Mayo Clinic to Celebrate Heritage Days Oct. 5–9

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Mayo Clinic’s annual Heritage Days celebration takes place next week, Oct. 5–9. An array of celebratory events and activities will be held across the institution to thank all of the dedicated employees and volunteers who provide service to patients. All events and activities are free and open to the public.

The theme of this year’s Heritage Days is "Salute to Service,” which honors the involvement of various generations of Mayo Clinic employees and supporters of the armed forces who served on the battlefield and homefront.

The year 2015 marks the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War, during which William Worrall Mayo, M.D., moved to Rochester upon his appointment as an enrolling surgeon for the Union Army, as well as the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, during which Mayo Clinic provided innovative medical science.

MEDIA CONTACT: Kelley Luckstein, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs,
507-284-5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu

Come celebrate Heritage Days with weeklong entertainment and family fun for all ages. Here are some events taking place across Mayo Clinic’s Rochester campus Oct. 5–9:

• Watch the premiere of a new Heritage Film, “Serving with Honor: Mayo Clinic and the Military,” which showcases the Mayo Clinic community serving and supporting the military.
• View an exhibit honoring the milestone anniversaries of several Mayo Clinic buildings.
• Relive the 1940s by visiting two displays of vintage military and civilian vehicles in Annenberg Plaza. Come view a 1941 Willys Jeep MB owned by Andrew Wood, son of Earl Wood, M.D., Ph.D., who helped in Mayo’s groundbreaking aviation research in World War II, along with a 1940 Chrysler Windsor Coupe owned by Bruce Wolff, M.D., Mayo Clinic emeritus surgeon, and maintained by Steven Erickson, Mayo Clinic Facilities Operations.
• Commemorate Mayo Clinic employees who served in World War I. A display on the Mayo Clinic Hospital – Rochester, Saint Marys Campus, showcases a commendation to a Saint Marys nurse for bravely conducting surgery during combat and a homefront banner honoring personnel in service.
• Enjoy a carillon concert featuring patriotic tunes on Thursday, Oct. 8, from noon to 12:45 p.m. in Annenberg Plaza.
• Visit Mayo Clinic's Research Information Center in the Gonda Lobby on Oct. 8 at 1:30 p.m. to hear from Mayo researcher Michael Yaszemski, M.D., Ph.D., talk about Mayo's history of military research and how Mayo researchers are spearheading revolutionary musculoskeletal analysis of regeneration of nerve and bone. Scientists are creating innovative medicine for critically wounded service members. Their research focuses on wound healing, bone and facial reconstruction, and nerve and burn repair via either regeneration or transplant.
• Learn about the history of primary findings in anesthesia through displays and exhibits honoring the 125th anniversary of Nurse Anesthesia Education at Mayo Clinic. In 1889, William Worrall Mayo, M.D., taught Edith Graham, RN, Rochester's first trained nurse, how to apply chloroform. Since then, Mayo Clinic has provided pioneering education in anesthesia and created an intensive Doctor of Nurse Anesthesia Practice Program.

For a listing of events and more information, visit the Heritage Days’ website at http://history.mayoclinic.org/tours-events/heritage-days.php.

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