Jane Rips finds it ironic that she’s getting an award for her service to research.
“The clinicians, the researchers, and the statisticians that I serve with are the ones who should be recognized for what they do,” said the recipient of the 2014 Community Service to Research Award. “They are so busy, working hard to save lives and change lives, and I’m always astonished at the time and thought they give to the clinical trials and the work of the Scientific Research Committee (SRC).
You’re invited!
The campus is invited to attend the ninth annual Distinguished Scientist Ceremony at 4 p.m. today at the Durham Research Center Auditorium. Each year, faculty members who have made significant contributions to the research enterprise at UNMC are recognized by the leadership and their peers. This year, 25 researchers and one community volunteer will be recognized for their accomplishments. The Scientist Laureate, Tatiana Bronich, Ph.D., will deliver an address to the assembly and a reception honoring the awardees will be held immediately following the award ceremony.
“So I’m really honored to be receiving this — it was a lovely surprise.”
Ken Cowan, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, calls Rips “a tireless community volunteer who has a long history of actively supporting and advocating for cancer research at the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center.”
Rips has served on the board of directors of the cancer center’s Advocates group since 2001. This year, for the third time since it was initiated in 1988, she will be chairing the Ambassador of Hope Gala, which has raised more than $6 million for cancer research at the center since 1988, for the third time in 2015.
She has also served on the SRC since 2009.
“My role on the SRC is to be the patient’s voice, or the family member voice or the lay person’s voice,” she said, “to ask the questions that are important to the success of the clinical trials and of the people participating. Are things too difficult to follow? Who’s going to pay for this? How will this make the patient’s life better?”
Her work on the SRC also gives her a unique double view of the work at the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center — after helping raise money for research, she’s given what she calls an “incredible opportunity” to see the actual research under way.
“I believe so passionately in the work these researchers are doing,” she said. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to see inside the world of cancer research and to see how fast changing it is.”
As the new cancer center takes shape, Rips is excited not only for the research that will be happening there, but also for the patient care.
“The integration of research and patient care all in one building, and the thought and work that has gone into creating this is so exciting. I know that it’s going to be world-class, and that brings so much honor to Omaha – just one more reason why this is a wonderful place to live.”
Congratulations Jane! Your energy and positive mind set provide others with a goal we can only hope to achieve some day. May good fortune continue to fall on you as you bless others around you.
A well deserved honor for Jane!