurgery in the School of Medicine and have supported several other units and programs on campus.

Mike and Anne Warren

Mike Warren, former CEO of Energen Corporation and now president and CEO of Children’s Health System, and his wife, Anne, also are supporting memory-disorders research in the Department of Neurology. Warren made his first commitment at the memory-disorders dinner two years ago, establishing the Warren Family Endowed Research Fund in Neurology. The Warrens’ most recent gift will be used to create the Warren Family Endowed Professorship in Neurology as possibly an intermediate step to an endowed chair. The physician-scientist who would be supported by these funds would be known initially as the Warren Family Scholar in Neurology.

Warren has served on the board of directors of The University of Alabama Health Services Foundation and currently serves on the UAB Leadership Cabinet. Ardent supporters of UAB, the Warrens have contributed to numerous units on campus.

“These philanthropists have made a great impact on our state, the city of Birmingham, and our community through their generosity and kindness,” Watts says. “I am extremely grateful that they have also made a difference in the Department of Neurology and our fight against memory disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease. Their generous support plays a significant role in allowing us to accelerate our research efforts and bring attention to the devastating effects of memory disorders on our loved ones and others throughout the world. The vital support provided by these individuals allows us to gain a greater understanding of the causes of memory disorders and will ultimately lead us to new treatments and a cure.”

Maintaining the Momentum / Summer 2010